Kau cim, poe and futomani

Domain XIV · Western esoteric, divinatory & new spiritual movements

What it is

What the practices are, as their institutions and reference works describe them.

Format

• This is not a therapy model, and no source sets phases, session counts or formats for clinical work with these practices. The phases below are. They can sit inside any modality the therapist already uses, and session counts depend on the presenting problem.
• Futomani (太占, also 布斗麻邇, 太兆; also called 鹿卜). This ancient Japanese divination read good or ill fortune from marks produced on a deer's shoulder blade; the procedure is not set out here. Reference works mention the hahaka tree (an old name for uwamizuzakura) in connection with it. The Kojiki refers…

Evidence status, as the guide reports it

• Evidence status (one line). No controlled tests or reviews of the predictive claims of kau cim, poe or futomani are cited here. Within the Taiwanese tradition, the practitioner PTS quotes presents the lot as a deity's advice, not as fixed fate.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Does it use a device, heat, cold, water or a physical procedure? Has a medical professional checked that it is safe for you?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• Breaches of confidentiality within close communities. It is working when the client feels supported by both systems.
• Delaying urgent treatment. It is working when the client brings medical advice into the decision alongside their faith.
• Debt, hiding spending, gambling-like chasing. It is working when spending is a conscious choice the client is comfortable with.
• Lots or blocks replacing assessment; a young person being labelled by a fortune. It is working when the child's needs are being met.
• Fear of going against advice framed as divine. It is working when the client can hold their own view next to the advice without panic.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.