Dear student, welcome to the dojo of charts. Before you trade your first Bitcoin or Ethereum, learn the language of its candles. Candlestick charts (born in 18th-century Japan) are the foundation of technical analysis. Each candle tells a story: the thick body from open-to-close and the thin wicks to the high and low show the full price range. A long green (or white) body means buyers won (price went up), a red (or black) body means sellers won (price fell). In other words:
Body: the open-to-close range of the period.
Wicks (Shadows): the thin lines to the highest and lowest prices.
Color: green (or white) means bulls pushed price up; red (or black) means bears pushed price down.
These candles pack a lot of information: traders prefer them because each one shows open, high, low, and close, whereas a simple line chart shows much less. A tall candle body shows strong buying or selling; a tiny body (a “Doji”) means indecision. By reading candles, you instantly gauge market sentiment.
Silently observe the candle, student; even its smallest flicker holds a lesson.
Bullish vs Bearish Candles
Each candlestick represents one time period (e.g. one hour on Binance’s BTC/USDT chart). In the example above, the green Bullish candle closed above its open, and the red Bearish candle closed below its open. In practice: if a candle’s closing price is higher than its opening price, it’s bullish (green). If it closes lower, it’s bearish (red). Thus:
Bullish Candle: closes above open (green), signaling buyers gained control.
Bearish Candle: closes below open (red), signaling sellers took over.
On a crypto chart, one green candle might form after Bitcoin surges — the bulls are celebrating that hour. A red candle might appear after Ethereum dips — the bears are in command. Notice how a string of green candles often means “bulls are strong”; a series of red candles means “bears are winning”. In short, candles paint the emotion: green = optimism/buying, red = pessimism/selling.
Candles Tell a Story
Think of each candlestick as a short sentence in the market’s story. A long green candle shouts “fear of missing out” as buyers rush in, while a long red candle shouts “panic and profit-taking” as sellers push prices down. A candle with a very long lower wick might hint that buyers fought back after selling pressure, and a long upper wick means sellers pushed back on bullish bids. Even without fancy names, you’ll learn that a short-bodied candle means the fight ended in a draw (indecision). By watching many candles together, you sense who is winning the tug-of-war between bulls and bears.
For example, if Bitcoin’s price keeps rising, you’ll see consecutive green candles growing taller — this bullish momentum is easier to spot on a candlestick chart than on a simple line. Conversely, sharp drops show up as towering red candles. Always remember: a long body shows conviction, a short body shows hesitation. Read them patiently.
Sensei Charts teaches that trading is like meditation. Stay calm and disciplined when you watch these candles: don’t rush to conclusions on the first flicker. Each candle’s shape reflects the quiet battle of supply and demand in that moment.
Tomorrow we will master support and resistance and learn where candles tend to pause or reverse. Until then, practice by opening a Binance BTC or ETH chart: identify the green and red candles, note their wicks and bodies. With practice, you will avoid losing $1,000 (or more!) by catching the candle’s lesson in time.
Keep learning, stay curious, and may the markets be in your favor, student.
– Sensei Charts*
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