Kua Number and Eight Mansions: Calculation and Direction Reference

Calculate a Life Gua, check worked examples, and understand East and West groups without treating direction labels as guarantees.

In brief

✦Reduce the birth year's four digits to one digit r; men use 11 − r, women use r + 4; wrap into 1–9.
✦A result of 5 becomes 2 for men and 8 for women.
✦Use the year that starts at Li Chun (around 4 February): a January birth belongs to the previous year.
✦East group: 1, 3, 4, 9 → favourable directions north, south, east, southeast. West group: 2, 6, 7, 8 → west, northwest, southwest, northeast.
✦The four favourable directions are 生气 Sheng Qi, 天医 Tian Yi, 延年 Yan Nian, 伏位 Fu Wei; the four unfavourable are 绝命, 五鬼, 六煞, 祸害.

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What the number classifies

Eight Mansions assigns a personal Life Gua, often called a Kua number, using the adopted birth year and the male or female formula. It is a traditional category, distinct from a building’s trigram or a Bazi chart. It is not a measured property of the person.

Use the right year first

The convention used here changes the year at Li Chun. Births before that boundary use the preceding year. Li Chun is not fixed at midnight on February 4 every year. Some forms or report inputs have only date precision; births on the transition day need their time and the calculation boundary checked explicitly.

The four-digit formula

Reduce all four digits of the adopted birth year to one digit r. For the male formula use 11 − r; for the female formula use r + 4. Wrap the result into 1–9, then replace 5 with 2 for male or 8 for female. This guide uses the same formula for the 1900–2099 examples rather than mixing four-digit and two-digit shortcuts.

Worked examples after Li Chun

For a 1988 male birth after Li Chun, 1+9+8+8=26 and 2+6=8, so 11−8=3. For a 1991 male birth, the reduced sum is 2 and the result is 9; the female formula gives 2+4=6. For a 1985 female birth, the reduced sum is 5 and the result is 9. Dates before Li Chun require the preceding year first.

East and West groups

Numbers 1, 3, 4 and 9 form the East group, whose traditionally favorable directions are north, south, east and southeast. Numbers 2, 6, 7 and 8 form the West group, using west, northwest, southwest and northeast. The specific ordering of Sheng Qi, Tian Yi, Yan Nian and Fu Wei depends on the individual Gua.

Direction names and actual room use

Tian Yi is often translated as Heavenly Doctor; that name does not demonstrate a health effect. Likewise, an unfavorable direction is not evidence that a room is dangerous. When considering furniture, prioritize workable access, comfort and actual room conditions. Cultural preferences can be considered among layouts that already meet those needs.

When occupants belong to different groups

An East-group and West-group pair do not share the same favorable-direction set. This is a disagreement between symbolic preferences, not proof of a harmful home or relationship. Discuss how each person uses the room and choose a practical layout; there is no universal arrangement that guarantees a favorable outcome for both.

FAQ

Why is there no personal Kua 5?

In the convention used here, 5 is reassigned to 2 for the male formula and 8 for the female formula.

Does the number change annually?

The personal category stays the same for the same birth inputs. Annual Flying Stars are a separate calculation.

Must I move my bed to a favorable direction?

No. The classification does not justify sacrificing comfort, access or a workable room layout.

Can I use a fixed February 4 cutoff?

Not for a precise boundary birth. Check the actual solar term and the time precision used by the tool.

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