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Plum Blossom Numerology: the method of foretelling fortune and misfortune by the hexagrams of the I Ching, plum blossom in flower with a hexagram
🌸 PLUM BLOSSOM NUMEROLOGY 梅花易數

Plum Blossom Numerology (梅花易數)

The method of foretelling fortune and misfortune by the hexagrams of the I Ching 易經, created by Thiệu Khang Tiết 邵康節 (Northern Song 北宋, 1011–1077). Cast a hexagram from any thing or event and analyse it by the Five Phases 五行 of Thể 體 and Dụng 用.

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Method
64
Hexagrams
5
Phase
8
Trigram

Distinguishing Features 特點

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Four outstanding merits that make Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數 the best loved of all methods of divination

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Quick

A hexagram is cast in seconds from anything at all, faster than any other method of divination

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Flexible

No coins, no yarrow stalks, no special implements are needed; only observation and intuition

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Widely Applicable

Foretelling how a matter stands, feng shui 風水, finding lost objects, healing: it serves many fields at once

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Intuition

It calls for a poised mind 心機: stillness within and a keen intuition. The more you practise, the more accurate it becomes

4 Methods of Casting a Hexagram 起卦法

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The four principal ways of casting a hexagram in Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數, adapted flexibly to every situation

🕐 METHOD 01

Divining by Time

Use the lunar year, month, day and hour to work out the hexagram. The most basic and most widely used method.

the Upper Trigram 上卦 = (year + month + day) ÷ 8 → remainder
the Lower Trigram 下卦 = (year + month + day + hour) ÷ 8 → remainder
the Moving Line 動爻 = (year + month + day + hour) ÷ 6 → remainder
By convention: 1=Càn 乾, 2=Đoài 兌, 3=Ly 離, 4=Chấn 震, 5=Tốn 巽, 6=Khảm 坎, 7=Cấn 艮, 8=Khôn 坤
👁️ METHOD 02

Divining by Things Observed

Observe a natural phenomenon or an object nearby and cast the hexagram from it. This calls for a high degree of intuition.

Seeing a bird fly → Tốn 巽, Xun (wind)
Hearing thunder → Chấn 震, Zhen (thunder)
Counting paces, or people, or objects…
This is the method that calls for the most poised mind 心機 of all
🔢 METHOD 03

Divining by Number

Use any two numbers that come to mind or that you see, and cast the hexagram from them. Quick and convenient.

Take any 2 numbers (e.g. 15 and 23)
the Upper Trigram 上卦 = the first number ÷ 8 → remainder
the Lower Trigram 下卦 = the second number ÷ 8 → remainder
the Moving Line 動爻 = (the sum of the 2 numbers) ÷ 6 → remainder
✍️ METHOD 04

Divining by Written Characters (測字)

Character Dissection 測字: counting the strokes of a written character (Chinese or Vietnamese) to cast the hexagram. A method of its own kind.

Divide the character into 2 parts, upper and lower or left and right
the Upper Trigram 上卦 = the strokes of the upper part ÷ 8 → remainder
the Lower Trigram 下卦 = the strokes of the lower part ÷ 8 → remainder
the Moving Line 動爻 = the total strokes ÷ 6 → remainder

3 Kinds of Hexagram 三卦

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The three kinds of hexagram to be analysed in Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數, each reflecting one stage of the matter

主卦
Chủ Quẻ 主卦, the Principal Hexagram

The hexagram first cast, reflecting the present, the state of the matter as it stands before you

互卦
Hổ Quẻ 互卦, the Nuclear Hexagram

The intermediate hexagram (lines 2,3,4 + lines 3,4,5), reflecting the course the matter takes as it unfolds

變卦
Biến Quẻ 變卦, the Resulting Hexagram

The hexagram after the moving line changes, reflecting the outcome in which the matter ends

Thể Quái 體卦, the Substance Trigram (體卦)

Trigram without a moving line = it stands for yourself, the subject who asks. Thể 體 needs to be generated and needs to be strong; when Thể 體 is strong, we are strong.

Dụng Quái 用卦, the Function Trigram (用卦)

Trigram with a moving line = it stands for the matter, the object asked about. If Dụng 用 generates Thể 體 it is favourable; if Dụng 用 controls Thể 體 it is unfavourable.

The Generating and Controlling of Thể 體 and Dụng 用 體用生剋

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The most essential principle of all: analysing the Five Phases 五行 relation between Thể 體 and Dụng 用 in order to judge fortune and misfortune

The relation Result Example
Dụng 用 GENERATES Thể 體 ★ GREATLY AUSPICIOUS : we are supported Water 水 generates Wood 木 (Thể 體 = Wood 木)
Thể 體 – Dụng 用 IN ACCORD 比和 AUSPICIOUS : on the same side, favourable Wood 木 meets Wood 木
Thể 體 CONTROLS Dụng 用 NEUTRAL : gained, but with hardship Wood 木 controls Earth 土 (Thể 體 = Wood 木)
Thể 體 GENERATES Dụng 用 INAUSPICIOUS : drain and loss Wood 木 generates Fire 火 (Thể 體 = Wood 木)
Dụng 用 CONTROLS Thể 體 ★ GREATLY INAUSPICIOUS : we are harmed Metal 金 controls Wood 木 (Thể 體 = Wood 木)
The Nuclear Hexagram 互卦 generates Thể 體 Along the way there will be a nobleman to help and support you, and matters improve by degrees.
The Resulting Hexagram 變卦 generates Thể 體 The final outcome is favourable : however hard the course, it succeeds in the end.
Weighing Strength and Weakness One must also weigh whether Thể 體 is strong for the season : Wood 木 is strong in spring, Fire 火 is strong in summer, and so on.

The heart of Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數: Dụng 用 generating Thể 體 = greatly auspicious, Dụng 用 controlling Thể 體 = greatly inauspicious.

“Analysing Thể 體 and Dụng 用 through the generating and controlling of the Five Phases 五行 is the key to every judgement.”

Applications in Feng Shui 風水 應用

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Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數 is widely applied in feng shui 風水 and in everyday life

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Surveying a Dwelling

Cast a hexagram at the moment the house is surveyed. Thể 體 = the householder, Dụng 用 = the house. If Dụng 用 generates Thể 體 → the house is good for its owner. If Dụng 用 controls Thể 體 → the house does not suit him.

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Foretelling an Event

Observe an unusual phenomenon nearby and cast a hexagram at that very moment. The keener the intuition, the more accurate the hexagram.

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Choosing a Moment

Cast a hexagram for the moment you intend to undertake something important: signing a contract, opening a business, holding a wedding. Choose a moment at which Dụng 用 generates Thể 體.

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Combining with the 64 Hexagrams 六十四卦

Linked with Xuan Kong Da Gua 玄空大卦 : use a Plum Blossom hexagram to corroborate and support an in-depth Xuan Kong Da Gua 玄空大卦 analysis.

The Images of the Eight Trigrams 八卦 八卦象

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The eight basic trigrams and the images they carry, the ground on which things are recognised when a hexagram is cast

History & Origin 歷史

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The story of Thiệu Khang Tiết 邵康節 and the birth of Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數

Thiệu Khang Tiết 邵康節 (邵康節)

Given nameThiệu Ung 邵雍 (邵雍)
Posthumous nameKhang Tiết 康節 (康節)
Born1011 CE
Died1077 CE (aged 66)
Erathe Northern Song 北宋 (北宋)
Field of learningI Ching studies 易學, Image and Number 象數, and Principle Learning 理學
WorksPlum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數, the Huang Ji Jing Shi 皇極經世
Distinctive traitsEarly Heaven I Ching studies 先天易學, a rare talent in Image and Number 象數

The story of the plum blossom (梅花)

One winter afternoon Thiệu Khang Tiết 邵康節 sat reading by the window, gazing at a plum garden under snow. All at once he saw two sparrows quarrelling on a plum branch, and both fell to the ground.

Finding this strange, he cast a hexagram from the time and from what he had observed. The hexagram proved perfectly accurate.

From that day he developed it into a complete system for casting a hexagram from any thing or event. Because the first hexagram was cast while gazing at plum blossom (梅花), the method bears the name “Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數”.

“Of the ten thousand affairs and ten thousand things under heaven, every one may cast a hexagram; only sincerity of heart and clarity of purpose are needed.”

Frequently Asked Questions 常見問題

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Start looking things up

Explore the system of Plum Blossom Numerology 梅花易數, from the methods of casting a hexagram to the analysis of how Thể 體 and Dụng 用 generate and control one another

🌸 See the Methods of Casting a Hexagram