How WWG works? …. continue

We talked about Jing Fang’s 8 Chambers Theory yesterday. It is the first step of Setting. We still need the next step before we can start to decipher.

The Rules of Na-Jia

The Rules of Na-jia (納甲法) is to relate particularly the Earthly Branches to the line of the hexagram. The table below shows how it works.

For Acquired Ba-gua, we have different properties for different trigrams, which are associated with the weathers they represented. For example, Kan ☵ (坎) for Winter, so the property of Kan is Water. Similarly, we have Wood for Zhen ☳ (震) and Xun ☴ (巽), Fire for Li ☲ (離), Metal for Dui ☱ (兌) and Qian ☰ (乾), and Earth for Gen ☶ (艮) and Kun ☷ (坤). Jing Fang was using it as the base for his “8 Chambers Theory”.

To explain why it works would require some lengthy explanation. Perhaps I should stop here. I rather use the following example “Sui of Zhun” (屯之隨) to demonstrate how it works. “Sui of Zhun” means from Zhun (屯) changed to Sui (隨) . The Changed hexagram can be called Bian-gua (變卦) or Zhi-gua (之卦).

How WWG works?

There are totally three steps that you would require to decipher a Yi-shi (易蓍), or the hexagram which you casted: the Casting (起卦, or Qi-gua), the Setting (裝卦, or Zhuang-gua), and the Interpreting (解卦, or Jie-gua). This is applicable to all kinds of Yi-shi, not just WWG.

Casting is easy. All you need is 49 milfoil stalks or 3 rounded coins, through which you “randomly” generate six numbers. Not just any number, but the numbers of 6, 7, 8, or 9. The first number is always for the initial (bottom) line (初爻, or Chu-yao). The second number from the bottom for the second line, and so forth. This is used to determined the Lao, Shao, Yin and Yang, i.e., the Change.

Jing Fang’s 8 Chambers Theory

It requires two basic steps for Setting. The first step is to determine which “Chambers” the original hexagram before change (本卦, or Ben-Gua) belongs to. It is called the “8 Chambers Theory” and is believed to be initiated by Jing Fang (京房) of Han (漢) Dynasty.

For Acquired Ba-gua, we have different properties for different trigrams, which are associated with the weathers they represented. For example, Kan ☵ (坎) for Winter, so the property of Kan is Water. Similarly, we have Wood for Zhen ☳ (震) and Xun ☴ (巽), Fire for Li ☲ (離), Metal for Dui ☱ (兌) and Qian ☰ (乾), and Earth for Gen ☶ (艮) and Kun ☷ (坤). Jing Fang was using it as the base for his “8 Chambers Theory”. See the following Table.

It’s all about Change ….

No matter which type of “Yi-shi” (易蓍) you try to employ for a casting, the basic principle would not alter, i.e., it’s all about change. Sound contradicting.


As far as I remember, Newton’s First Law of Motion said an object will remain where it is or will remain with constant velocity if there is no external force applies onto it. I found Yi-shi similar. Change would definitely alter the status quo, but it would be either good or bad.


The conservative would say why change if things are already good, but the reformer would say you have to change in order to cope with the evolving world. The latter sounds logical, but you just don’t want to make change for the sake of changing. There should always be a target for change.


Conficius said the following in “Xi-ci” (繫辭), another commentary of Zhou-yi:


“吉凶悔吝者，生乎動者也。”


Literally, “Ji” (吉) means good luck, “Xiong” (凶) means bad luck, both “Hui” (悔) and “Lin” (吝) means regret. When you regret, there are two alternatives you can do: 1) taking corrective measure which will lead you towards good luck, or 2) not taking any corrective measure which will eventually lead you to bad luck. The former is Hui and the latter is Lin. “Sheng” (生) could mean initiated, and “Dong” (動) means action or movement.


In other word, matters related to good luck, bad luck or even the two stages of regrets, are the direct result of change.


In Yi-shi, we focus on the interactions among the changed, which are the Lao Yang and Lao Yin. The hexagram of Qian was used as an example in the last blog. There are 6 lines all together and each of them associates to one specific Yao-ci. Like “乾．初九”, or the initial line of Qian, it means the initial line of Qian is a Lao Yang and is going to change from Yang to Yin, whereas the inner trigram of Qian changed into Xun (巽), and hence from Qian to “Heaven-Wind Gou” (天風姤). The Yao-ci “潛龍勿用” is actually describing the changed.

What is WWG?

There are different methods of “Divination using Yi-jing”, for short, let’s call them “Yi-bo” (易卜). In fact, we should call it “Yi-shi” (易蓍) since “Bo” (卜) is related to “Gui-bo” (龜卜) and is from the cracking sound of an expanded tortoise shell due to heating while “Shi” (蓍) is the milfoil stalks used for Divination of Yi-jing. Both of which are used for “Casting” (起卜 or 起卦).

Among them, “Wen-wang-gua” (文王卦, or WWG) is one of the Yi-bo methods which was believed to be developed during Song Dynasty. People mistakenly refer WWG as its earlier derivative, Huo-zhu-lin-fa (火珠林法), as both of them are quite similar in terms of Casting and “Setting” (裝卦). However, there are major differences in terms of Deciphering (解卦, or Interpretation).

“Wen-wang” (文王) refers to Emperor Wen (文) of Zhou (周) Dynasty. In fact, Emperor Wen never took the throne. He was named as Emperor only after his son Emperor Wu (武) overthrew Emperor Zhou (紂) of Shang (商) Dynasty and become the first emperor of the Zhou (周) Dynasty. It is also believed that Wen-wang completed his interpretations of the 64 hexagrams as their associated 384 lines (or “Yao” 爻), which are called as “Gua-ci” (卦辭) and “Yao-ci” (爻辭) respectively, when he was jailed as prisoner of Emperor Zhou. Using the hexagram of Qian (乾) as an example:

乾：元亨。利貞。
　　初九：潛龍勿用。
　　九二：見龍在田，利見大人。
　　九三：君子終日乾乾，夕惕若，厲，無咎。
　　九四：或，躍在淵，無咎。
　　九五：飛龍在天，利見大人。
　　上九：亢龍有悔。
　　用九：見羣龍無首，吉。

Conficius interpreted Qian as Strong (健). His followers further interpreted Qian as Hard or Unyielding (剛). According to ancient Chinese dictionary, Qian mean Key (鍵). Yes, as key for lock. Obviously, the meaning would be quite different if you use key to interpret Qian.

We don’t know why WWG is named as there is no direct relationship between this special Yi-bo method and Wen-wang, but we are accustomed to call it WWG.

Magic Numbers in Divination using “Yi-jing”

The introduction of Congenital Ba-gua and Acquired Ba-gua highlights three major aspects of Yi:
1) Yin and Yang, properties of opposite nature.
2) the interaction of Yin and Yang, Heaven and Earth, Mountain and River, etc.
3) The Enhancing and Diminishing Effect of Yin and Yang.

The latter signifies the change of Yin and Yang, i.e., Yang enhances while Yin diminish or vice versa. Obviously, if Yang enhances to the maximum, Yin will certainly diminish to the minimum at the same time, after which, Yang will then start to diminish and Yin will start to enhance. Any stage between maximum and minimum is referred as developing. Weather change in a year is a prefect example to demonstrate the change effect of Yin and Yang.

In order to represent different combinations of Lao, Shao, Yin, and Yang which we discussed during the introduction of the Four Stages (四象), we use the numbers 6, 7, 8, and 9. As a general rule of thumb, odd numbers represent Yang and even numbers represent Yin. We have 6 as Lao Yin, 8 as Shao Yin, 7, as Shao Yang, and 9 as Lao Yang. These numbers are derived by ancient casting of Hexagram using 49 pieces of milfoil stalks. This casting method however will take quite some time to derive a hexagram.

The casting of hexagram was then modified by using 3 rounded coins in order to save time. Assuming tails equal to 3 while heads equal to 2, we will have either:
1) three heads, 2 + 2 + 2 = 6, a Lao Yin;
2) two heads and a tail, 2 + 2 + 3 = 7, a Shao Yang;
3) one head and two tails, 2 + 3 + 3 = 8, a Shao Yin; or
4) three tails, 3 + 3 + 3 = 9, a Lao Yang.

Regardless of casting using 49 milfoil stalks or 3 rounded coins, the purpose of which is to preserve the use of these four numbers. Once the numbers of each lines are defined, then we will know what is the Original Hexagram and what is the Changed Hexagram.

For instance, starting from bottom (the initial line) to top (the uppermost), if the numbers of lines are 7, 8, 8, 6, 7, 8, then we know the fourth line (from the bottom) is changing from Yin and Yang, and hence the Original Hexagram Water-Thunder “Zhun” (水雷屯) and the Changed Hexagram is River-Thunder “Sui” (澤雷隨).

Finding the Flying Star for the Month

Thought I could drop the Sexagenary Cycle and Luo-shu for a while and ready to introduce “Wen-Wang Gua” (文王卦, or WWG in short), a friend of mine asked me if I could spend some time in introducing the Flying Star for the Month.

In fact, the Flying Star for the Month has been introduced in my book titled “Introductory to Qi-men Dun-jia” (《奇門遁甲入門》). To recap in English is not really difficult at all, but to introduce the concept of how Chinese Astronomical Calendar was calculated in a blog does.

As mentioned in my earlier blog that there are two types of calendars in China: the Astronomical and the Civil. The Astronomical Calendar is what the Government official calculated, the Civil Calendar is what the Government announced to the general public.

The Astronomical Calendar in ancient China uses Winter Solstice (冬至) as a reference point. Using modern astronomy, it is 270 degrees in Cartesian Coordinates whereas 0 degree is referred as the Vernal Equinox (春分), or Aries. As such, the first year Jia-zi of the Sexagenary Cycle starts in fact since Winter Solstice of the previous year Gui-hai. In “24 Solar Segments” (二十四節氣), Winter Solstice is the “Central Point” (氣) of the Month of Zi and hence called “Zi-zheng” (子正).

Ideally, it will be most perfect if the calendar was being calculated under the conditions of: 1) Year of Jia-ji, 2) Month of Jia-zi, 3) Day of Jia-zi which happened to be both the Winter Solstice and the first day of the Lunar Month, and 4) The “Chen” (辰) of Jia-zi which referred as midnight, or also Zi-zheng. Obviously, this is for the sake of calendar recording. We haven’t discussed other astronomical parameters like tropical year, lunation, and alignment of planets, etc.

Using the same method as we used to determine the Flying Star for the Year, we will have the following table, through which the Flying Star of the Month can be easily determined.

Remember, the Civil Calendar starts with the “Segment Point” (節) as a new month, but the Flying Star for the Month will be changed only when it reaches the Central Point of the Month.

Congenital Ba-gua and Acquired Ba-gua

You are most probably aware that there are two different Ba-gua diagrams with different trigram placements, but you may not realize that they are actually coming from the same script which Conficius or his followers wrote two thousand years ago. The name of the script is “Shou-gua” (《說卦》), which literally means the explanation of trigrams. It was an independent script till people found it convenient to make reference to if it is attached to “Zhou-yi” (《周易》) as a commentary.

“Yi” (易) literally means easy or transaction. Since the book “Yi-jing” (《易經》) talks about the interaction of Yin and Yang, Yi can therefore mean change, and hence “Yi-jing” (or people refer it as I-Ching) is called the Book of Change by the westerner. No matter how people try to come up with the meaning for “Zhou” (周), it simply means of the Zhou Dynasty.

However, keep one thing in your open mind, “Zhou-yi” is not the only “Yi-jing” even in Zhou Dynasty. It is just a version happened to be interpreted by Conficius and hence used to refer to by most of the people thereafter. If he interpreted wrongly, then we were fooled during all these times, not to mention the entire study of “Zhou-yi” would just go off course for the last two millenniums.

In “Shou-gua”, there is a paragraph dictated the trigram placement for Congenital Ba-gua. It is as follow:

「天地定位，山澤通氣，雷風相薄，水火不相射，八卦相錯。數往者順，知來者逆，是故《易》，逆數也。」

I am not good in translation, so all I can do is to talk about what it means. The paragraph mentioned heaven and earth, mountain and river, thunder and wind, even water and fire. All these substance pairs have opposite properties nature, like up in the heaven and down on the earth, etc. A practical presentation of Yin and Yang. In fact, the word “定位” means to fix the position.

As Chinese evolved to Zhou Dynasty, the concept of coalescence between human and heaven was gradually established. It is generally acknowledged that the trigram Qian (乾) means heaven. That’s why “Zhou-yi” starts with the hexagram Qian. If Qian assumes the top position, then Kun (坤) should be underneath. As such, we have the Congenital Ba-gua.

However, there is another paragraph in “Shuo-gua” which is far more details in introducing different trigram placements. It is as follow:

「帝出乎震，齊乎巽，相見乎離，致役乎坤，說言乎兌，戰乎乾，勞乎坎，成言乎艮。」

The word “帝” means emperor, but it is here used to represent Sun. “出” means appear, so “帝出乎震” means the Sun arises from Zhen (震). It doesn’t quite make sense unless Zhen means East. Starting Zhen at the left horizon as East and going clockwise, we will then have the Acquired Ba-gua.

The terms Congenital and Acquired in fact are not good descriptions of the Ba-gua’s because they are having the meaning of order of presence. It is generally believed that the Congenital Ba-gua comes before the Acquired Ba-gua. However, later studies show otherwise.

The Congenital Ba-gua demonstrates the opposite properties of different pairs, as compared to Yin and Yang, but also highlights the interaction between them, like mountain and river. The Acquired Ba-gua, on the other hand, illustrates the periodic changes of Yin and Yang, as compared to the change of weather on Earth. The influence, so to speak. It also show directions. This is the primary reason why Chinese metaphysics are based upon the application of Acquired Ba-gua, Luo-shu, and Sexagenary Cycle.