Kua number calculator with the Lichun year boundary
Last checked · Lichun dates checked against the Hong Kong Observatory tables
The Kua number (命卦, Ming Gua) is the personal number of the Eight Mansions system in feng shui. It comes from the solar birth year and sex. The solar year starts at Lichun, the Start of Spring on February 3, 4 or 5, so anyone born in January or before Lichun in early February uses the previous year. This calculator applies that boundary to the minute, in your own time zone.
Calculate a Kua number
Kua numbers by birth year, 1940 to 2030
For a birth on or after Lichun of that year (Beijing time). Born earlier in the year? Use the row above. A 5 is shown as the number it counts as.
| Solar year | Starts (Lichun) | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 | Feb 5 07:07 | 9 | 6 |
| 1941 | Feb 4 12:49 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1942 | Feb 4 18:48 | 2 | 4 |
| 1943 | Feb 5 00:40 | 3 | 3 |
| 1944 | Feb 5 06:22 | 4 | 2 |
| 1945 | Feb 4 12:19 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 1946 | Feb 4 18:03 | 6 | 9 |
| 1947 | Feb 4 23:50 | 7 | 8 |
| 1948 | Feb 5 05:42 | 8 | 7 |
| 1949 | Feb 4 11:22 | 9 | 6 |
| 1950 | Feb 4 17:20 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1951 | Feb 4 23:13 | 2 | 4 |
| 1952 | Feb 5 04:52 | 3 | 3 |
| 1953 | Feb 4 10:45 | 4 | 2 |
| 1954 | Feb 4 16:30 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 1955 | Feb 4 22:17 | 6 | 9 |
| 1956 | Feb 5 04:11 | 7 | 8 |
| 1957 | Feb 4 09:54 | 8 | 7 |
| 1958 | Feb 4 15:49 | 9 | 6 |
| 1959 | Feb 4 21:42 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1960 | Feb 5 03:23 | 2 | 4 |
| 1961 | Feb 4 09:22 | 3 | 3 |
| 1962 | Feb 4 15:17 | 4 | 2 |
| 1963 | Feb 4 21:07 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 1964 | Feb 5 03:04 | 6 | 9 |
| 1965 | Feb 4 08:46 | 7 | 8 |
| 1966 | Feb 4 14:37 | 8 | 7 |
| 1967 | Feb 4 20:30 | 9 | 6 |
| 1968 | Feb 5 02:07 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1969 | Feb 4 07:58 | 2 | 4 |
| 1970 | Feb 4 13:45 | 3 | 3 |
| 1971 | Feb 4 19:25 | 4 | 2 |
| 1972 | Feb 5 01:20 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 1973 | Feb 4 07:04 | 6 | 9 |
| 1974 | Feb 4 13:00 | 7 | 8 |
| 1975 | Feb 4 18:59 | 8 | 7 |
| 1976 | Feb 5 00:39 | 9 | 6 |
| 1977 | Feb 4 06:33 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1978 | Feb 4 12:26 | 2 | 4 |
| 1979 | Feb 4 18:12 | 3 | 3 |
| 1980 | Feb 5 00:09 | 4 | 2 |
| 1981 | Feb 4 05:55 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 1982 | Feb 4 11:45 | 6 | 9 |
| 1983 | Feb 4 17:39 | 7 | 8 |
| 1984 | Feb 4 23:18 | 8 | 7 |
| 1985 | Feb 4 05:11 | 9 | 6 |
| 1986 | Feb 4 11:07 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1987 | Feb 4 16:51 | 2 | 4 |
| 1988 | Feb 4 22:42 | 3 | 3 |
| 1989 | Feb 4 04:27 | 4 | 2 |
| 1990 | Feb 4 10:14 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 1991 | Feb 4 16:08 | 6 | 9 |
| 1992 | Feb 4 21:48 | 7 | 8 |
| 1993 | Feb 4 03:37 | 8 | 7 |
| 1994 | Feb 4 09:30 | 9 | 6 |
| 1995 | Feb 4 15:12 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 1996 | Feb 4 21:07 | 2 | 4 |
| 1997 | Feb 4 03:01 | 3 | 3 |
| 1998 | Feb 4 08:56 | 4 | 2 |
| 1999 | Feb 4 14:57 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 2000 | Feb 4 20:40 | 6 | 9 |
| 2001 | Feb 4 02:28 | 7 | 8 |
| 2002 | Feb 4 08:24 | 8 | 7 |
| 2003 | Feb 4 14:05 | 9 | 6 |
| 2004 | Feb 4 19:56 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 2005 | Feb 4 01:43 | 2 | 4 |
| 2006 | Feb 4 07:27 | 3 | 3 |
| 2007 | Feb 4 13:18 | 4 | 2 |
| 2008 | Feb 4 19:00 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 2009 | Feb 4 00:49 | 6 | 9 |
| 2010 | Feb 4 06:47 | 7 | 8 |
| 2011 | Feb 4 12:32 | 8 | 7 |
| 2012 | Feb 4 18:22 | 9 | 6 |
| 2013 | Feb 4 00:13 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 2014 | Feb 4 06:03 | 2 | 4 |
| 2015 | Feb 4 11:58 | 3 | 3 |
| 2016 | Feb 4 17:46 | 4 | 2 |
| 2017 | Feb 3 23:34 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 2018 | Feb 4 05:28 | 6 | 9 |
| 2019 | Feb 4 11:14 | 7 | 8 |
| 2020 | Feb 4 17:03 | 8 | 7 |
| 2021 | Feb 3 22:58 | 9 | 6 |
| 2022 | Feb 4 04:50 | 1 | 2 (5) |
| 2023 | Feb 4 10:42 | 2 | 4 |
| 2024 | Feb 4 16:27 | 3 | 3 |
| 2025 | Feb 3 22:10 | 4 | 2 |
| 2026 | Feb 4 04:02 | 8 (5) | 1 |
| 2027 | Feb 4 09:46 | 6 | 9 |
| 2028 | Feb 4 15:31 | 7 | 8 |
| 2029 | Feb 3 21:20 | 8 | 7 |
| 2030 | Feb 4 03:08 | 9 | 6 |
Eight Mansions directions by Kua number
The direction the system assigns to each of its eight names. Kua 1, 3, 4 and 9 form the East group; 2, 6, 7 and 8 the West group.
| Kua | Sheng Qi 生气 | Tian Yi 天医 | Yan Nian 延年 | Fu Wei 伏位 | Huo Hai 祸害 | Wu Gui 五鬼 | Liu Sha 六煞 | Jue Ming 绝命 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 坎 | SE | E | S | N | W | NE | NW | SW |
| 2 坤 | NE | W | NW | SW | E | SE | S | N |
| 3 震 | S | N | SE | E | SW | NW | NE | W |
| 4 巽 | N | S | E | SE | NW | SW | W | NE |
| 6 乾 | W | NE | SW | NW | SE | E | N | S |
| 7 兑 | NW | SW | NE | W | N | S | SE | E |
| 8 艮 | SW | NW | W | NE | S | N | E | SE |
| 9 离 | E | SE | N | S | NE | W | SW | NW |
N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW = North, Northeast, East, Southeast, South, Southwest, West, Northwest.
Why calculators disagree
- Year boundary: some use January 1 or Chinese New Year instead of Lichun. Lichun is the start of the solar year that the system is traditionally based on.
- Kua 5: the 2 and 8 convention above is the most common, but some schools keep 5 or treat it differently.
- Women: some practitioners use the male formula for everyone. This page uses the separate female formula, which is the more widespread method.
FAQ
How is the Kua number calculated?
From the solar birth year, which starts at Lichun (around February 4). Add the digits of that year, and repeat until one digit remains. For a man, subtract it from 11; for a woman, add 4; then reduce to one digit again. Many sites write the same rule with the last two digits only, using 10 and 5 for the 1900s and 9 and 6 from 2000.
What if I was born in January or before Lichun?
Use the previous year. For example, a woman born on January 20, 1990 has the Kua of 1989 (4), not of 1990 (8), because Lichun 1990 was Feb 4 at 10:14 Beijing time. Many online calculators skip this step.
What happens to Kua 5?
Five is the centre of the Luoshu square and has no trigram. By the most common convention a man's 5 counts as 2 (Kun) and a woman's 5 as 8 (Gen). Some schools treat it differently; the calculator shows when a 5 has been converted.
Related
Lichun dates are checked against the Hong Kong Observatory, Gregorian-Lunar Calendar Conversion Table; times are calculated. This page describes the traditional Eight Mansions system; it is not advice or a prediction. How the dates are calculated.