When something is still on your mind, choosing how to cast a hexagram can feel like another question to answer. Mai Hoa Dịch Số, often known as Plum Blossom Numerology, and Lục Hào Nạp Giáp, or Six-Line Najia divination, both work with I Ching hexagrams. They do not, however, share an identical history or approach to interpretation.
It helps to separate two questions: how is a hexagram formed, and what does a reader use to interpret it? On maihoathon, the casting options have different starting points, while the details in Cast a hexagram use the relationships of Lục Hào Nạp Giáp. This is a choice made for the product, not a claim that the two traditions are interchangeable.
Traditional Mai Hoa goes beyond Body and Function
Mai Hoa is traditionally associated with Shao Yong. Numbers drawn from a moment in time, an object, or something observed can provide a starting point for a hexagram. Each method has its own conventions; there is no single formula that represents every way of casting with numbers.
One important relationship is Body and Function, also called Ti and Yong. When distinguished by the changing line, the trigram without that line is Body, and the trigram containing it is Function. Body generally represents the subject, while Function relates to the matter being considered. Their Five-Element relationship is one basis for reading the situation.
Traditional Mai Hoa does not end there. Its texts also discuss trigram imagery, the mutual and changed hexagrams, seasonal strength, and observations made at the time of the reading. A mutual hexagram is commonly formed from lines 2–3–4 below and 3–4–5 above; a changed hexagram reverses yin and yang at the changing line. These are connected considerations, not isolated signs that can settle a person's future.
How maihoathon's Mai Hoa casting options work
You can currently begin with numbers, a time, or text. Each option determines an upper trigram, a lower trigram, and exactly one changing line. The particular conventions matter when comparing the result with a book.
- Numbers: the sequence of digits is divided into two parts, with the first receiving the extra digit when the length is odd. The sum of each part's digits is divided by 8, using the remainder to select the upper and lower trigrams respectively. The combined sum is divided by 6 to locate the changing line.
- Time: the lunar-calendar year number, month number, and day are added to determine the upper trigram. The hour-branch number, from Rat as 1 to Pig as 12, is added for the lower trigram and changing line. Trigrams use the remainder after division by 8; the line uses division by 6. A leap month uses the same month number as its ordinary counterpart.
- Text: spaces at the beginning and end are removed, and the text is divided into two parts. The numerical character values in each part are added to determine the trigrams. The changing line uses both sums plus the text length, taking the remainder after division by 6. This is a character-value convention, not a count of strokes in Chinese characters.
A remainder of 0 means trigram 8 or line 6, as appropriate. The trigram sequence is Qian 1, Dui 2, Li 3, Zhen 4, Xun 5, Kan 6, Gen 7, and Kun 8.
There is an important distinction in the time option: maihoathon currently uses the full lunar-calendar year number, such as 2026. The section “年月日時起例” in the Mei Hua Yi Shu text linked below instead uses the year's Earthly Branch number, from Rat as 1 to Pig as 12. The current formula should therefore not be described as an unchanged reproduction of that traditional method. The number and text options above are also specific product conventions, rather than definitions of all Mai Hoa casting.
Lục Hào begins with individual lines
With the three-coin method, six tosses form the hexagram from the bottom line upward. Each toss yields young yin, young yang, old yin, or old yang. The two old states are changing lines, which reverse polarity in the changed hexagram.
A hexagram can therefore have anywhere from zero to six changing lines. Having none is a normal result; in that case, maihoathon does not show a separate changed hexagram. You can toss coins on screen or enter the six results from physical coins.
Lục Hào Nạp Giáp places the lines within a set of relationships, read alongside the question and its timing:
- Eight Palaces: the 64 hexagrams are arranged into eight palaces, each with an element used to establish the Six Relations.
- Self and Response: two positions three lines apart, often used to consider the questioner's side and its counterpart. Their meaning depends on the situation; they do not always represent two people.
- Najia: a Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch are assigned to each line. The Branch's element helps establish relationships between lines.
- Six Relations, or Liuqin: comparing each line's element with the palace element yields Parents, Siblings, Children, Wealth, or Officer/Ghost. These are traditional roles within a reading, not fixed labels for people.
- Six Spirits, or Liushen: Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, Gouchen, Tengshe, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise follow a set order, with the starting point determined by the day's Heavenly Stem.
- Cycle Void: the two Earthly Branches absent from the relevant ten-day cycle. Lines carrying those Branches are marked for consideration alongside the other conditions.
The details also include seasonal strength, combinations and clashes with the day and month, and markers such as Noble Person, Fortune, Travel Horse, and Peach Blossom. For a changing line, returning generation or overcoming means the changed line's element acts back on the original line, not the reverse. Having more details allows closer comparison; it does not guarantee an accurate reading.
What the results share on maihoathon
In the current casting section, numbers, time, text, and coins all offer a reading based on Lục Hào relationships: palace, Self and Response, Najia, Six Relations, Six Spirits, and Cycle Void. The Useful Spirit, the role or line chosen as the focus, is considered in relation to the question. It should not be confused with the Function trigram in Mai Hoa's Body–Function relationship.
The distinction is therefore between casting with maihoathon's Mai Hoa conventions and reading through Lục Hào Nạp Giáp, or forming six lines with coins and reading through Lục Hào Nạp Giáp. Sharing those foundations does not mean the interpretations will be identical, nor does it reproduce the whole traditional Mai Hoa approach.
Time still matters in both cases. In time-based casting it helps determine the hexagram; with coins, the six toss results determine the hexagram, while the date supplies context for its relationships. Different inputs may produce different hexagrams, but they can also produce the same one.
Choose a way that helps you stay with your question
If a number, a particular moment, or a few words feel like a natural starting point, maihoathon's Mai Hoa options may suit you. If you would like to spend time with each line, three-coin casting offers a slower rhythm. Manual entry also lets you bring in a result you have already cast elsewhere.
You do not need to find a method that is always more reliable than the other. A clearer question, an understanding of the convention you are using, and attention to real circumstances are more useful companions. If you compare casting methods to learn, record the inputs and changing lines rather than recasting until a more comforting answer appears.
When you are ready, Cast a hexagram offers a place to pause with your question. Readings are for reflection and reference, not a substitute for medical, legal, or financial advice.
Further reading
- Mei Hua Yi Shu, volume one, transcribed on the Chinese Text Project: sections on trigram numbering, remainders, mutual hexagrams, time-based casting, and characters. The text is in Chinese.
- Mei Hua Yi Shu, volume three: “體用互變之訣”, “體用生克之訣”, and “體用衰旺之訣” show why traditional interpretation cannot be reduced to Body and Function alone. The text is in Chinese.
These texts document traditional methods. They are not scientific evidence of predictive ability, nor do they validate every convention used on maihoathon.