Daily Oracle

I Ching Daily Guidance

Tune into the moment with the Wilhelm/Baynes three-coin method. Set each line from the ground up or let the oracle toss for you—insight arrives either way.

Guidance & tips

Preparing Your Cast

Work from the bottom line upward—Line 1 anchors the hexagram.
Each coin toss produces 0–3 heads. Tails are counted automatically.
Solid lines represent yang (movement); broken lines show yin (receptive).

            Coin Method Quick Math
            Heads count as 3, tails count as 2—sum to find each line.
6 = old yin (changing to yang); 7 = young yang; 8 = young yin; 9 = old yang (changing to yin).
Changing lines reveal a relating hexagram—trace both for nuance.

          

Cast your lines

Follow the sequence below—each choice updates instantly.

Line Progress 0 / 6 lines set

Explore the 64 hexagrams

Use this lookup to cross-reference the primary and relating trigrams. Lower trigrams run along the rows; upper trigrams span the columns.

Extended reading · QiMen Dunjia (奇門遁甲)

Same moment, structural lens. The I Ching above reads the quality of this instant; the chart below reads its spatial / strategic shape. Combining the two is a modern synthesis, not a classical practice — they have different question-frames in tradition.

三吉門開 / 休 / 生三凶門傷 / 死 / 驚三奇乙 / 丙 / 丁值符 / 值使 palace = darker border.

Strong window Favorable Mixed Caution Avoid

The cell tint is a heuristic synthesis of door + spirit + stems + 值符 bonus — useful as a quick read, but not a master-practitioner call. Real QMDJ also weighs 五行 generation/control between palaces, 反吟 / 伏吟 patterns, and the nature of the question. Hover a cell to see its raw score; scoring rule.

What does each part of the chart mean?

Each cell in the 3 × 3 grid is a palace (宮) tied to a compass direction. South sits at the top by tradition. The numbers in the corners are the Luo Shu (洛書) magic-square numbers for each palace. Within every cell, the chart stacks five layers of meaning — read top to bottom: Spirit (八神) → Star (九星) → Door (八門) → Heaven Plate stem (天) → Earth Plate stem (地). The Spirit and Star say what kind of energy is in that direction; the Door says what action that direction supports or blocks; the two stems say what raw material the direction is made of.

Why some palaces have a bold outline

Two of the nine palaces carry special status in every chart and are marked with bold inset borders on the grid. Read the chart at a glance by starting with the bold-outlined palace — whatever spirit + door + stems landed there is the moment's primary signal. The other 8 palaces describe the surrounding terrain.

值符 palace — outer ring (focal point): The palace where the 值符 (Director / Zhi Fu) star sits. This is the moment's energetic focal point — the strongest auspicious anchor in the chart, where the moment's primary energy is concentrated.
值使 palace — inner ring (active expression): The palace where the 值使 (Zhi Shi) door sits. This is where action expresses most strongly in this moment — the active door driving how the moment unfolds.
Both in the same palace — double ring: Common in many charts. That cell gets a doubly-bold outline (outer ring for 值符, inner ring for 值使). Treat it as the chart's primary signal — the focal point and the active expression collapsing onto one direction.

Nine Palaces (九宮) — the directions and what they classically mean

Each palace is a compass direction and a life-domain. The eight outer palaces map to the eight trigrams (八卦) of the Later Heaven sequence; the ninth is the center. When reading a chart, look at which palace a notable spirit/star/door/wonder lands in to know what area of life it touches.

Palace	Direction	Trigram	Element	What it represents
1 坎 Kǎn	N	☵ Water 水	Water	Career, hidden things, study, ancestors, secrets, depth, danger. (Middle son.)
2 坤 Kūn	SW	☷ Earth 地	Earth (yin)	Motherhood, support, partnerships, marriage, the public, soft power, receptivity.
3 震 Zhèn	E	☳ Thunder 雷	Wood (yang)	Action, decisive beginnings, shocks, ambition, public movement, initiative. (Eldest son.)
4 巽 Xùn	SE	☴ Wind 風	Wood (yin)	Wealth and money, persuasion, travel, communication, gentle persistent influence. (Eldest daughter.)
5 中 Zhōng	Center	—	Earth	The axis. Self, rulership, mediation, neutrality. The 天禽 star sits here and is "lent" to a cardinal palace.
6 乾 Qián	NW	☰ Heaven 天	Metal (yang)	Leadership, authority, fathers, mentors, helpful people, government, the powerful.
7 兌 Duì	W	☱ Lake 澤	Metal (yin)	Joy, speech, romance, attraction, charm, food and pleasure — also gossip and superficiality. (Youngest daughter.)
8 艮 Gèn	NE	☶ Mountain 山	Earth (yang)	Stillness, knowledge, education, real estate, accumulation, stopping. (Youngest son.)
9 離 Lí	S	☲ Fire 火	Fire	Brightness, fame, recognition, vision, manifestation, public exposure, the heart. (Middle daughter.)

Reading tip: if the most auspicious door (e.g. 開門) lands in Palace 4 巽 (wealth), that's a window for wealth-related action. If 死門 lands in Palace 6 乾 (leadership / mentors), read carefully when seeking authoritative help. The palace decides what domain; the door / star / spirit decide how that domain is moving right now.

Eight Doors (八門) — the gate of action

Door	Meaning	Bias
開門 Kāi · Open	Beginnings, expansion, official success, public-facing action.	Auspicious 三吉
休門 Xiū · Rest	Renewal, peace, romance, recovery, soft consolidation.	Auspicious 三吉
生門 Shēng · Birth	Growth, wealth, new ventures, partnerships, sales.	Auspicious 三吉
杜門 Dù · Block	Hiding, defensive holding, secrecy, study, blocking.	Neutral
景門 Jǐng · Scenery	Vision, signaling, communication, but no direct action.	Neutral
傷門 Shāng · Hurt	Injury, conflict, hunting, sharp force, debt collection.	Inauspicious 三凶
死門 Sǐ · Death	Endings, finality, loss; in some traditions, hunting / mortuary work.	Inauspicious 三凶
驚門 Jīng · Surprise	Shock, disputes, lawsuits, unexpected disturbance.	Inauspicious 三凶

The 值使 door is the active door driving the moment — track which palace it occupies.

Nine Stars (九星) — cosmic influence

Star	Element	Meaning	Bias
天蓬 Tiān Péng · Awning	Water	Movement, theft, water, danger, scheming.	Inauspicious
天芮 Tiān Ruì · Affliction	Earth	Illness, weakness, decay, learning under hardship.	Inauspicious
天沖 Tiān Chōng · Surge	Wood	Burst of energy, swift action, military.	Mixed (good for action, bad for stillness)
天輔 Tiān Fǔ · Support	Wood	Education, planning, scholarship, mentorship.	Auspicious
天禽 Tiān Qín · Bird	Earth	Stability, magnanimity, leadership in stillness. Sits in the center; lent to a cardinal palace.	Auspicious
天心 Tiān Xīn · Heart	Metal	Healing, decisive wisdom, leadership, medicine.	Auspicious
天柱 Tiān Zhù · Pillar	Metal	Disputes, breakage, transformation through tension.	Inauspicious
天任 Tiān Rén · Endurance	Earth	Reliability, slow steady progress, burden-bearing.	Auspicious
天英 Tiān Yīng · Brightness	Fire	Honor, fame, exposure — also conflict and being seen.	Mixed

Eight Spirits (八神) — subtle forces

In a yang chart (陽遁) the spirit set includes 朱雀 / 勾陳; in a yin chart (陰遁) those two are replaced by 玄武 / 白虎.

Spirit	Meaning	Bias
值符 Zhí Fú · Director	Strongest auspicious. The palace where 值符 sits is the focal point of the moment.	Auspicious ★
螣蛇 / 滕蛇 Téng Shé · Soaring Snake	Strange events, illusion, deception, anxious dreams.	Inauspicious
太陰 Tài Yīn · Great Yin	Hidden support, secret help, behind-the-scenes allies.	Auspicious
六合 Liù Hé · Six Harmonies	Cooperation, partnership, networking, marriage.	Auspicious
九地 Jiǔ Dì · Nine Earths	Solid ground, defensive position, retention, safekeeping.	Auspicious
九天 Jiǔ Tiān · Nine Heavens	High vantage, expansion, outward bold action, travel.	Auspicious
朱雀 Zhū Què · Vermilion Bird (yang)	Disputes, lawsuits, gossip, written-communication trouble.	Inauspicious
勾陳 Gōu Chén · Hooked Chen (yang)	Entanglement, delays, trapped situations, real-estate disputes.	Inauspicious
白虎 Bái Hǔ · White Tiger (yin)	Conflict, violence, sharp action, blood and metal.	Inauspicious
玄武 Xuán Wǔ · Dark Warrior (yin)	Theft, deception, hidden movement, illicit affairs.	Inauspicious

Ten Heavenly Stems (十天干) — heaven & earth plates

Three Wonders (三奇: 乙 · 丙 · 丁) mark windows of opportunity. Six Yi (六儀: 戊 · 己 · 庚 · 辛 · 壬 · 癸) sit on the earth plate and "hide" the Jia stems behind them — the 遁甲 of QiMen Dunjia. 甲 itself never appears directly on the chart.

Stem	Element	Meaning in QMDJ	Role
甲 Jiǎ	Yang Wood	The "general" stem — leadership and command. Hidden behind a Yi.	Hidden (遁)
乙 Yǐ	Yin Wood	Flexibility, cleverness, plans that adapt. The Sun's wonder.	三奇
丙 Bǐng	Yang Fire	Brightness, fame, exposure, public visibility. The Moon's wonder.	三奇
丁 Dīng	Yin Fire	Soft fire, hidden brilliance, healers, candles in the dark. The Star wonder.	三奇
戊 Wù	Yang Earth	Solidity, foundations, walls, conservative holding.	六儀 (hides 甲子)
己 Jǐ	Yin Earth	Flexible earth, gardens, soft support, adaptable foundations.	六儀 (hides 甲戌)
庚 Gēng	Yang Metal	⚠ Blockage and conflict. Wherever 庚 lands, treat that direction with caution.	六儀 (hides 甲申)
辛 Xīn	Yin Metal	Refinement, jewels, errors, complaints, sharp small things.	六儀 (hides 甲午)
壬 Rén	Yang Water	Flow, scheming, clever speech, large bodies of water.	六儀 (hides 甲辰)
癸 Guǐ	Yin Water	Hidden water, secrets, reserves, things kept under the surface.	六儀 (hides 甲寅)

What time-basis is this chart? (時家 / hour-based)

This is an hour-based QiMen Dunjia cast — known as 時家奇門 (the most common form in modern practice). The chart is anchored to the hour pillar (時柱), which means it changes every two-hour shichen (時辰). Two casts on the same day at different hours will give different Heaven Plate stems, doors, stars, and spirits — even though the Ju (局) and Earth Plate stay the same within a yuan of a solar term.

Consulting multiple times a day: just recast at each question. Because the chart rotates per shichen, a 9 AM cast and a 3 PM cast on the same day are structurally different — the same way 時家 practitioners read them. There is also a separate day-based tradition (日家奇門) that produces one chart per day for a "shape of today" reading; that's not what this oracle currently casts. If you want day-based readings, that would be a separate engine — flag it and we can build it as a toggle.

Header line (above the grid)

節氣 / 三元: Solar term and yuan (上 / 中 / 下). Together they pick the Ju — every moment within a yuan of a solar term shares the same chart base.
局 (e.g. 陽遁4局): The chart number 1–9 plus 陽 (yang) or 陰 (yin) dunjia. Determines the Earth Plate layout and the direction of flying.
四柱: Year / month / day / hour pillars in stem-branch form. The hour pillar (時柱) is the most relevant for QMDJ — it drives the Heaven Plate rotation.
值符 / 值使: The "Director" star and door for this moment, with the palace each occupies. The 值符 palace concentrates the moment's energy; the 值使 palace is where action expresses most strongly.
飛步: Number of palaces the Heaven Plate has rotated relative to the Earth Plate. 0 means the chart is "still" — slow change. Larger values indicate more dynamic moments.

How the per-palace outlook tint is computed

The cell tint is a transparent heuristic combining door, spirit, stems, and the 值符 bonus into one number. It is not authoritative — a practitioner reading would also factor in 五行 generation/control between palaces, 反吟 / 伏吟 patterns, and the nature of the specific question. Treat the tint as a quick visual prior, not the verdict.

Component	Contribution
Door is one of 三吉 (開/休/生)	+2
Door is one of 三凶 (傷/死/驚)	−2
Door is 杜 or 景 (neutral)	0
Spirit is auspicious (值符/太陰/六合/九地/九天)	+1
Spirit is inauspicious (螣蛇/朱雀/勾陳/白虎/玄武)	−1
Each Three Wonder (乙/丙/丁) on heaven OR earth plate	+1 each
Each 庚 on heaven OR earth plate	−1 each
Palace contains 值符 (focal-point bonus)	+1

Score	Outlook
≥ +3	Strong window
+1, +2	Favorable
0	Mixed
−1, −2	Caution
≤ −3	Avoid

The center palace is held neutral by default — classically the axis is not a direction for outward action. Hover any cell in the chart to see its raw score in the tooltip.

Notable patterns to look for

三奇 + 三吉門 in the same palace — a Three Wonder (乙/丙/丁) sitting with an auspicious door (開/休/生). Strong window for outward action in that direction.
庚 (Geng) collisions — wherever 庚 lands, treat with caution. 庚 marks blockage and conflict; pairing it with the day stem or 值符 amplifies the warning.
Death door (死門) on the day stem — the direction associated with the day stem carrying 死門 is where loss tends to surface; read carefully.
值符 palace alignment — note which palace the 值符 sits in. That direction concentrates the moment's primary energy; pair it with the door in that palace to judge what action that energy supports.