Kua Number Calculator: Your Personal Gua and 4 Best Directions

Your Kua number (命卦) is a single digit derived from your birth year and your gender. It maps you to one of eight trigrams, puts you in either the East or the West group, and gives you four supportive compass directions and four draining ones. Unlike a home's Ba Zhai chart, it belongs to you and travels with you.

Kua Number vs Ba Zhai Chart: Two Different Maps

They answer different questions and are easy to confuse. The Ba Zhai chart is the building's: it is fixed by the bearing your front door faces and applies to everyone living there. Your Kua number is personal: it is fixed by your birth year and gender, and it stays the same wherever you move. Most practitioners read both, then work where the two overlap.

The Formula, in Four Steps

If you would rather not use the lookup table below, the arithmetic takes about twenty seconds. Work with the last two digits of your year of birth (yy):

1. Reduce yy to a single digit by adding its digits (for 1984: 8 + 4 = 12, then 1 + 2 = 3).
2. Apply the branch for your gender and century — see the branch table below.
3. If the result is 0, write 9. If the result is greater than 9, subtract 9.
4. If the result is 5, it converts: men take 2 (Kun), women take 8 (Gen). Five is the centre and belongs to no trigram.

Worked examples: a man born in 1984 gives 3, and 10 − 3 = 7 (Dui). A woman born in 1990 gives 9, and 9 + 5 = 14 → 5 → 8 (Gen). A man born in 2001 gives 1, and 9 − 1 = 8 (Gen).

The Branch Table

• Born 1901–1999 — male: 10 − (reduced yy) · female: (reduced yy) + 5
• Born 2000–2099 — male: 9 − (reduced yy) · female: (reduced yy) + 6
• Result above 9: subtract 9. Result exactly 5: 2 for men, 8 for women.

The Rule Everyone Gets Wrong: The Year Boundary

If you were born in January or the first days of February, your Kua year is probably not the calendar year on your birth certificate. Ba Zhai uses the solar year, which starts at Li Chun (立春, the Start of Spring, around 3–5 February), while the Chinese lunar new year falls on a different date again. Both conventions are in use, and they can disagree for the same person. Mingsage follows Li Chun — the same boundary its BaZi chart uses — because it is astronomically defined rather than proclaimed. If you follow the Lunar New Year school instead, subtract one year for births before that date.

One consequence worth stating plainly: this is why a February 2 birthday can produce two different Kua numbers from two reputable calculators. Neither is a bug.

Kua Number by Birth Year (1940–2025)

Every line gives the Kua number for a man and a woman born in that year, using the Li Chun boundary. For January and early-February birthdays, read the note above first.

• 1940 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1941 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1942 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 1943 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1944 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1945 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 1946 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 1947 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 1948 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 1949 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1950 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1951 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 1952 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1953 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1954 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 1955 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 1956 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 1957 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 1958 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1959 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1960 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 1961 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1962 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1963 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 1964 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 1965 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 1966 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 1967 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1968 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1969 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)

• 1970 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1971 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1972 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 1973 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 1974 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 1975 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 1976 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1977 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1978 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 1979 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1980 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1981 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 1982 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 1983 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 1984 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 1985 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1986 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1987 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 1988 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1989 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1990 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 1991 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 1992 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 1993 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 1994 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 1995 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 1996 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 1997 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 1998 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 1999 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)

• 2000 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 2001 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 2002 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 2003 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 2004 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 2005 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 2006 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 2007 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 2008 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 2009 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 2010 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 2011 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 2012 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 2013 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 2014 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 2015 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 2016 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)
• 2017 — male 1 (Kan), female 8 (Gen)
• 2018 — male 9 (Li), female 6 (Qian)
• 2019 — male 8 (Gen), female 7 (Dui)
• 2020 — male 7 (Dui), female 8 (Gen)
• 2021 — male 6 (Qian), female 9 (Li)
• 2022 — male 2 (Kun), female 1 (Kan)
• 2023 — male 4 (Xun), female 2 (Kun)
• 2024 — male 3 (Zhen), female 3 (Zhen)
• 2025 — male 2 (Kun), female 4 (Xun)

Your Four Auspicious Directions

Once you have the number, the directions follow from the same wandering-star table used for house charts. Each Kua has four supportive directions and four draining ones:

• Kua 1 (Kan, East group) — auspicious: SE (Sheng Qi), E (Tian Yi), S (Yan Nian), N (Fu Wei) · draining: SW (Jue Ming), NE (Wu Gui), NW (Liu Sha), W (Huo Hai)
• Kua 2 (Kun, West group) — auspicious: NE (Sheng Qi), W (Tian Yi), NW (Yan Nian), SW (Fu Wei) · draining: N (Jue Ming), SE (Wu Gui), S (Liu Sha), E (Huo Hai)
• Kua 3 (Zhen, East group) — auspicious: S (Sheng Qi), N (Tian Yi), SE (Yan Nian), E (Fu Wei) · draining: W (Jue Ming), NW (Wu Gui), NE (Liu Sha), SW (Huo Hai)
• Kua 4 (Xun, East group) — auspicious: N (Sheng Qi), S (Tian Yi), E (Yan Nian), SE (Fu Wei) · draining: NE (Jue Ming), SW (Wu Gui), W (Liu Sha), NW (Huo Hai)
• Kua 6 (Qian, West group) — auspicious: W (Sheng Qi), NE (Tian Yi), SW (Yan Nian), NW (Fu Wei) · draining: S (Jue Ming), E (Wu Gui), N (Liu Sha), SE (Huo Hai)
• Kua 7 (Dui, West group) — auspicious: NW (Sheng Qi), SW (Tian Yi), NE (Yan Nian), W (Fu Wei) · draining: E (Jue Ming), S (Wu Gui), SE (Liu Sha), N (Huo Hai)
• Kua 8 (Gen, West group) — auspicious: SW (Sheng Qi), NW (Tian Yi), W (Yan Nian), NE (Fu Wei) · draining: SE (Jue Ming), N (Wu Gui), E (Liu Sha), S (Huo Hai)
• Kua 9 (Li, East group) — auspicious: E (Sheng Qi), SE (Tian Yi), N (Yan Nian), S (Fu Wei) · draining: NW (Jue Ming), W (Wu Gui), SW (Liu Sha), NE (Huo Hai)

Sheng Qi is the strongest of the four, Tian Yi governs health and recovery, Yan Nian relationships and steadiness, Fu Wei calm and stability. The draining four are not curses — they are places to keep movement, water and utility rather than rest.

East Group and West Group

• East group (Kua 1, 3, 4, 9): Kan, Zhen, Xun and Li. Their supportive directions cluster in the north, east and southeast.
• West group (Kua 2, 6, 7, 8): Kun, Qian, Dui and Gen — supportive directions in the south-west, west and north-west.
• The grouping matters when a home has to be shared: two people in the same group often want the same rooms, while a mixed household has to negotiate.

Using the Directions Without Rearranging Your Life

• Start with orientation, not decoration: which way your head points in bed, which way you face at your desk, which direction you walk into the home.
• Pick one high-leverage change: the head of the bed or the desk chair, if the layout allows it at all.
• Treat the draining directions as service areas — storage, laundry, the bin, the router — not as places to sit for hours.
• Do not buy anything. If a suggestion requires a purchase before it requires a decision, it is not this method.

Kua Number FAQ

Is my Kua number the same as my home's Ba Zhai chart? No. The Kua number is personal and derived from birth year and gender; the Ba Zhai chart is the building's and derived from the front door's bearing. They use the same eight-star table, which is why they are often read together.

What if I was born in January? Read the year-boundary section first. Under the Li Chun convention — the one this site uses, in line with its BaZi calculations — a January birth almost always belongs to the previous Kua year.

Does the free Mingsage tool calculate my Kua number? Not yet. The free tool computes your home's chart from the door bearing. The personal Kua lookup is the table above; wiring it into the tool is on the roadmap.

Does the Kua number depend on birth time? No — only on the year (under whichever boundary convention you use) and your gender. Birth time matters for BaZi, not for Kua.

Feng shui is a traditional design framework rather than a prediction system. Use the directions to organise rooms and habits; treat the rest as interpretation.

Next: see how your personal directions meet your home's Ba Zhai chart, read the method behind both, or run the house side with the free Eight Mansions tool. For timing rather than space, start with the BaZi calculator.