Kua number calculator

Method

How the Kua number is calculated

The Kua number (Kua sankhya) comes from the Eight Mansions school of Feng Shui, also called Ba Zhai. It uses only your year of birth and your gender. The day and month matter only for one thing: deciding which year counts.

1. Fix the year

   If you were born from 1 January to 3 February, the calculator uses the year before your birth year. From 4 February onwards it uses your birth year.

2. Find the year number

   Add the four digits of that year and keep adding until one digit is left. For 1990: 1 + 9 + 9 + 0 = 19 → 10 → 1.

3. Apply the formula

   Men: 11 minus the year number. Women: 4 plus the year number. If the answer has two digits, add them again (10 → 1, 13 → 4).

4. Replace 5

   There is no direction set for Kua 5. A man whose answer is 5 takes Kua 2. A woman whose answer is 5 takes Kua 8.

Why January and early February birthdays use the previous year. The Kua year follows the Chinese solar calendar, which starts at Lichun (the start of spring), around 4 February, not on 1 January. Someone born on 20-01-1995 is counted in 1994, because 1995 had not begun yet. Lichun can fall on 3, 4 or 5 February depending on the year, while the calculator uses a fixed 4 February cut-off, so if your birthday is between 3 and 5 February, ask Namieta to confirm your year.

Older books write the formula with only the last two digits of the year, with different numbers for the 1900s and 2000s. Adding all four digits gives the same Kua for every year from 1900 to 2099, so one rule works for everyone.

Worked example

Here are five people, worked through exactly as the calculator does it. Rahul and Priya share a birthday but get different Kua numbers because of gender. Amit and Priya show the Kua 5 rule, and Sneha shows the January rule.

If Sneha’s calendar year 1995 were used instead, she would get 4 + 6 = 10 → 1, which is Kua 1. Both numbers are in the East group, but the order of the directions changes: her best direction would move from East to South-East. That is why the date matters even though only the year goes into the sum.

Meanings

What each Kua number stands for

Each Kua number sits on one square of the Lo Shu, so it carries an element and a home direction, the same pattern the Lo Shu grid calculator uses. The home direction is your Fu Wei, the calm, steady one of your four good directions. The planet and meaning columns give the general numerology meaning of the same number, for reference; they are not a Kua reading.

Kua 5 sits in the centre of the Lo Shu, which has no compass direction, so it cannot give a set of directions. That is why men with 5 use Kua 2 and women with 5 use Kua 8.

Directions

East and West groups

Your group tells you the broad picture: all four good directions of an East group person are the four challenging directions of a West group person, and the other way round. This matters when a couple or family is split across groups, because the best bed or desk position for one person may be the weakest for another.

Four good and four challenging directions for each Kua

Every Kua number has eight directions: four good ones and four challenging ones. They are listed below from best to worst, so Sheng Qi is the best direction and Jue Ming is the one to avoid most. The table scrolls sideways on a phone.

What the eight direction names mean

Practical use

Using your directions at home and at work

Directions are read with a compass from the centre of the home or room. These are the uses people in Indian homes ask about most. The first three are the ones the calculator lists with your result.

Sleeping head direction

Place the bed so the top of your head points to your Tian Yi (health) direction, or your Sheng Qi. Avoid sleeping with your head towards Jue Ming. Many Vastu consultants also advise against the head to the North, so if your good direction is North, ask Namieta which one to use.

Work desk facing

Sit so you face your Sheng Qi (success) direction while you work or study. If the room does not allow it, face any of your four good directions, and avoid facing Jue Ming. For example, Rahul (Kua 1) would face South-East.

Main door (mukhya dwar)

A main door that faces one of your four good directions suits you. The facing direction is the one you look towards when you stand inside the door looking out. If your door faces a challenging direction, do not break walls; ask about a Vastu remedy first.

Mixed families

When husband and wife are in different groups, no single bed position suits both fully. Each person can still use their own Sheng Qi for their desk or study table, and Namieta can suggest a bed position that balances both.

Kua directions are one layer. Vastu also looks at the zones of the home, the kitchen, the toilets and the Brahmasthan (centre). Namieta reads your Kua directions together with your floor plan during a Vastu consultation.

Vastu consultation with Namieta →

Lo Shu grid calculator →

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