Readings / Liuyao
Liuyao coin casting
Enter six casts in order, from the bottom line to the top line.
About the English version
Menus, forms, chart labels and controls are translated. Original readings, saved text, calendar notation and detailed traditional reference passages may remain in Chinese. Your records and calculations are unchanged.
Traditional interpretations are cultural reference material, not scientifically validated predictions or medical or financial advice. Switching languages reloads the page; save or copy unfinished input first.
Key terms: 天干 Heavenly Stems · 地支 Earthly Branches · 六亲 Six Relations · 六神 Six Spirits · 世 Self line · 应 Responding line · 动 Moving line · 主卦 Primary hexagram · 变卦 Changed hexagram.
What is Liuyao?
Liuyao is a traditional I Ching divination method using six yin or yang lines. Toss three coins six times and record the lines from bottom to top to form the primary hexagram. Moving lines produce a changed hexagram. Traditional interpretation considers these hexagrams, the moving lines, and the casting time in relation to your question.
For cultural study and personal reflection only, not a certain prediction of the future.
Choose a casting time
Use the current time or enter the time of an earlier casting.
How to cast and enter the coins
1. Before you cast
- Choose Cast now or Specific date and time. To enter a casting you already performed, choose Specific date and time and enter its actual Gregorian date and time.
- Choose a question category. In the question field, describe one specific matter, who or what it concerns, and the period you have in mind. Keep the same question throughout the six casts.
- Prepare three matching coins with distinguishable sides and a way to record the results. You cast the coins and enter their outcomes; this page does not toss them for you.
2. Record the coin faces as three 0/1 digits
This page always uses 1 for the denomination or numbered side facing up, and 0 for the other, often pictured side. A single 0 or 1 identifies a coin face, not a whole yin or yang line. Use this convention for all six casts.
| Faces showing | Input | Line and number | Does it change? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three 0s | 000 | Old yang (9, solid line) | Moving: changes to yin |
| Two 0s, one 1 | 001 / 010 / 100 | Young yin (8, broken line) | Still: no change |
| One 0, two 1s | 011 / 101 / 110 | Young yang (7, solid line) | Still: no change |
| Three 1s | 111 | Old yin (6, broken line) | Moving: changes to yang |
For example, picture, number, number can be entered as 011. The entries 101 and 110 also produce young yang because the app counts the 0s and 1s, regardless of their order within one cast.
3. Cast six times, recording from bottom to top
- Toss all three coins together once, check the face showing on each, and immediately record the three digits. Each toss creates one line.
- Enter the first toss in Cast 1, the bottom line. Cast 2 is the second line; continue upward until Cast 6, the top line.
- Check that all six entries are complete and in order. Old yang and old yin are moving lines. If every line is young yang or young yin, the hexagram has no moving lines.
- Select Generate reading to form the primary hexagram from the six lines and a changed hexagram from any moving lines. Cast now uses the server time when you submit the form; for an earlier casting, enter the actual casting time.
Checks and cautions
- If you immediately notice an entry error, correct it from the actual coin faces. If you can no longer verify the six outcomes or their order, start a new complete casting rather than guess a missing line.
- Do not recast, reverse the line order, or change the coin-face convention merely because you dislike a result. Record and observe the same question first; ask again when the circumstances materially change.
- Calendar stems and branches in the chart depend on the casting time. Keep the original question, actual time, and all six raw entries for later review.
Further reading: How to cast a Liuyao hexagram: a beginner's coin guide (Chinese)