What Is a Kua Number?
The Kua number (ๆๆฐ guร shรน), also called the "Life Gua" or "Pa Kua number," is a cornerstone of Eight Mansions Feng Shui (ๅ
ซๅฎ
้ฃๆฐด Bฤ Zhรกi fฤng shuว). It's a single digit from 1 to 9 (excluding 5, which maps to 2 or 8) derived from your birth year and biological sex.
The Kua number divides all people into two groups โ East and West โ and assigns each person four auspicious directions and four inauspicious ones. Traditional feng shui practitioners use Kua numbers to determine the optimal orientation for sleeping, sitting at a desk, cooking, and even positioning your home's main door.
Kua Numbers at a Glance
| Kua | Group | Best Direction (Sheng Qi) | Health Direction (Tian Yi) | Love/Career (Yan Nian) |
|---|
| 1 | East | SE | E | S |
| 2 | West | NE | W | NW |
| 3 | East | S | N | SE |
| 4 | East | N | S | E |
| 6 | West | W | NE | SW |
| 7 | West | NW | SW | W |
| 8 | West | SW | NW | W |
| 9 | East | E | SE | N |
How to Use Your Kua Number
- Sleeping direction: Position your bed so your head points to your best direction (Sheng Qi). This is considered the most important application.
- Sitting at a desk: Face your Yan Nian direction for career or Sheng Qi direction for maximum personal energy.
- Front door: Ideally, your front door should face one of your four lucky directions. If it doesn't, you can partially counter this with interior feng shui adjustments.
- Stove direction: In traditional feng shui, the cook should face their Tian Yi (health) direction while cooking.
- Meditation and study: Face your Fu Wei (stability) direction for focused thinking and learning.
The Four Lucky Directions Explained
- Sheng Qi (็ๆฐ) โ Vitality: Your absolute best direction. Activates wealth, success, and positive life force. Face this direction during important decisions.
- Tian Yi (ๅคฉๅป) โ Heavenly Doctor: Your health direction. Aligns with healing, recovery, and wellbeing. Sleep with head pointing here if unwell.
- Yan Nian (ๅปถๅนด) โ Longevity: Career, relationships, and longevity direction. Excellent for marriage, business partnerships, and long-term goals.
- Fu Wei (ไผไฝ) โ Stability: Your personal growth and stability direction. Good for study, meditation, and making thoughtful decisions.
The Four Unlucky Directions
- Jue Ming (็ปๅฝ) โ Life Ending: The worst direction. Associated with major misfortune, accidents, and health crises. Never sleep with head pointing this way.
- Huo Hai (็ฅธๅฎณ) โ Mishaps: Minor accidents, arguments, and obstacles. Avoid facing this direction when working.
- Wu Gui (ไบ้ฌผ) โ Five Ghosts: Associated with betrayal, theft, and unexpected troubles. Keep this area of your home clean and uncluttered.
- Liu Sha (ๅ
ญ็
) โ Six Killings: Health problems and legal troubles. Avoid sleeping with head pointing this way.