# How to Cast a Meihua Yishu Hexagram With Three Numbers

> Use Multifate’s three-number Meihua method, check the upper and lower trigrams, and understand how the moving line is selected.

Canonical page: https://multifate.com/guides/meihua-three-number-casting
Language: English. Content reviewed: 2026-09-15.

Multifate’s number-based Meihua tool accepts three whole numbers from 1 to 99. The first selects the upper trigram, the second selects the lower trigram, and the third selects one moving line. This is the convention implemented here, not every Meihua method.

## Choose numbers or time, not both

The tool has a number-based method and a time-based method. They use different input rules. To follow this guide, choose numbers and enter three values in their original order. If you switch to time, you are performing a different calculation.

You can bring one personal question or use the chart-only option. The question gives an interpretation context; it does not change the arithmetic used to form the hexagram. Do not expect the same numbers to produce a different chart because you rephrased the question.

## What happens to the three numbers

In this implementation, the first number is reduced modulo eight to select the upper trigram, and the second is reduced modulo eight to select the lower trigram. A remainder of zero means eight. The third number is reduced modulo six to select the moving line; zero means line six.

Some other tutorials or calculators combine the numbers before selecting a line. That is not the number rule used here. Comparing methods begins with identifying that difference rather than assuming one program made an arithmetic error.

| Input | Role in this implementation |
| --- | --- |
| First number | Upper trigram: remainder after division by 8; 0 becomes 8 |
| Second number | Lower trigram: remainder after division by 8; 0 becomes 8 |
| Third number | Moving line: remainder after division by 6; 0 becomes 6 |

## A small arithmetic example

Use 3, 5 and 6 as teaching inputs. Under this tool’s numbering, 3 selects Li, associated with Fire, for the upper trigram; 5 selects Xun, associated with Wind, for the lower trigram; 6 selects the top, sixth line as moving.

The example demonstrates input order and line numbering only. It is not a reading of your circumstances. Changing the third number to 1 keeps those two starting trigrams but moves the bottom line instead; it therefore produces a different changed hexagram.

## Check the chart before reading its meaning

Find the original hexagram, its upper and lower trigrams, the moving line, and the resulting changed hexagram. The six lines are counted from bottom to top. A changed line switches between broken and unbroken; it is not an extra seventh line.

The display may also show the mutual hexagram and body-use relationships. These are additional constructions or interpretive relationships. Do not confuse the mutual hexagram with the changed hexagram: they answer different structural questions.

## Why apparently similar casts can disagree

First check number order, range and method. Then check the trigram numbering and whether the moving line came from the third number or a sum. Finally check whether line one is being counted from the bottom.

Repeating the same valid inputs with the same rules should preserve the chart calculation. The language of an AI interpretation can vary, however. A fixed calculation does not make every possible interpretation equally sound or establish a prediction.

## Use the result as a starting point for a question

For example, you might ask which part of a planned conversation the original and changed figures help you consider. Keep what the chart contains separate from facts you already know about the conversation.

The companion moving-line guide explains the three chart layers more closely. Read that before treating every figure shown in the result as a separate answer.

## Sources and scope

- [Multifate Meihua tool](https://multifate.com/tools/meihua): Current number inputs and the chart whose construction is explained here. The arithmetic follows Multifate’s current implementation.

## Continue

- [Meihua Yishu tool](https://multifate.com/tools/meihua)
- [Meihua Hexagrams: Original, Moving Line and Changed Result](https://multifate.com/guides/meihua-changing-hexagram/index.md)
- [All guides](https://multifate.com/guides/index.md)

These guides describe traditional symbolic frameworks and the current Multifate tools, not verified predictions. The chart tools are free; optional AI questions and multi-system access have separate limits. Check the pricing page for current terms. Interpretations do not replace medical, legal, financial or safety advice.