小六壬 · xiǎo liù rén
Xiao Liu Ren
Hold one question in mind. This method counts forward through six fixed palaces — six stopping points around a ring, not buildings — from the lunar month, to the day, to the two-hour block you are standing in. The palace you land on answers the question. Everything runs in your browser.
First time here?
Bring one question
This method answers a single question about a single moment — usually a decision in front of you this week, not a life story.
It counts, it does not guess
The result comes from a fixed count through six palaces. Same moment, same question, same answer. Nothing is random unless you choose the numbers yourself.
Read it as weather, not fate
A reading tells you whether the moment favours moving, waiting or letting go. It does not decide anything for you, and it is not a forecast.
Works well for
- One decision you are actually facing, today or this week
- Whether to act now, wait, or let something go
- How to approach a person or a conversation
- A yes-or-no you would otherwise keep circling
Not for
- Forecasts months or years out
- Anything medical, legal or financial
- Questions about someone else’s private life
- Testing the same question over and over until you like the answer
How to read a result
Four states, in plain wordsEvery reading opens with one of these. It is a description of the moment, not a verdict on you.
- Open — Move
The moment supports action. Something can be started, sent or asked now.
- Steady — Stay
The moment is stable and unmoving. Nothing needs doing, and nothing needs undoing.
- Held up — Wait
The moment is stuck on something. Action will not move it; finding the block might.
- Closed — Don’t
The moment does not support this. Effort here tends to come back empty.
How the count works
The six palaces sit in a fixed ring, and the method is nothing more than walking around that ring three times. You always start at大安 Great Peace.
- Month. Count forward one palace per lunar month. The first month is Great Peace, the second Lingering, and so on, wrapping after the sixth.
- Day. From wherever the month landed, count forward one palace per lunar day. The day you are counting from occupies the first step.
- Hour. From wherever the day landed, count forward one palace per double-hour, with 子 (23:00–00:59) as the first step.
The three landings describe origin, now and landing — but only the last one answers the question. The first two explain how it got there.
The three-number variant works identically, except the numbers set the length of each walk instead of a calendar does.
Words used here
No prior knowledge assumed- Palace宫
- One of six fixed stopping points around a ring — not a building. Think of them as six weather conditions a moment can be in.
- Lunar month and day农历
- The Chinese calendar follows the moon, so its months start on the new moon and its days do not line up with the date on your phone. The method counts lunar days, which is why the site works them out for you.
- Double-hour时辰
- The old Chinese day is cut into twelve two-hour blocks instead of twenty-four hours. 子 runs 23:00–00:59, 丑 01:00–02:59, and so on. The method counts which block you are standing in.
- Inclusive counting起宫
- Every step counts the palace you are already standing on as one, rather than starting from the next. It is why the first lunar month lands on the first palace rather than the second.
- Element, direction, spirit五行
- Each palace is traditionally tagged with an element, a compass direction and a mythic animal. They are poetic associations, not extra predictions — interesting to practitioners, skippable for everyone else.
The six palaces
- 大安Great PeaceSteadyEverything stays as it is — and that is the good news.
- 留连LingeringHeld upIt is not finished, and it is not moving — it is waiting on something.
- 速喜Swift JoyOpenNews is already on its way, and it is better than you expected.
- 赤口Red MouthClosedWords are the danger here — yours and theirs.
- 小吉Small FortuneOpenModest, real, and helped along by people who like you.
- 空亡Empty VoidClosedThe thing you are asking about is not really there.