Kyusei Kigaku (Nine Star Ki)
Kyusei Kigaku is the Japanese nine-star system. A person gets a number from 1 to 9 based on their birth year, and that number sets their “star,” element, and the directions that are favorable for trips and moves.
The year and month are for the direction chart, which is used to choose the direction of a trip or a move.
How it's calculated
The number is derived from the birth year. The classic method: add up the digits of the year until you get a single digit, then subtract the result from 11; if you get more than 9, subtract 9.
For 1988: 1 + 9 + 8 + 8 = 26 → 8; 11 − 8 = 3. The third star.
As in the Chinese tradition, the year boundary falls around February 4, at Risshun, the Japanese name for Lichun: people born earlier belong to the previous year. The calculator takes the exact moment of Risshun and shows both options on the boundary day.
It's easy to see that this is the same number as the “Kua number” in feng shui, just without the split by gender: both systems grew from the same root, the Lo Shu grid and the nine flying stars.
The Nine Stars
| Number | Name | Element | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | White Water | Water | north |
| 2 | Black Earth | Earth | southwest |
| 3 | Blue Wood | Wood | east |
| 4 | Green Wood | Wood | southeast |
| 5 | Yellow Earth | Earth | center |
| 6 | White Metal | Metal | northwest |
| 7 | Red Metal | Metal | west |
| 8 | White Earth | Earth | northeast |
| 9 | Purple Fire | Fire | south |
The stars' elements: 1 — Water; 2, 5 and 8 — Earth; 3 and 4 — Wood; 6 and 7 — Metal; 9 — Fire.
The year star (honmei) describes a person's outer nature — how others see them. The birth month star (getsumei) describes the inner one: what shows up in close relationships and in hard times. The images of the stars in Kyusei Kigaku are as follows:
- 1, White Water — flexibility, depth, adaptability; the person keeps their feelings to themselves.
- 2, Black Earth — care, patience, reliability; the strength of support.
- 3, Blue Wood — impulse, directness, the energy of beginnings; its image is thunder.
- 4, Green Wood — gentleness, sociability, the ability to reach agreement; its image is wind.
- 5, Yellow Earth — the strength of the center, will, influence over others; a tendency toward extremes.
- 6, White Metal — responsibility, principles, leadership; its image is heaven.
- 7, Red Metal — charm, lightness, a taste for pleasure and conversation; its image is a lake.
- 8, White Earth — persistence, accumulation, a capacity for change; its image is a mountain.
- 9, Purple Fire — brilliance, intuition, a desire to be noticed; its image is fire.
The same nine numbers also move around the grid in feng shui flying stars — only there they change every year for a house, while here they are fixed to a person. The meanings of a house's flying stars are not carried over to people: a 3 in Kyusei Kigaku is not the “star of disputes,” and a 5 as a person's star does not mean misfortune — the 5 is considered dangerous only as a direction on the annual or monthly chart, go-o-satsu.
The Annual Direction Chart
Every year a new star takes the center of the Lo Shu grid, and the other eight spread out among the directions. The monthly chart is built the same way, except that the center star changes at the start of each solar month.
The chart is used to find the year's unfavorable directions:
- Go-o-satsu: the direction where the 5 stands.
- Anken-satsu: the direction opposite the 5.
- Honmei-satsu: the direction where your own star stands, and honmeiteki-satsu: the direction opposite it.
- Saiha: the direction opposite the year's branch; in the monthly chart, geppa, the direction opposite the month's branch.
The favorable directions are those holding stars compatible with yours: stars of the same element or linked to it by the generating cycle. Strongest of all is the star that nourishes yours: for “water” it's “metal,” for “wood” it's “water.” If your own star stands in the center this year, by tradition all eight directions are closed: happo-fusagari.
The direction your star has moved to this year sets the theme of the year: north — rest and preparation, northeast — change, east — beginnings and activity, southeast — connections and agreements, south — recognition and clarity, southwest — hard work, west — joy, money and socializing, northwest — responsibility and big tasks.
What It's Used For
The main use is “kaho” and “hogaku”: choosing a favorable direction for a trip, a move or an important undertaking. In Japanese tradition this is considered the system's main practical value, far more important than describing character.
The year's unfavorable directions — go-o-satsu, anken-satsu, honmei-satsu, honmeiteki-satsu and saiha — are by tradition avoided when moving. Some Japanese people still check them before moving, and construction and real estate companies sometimes list this information.
For a move, you look at the annual chart first, then the monthly one: the direction should be favorable for the year and not closed in the month of the move. For a short trip, the monthly chart is enough.
An Honest Look at the Method
Kyusei Kigaku took shape in Japan in the early 20th century based on Chinese sources, so it is a fairly new system despite its ancient roots.
There is no evidence that the direction of a move affects one's fate. As a cultural practice and a way to structure a decision about moving, it works fine; as a reason to cancel a trip you need to take, it doesn't.
Frequently asked questions
How is the year star different from the Kua number?
For men it's the same number. For women the Kua is calculated differently, while the Kyusei star is the same for everyone. Also, a 5 is replaced by 2 or 8 in the Kua system but stays a 5 in Kyusei Kigaku.
Why do the directions change every year?
The annual stars shift around the Lo Shu grid: each year a new star takes the center, and with it the 5, the direction opposite it and your own star all move.
Where should I measure the direction from?
From the home where you live now, not from your place of birth. In the Japanese tradition, north, south, east and west span 30° each, and the intermediate directions 60° each.