How to Read a Liu Yao Chart
Read a Liu Yao chart by fixing the question, verifying the chart, choosing Yongshen, weighing time and movement, and stating a conditional conclusion.
Overview
A defensible Liu Yao reading begins after chart construction, not before it. Define one question and decision owner, select the relevant Yongshen role, inspect month/day support and pressure, examine moving and changed lines, compare Shi–Ying where relevant, then synthesize supporting and opposing facts with an observable correction condition.
At a glance
- Reader question
- how to read Liu Yao
- Evidence model
- Fixed chart facts → attributed tradition → conditional interpretation
- Product boundary
- OpenFate /liuyao owns interactive casting and chart generation
- Review posture
- Source-backed reference · interpretation remains conditional
Explore concepts
- Liu Yao Reading Order
- How to Ask a Liu Yao Question
- How to Choose Yongshen in Liu Yao
- Yuan Shen, Ji Shen and Chou Shen in Liu Yao
- How to Judge Yongshen Strength in Liu Yao
- Five Elements in Liu Yao
- Month and Day Influence in Liu Yao
- Earthly Branch Combinations and Clashes in Liu Yao
- Month Break and Day Clash in Liu Yao
- Moving, Static and Hidden Movement in Liu Yao
- Changed-Line Relations in Liu Yao
- How to Read Xun Kong in Liu Yao
- Six-Clash and Six-Harmony Hexagrams in Liu Yao
- Fan Yin and Fu Yin in Liu Yao
- Wandering-Soul and Returning-Soul Hexagrams
- Timing in Liu Yao Readings
- Multiple or No Moving Lines in Liu Yao
- How to Resolve Conflicting Liu Yao Evidence
Direct answer
A defensible Liu Yao reading begins after chart construction, not before it. Define one question and decision owner, select the relevant Yongshen role, inspect month/day support and pressure, examine moving and changed lines, compare Shi–Ying where relevant, then synthesize supporting and opposing facts with an observable correction condition.
Definitions and prerequisites
You need the original cast receipt, complete fixed chart, question category, time policy and source convention. If the focus role or a decisive line is ambiguous, retain multiple candidates rather than hiding the fork.
Method or reference rule
Follow a fixed sequence: verify inputs; identify the chart; choose focus; audit strength; trace moving influences and changes; check Shi–Ying and void; rank conflicts; write conclusion, uncertainty, alternatives and what future observation would revise it.
Worked example
Suppose a selected focus receives month support but is controlled by another moving line. A useful reading names both facts and explains why neither can be ignored, then points to a real document or response that would settle the practical question.
Closest failure case
Declaring success from one supportive factor while omitting a stronger contradiction is cherry-picking. Reading every line as a separate story also prevents an auditable overall judgment.
Sources, interpretation and limits
The result is a conditional interpretation of a symbolic framework, not a probability, diagnosis or command. High-stakes facts must be checked outside the chart, and unknowns must stay unknown.
The named chapter documents a historical procedure; the OpenFate code locator documents the current deterministic implementation. Differences remain attributed rather than silently reconciled.
Verification checklist
Save the question, cast time, timezone, face convention, six line values, source edition and product version whenever they can change the result.
- Reproduce the six stored line values before interpretation.
- Name the method, edition and product settings used.
- Cite the decisive chart facts instead of one dramatic label.
- Use observable records and qualified advice for high-stakes decisions.
Sources and editorial basis
- Wikisource: 增刪卜易《增刪卜易》 index; use the page-specific chapter locator supplied below and distinguish base text from digitizer/editor notes.Public-domain digitization with named chapters on casting, Eight-Palace names, Yongshen and worked cases. Editorial additions in the digitization must not be silently attributed to the historical author.
- OpenFate Liu Yao deterministic chart contractOpenFate code audit 2026-09-12: app/modules/liuyao/logic/cast.ts, data.ts, engine.ts, evidence.ts, types.ts and topics.ts; current product behavior only.Product evidence for seeded six-line casting and the current deterministic chart fields and policies. It supports current behavior only, not historical priority or predictive truth.
- OpenFate Editorial MethodologyOpenFate Editorial Methodology, stable sections #editorial-principles, #editorial-workflow, #editorial-ai and #editorial-context. Page claim scope: 以取用神、察旺衰、看動變、核對世應與綜合證據建立固定閱讀順序。OpenFate separates deterministic chart calculation, traditional interpretation, and modern editorial explanation.