In Xuan Kong Da Gua date selection, every year, month, day, and hour is converted into an individual Hexagram which carries two distinct codes – the Xuan Kong Element number, and the Period Luck number. The secret of XKDG date selection lie in special formations of these numbers, promising infinite wealth and ultimate power.

For example, the year 2007 of Ding Hai has the XK Element & Period Luck numbers of 8-8. The month of December, Ren Zi, has the numbers 8-1. Let’s take December 19 which also has the XK Element number of 8. Factor in the hour Hexagram which contains the XK Element number of 8 as well – you find yourself with a ‘One Gua Purity’ Formation 8-8-8-8, an extremely auspicious date that promises to triple your wealth if you commence business on this date.

That simple, or is it? Let us take a step back and re-examine this date.

BaZi practitioners will instantly identify Dec 19 as a Ding Hai Fu Yin with the year pillar. Not too good as the day Qi is confused and blurry. Shen Sha [Gods & Killings] practitioners will point out that although the day sees the positive star Monthly Virtue Combine, the presence of the negative stars Wandering Mishap, Blood Branch, and the Red Phoenix from the Black Path’s 12 Palaces are reason enough to frown. Also the fact that this very day is a ‘Ten Ferocious Great Disaster Day’, which basically means that all good stars are in ‘emptiness’.

To top it all off, counting from the ’12 Day Officers’, it is a ‘Close Day’ where the month’s Qi dips to its lowest point.

Hmm. I thought it was the 8-8-8-8 XKDG superior date? Why the contradiction?

Today the hype with XK ‘special formations’ like the 1-6-1-6 HeTu or 8-2-8-2 Combination of Ten has made us all forget the simple fundamental of Date Selection – what’s in a Date that can affect the outcome of human actions? Simply: Qi.

Date Selection is the skill and art of timing our actions according to the prevailing energies of the universe. The type of Qi prevailing in the day is marked by the position of the stars relative to the earth at a given point in time. For our actions (seed) to bear successful consequence (fruit), the right kind of energies are necessary (fertilization).

Look at it this way: a day without good stars will not contain good Qi. A day without good Qi cannot possibly support our endeavours. Everything else is but calculation on paper.

This brings to mind the same hype that once plagued Flying Stars Feng Shui – activating the Facing Star #8 to severe proportions. While it is understandable for those who start-out dabbling with Feng Shui, serious practitioners should always bear in mind the WHY’s behind the HOW’s – did the mountain come first, or did the Facing Star come first? Now, since the core understanding of Feng Shui is that mountains are the source of Qi to the land, we can safely deduce that without the right mountains (whether by virtue of shape or location), no stars will fly – so to speak.

While we’re on the topic of Feng Shui and mountains – remember that mountains are shaped by the gravitational pull of various fixed stars in the heavens over millions of years. These are the very same stars used in Date Selection. The difference is in not having to wait a million years for Qi to be incepted into the land. Choosing the right date, finding the right stars, is like going to straight to the source – the Qi is incepted directly into our actions.

While the Xuan Kong Da Gua system for date selection is often misunderstood, it can be an extremely powerful tool indeed. Its strength lies in it being highly action and goal-focused, down to the details even. Every hexagram can be used for a ‘special effect’. For example, let’s talk about ‘attraction’. If someone wants to be famous, then the hexagram ‘Li as Fire’ comes to mind. For personal attraction, one can consider ‘Marsh & Mountain Attraction’ or even ‘Heaven & Wind Meeting’. Or let’s say you need to bedazzle someone with grandeur, try ‘Mountain & Fire Beauty’. If you need to attract an entire group of people, use the hexagram ‘Marsh & Earth Gathering’ – or ‘Heaven & Fire Fellowship’ if you need to pull an existing group closer together. Similarly, even the disaster hexagrams like ‘Mountain & Earth Peeling’ and ‘Heaven & Thunder Without Wrongdoing’ can be used appropriately should the situation arise. Indeed, the possibilities are endless.

But first, get your daily stars right.

Of course, the next trick is to then understand the needs of the situation, deciding on the right hexagram, and then ensuring that the hexagram matches the person(s) involved. And also, is there the right hexagram coming up anytime soon? Check your calendar diligently. It could be next year’s date.