式Mantic arts dossier · The Three Cosmic Boards and spatiotemporal methods

小六壬

Xiǎo Liùrén·Lesser Liuren

A quick hand mnemonic cycling month, day and hour through six states: Great Peace, Lingering, Swift Joy, Red Mouth, Small Fortune and Emptiness.

A conceptual hand-counting mnemonic with six cyclical nodes and month-day-hour sequences; it is not an ancient hand-formula record and does not claim a proven direct lineage from Great Liuren.
Aliases
Lesser Liuren hand mnemonic, Six-Spirit lesson
Formation
A late popular quick method chiefly standardized in recent and modern sources
Evidence status
Traditional attributionContested lineage or date

01Core principles

Core principles

Translate formulas into structure: what enters, how the model is arranged, and which relations drive interpretation.

Counting proceeds from a set starting point through lunar month, day and hour branch. The final position gives a basic judgment; expanded schools add phases, relations, spirits and correspondences.

Key concepts

  • Great Peace
  • Lingering
  • Swift Joy
  • Red Mouth
  • Small Fortune
  • Emptiness

02Origins and historical development

Origins and historical development

Keep traditional accounts, surviving evidence and later transformations distinct.

Its lack of a complex chart encouraged broad popular circulation. Surviving evidence is mainly manuscripts, finger mnemonics and modern compilations, with regional additions and omissions.

03Evidence limits and research debates

Evidence limits and research debates

Mystery belongs to the unknown—not to presenting uncertainty as fact.

Despite the name, a direct genealogy from Great Liuren's Four Lessons and Three Transmissions is unclear. Attributions to Li Chunfeng or Zhuge Liang lack reliable evidence.

This dossier supports historical, textual and methodological study. Internal traditional explanations are not modern empirical validation and do not replace medical, legal, financial or other professional advice.

04Core texts and materials

Core texts and materials

  1. 01Local manuscripts and hand mnemonics
  2. 02Modern compilations titled Xiao Liuren
Editorial status

Institute knowledge atlas, first edition · historical and traditional claims layered · updated 2026-08-14