SIDE BY SIDE
Compare mantic systems
Read systems against shared questions to identify common language, procedural differences and distinct limits.
| Dimension | 小六壬 ↗ | 大六壬 ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Family | The Three Cosmic Boards and spatiotemporal methods | The Three Cosmic Boards and spatiotemporal methods |
| Inputs | Month/day/hour convention, sequence and local text | Day stems-branches, monthly general, hour and transmission rules |
| Procedural structure | 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. | After the monthly general is placed over the hour, four relations are derived from the day stem and branch. Rule families such as overcoming, matching, depth and remote control select three transmissions, which are read with twelve generals, natal signs and pattern classes. |
| Formation | A late popular quick method chiefly standardized in recent and modern sources | Han cosmic boards form an early background; mature textual systems are confirmed by Tang-Song |
| Evidence labels | Traditional attribution · Contested lineage or date | Excavated evidence · Textually documented · Contested lineage or date |
| Texts | Local manuscripts and hand mnemonics / Modern compilations titled Xiao Liuren | Jingyou Liuren Shending Jing / Liuren Daquan / Liuren Zhinan / Liuren Case Judgments |
| Limits | 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. | A Han board does not prove that the entire received system already existed. Transmission-selection rules are complex and vary in details by school. |
| Research question | Do identically named formulas use the same counting origin? | Can the selection from lessons to transmissions be reproduced? |