🗓️ Gregorian → Lunar Month Conversion (2026)
In Plum Blossom Divination, the month is determined by solar terms (节气), not the lunar calendar month. The year branch changes at Lichun (Start of Spring, February 4), and each month branch shifts at its corresponding solar term.
Use this table to find the correct month branch for any date:
| Date Range | Solar Term (Start) | Month # | Earthly Branch | Animal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 4 – Mar 4 | 立春 Lichun (Start of Spring) | 1 | 寅 Yin | 🐯 Tiger |
| Mar 5 – Apr 3 | 惊蛰 Jingzhe (Awakening of Insects) | 2 | 卯 Mao | 🐰 Rabbit |
| Apr 4 – May 4 | 清明 Qingming (Clear & Bright) | 3 | 辰 Chen | 🐲 Dragon |
| May 5 – Jun 4 | 立夏 Lixia (Start of Summer) | 4 | 巳 Si | 🐍 Snake |
| Jun 5 – Jul 6 | 芒种 Mangzhong (Grain in Ear) | 5 | 午 Wu | 🐴 Horse |
| Jul 7 – Aug 6 | 小暑 Xiaoshu (Minor Heat) | 6 | 未 Wei | 🐐 Goat |
| Aug 7 – Sep 6 | 立秋 Liqiu (Start of Autumn) | 7 | 申 Shen | 🐵 Monkey |
| Sep 7 – Oct 7 | 白露 Bailu (White Dew) | 8 | 酉 You | 🐔 Rooster |
| Oct 8 – Nov 6 | 寒露 Hanlu (Cold Dew) | 9 | 戌 Xu | 🐶 Dog |
| Nov 7 – Dec 6 | 立冬 Lidong (Start of Winter) | 10 | 亥 Hai | 🐷 Pig |
| Dec 7 – Jan 4 | 大雪 Daxue (Major Snow) | 11 | 子 Zi | 🐭 Rat |
| Jan 5 – Feb 3 | 小寒 Xiaohan (Minor Cold) | 12 | 丑 Chou | 🐂 Ox |
Note: MeihuaMind’s Instant Cast automatically calculates the correct month branch using exact solar term timing — no manual lookup needed. This table is for those who want to understand the system or verify casts manually.
📚 Recommended Books
These are the foundational texts for studying the I Ching, Plum Blossom Divination, and Shao Yong’s cosmological system. Links support MeihuaMind through Amazon’s affiliate program at no extra cost to you.
The I Ching (Core Texts)
The I Ching or Book of Changes
The definitive English translation. Richard Wilhelm’s German translation rendered into English by Cary Baynes, with a foreword by C.G. Jung. This is the version most Western practitioners consider canonical. Includes all 64 hexagrams, moving lines, and the Ten Wings commentaries.
The Complete I Ching — 10th Anniversary Edition
A translation by a Taoist master that emphasizes the original Chinese cosmological framework. Huang’s translation is more faithful to the Taoist roots of the text and includes the names of the hexagrams in Chinese, making it valuable for Plum Blossom practitioners who want to understand the element and trigram relationships.
Shao Yong & Plum Blossom Method
Plum Blossom Numerology (Mei Hua Yi Shu)
The most accessible English-language translation of Shao Yong’s own writing on the Plum Blossom method. Covers the cosmological foundations, the role of numbers and time, and interpretation principles. Essential for anyone serious about this specific divination system.
The Numerology of the I Ching
A practical guide to the mathematical and numerological aspects of the I Ching, including the He Tu and Luo Shu diagrams that underpin Plum Blossom calculations. Helpful for understanding the “number cast” method and the cosmic clock system.
Five Elements & Bazi Foundations
The Foundations of Chinese Astrology
Covers the Heavenly Stems, Earthly Branches, and Five Elements in depth — the building blocks of Plum Blossom Divination. Understanding Ti/Yong (Self/Guest) dynamics and element generation/overcoming relationships is essential for interpretation.
Four Pillars of Destiny: The Ten Gods
While focused on Bazi (Four Pillars), this book provides deep insight into the Daymaster concept and how personal elemental profiles interact with universal energies — directly relevant to MeihuaMind’s Daymaster overlay feature.
🔬 The 24 Solar Terms (节气)
The Plum Blossom method uses the 24 solar terms to determine month branches. Each term marks a specific point in the sun’s ecliptic longitude. Here are all 24 for 2026:
| # | Solar Term | Chinese | Meaning | 2026 Date | Ecliptic Longitude |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Xiaohan | 小寒 | Minor Cold | Jan 5 | 285° |
| 2 | Dahan | 大寒 | Major Cold | Jan 20 | 300° |
| 3 | Lichun | 立春 | Start of Spring | Feb 4 | 315° |
| 4 | Yushui | 雨水 | Rain Water | Feb 18 | 330° |
| 5 | Jingzhe | 惊蛰 | Awakening of Insects | Mar 5 | 345° |
| 6 | Chunfen | 春分 | Spring Equinox | Mar 20 | 0° |
| 7 | Qingming | 清明 | Clear & Bright | Apr 4 | 15° |
| 8 | Guyu | 谷雨 | Grain Rain | Apr 20 | 30° |
| 9 | Lixia | 立夏 | Start of Summer | May 5 | 45° |
| 10 | Xiaoman | 小满 | Grain Buds | May 21 | 60° |
| 11 | Mangzhong | 芒种 | Grain in Ear | Jun 5 | 75° |
| 12 | Xiazhi | 夏至 | Summer Solstice | Jun 21 | 90° |
| 13 | Xiaoshu | 小暑 | Minor Heat | Jul 7 | 105° |
| 14 | Dashu | 大暑 | Major Heat | Jul 22 | 120° |
| 15 | Liqiu | 立秋 | Start of Autumn | Aug 7 | 135° |
| 16 | Chushu | 处暑 | End of Heat | Aug 23 | 150° |
| 17 | Bailu | 白露 | White Dew | Sep 7 | 165° |
| 18 | Qiufen | 秋分 | Autumn Equinox | Sep 23 | 180° |
| 19 | Hanlu | 寒露 | Cold Dew | Oct 8 | 195° |
| 20 | Shuangjiang | 霜降 | Frost Descent | Oct 23 | 210° |
| 21 | Lidong | 立冬 | Start of Winter | Nov 7 | 225° |
| 22 | Xiaoxue | 小雪 | Minor Snow | Nov 22 | 240° |
| 23 | Daxue | 大雪 | Major Snow | Dec 7 | 255° |
| 24 | Dongzhi | 冬至 | Winter Solstice | Dec 22 | 270° |
🧮 Online Tools & References
📐 Chinese Calendar Converter
Convert between Gregorian and Chinese lunar dates. Useful for verifying your own manual calculations or exploring historical dates.
🌟 Eight Trigrams (Bagua) Reference
Visual reference for the eight trigrams, their attributes, and elemental correspondences used in Plum Blossom interpretation.
📜 Shao Yong Biography
Learn about the Song Dynasty polymath who created this system — his philosophy, cosmological model, and the radical simplicity of time-based divination.
🔮 Online Clarity I Ching Community
The largest English-language I Ching community, founded by Hilary Barrett. Active forums for discussing casts, interpretation approaches, and study groups.
📚 I Ching on Wikipedia
Comprehensive overview of the Book of Changes, its history, structure, and cultural influence. Good starting point for understanding the broader context.
📖 Study Path for Beginners
If you’re new to the I Ching and Plum Blossom Divination, here’s a suggested order of study:
- Start with the articles on this site: Read Shao Yong: The Mind Behind the Plum Blossom and What Is Plum Blossom Divination? for context and overview.
- Get a translation of the I Ching. The Wilhelm/Baynes translation is the standard. Read the introduction carefully — it explains the hexagram structure and how to read changing lines.
- Learn the Five Elements (五行). Understand the generation cycle (Metal→Water→Wood→Fire→Earth→Metal) and the overcoming cycle (Metal→Wood→Earth→Water→Fire→Metal). These relationships are the interpretive engine of Plum Blossom Divination.
- Memorize the eight trigrams. Know their names, elements, natures, and archetypal associations. You’ll use these constantly.
- Practice casting. Use MeihuaMind’s free Instant Cast. Start with simple questions and track your results in the journal. Over time, you’ll develop intuition for how the elements interact.
- Deepen with Shao Yong’s own writings. The Plum Blossom Numerology text provides the philosophical foundation directly from the source.
❓ Why Solar Terms, Not Lunar Months?
Many people assume Chinese divination uses the lunar calendar. In reality, the Plum Blossom Method uses solar terms, which are based on the sun’s position along the ecliptic. This makes the system astronomically precise and directly tied to seasonal energy.
The lunar calendar varies year to year (leap months, variable month lengths), which would introduce inconsistency into casts. Solar terms, by contrast, fall within a day or two of the same Gregorian date each year, providing a stable framework for divination.
This is why MeihuaMind’s engine calculates month branches from solar term data rather than lunar month numbers — it’s the method Shao Yong himself used nearly a thousand years ago.