SIDE BY SIDE
Compare mantic systems
Read systems against shared questions to identify common language, procedural differences and distinct limits.
| Dimension | 皇极经世 ↗ | 河图、洛书与九宫 ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Family | Yijing-derived and correlative systems | Divination and correlative foundations |
| Inputs | Cycle tables, figure sequence, edition and chronology | Edition-specific image, number positions and caption |
| Procedural structure | Nested units unfold one grand cycle into meetings, revolutions and generations, mapped to pre-celestial diagrams and hexagram sequences; related sections use sound and number to discuss transformation. | Hetu-Luoshu diagrams arrange numbers spatially and interpret generation and change through yin-yang, the five phases, direction and cycles. The Nine Palaces coordinate number, time and position around a center and eight directions. |
| Formation | Northern Song system of Shao Yong | Concepts attested early; familiar dot diagrams largely stabilized in the Song |
| Evidence labels | Textually documented · Traditional attribution | Textually documented · Traditional attribution · Contested lineage or date |
| Texts | Huangji Jingshi Shu / Inner and Outer Chapters on Observing Things / Later diagrams associated with Cai Yuanding and others | Zhouyi, Xici / Documents, Great Plan / Introduction to Yijing Learning |
| Limits | The original work is primarily cosmology and philosophy of history. Later dynastic predictions, numbered oracles and secret methods under Shao's name cannot all be read back into it. | The dragon-horse and divine turtle are cultural origin narratives; early textual mentions do not prove that Song dot diagrams descended unchanged from Fuxi or Yu. |
| Research question | How are numerical cycles connected to historical narrative? | Do labels, number sequences and directions agree across editions? |