Nine Palaces (Jiu Gong)

The Nine Palaces are a center and eight surrounding positions, often drawn as a three-by-three grid. The fixed Luo Shu numbers form a magic square; a floor-plan overlay and a time-based Flying-Star chart are applications of that framework.

With south at the top, the rows of a fixed Luo Shu are 4–9–2 / 3–5–7 / 8–1–6. Each row, column and diagonal totals 15. Mark orientation before putting a real floor plan beneath the diagram.

Qing Nang Jing gives the center-five and surrounding-number formulation. A compass grid differs from entrance-aligned modern Bagua; the wealth, career and relationship area labels belong to particular later systems, not to the arithmetic itself.

The Nine Palaces grid is used differently by various feng shui schools:

• Flying Stars: Places natal and annual stars in each palace
• BTB/Western Bagua: Aligns grid to main entrance rather than compass
• Classical Bagua: Aligns South at top based on compass direction
• Eight Mansions: Overlays the eight energy types on the palaces
• Life Aspirations: Associates each palace with life areas (wealth, health, etc.)

The basic grid structure is consistent, but how it is oriented and interpreted varies.

Qing Nang Jing's center-five and surrounding numbers support the fixed layout. The sum of 15 is checked arithmetic; later compass, entrance and aspiration mappings need their own declared convention.