Clear stance · clear boundaries
Hexagram Cast is not fortune-telling software.
It is an instrument for making number-drawing visible: casting is free, the process is inspectable, source text is separated, and the final reading remains yours.
MANIFESTO
What we do, and what we deliberately refuse.
DO
Transparent casting
Implement four traditional and four modern methods, showing hashes, moduli, line positions, coin tosses, and yarrow traces.
DO
Source archives
Provide the 64 hexagrams as structure, judgment, image, line text, plain readings, and modern reading layers.
DO NOT
No mystic marketing
No luck scores, horoscope loops, talismans, rituals for sale, or sharing your castings with third parties.
What is this?
Is Hexagram Cast a fortune-telling app?
No. Hexagram Cast treats casting as probability, structure, and source-text reading. It shows how a result is produced; it does not tell you when you will become rich.
How is it different from other I Ching apps?
Hexagram Cast treats the casting engine itself as the product: eight methods, transparent computation, locale-specific editorial editions, and traceable casting records.
How do I cast?
Do I need candles, incense, or perfect sincerity?
No. Choose a method, provide the matching input, then inspect the result and trace. Traditional methods use randomness; modern methods use deterministic digests.
What is the difference between text and verse casting?
Both use UTF-8 plus SHA-256. Verse casting gives you a poem-shaped input surface and examples while keeping the same algorithm.
How do I ask a good question?
Keep it open, present-tense, and about your own conduct rather than someone else's fate. We wrote a short guide: how to ask the I Ching a question.
Daily practice and journal
Can I use this as a daily reflection practice?
Yes — that's what it's best at. The Today page gives you one open prompt a day and a single cast, so reflection becomes a quiet habit rather than an anxious refresh.
Can I save my question and write down what I think?
Yes. Every cast can carry an optional question, and signed-in users can add a private reflection note to each casting. Your questions, castings, and notes build a personal journal over time, which is the core of Pro.
Is the reading accurate? Does it predict the future?
No, and we won't pretend otherwise. The casting math is real and verifiable; the value is structured reflection, not prediction. We explain this honestly in is the I Ching real?.
What does the math guarantee?
Will the same input produce the same hexagram?
For the four modern methods, yes. For coins and yarrow, no, because those are random processes.
Are coin and yarrow distributions really different?
Yes. Coin is 1/8, 3/8, 3/8, 1/8. Yarrow is 1/16, 5/16, 7/16, 3/16.
Data and privacy
Do I need an account to cast?
No. Anonymous casting works. Signing in only saves your history across devices.
Are uploaded images or audio files stored?
No original file is persisted. The server reads bytes for computation and saves only the hexagram, filename, byte count, digest, and trace.
Pricing and boundaries
Is there a paid tier?
Casting is always free and unlimited, and the 64-hexagram archive is directly readable. The one paid feature is the optional Deep Reading — a personalized, source-grounded interpretation of a specific casting and question. See pricing. Casting itself is never gated.
What is a Deep Reading?
An AI-assisted reading that interprets your casting and question against the classical text — separating source from interpretation, with no fortune-telling. Buy a single reading or credits, or subscribe to Pro. If a reading fails to generate, the credit is refunded automatically.