TOJEONG BIGYEOL · 251
Tojeong Bigyeol Hexagram 251
The sign of chasing empty dreams, like seeking immortals on Mount Penglai
At a glance
- Hexagram
- 251
- Upper · middle · lower
- 2 · 5 · 1
- The year overall
- A year to take care
- Brighter months
- lunar month 8
- Months to take care
- lunar months 1, 6, 7 and 9
Luna Alley's Tojeong readings are for fun and reflection. Read even a difficult hexagram as a guide to how you carry yourself through the year.
The original verse and its meaning
- 蓬萊求仙 又似虛忘
You go to Mount Penglai in search of immortals, but it is as empty and foolish a pursuit as any. - 四顧無親 赤脚何依
Looking all around, there is no one close to you — barefoot, on whom could you lean? - 家不明 誰怨誰咎
The household is not bright — whom will you resent, whom will you blame? - 半笑半哭 身在北斗
Half laughing and half weeping, you stand beneath the Big Dipper.
The verses follow the public-domain Tojeong Bigyeol held by the National Library of Korea; the meanings are Luna Alley's own retelling.
The year ahead
This is a year when, gazing only at faraway luck, you can easily miss what's under your feet. You may feel you have nowhere to lean, but rather than blaming others, start by brightening your own home. Laughter and tears are half and half, so set down big ambitions and your heart will feel much lighter.
This is a year to watch the ground at your feet rather than chase faraway luck. Seeking immortals on Mount Penglai in the first verse stands for out-of-reach dreams or fanciful hopes, so don't cling to a chance that would change everything at once. The second verse depicts standing barefoot with no one close in any direction, so you may feel lonely with nothing to lean on. The third verse asks whom you'd blame when your household isn't bright, meaning rather than resenting others, brighten your own home and life first. Half laughing and half weeping in the fourth verse speaks of a year mixed with joy and sorrow, and the figure standing beneath the Big Dipper depicts someone waiting for heaven's timing. In the first half and in autumn there are empty alarms, quarrels, and financial losses, so it's better to curb your greed and live quietly. Still, at the end of midsummer there's a bright month when your name and money rise together, and in late autumn there's the joy of achieving something with a like-minded person. Set big dreams aside for a while and do what you can today, and the year will feel much lighter.
A word from Master Tojeong
“The immortals are not on Mount Penglai; they are in your own yard. Before you blame others, first light the lamp in your own house. Though it be half laughter and half tears, lessen your greed and the laughter shall grow.”
Month by month (summary)
Only a short note and the original verse for each month. Dates are the 2027 lunar months.
- Lunar month 1Feb 7 – Mar 7Care
This is a month to step back and hold steady. You're easily startled or worried over nothing much.
此月之數 空然虛驚 諸事有害 不如在家 · This month's fortune: you are startled in vain for no reason; there is harm in everything, so nothing is better than staying home.
- Lunar month 2Mar 8 – Apr 6Even
Good and bad are half and half this month. It's easy to spend time and energy looking for precious things in the wrong places.
海中求玉 不見好玉 莫聽人言 事多虛妄 · Though you seek jade in the sea, no fine jade appears; do not listen to others' words, for most matters come to nothing.
- Lunar month 3Apr 7 – May 5Even
Hold steady and it's an okay month. There are signs of things changing for the better, but small family worries shake your heart.
此月之數 鳥變白鷺 家事小憂 心身不平 · This month's fortune is like a crow turning into a white egret, but there are small worries in household matters, so body and mind are not at ease.
- Lunar month 4May 6 – Jun 4Even
Hold steady and it's an okay month. Conduct yourself generously and rightly and good things come; calculate narrowly and trouble follows.
大人有吉 小人有害 安分樂道 身安無憂 · It is auspicious for the great-hearted and harmful for the petty; be at ease with your lot and enjoy the Way, and you will be comfortable and free of worry.
- Lunar month 5Jun 5 – Jul 3Even
Good and bad are half and half this month. You may feel stuck, as if standing at a dead end, but changing direction opens a path.
日暮途窮 所望何事 移舍變業 凶變爲吉 · The day is ending and the road has run out — what can you hope for? Yet if you move house and change your trade, ill luck turns to good.
- Lunar month 6Jul 4 – Aug 1Care
This is a month not to overdo it but to take a breather. If you throw away the small things you have now to chase big ones, you easily lose both.
捨小取大 反爲其害 枉生虛慾 徒費心力 · If you cast away the small to take the great, it will do harm instead; if you nurse empty greed, you only waste heart and strength.
- Lunar month 7Aug 2 – Aug 31Care
This is a month not to overdo it but to take a breather. Even with signs of money coming in, getting caught in quarrels or disputes sends more money out.
此月之數 財利可望 訟事不絶 損財甚多 · This month's fortune holds hope of financial gain, but lawsuits never cease, so financial losses are very many.
- Lunar month 8Sep 1 – Sep 29Bright
It's a month of bright energy. The joy of having your efforts recognized and your name known arrives.
名泰身旺 閑處求財 財運亨通 有錢有穀 · Your name is great and your body vigorous, so seek wealth in quiet places; financial fortune flows well, and there is money and grain.
- Lunar month 9Sep 30 – Oct 28Care
This is a month not to overdo it but to take a breather. Your heart grows lonely, and you may part with someone close or hear sad news.
蕭蕭秋風 鴻雁失侶 身運不利 必有素服 · In the lonely autumn wind the wild goose loses its mate; your bodily fortune is unfavorable, and there may be cause to wear mourning white.
- Lunar month 10Oct 29 – Nov 27Even
Hold steady and it's an okay month. Things get done when you work with a like-minded person rather than alone.
兩人同心 求事可成 若非官祿 生産可知 · When two people become one in heart, they can seek and accomplish their affairs; if not official honor, there is the joy of bearing a child.
- Lunar month 11Nov 28 – Dec 27Even
It's a month that flows smoothly. You reconcile with someone you'd fallen out with, and the burden on your heart lightens.
吳越和合 憂散喜生 莫信人言 必有狼狽 · Wu and Yue make peace, so worries scatter and joy arises; but if you trust others' words, there may be trouble.
- Lunar month 12Dec 28 – Jan 26, 2028Even
Hold steady and it's an okay month. There's income, but it scatters easily, so set it aside as soon as it comes in.
雖有得財 得而難聚 魔障來侵 謀事漸退 · Even when you gain wealth it is hard to keep, and demonic obstacles intrude, so what you plan gradually recedes.
The nine readings by area (money, love, work, health and more) and the long monthly readings open in the Tojeong Bigyeol app once you find your own hexagram.
Who gets this hexagram?
The hexagram depends on your lunar birth date and the year being read. The upper number comes from your Korean age that year plus the year's taese number, the middle from the length and month number of your birth month that year, and the lower from your birth day plus the day number. So the same person gets a different hexagram each year.
For example, someone born on lunar 2/1/1989 receives this hexagram in 2027.
Find my hexagram
Frequently asked questions
Is Tojeong hexagram 251 a good one?
Hexagram 251 is read as a year that calls for keeping low and holding steady. This is a year when, gazing only at faraway luck, you can easily miss what's under your feet. You may feel you have nowhere to lean, but rather than blaming others, start by brightening your own home.
Which months need care in hexagram 251?
In hexagram 251, the lower months are lunar months 1, 6, 7 and 9. Avoid rushing big decisions then, and go easy on your body and your words.
How do I find my own Tojeong hexagram?
Enter your birth date in the Luna Alley Tojeong Bigyeol page and it converts solar to lunar and works out the hexagram for you. To do it by hand, the 2027 guide shows the formula with an example.