What Is Mewa 4
Mewa (Tib. rme ba, རྨེ་བ; in some sources — sme ba; literally "spot, mole") is one of the nine numbers of the magic square 3×3 on which the numerological layer of Tibetan astrology — the "black calculations" (nagci) — is built. The sum of numbers along any line of the square equals 15: this is the same square as the Chinese Lo Shu. The system as a whole is described in the Tibetan Numerology hub.
Within the system, a distinction is made between the birth mewa (keme) — determined by the year of birth and lasting for life — and the annual mewa (bame) — which changes every year and is used in annual forecasts.
Mewa 4 in this system is green, element wood. By color it is called the "green four." By Tibetan reckoning (for those born after Losar), its years are 1993, 2002, 2011, 2020. Mewa 4 is associated in the magic square with the animal group: Mouse, Rabbit, Horse, Bird (the same group as mewas 1 and 7).
Briefly: according to the "White Emerald" text as retold by the Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia, bearers of mewa 4 were nagas (Tib. klu) and a white deer in past lives; they are said to love travel and intellectual work. Details follow.
Mewa 4 Interpretation According to the "White Emerald" Text
All interpretations below are a retelling of the traditional "White Emerald" text as presented by the Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia (the site's legal status is unclear, so the text is retold, not quoted). This is "according to tradition," not canon: other authors give different emphases (see "Controversial Points").
Past Lives
According to the text, in a past life the bearer of mewa 4 was a naga (Tib. klu — serpent, water spirit), then was reborn as a white deer. This is connected to a special attitude toward nagas: in the "pacification" section for mewa 4, offerings to nagas (naga-puja) are directly recommended.
Character
According to the text, a person of mewa 4 loves travel and intellectual work, and is neat. The description is nonetheless contradictory: they are sensitive and nervous, generous, but "receive reproach" — from whom and for what is not explained in the available retelling.
Health
According to the text, mewa 4 is associated with gout, rheumatism, skin diseases or acne, and "mental disorders or depression" (the retelling's wording); according to the text these are caused by the spirit Sadak, who inhabits the house, the land, or the workplace.
Children and Family
No specific information on children and family is provided in the available retelling of the "White Emerald" — a gap in the source.
Wealth
There is no separate section on wealth in the retelling; in the section on the present life it is merely mentioned that there is no large income, but expenses are also modest — a gap in the source.
Lifespan and Obstacles
According to the text, the lifespan is about 65 years, with 4 obstacles on the path. What exactly constitutes an "obstacle" is not elaborated in the retelling.
Next Rebirth
According to the text, the next life of the bearer of mewa 4 is as a dove, a cuckoo, or a person with impaired hearing.
Pacification and Recommendations
For "pacification" (improving karmic circumstances), the text recommends a statue of Vajrapani or the making of 10,000–100,000 tsatsa stamps (small clay images). A special prescription is offerings to nagas (naga-puja). The protectors of mewa 4 are named as a white female naga and the naga chief klu-mgon (transliteration of the retelling).
How to Calculate Your Mewa
The mewa count runs in descending order: 1 → 9 → 8 → … → 1. The starting point is the 17th Tibetan 60-year cycle, which began in 1987. For the Gregorian year: r = (year − 1987) mod 9; when r = 0 the mewa equals 1, otherwise — 9 − r + 1. For mewa 4 the remainder r = 6 — these are the years 1993, 2002, 2011, 2020.
Important: the Tibetan New Year (Losar) falls in February–March, not on January 1. Those born before Losar belong to the previous Tibetan year — and to the previous mewa. The exact calculation and table of all nine mewas are in the Tibetan Numerology hub; a mewa calculator by birth year is being prepared.
Controversial Points
- Not canon. Detailed interpretations (lifespan about 65 years, "rebirth as dove," etc.) are taken from a single traditional text — "White Emerald" — as retold by the Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia, a site with unclear legal status that itself copies materials. Other authors (e.g., F. Cornu, Namkhai Norbu) give different emphases, so everything above is "according to one of the texts."
- Color. According to Berzin and TBE, mewa 4 is green (wood) — sources agree here. However, according to TBE, in old Chinese texts wood could be designated blue — in some tables a "blue" four appears (the main discrepancy of black/blue concerns the water mewas 2–3).
- Year correspondence. There is no direct authoritative table of "Gregorian year → mewa": the formula is derived from Berzin's scheme and verified against the TBE animal mewa table (10/10 matches). Online tables differ by one due to Losar and the choice of starting point (1987 vs Chinese 1984).
- Terminology. Dictionaries contain the spellings rme ba (རྨེ་བ) and sme ba; in Russian practice — "мева," "мев," "мево." The names of the protectors (white female naga, klu-mgon) are transliterations from the TBE retelling and require verification with Tibetan dictionaries.
Gaps for Fact-Checkers
- There is no data on children and family for mewa 4: the TBE retelling does not include this section (noted in the text). There is no separate section on wealth either — only a remark in "present life": no large income, but expenses are also modest.
- "Mental disorders or depression" — the retelling's wording; according to the text they are associated with the spirit Sadak, who inhabits the house, the land, or the workplace. What exactly lies behind this wording is not revealed in the source.
- The full text of "White Emerald" is not freely available; a second line of verification with printed editions is desirable (Cornu "Tibetan Astrology," 1997; Namkhai Norbu "Key for Consulting the Tibetan Calendar," 2003).
See Also
- Tibetan Numerology — hub: mewa system, correspondence table, calculation
- Chinese Numerology — Lo Shu and the common root of the systems
- Number 4 — the four in Western numerology schools
- Mewa Calculator — calculation by birth year