Karmic tail calculator
The karmic tail is the three arcana on line D at the bottom of your destiny matrix, read from the centre out. Here it comes with every step.
The tail depends on the date of birth alone, not on the time or the place.
Example calculation
February 26, 2001
Read from the centre outwards: the number next to the centre, the middle one, then point D at the edge.
Share of dates 1940-2015: 1.85%, place 20 of 26 by frequency. A share of dates, not of people.
Step by step
from the date to the tail- 8Point A: the dayDay 26 → 2 + 6 = 8
- 2Point B: the monthMonth 02 → 2
- 3Point C: the yearYear 2001 → 2 + 0 + 0 + 1 = 3
- 13Point D, the edge of the tailA + B + C = 8 + 2 + 3 = 13
- 8Centre EA + B + C + D = 8 + 2 + 3 + 13 = 26 → 2 + 6 = 8
- 21Next to the centre: D₁D + E = 13 + 8 = 21
- 7The middle: D₂D + D₁ = 13 + 21 = 34 → 3 + 4 = 7
What tail 21-7-13 is about
its three arcana in the tail21 · World, next to the centre
The World in the karmic tail points to a task of engaging fully with life while respecting your own limits. Your openness can help you learn from different people and experiences.
7 · Chariot, middle
This task asks you to use determination with awareness, especially when old habits push you to rush, compete, or take charge. Its resource is the courage to move forward and learn through action.
13 · Death, point D, the edge
Death in the Karmic tail (line D) describes a task of meeting endings with awareness and allowing necessary change to unfold. You may be able to release old patterns and make room for a different direction.
All tails
All 26 karmic tails
Every date from 1900 to 2100 has one of these 26 tails. They are sorted by their share of dates from 1940 to 2015.
| # | Tail and its arcana | 1940-2015 | 1900-2100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15-20-5Devil · Judgement · Hierophant | 9.68% | 10.2% |
| 2 | 12-19-7Hanged Man · Sun · Chariot | 8.75% | 9.47% |
| 3 | 15-5-8Devil · Hierophant · Justice | 8.74% | 9.31% |
| 4 | 18-9-9Moon · Hermit · Hermit | 8.42% | 8.94% |
| 5 | 21-4-10World · Emperor · Wheel of Fortune | 8.07% | 8.54% |
| 6 | 12-16-4Hanged Man · Tower · Emperor | 6.28% | 6.7% |
| 7 | 18-6-6Moon · Lovers · Lovers | 6.2% | 6.19% |
| 8 | 6-17-11Lovers · Star · Strength | 4.52% | 4% |
| 9 | 18-3-12Moon · Empress · Hanged Man | 4.33% | 3.72% |
| 10 | 9-12-3Hermit · Hanged Man · Empress | 3.92% | 4.45% |
| 11 | 15-8-11Devil · Justice · Strength | 3.87% | 4.47% |
| 12 | 9-15-6Hermit · Devil · Lovers | 3.23% | 3.77% |
| 13 | 3-7-22Empress · Chariot · Fool | 2.98% | 3.24% |
| 14 | 9-3-21Hermit · Empress · World | 2.86% | 2.94% |
| 15 | 6-8-20Lovers · Justice · Judgement | 2.73% | 2.63% |
| 16 | 3-22-19Empress · Fool · Sun | 2.59% | 2.32% |
| 17 | 9-9-18Hermit · Hermit · Moon | 2.39% | 2.01% |
| 18 | 6-5-17Lovers · Hierophant · Star | 2.2% | 1.71% |
| 19 | 21-10-16World · Wheel of Fortune · Tower | 1.93% | 1.42% |
| 20 | 21-7-13World · Chariot · Death | 1.85% | 1.17% |
| 21 | 18-6-15Moon · Lovers · Devil | 1.68% | 1.15% |
| 22 | 6-20-14Lovers · Judgement · Temperance | 1.42% | 0.91% |
| 23 | 3-13-10Empress · Death · Wheel of Fortune | 0.47% | 0.25% |
| 24 | 21-10-7World · Wheel of Fortune · Chariot | 0.41% | 0.23% |
| 25 | 9-18-9Hermit · Moon · Hermit | 0.31% | 0.16% |
| 26 | 6-14-8Lovers · Temperance · Justice | 0.17% | 0.09% |
Shares of dates, not of people. The page of each tail opens from its number.
About this calculator
Where the tail sits
The karmic tail is the bottom line of the destiny matrix, line D, drawn in magenta on the chart. It holds three numbers: point D at the edge and two numbers between D and the centre. They are read from the centre outwards, so a tail is written as the number next to the centre, then the middle one, then point D: 21-7-13 means 21 beside the centre, 7 in the middle and 13 at the edge.
In the matrix tradition the tail is read as a task: a pattern that keeps coming back until it is understood and handled with some skill. It is not a punishment and not a verdict. Each of its three arcana has a resource side you can lean on and a shadow side that shows where the old pattern repeats.
Why there are only 26 tails
Birth dates give a great many different charts, yet across every date from 1900 to 2100 there are only 26 tails. The tail depends on just two numbers, point D and the centre E, and the centre contains D: E is A + B + C + D, while D itself is A + B + C. In the first tail number, D + E, point D is therefore counted three times. Reducing a sum by adding its digits keeps its remainder after division by nine, so that first number is always divisible by three: 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18 or 21. In practice this leaves 26 combinations for all dates of those two centuries.
The order matters. 18-9-9, 9-9-18 and 9-18-9 are three different tails with different shares of dates, because the same arcana stand in different places.
What the shares say
The table below lists all 26 tails with their share of dates. The most frequent, 15-20-5, falls on 9.68% of dates from 1940 to 2015, and the five most frequent together cover 43.66%. The rarest, 6-14-8, falls on 0.17%. These are shares of calendar dates, not of people: they show how the arithmetic of the calendar spreads the tails, not how many people carry each one, and a rare tail is neither stronger nor heavier than a common one.
The 1900-2100 column covers two centuries and differs a little, because point C, the digit sum of the year, runs lower in the 2000s than in the 1900s.
Reading your tail
Read the three arcana as one story, from the centre to the edge. The calculator above gives a short reading of each of your three numbers in the tail, and every tail has a full page with its task, how it tends to show up and what helps. One practical way to work with it: pick the resource side of one arcana and lean on it for a month, while noticing the situations where its shadow returns. The tail is one line of a larger chart, so it reads best next to your centre and point A in the full calculator.
Method
How the karmic tail is calculated
Four sums, from the date to the three numbers of line D.
- DPoint D: A + B + C: the day, the month and the year
- ECentre E: A + B + C + D
- D₁D₁, next to the centre: D + E
- D₂D₂, the middle: D + D₁
Only D and the centre take part, and the centre already holds D twice over: once directly and once inside A + B + C. That is why the first number of every tail is divisible by three.
Questions
Questions about the karmic tail
How many karmic tails are there?
26. Every date from 1900 to 2100 gives one of them, and the table on this page lists all 26 with their share of dates.
Why is the first number always 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18 or 21?
Point D enters it three times: once directly and twice through the centre. Digit sums keep the remainder after division by nine, so the result is always divisible by three.
Are 18-9-9 and 9-9-18 the same tail?
No. A tail is read from the centre outwards, so these are two different tails. Both exist, and so does 9-18-9.
Is a rare tail a bad sign?
No. Its share only shows how often the calendar produces that combination. It says nothing about the person who has it.
Where is the tail on the full chart?
At the bottom: the magenta line D running from the centre to the edge, with two chevrons. The destiny matrix calculator shows it together with the rest of your chart.