Magic Square

A magic square is a grid of numbers arranged in such a way that the sum of the numbers in every row, every column, and both diagonals is always the same.

The first magic square dates back over 4000 years to ancient China. According to Chinese legend, around 2200 BC, Emperor Yu was walking along the Lo River during terrible flooding. A sacred turtle emerged from the water with a mysterious pattern on its shell - dots arranged in a 3×3 grid. When the emperor's scribes copied the pattern and converted the dots to numbers, they discovered that each row, column, and diagonal summed to 15. This became known as the Lo-Shu Square, meaning "River Lo Writing."

1. Row-wise sum:
Add up the numbers in each row:

• Row 1: 2 + 9 + 4 = 15
• Row 2: 7 + 5 + 3 = 15
• Row 3: 6 + 1 + 8 = 15

Result: The sum of each row is 15.

2. Column-wise sum:
Add up the numbers in each column.

• Column 1: 2 + 7 + 6 = 15
• Column 2: 9 + 5 + 1 = 15
• Column 3: 4 + 3 + 8 = 15

Result: The sum of each column is also 15.

3. Diagonal-wise sum:
Add up the numbers along each diagonal:

• Diagonal 1 (from top-left to bottom-right): 2 + 5 + 8 = 15
• Diagonal 2 (from top-right to bottom-left): 4 + 5 + 6 = 15

Result: The sum of each diagonal is also 15.