Astrology wiki
Explore wiki concepts, word origins, evidence and their connections to traditions and tools.
60 terms
Annual Nine Star number →
Also: annual number · annual numbers
The number from 1 through 9 assigned to the effective year by the selected annual Nine Star rule. A different year boundary can change this result near early February.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Annual comes through French and Latin forms associated with annus, year. The full phrase is an explanatory label for a yearly Nine Star classification, rather than an established ancient technical expression.
Published annual examples test the descending cycle. Interpretive qualities need their own attribution; this number alone supplies neither monthly numbers nor directional forecasts.
Bing stem →
Also: Bing Heavenly Stem
Bing (丙) is the third Heavenly Stem, classified as Yang Fire.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Chen branch →
Also: Chen Earthly Branch
Chen (辰) is the fifth Earthly Branch, paired with Dragon and assigned 07:00–09:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Chou branch →
Also: Chou Earthly Branch
Chou (丑) is the second Earthly Branch, paired with Ox and assigned 01:00–03:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Day Master →
In BaZi, the Heavenly Stem of the day pillar, used as a central reference in interpretation.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Day renders rì and master or ruler renders zhǔ; the title singles out the day stem as the comparison's reference.
The day stem becomes the reference for classifying other BaZi relationships. It is selected by calendar arithmetic, not a psychological assessment; its meaning depends on the surrounding method rather than the stem label alone.
Ding stem →
Also: Ding Heavenly Stem
Ding (丁) is the fourth Heavenly Stem, classified as Yin Fire.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Direct Officer →
Also: Zhèngguān 正官 · Proper Officer
The Ten Gods relation for a stem that controls the Day Master and has opposite polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Officer’ translates the office-holder term guān. The title is a technical contrast with partial/indirect officer, not an assessment of virtue.
Direct Resource →
Also: Zhèngyìn 正印 · Proper Seal
The Ten Gods relation for a stem that produces the Day Master and has opposite polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Resource’ is a practitioner-facing English label; yìn literally denotes a seal/imprint. The reason for the traditional metaphor is not inferred here.
Direct Wealth →
Also: Zhèngcái 正財 / 正财 · Proper Wealth
The Ten Gods relation for a stem controlled by the Day Master and of opposite polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Direct’ is a conventional translation for zhèng in this paired nomenclature; no claim is made that it is morally superior or historically original.
Double-hour →
Also: Chinese hour
One of twelve traditional daily time divisions, each roughly two modern hours; the clock basis must be stated.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Double states that the traditional time unit spans two modern hours; the English label explains size rather than reproducing shíchen, 時辰.
The twelve divisions can be assigned using a declared clock basis. Civil, mean solar and apparent solar time can disagree near boundaries, so an hour label is incomplete without explaining which time was used.
Earth phase →
Also: Yin Earth · Yang Earth
In BaZi’s Five Phases, Earth corresponds to Wu (戊, Yang Earth) and Ji (己, Yin Earth).
Word origin, evidence & sources
Earth here means soil or ground. Phase distinguishes this traditional category-name from the planet Earth.
Earthly Branch →
Also: Earthly Branches
One of twelve cyclical labels associated with animals and other correspondences; it is not a physical astronomical branch.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Earthly renders dì and branch renders zhī. The name identifies the twelve-part companion series to the Heavenly Stems.
The twelve branches encode recurring time divisions and inherited correspondences. Animal names identify symbolic associations; they do not provide biological or psychological evidence about a person born under a branch.
Eating God →
Also: Shíshén 食神 · Food God
The Ten Gods relation for a stem produced by the Day Master and sharing its polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Eating God’ is a literal-style English label. The historical reason for this conventional name is not established here.
Fire phase →
Also: Yin Fire · Yang Fire
In BaZi’s Five Phases, Fire corresponds to Bing (丙, Yang Fire) and Ding (丁, Yin Fire).
Word origin, evidence & sources
Fire names flame or burning; phase marks its use as a changing-process category within wǔxíng.
Bing/Ding distinguish polarity within one phase. Fire’s expressive symbolism does not measure enthusiasm, body temperature or a physical energy output.
Five phases →
Also: wuxing · Wu Xing
Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water as cyclical symbolic processes in Chinese traditions, rather than modern chemical elements.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Wǔ means five; xíng concerns movement or operation. Phases and agents convey that process sense more directly than a substance-only reading of elements.
The phases organize relationships such as generation and control within Chinese traditions. They describe a conceptual cycle; treating them as chemical elements or measured quantities in a person's body changes the kind of claim being made.
Four Pillars →
Also: BaZi · Bazi · Saju
A chart using stem–branch pairs for birth year, month, day and double-hour; calendar and clock conventions matter.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Sìzhù, 四柱, means four pillars; Bāzì, 八字, means eight characters. Saju is the Korean reading of the four-pillar name.
Four pairs are calculated from birth data under stated seasonal and clock rules. A date near a term or day boundary can change a pillar; the derived pattern is not a measured personality or a fixed life trajectory.
Friend →
Also: Bǐjiān 比肩 · Companion
The Ten Gods relation for a stem of the same phase and same polarity as the Day Master.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Friend’ is an English teaching label; the literal Chinese points to side-by-side comparison. A historical naming origin is not asserted.
For a Jia (甲, Yang Wood) Day Master, another Jia is Friend. It classifies a relation; it does not prove friendship or prescribe a social role.
Geng stem →
Also: Geng Heavenly Stem
Geng (庚) is the seventh Heavenly Stem, classified as Yang Metal.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Gui stem →
Also: Gui Heavenly Stem
Gui (癸) is the tenth Heavenly Stem, classified as Yin Water.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Hai branch →
Also: Hai Earthly Branch
Hai (亥) is the twelfth Earthly Branch, paired with Pig and assigned 21:00–23:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Heavenly Stem →
Also: Heavenly Stems
One of ten labels paired in sequence with the twelve Earthly Branches to form a sixty-step cycle.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Heavenly renders tiān and stem renders gān. The plant-like English name identifies one set of the traditional stem–branch pairing.
The ten stems form an ordered calendar vocabulary whose sequence can be checked. Their phase and polarity correspondences are traditional classifications, not observations of ten distinct forces acting on a birth.
Hurting Officer →
Also: Shāngguān 傷官 / 伤官 · Wounding Officer
The Ten Gods relation for a stem produced by the Day Master and of opposite polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The translation preserves the character-level sense; its naming history and any school-specific interpretation require separate evidence.
Indirect Resource →
Also: Piānyìn 偏印 · Partial Seal · Dàoshí 倒食 · Xiāoshén 梟神 / 枭神
The Ten Gods relation for a stem that produces the Day Master and shares its polarity; traditional aliases include Partial Seal, Inverted Food and Owl Spirit.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The aliases are traditional nomenclature, not forecasts or moral descriptors. Their early naming history remains unverified. Owl and Devouring Food are contextual interpretive names in some texts, not unconditional replacements for every Indirect Resource.
For Jia (甲, Yang Wood), Ren (壬, Yang Water) is Indirect Resource. No inference about learning style, family, health, or an omen follows from the label alone.
Indirect Wealth →
Also: Piāncái 偏財 / 偏财 · Partial Wealth
The Ten Gods relation for a stem controlled by the Day Master and sharing its polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Indirect’ is a common English counterpart to Direct Wealth; the literal term does not itself establish a factual source of income.
For Jia (甲, Yang Wood), Wu (戊, Yang Earth) is Indirect Wealth. The classification does not distinguish ethical from unethical money or predict a financial event.
Ji stem →
Also: Ji Heavenly Stem
Ji (己) is the sixth Heavenly Stem, classified as Yin Earth.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Jia stem →
Also: Jia Heavenly Stem
Jia (甲) is the first Heavenly Stem, classified as Yang Wood.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Lichun →
Also: Li Chun · Beginning of Spring · Lìchūn · Risshun · Start of spring · 立春
The solar term at 315° apparent solar longitude, called Lìchūn in Mandarin and Risshun in Japanese. Choosing this instant as an astrological year boundary is a separate method convention.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The shared calendrical name is translated Beginning of Spring or Spring Commences. NAOJ records the Japanese reading りっしゅん. These are different language readings of a seasonal term, not evidence that all associated divination methods share identical rules.
Astronomy fixes the 315° instant; local time conversion supplies its civil date. An annual divination method may instead use a fixed February 4 boundary. Retain that distinction, and do not treat this seasonal label as a local-weather observation.
Lunar New Year →
The first day of a new year in a lunar or lunisolar calendar. In the modern Chinese reference calendar, the first day of month one changes the official Gan-Zhi year.
Word origin, evidence & sources
New Year names the beginning of a calendar year. Lunar specifies its connection with a Moon-based calendar; Chinese calendar rules also use the solar year, so lunisolar is the more complete calendar description.
This entry describes the modern Chinese convention. Other cultures have their own calendars and new-year observances. The first lunar month boundary and the Li Chun solar-term instant can fall on different dates.
Lunisolar calendar →
A calendar combining lunar months with adjustments that keep the year aligned with the seasons.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Luni- comes from luna, Moon, and solar from sol, Sun; the compound names calendar rules using both cycles.
Month starts and intercalation rules connect lunar cycles with the solar year. Calendars can differ through reference meridians and adopted rules even when using the same sky, so conversion requires naming the calendar rather than only its broad type.
Main qi →
Also: Běnqì 本氣 · Běnqì 本气 · Primary qi
In the named BaZi branch table, the hidden stem explicitly designated as the branch’s principal qi. It is a category rather than a numerical strength estimate.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The source uses 本氣 as a column heading beside its hidden-stem lists. The English label identifies that column; it does not establish a first coinage or a universal weighting system.
The Wise Society teaching table names one main stem for each branch. That designation can be reproduced; how it contributes to strength or seasonal command needs a separate method.
Mao branch →
Also: Mao Earthly Branch
Mao (卯) is the fourth Earthly Branch, paired with Rabbit and assigned 05:00–07:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Metal phase →
Also: Yin Metal · Yang Metal
In BaZi’s Five Phases, Metal corresponds to Geng (庚, Yang Metal) and Xin (辛, Yin Metal).
Word origin, evidence & sources
Jīn can mean metal or gold; metal is the broader English rendering used for this wǔxíng category.
Geng/Xin classify polarity; their analytical symbolism is interpretive. A Metal count is not a measure of intelligence or metal in the body.
Nine Star Ki →
Also: Kyūsei · Nine Star
A family of divinatory calendar practices relating nine numbered designations to qualities and directions. This explorer implements one annual cycle with two explicitly named year boundaries.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Kyūsei, 九星, names nine stars in Japanese divinatory terminology. Ki is a reading of 気, whose meanings include air, breath, atmosphere and disposition. The English title combines these terms; this word history does not establish a single origin date or lineage for every modern Nine Star practice.
The selected rule assigns a calendar number; associated qualities belong to a symbolic framework. A correct number does not measure a physical star or verify a personality claim. Fixed February 4 and the Atlas 315° alternative are distinct conventions.
Palace →
Also: Zi Wei palace
A chart compartment representing a topic in systems such as Zi Wei Dou Shu; it is not automatically a Western house.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Palace names a residence or enclosure; the chart use translates the traditional palace metaphor for a compartment assigned a topic.
A palace organizes a tradition's topics within its chart structure. Its meaning comes from that system's naming and placement rules; matching a palace number to a Western house number does not establish equivalent interpretations.
Ren stem →
Also: Ren Heavenly Stem
Ren (壬) is the ninth Heavenly Stem, classified as Yang Water.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Rob Wealth →
Also: Jiécái 劫財 / 劫财 · Rob Wealth Star
The Ten Gods relation for a stem of the same phase as the Day Master and opposite polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The English rendering follows the literal components. This record does not claim that the term describes a person’s conduct or a chart’s outcome.
Seasonal meetings →
Also: Three meetings · Sānhuì 三會 · Sānhui 三会 · Sanhui · Earthly Branch seasonal meetings · Dìzhī sānhuì 地支三會 · 三會 · 三会
In BaZi teaching, four conventional three-branch directional-seasonal groups: Yin–Mao–Chen (Wood/spring), Si–Wu–Wei (Fire/summer), Shen–You–Xu (Metal/autumn), and Hai–Zi–Chou (Water/winter); the tool reports full membership when all three distinct member branches occur.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Seasonal meetings’ specifies the directional and seasonal use of the label in this entry. 三會/三会 are traditional and simplified written forms; romanization renders the modern Mandarin reading and does not establish one historical pronunciation.
The native tool reports a complete listed group only when its three different branches appear in the four calculated pillars. Its four phase/season labels follow a traditional correlative table; they are not measured energy, proof that a group has ‘transformed,’ or a prediction. The origin and exact status of ‘three meetings’ as a single standardized BaZi term varies across later teaching lineages, so this entry does not assign it a single author or date.
Seven Killings →
Also: Qīshā 七殺 / 七杀 · Partial Officer 偏官 · Seven Sha
The Ten Gods relation for a stem that controls the Day Master and shares its polarity; it is also called Partial Officer.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The historical text records the alternate name. It does not warrant literal forecasting from the English name. Partial Officer (偏官, piānguān) is a common related label; some classical treatments distinguish it by whether the relation is restrained.
For Jia (甲, Yang Wood), Geng (庚, Yang Metal) is Seven Killings/Partial Officer. The name is not a prediction of violence, danger, criminality, or death.
Sexagenary cycle →
Also: Gan-Zhi · sexagenary year
A sixty-step cycle formed by pairing the ten Heavenly Stems with the twelve Earthly Branches in order.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Sexagenary comes from Latin sexagenarius, of sixty. The cycle name describes sixty successive stem–branch combinations.
Advancing both sequences together produces sixty distinct stem–branch pairs. The cycle is mathematically reproducible, but assigning it to a year, day or hour still needs a calendar anchor and an explicit rollover rule.
Shen branch →
Also: Shen Earthly Branch
Shen (申) is the ninth Earthly Branch, paired with Monkey and assigned 15:00–17:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Shichen →
Also: shíchen · 時辰
Shichen (時辰) is a traditional two-hour time unit; HKO assigns 23:00–01:00 to Zi and continues in twelve intervals.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The exact historical character derivation is not asserted here.
The unit and intervals are timekeeping conventions, not traits.
Si branch →
Also: Si Earthly Branch
Si (巳) is the sixth Earthly Branch, paired with Snake and assigned 09:00–11:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Six clashes →
Also: Six oppositions · Liùchōng 六沖 · Liùchōng 六冲 · Earthly Branch six clashes · Dìzhī liùchōng 地支六沖 · Six-clash pair · 六沖 · 六冲
In BaZi, six fixed opposing pairs of Earthly Branches: Zi–Wu, Chou–Wei, Yin–Shen, Mao–You, Chen–Xu and Si–Hai.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Six clashes’ translates the relation label. The English wording does not turn a detected pair into a diagnosis, a forecast or an automatic bad outcome.
A clash is a sourced relationship label for a listed opposite pair. The detector can report its presence and pillar positions; it does not measure conflict, prove a life outcome or establish that either branch overcomes the other.
Six combinations →
Also: Six harmonies · Liùhé 六合 · Earthly Branch six combinations · Dìzhī liùhé 地支六合 · Six-combination pair · 六合
In BaZi, six fixed pairs of Earthly Branches conventionally recognized as combinations: Zi–Chou, Yin–Hai, Mao–Xu, Chen–You, Si–Shen and Wu–Wei.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Six combinations’ is the literal, least interpretive English label. ‘Six harmonies’ is also common, but should not imply that every occurrence is beneficial or that the two branches automatically change into another phase.
A combination is a sourced relationship label for a listed pair of branches. Detecting the pair in a calculated chart is mechanical; claims that it binds, transforms, helps, harms or predicts an event belong to a named interpretive method and are not established by pair membership alone.
Solar term →
Also: jieqi · 24 solar terms
One of 24 seasonal markers at successive 15° steps of the Sun’s tropical longitude.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Solar identifies the Sun-based divisions called jiéqì, 節氣. Term carries the sense of a marked division or period in the seasonal year.
Each term is fixed by a tropical solar longitude, making its instant calculable. Its local calendar date depends on time conversion, while associated seasonal descriptions reflect the cultural and geographic setting of the calendar.
Ten Gods →
Also: Shíshén 十神 · Ten Relationships · Ten Stars
In BaZi, ten named relationships assigned by comparing another stem with the Day Master through Five-Phase direction and yin–yang polarity.
Word origin, evidence & sources
The literal name is documented as a traditional label. This draft makes no claim about when the name was coined or that it describes literal supernatural beings.
The label is a rule-based chart relation, not a measured personality trait, forecast, or scientific finding. A label alone does not establish strength, favourability, or an event outcome.
Three harmonies →
Also: Three combinations · Sānhé 三合 · Sanhe · Earthly Branch three harmonies · Dìzhī sānhé 地支三合 · 三合
In BaZi, four conventional three-branch groups: Shen–Zi–Chen, Hai–Mao–Wei, Yin–Wu–Xu and Si–You–Chou; the tool reports full membership when all three distinct member branches occur.
Word origin, evidence & sources
‘Three harmonies’ is a common English rendering; ‘three combinations’ stays closer to the literal relation label. The compound names a conventional group and does not assert that all chart occurrences are harmonious in an everyday or psychological sense.
The chart calculation can establish only whether each cited three-branch membership set is complete among the four visible Earthly Branches. Traditional explanations associate the sets with phases and a birth–prosperity–storage sequence, but those correspondences are inherited interpretive material, not a measured property of a person. A complete set does not by itself establish transformation, strength, precedence or a forecast.
Water phase →
Also: Yin Water · Yang Water
In BaZi’s Five Phases, Water corresponds to Ren (壬, Yang Water) and Gui (癸, Yin Water).
Word origin, evidence & sources
Water names the familiar fluid; phase identifies its role as one category in the traditional fivefold process scheme.
Ren/Gui specify polarity within the model. Associations with fluidity or intelligence do not measure cognitive ability, emotional depth or bodily water.
Wei branch →
Also: Wei Earthly Branch
Wei (未) is the eighth Earthly Branch, paired with Goat and assigned 13:00–15:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Wood phase →
Also: Yin Wood · Yang Wood
In BaZi’s Five Phases, Wood corresponds to Jia (甲, Yang Wood) and Yi (乙, Yin Wood).
Word origin, evidence & sources
Wood names tree or timber; phase places that material image within the wǔxíng classification. It is a translated category-name.
Growth imagery supplies a symbolic analogy; Jia/Yi assignments follow calendar rules. Neither directly measures a person’s adaptability or capacity to develop.
Wu branch →
Also: Wu Earthly Branch
Wu (午) is the seventh Earthly Branch, paired with Horse and assigned 11:00–13:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Wu stem →
Also: Wu Heavenly Stem
Wu (戊) is the fifth Heavenly Stem, classified as Yang Earth.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Xin stem →
Also: Xin Heavenly Stem
Xin (辛) is the eighth Heavenly Stem, classified as Yin Metal.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Xu branch →
Also: Xu Earthly Branch
Xu (戌) is the eleventh Earthly Branch, paired with Dog and assigned 19:00–21:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Yi stem →
Also: Yi Heavenly Stem
Yi (乙) is the second Heavenly Stem, classified as Yin Wood.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Stem phase and polarity are calendrical classifications, not traits.
Yin branch →
Also: Yin Earthly Branch
Yin (寅) is the third Earthly Branch, paired with Tiger and assigned 03:00–05:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
You branch →
Also: You Earthly Branch
You (酉) is the tenth Earthly Branch, paired with Rooster and assigned 17:00–19:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Zi branch →
Also: Zi Earthly Branch
Zi (子) is the first Earthly Branch, paired with Rat and assigned 23:00–01:00 in the hour table.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Historical character derivation is not established by the cited calendar tables.
Branch ordinal, animal and hour range are calendrical mappings, not traits.
Zi Wei Dou Shu →
Also: Tử Vi · Purple Star astrology
A Chinese astrological system assigning symbolic stars to twelve palaces; its stars are not all physical celestial objects.
Word origin, evidence & sources
Zǐwēi is the traditional astral name retained by the system; dǒu refers to the Dipper and shù to numbers or reckoning. Tử Vi is its Sino-Vietnamese counterpart.
Birth-calendar inputs and placement rules distribute named stars among palaces. Many labels are constructed roles rather than observed bodies; interpretation should preserve this system's own palace and transformation rules instead of borrowing Western chart meanings.