Reading · 讀
The Bazi Chart
Bāzì (八字), literally the “Eight Characters,” is a classical Chinese system that reads the year, month, day and hour of birth as four pillars. Each pillar carries one Heavenly Stem and one Earthly Branch — eight symbols that map the elemental weather at the moment you arrived.
The Four Pillars
四柱Year · 年柱
Ancestry, karmic inheritance, the wider world you were born into. Rules the first ~16 years and the influence of family lineage.
Month · 月柱
Career, environment and parents. Rules ~17–32 and shows how you meet the world professionally.
Day · 日柱
The Self and marriage. The Day Stem is your Day Master — the elemental voice through which the whole chart speaks. Rules ~33–48.
Hour · 時柱
Future, children and the second half of life. Rules ~49+ and the legacy you leave behind. Requires an accurate birth time.
Ten Heavenly Stems
天干Ten stems cycle through the five elements in Yang and Yin form — the upper, visible energy of each pillar.
- 甲JiǎYang Wood
- 乙YǐYin Wood
- 丙BǐngYang Fire
- 丁DīngYin Fire
- 戊WùYang Earth
- 己JǐYin Earth
- 庚GēngYang Metal
- 辛XīnYin Metal
- 壬RénYang Water
- 癸GuǐYin Water
Twelve Earthly Branches
地支Twelve branches carry the zodiac animals and the seasonal timing of the chart — the lower, rooted energy of each pillar.
- 子ZǐRat · Water
- 丑ChǒuOx · Earth
- 寅YínTiger · Wood
- 卯MǎoRabbit · Wood
- 辰ChénDragon · Earth
- 巳SìSnake · Fire
- 午WǔHorse · Fire
- 未WèiGoat · Earth
- 申ShēnMonkey · Metal
- 酉YǒuRooster · Metal
- 戌XūDog · Earth
- 亥HàiPig · Water
How to read a pillar
讀柱A pillar such as 辛巳 pairs a stem (辛 Xīn, Yin Metal) with a branch (巳 Sì, Snake / Fire). Read the stem as the visible personality of that life-area, the branch as its underlying season, and the branch’s hidden stems (藏干) as the deeper motives stored inside. The Day Master — your Day Stem — is the reference point everything else is weighed against.
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