What is BaZi?
八字入门指南 · 四柱命理全解
BaZi (八字), or the Four Pillars of Destiny, is a classical Chinese metaphysical system that maps your birth year, month, day, and hour into eight characters — revealing your elemental makeup, personality, and the major cycles of your life.
The Four Pillars (四柱)
Your chart is built from four pillars — Year (年), Month (月), Day (日), and Hour (时). Each pillar contains a Heavenly Stem (天干) and an Earthly Branch (地支). Together, these eight characters form your BaZi. The Day Pillar is the most important: its Heavenly Stem is your Day Master (日主), representing your core self.
Heavenly Stems & Earthly Branches (天干地支)
The ten Heavenly Stems (甲 乙 丙 丁 戊 己 庚 辛 壬 癸) and twelve Earthly Branches (子 丑 寅 卯 辰 巳 午 未 申 酉 戌 亥) form a 60-combination cycle (sexagenary cycle) that marks time in Chinese metaphysics. Each stem and branch carries an elemental property (Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, or Earth) and a Yin or Yang polarity.
The Five Elements (五行)
Metal (金), Wood (木), Water (水), Fire (火), and Earth (土) are the fundamental forces. They interact through two cycles: the Generating cycle (生 — Wood feeds Fire, Fire creates Earth, Earth bears Metal, Metal collects Water, Water nourishes Wood) and the Controlling cycle (克 — Wood breaks Earth, Earth absorbs Water, Water extinguishes Fire, Fire melts Metal, Metal chops Wood). Your chart's balance of these elements shapes your temperament and life patterns.
Luck Cycles (大运)
Your life unfolds in ten-year luck cycles (大运), each governed by a stem-branch pair. These cycles interact with your natal chart to create periods of support, challenge, or transformation. Knowing which cycle you are in helps you understand the broader rhythm of your life — when to push forward and when to consolidate.
How Auspice casts your chart
Auspice uses a deterministic engine that computes your Four Pillars, Five Elements distribution, Day Master strength, and luck cycles from your exact birth date, time, and place — including true solar time correction. Our charting conventions are public, because BaZi schools can differ on their rules. Xuanyuan (玄元) then interprets the same structured chart: grounded, never fear-mongering, never generic.