Dragons and Roosters and Tigers Oh My

I’ve been paying more attention to the people in the news lately (who hasn’t?) and I’ve noticed a trend amongst those who are making trouble for the Trump machine. Some of the people who really stand out have either a Dragon branch or a Tiger branch. Their actions now are related to the Metal of 2016 (Fire Monkey) and 2017 (Fire Rooster).

Metal is an element that can be fierce and competitive – not afraid to fight or call out injustice. Metal is strong in the charts of people who are openly fighting back right now.

The Dragon is diverted from his usual subterranean ways by the Rooster (2017) and will be forced speak out. People with a Dragon branch may go against their usual affiliations even at the risk of being ostracized by colleagues or losing their jobs.

The Tiger in 2017 is in conflict with the Rooster. Expect people with a Tiger branch to remind us to respect the hierarchy, represented in this case by the power of the Constitution. They will patiently wait until it’s time to be ferocious and then they will pounce. They will be especially prominent in February.

If you want to align yourself with people who will be effective in the resistance, look for the Dragons and Tigers for now. You can look for people with Tiger and Dragon qualities or you can look for people born in certain years.

DRAGONS: 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000
TIGERS: 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998

The Dragon or Tiger branch can be present in any of the four pillars that make up your birth chart, not just the year.

Who has a Dragon Branch?

Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)
December 7 1952
Year: Water Dragon

United States Attorney General Sally Yates
August 20, 1960
Day: Metal Dragon

National Parks Service*
August 25, 1916
Year: Fire Dragon

Representative John Lewis (D-GA)**
Feb 21st 1940
Year: Metal Dragon
Month: Earth Tiger

Senior Federal Judge William C. Canby, Jr.
May 22, 1931
Month: Water Dragon

Who has the Tiger Branch?

Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
November 23rd 1950
Year: Metal Tiger

Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson
February 23, 1965
Month: Earth Tiger

Senior Federal Judge Richard Clifton
November 13, 1950
Year: Metal Tiger

Where there are Tigers you will find Horses

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
June 22, 1949
Month: Metal Horse

Metal Element

Washington State Solicitor General Noah Purcell
I was not able to find any birth information for him but my guess is that he was probably born in 1980 – a Metal Monkey year.

*You can read the ba zi of an institution by its “birthday”
**John Lewis has both Tiger and Dragon

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Hillary Rodham Clinton was born October 26, 1947 in Chicago, IL. Her birth time is unknown but I believe there is enough evidence available to support that she was born around 8am.*

Here is her natal chart:

Hillary Clinton Natal Chart

Hillary Clinton is a yang earth person. Does she have what it takes to be the next President of the United States? Here’s the Five Element breakdown.

Earth element

She’s got a solid base of supporters.

Yang earth (Wu)

Hillary is a Wu (yang earth) person Everywhere you see a Wu in the chart you see her supporters, the majority of which are always women. I say women because they have the same polarity as Hilary, meaning they are both yang earth.

There is even more Wu hidden in the Chen (Dragon) of the hour branch. Many of the causes she is known for supporting and furthering have to do with women and women’s concerns, i.e. children. In a Gallup poll taken in March of this year, 56% of women gave her a good rating while only 44% of men rated her favorably. If there is anything that can give her an edge in this campaign it is her women supporters.

Yin earth (Ji)

Look for Ji in her natal chart and you’ll find there isn’t any. Ji would be male friends or supporters. If she could get more men on her side it would be hard to keep her from becoming the next president, but in Hillary’s case Ji earth is not favorable. Ji is present in 2015 (Yi Wei), because hidden inside of Wei there is Ji. She has had to face a lot of attacks on her reputation from her mostly male peers in 2015.

The lack of Ji also predicts that Hillary is not good at the art of persuasion. She is also not good at social media.

Metal element

Hillary has some creativity to combine with her analytical skills and can bring innovative programs in fairly quickly. Her creativity is a bit heavy handed in its execution. Remember her role in what everyone now calls Obamacare?

Yang metal (Geng)

Hillary is good at the long game and will make sure Ts are crossed and Is are dotted. You might not realize it, but she is working on perfecting her next project right now.

Yin metal (Xin)

Xin is not present in the natal chart so Hillary has a hard time appealing to younger voters. She is not good at chit chat and the sound bite type of entertainment that entertains people. Instead, she seems too rigid, didactic and boring – or she says something stupid like claiming she is “flat broke”. People think she lacks a sense of humor. People want her to be more “real” by which I think they mean spontaneous. She isn’t good at that.

Lately she is trying to be more entertaining but it just comes off as awkward because she is not used to using that element. She should keep working on it or find a way to use her yin wood element (Yi) more effectively on behalf of young people.

Water element

She’s smart and she’s got plenty of money. She seems cold hearted at times, but that is because the water is hidden.

Yang water (Ren)

Hillary has more money and feelings than you think. Don’t be fooled because she is not a conspicuous consumer, doesn’t seem interested in showing off her wealth, and doesn’t like to talk about her money or show her emotions.

Yin water (gui)

Because the water is in the hour branch she’s not going to run out of money. It may go away but it will keep on coming back.

Wood element

Hillary has the guts to make tough decisions without flinching but she also has the self control to keep her actions within the laws and constitution. Hillary’s comfort with smart power is due to the nature of the wood element in her chart. She can come down hard but she also has a compassionate side. There is a dual nature to her power and she is usually good at using it.

Hillary has both Jia (yang wood) and Yi (yin wood) in her natal chart. Right from the start this tells you she’s patient and she’s in it for the long haul. The longer she can stay in the game the more powerful she will become. Next year will bring an even greater growth of her power, but if she doesn’t get elected next year don’t count her out.

Hillary has even more going for her than that. Her day pillar Wu Yin (Earth Tiger) is one of the best pillars for political power and leadership.

Yang wood (Jia)

Hilary has a proven track record of getting things done and making tough decisions without flinching – see her recent book Hard Choices. This is a great example of how the yang wood of the Tiger and the yang earth in the day stem are interacting. The elemental relationship is about power, control and winning. She has been called “hawkish” meaning she is ready to go to war when she sees fit. A woman with this type of energy in America is sometimes labelled as a “bitch” or at the least as “not very nice”. She doesn’t seem to do nice. In Hilary’s case, her yang wood is not gentle but is inclined to be kind or compassionate – sort of a benign dictator. Again, look to the causes she supports for evidence.

How does she handle the email scandal? She feels no need to apologize or explain. There is no evidence at this time that she has gained some advantage by keeping her email private but her attitude about it is unsettling. It may be getting too late to apologize or admit error.

Yin wood (Yi)

Yin wood is hidden in the Dragon hour branch. Hillary needs it to have a fighting chance at being president because it balances the qualities of the yang wood. Without the yin wood she might operating too far outside of the laws to stand up to the kind of public scrutiny a political candidate will have to endure. The Yi will keep her out of trouble.

How does she handle the email scandal? She reminds you that she never went outside the law or policy. Each time she is asked about it she says “it was allowed” to reassure you that she can play by the rules.

Fire element

She is good at analysis and has the experience and knowledge to be a competent and successful president. Of all five elements, the one Hillary has the most of is Fire or resource. In fact, there is fire in all four pillars.

Yang fire (Bing)

Hillary can see a few steps ahead in the game that is her career. She can identify key patterns and points that allow her to put forth innovative legislation.

Yin fire (Ding)

Hillary knows her facts, stays up to date on her information, and can win an argument by using these strengths.

Timing and The Peach Blossom Factor

Here’s the main thing that I think is working against Hillary’s run for the nomination: timing.

The branch that we call “peach blossom” for Hillary’s chart is Mao or Rabbit branch. There is no rabbit in the natal chart. Peach blossom is the type of energy that makes you attractive and draws people to you. A woman without peach blossom in the highest position of power may be too much for a male dominated culture to accept. If she had it she would have more male supporters and possibly more young people. It would be very difficult for anyone to beat her.

The only way for her to enjoy the peach blossom effect of the rabbit branch is through timing. From 1992-2002 her 10 year luck pillar was Yi Mao – for this 10 year period the Rabbit was present. If you look at photos of her from this time she is at her most attractive and looks happier than you ever see her again. She could really use that kind of luck now.

*Clinton, Hilary Rodham (Scroll down for Source Notes at Astro.com)

Joseph Biden

Here is the natal chart of Joseph Biden. He was born November 20, 1942 at 8:30 am in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Joe Biden is a yin fire person or day master. He has the qualities of a natural leader.

Joe Biden Birth Chart

I decided to do this post mainly as a contrast to the natal chart of Donald Trump. While The Donald has no water in his natal chart, Joe has quite a bit. Everywhere you see a Ren or a Gui that is water. Be sure to look at the hidden elements too.

A person with that much water in the natal chart is naturally more inclined to be intelligent and sensitive. In the case of Joe Biden, many people would say that he is too emotional which is seen as a weakness. Interestingly, for a yin fire person like Joseph Biden water also represents his power.

It is difficult to resist Joe Biden’s sincerity and talent for speaking, but there is often awkwardness in his every day words and actions. He has both polarities of output: yin earth (Ji) in the day branch and yang earth (Wu) in the hour branch. The real life manifestation of this can be seen in the contrast between his frequent gaffes (Wu) and his ability to get people to join his cause (Ji). The energetic relationship between Ding and Wu is called “hurting officer”, meaning that his speech, actions or emotions may damage his reputation.

It’s almost like there are two Joe Bidens. On the one hand, his emotional intelligence and power (water) combined with the Ox in his day branch make him a moving and charismatic speaker. Unfortunately, at times the Dragon in the hour branch kicks in and he comes across as goofy and creepy because of his touchy feely side.

Donald Trump

Many people have written about the natal chart of Donald Trump. Since they all have more knowledge and have spent more time studying than I have there is no need for me to do a lengthy analysis. I’ll just get to the point. There’s not a drop of water in his chart. The water element is missing.

Here is the natal chart of Donald Trump. He was born June 14, 1946 at 10:54 am in New York City.

Donald Trump birth chart

The element of water is associated with wisdom, intelligence, emotion, fear, flexibility, calmness, receptiveness. With a chart completely void of water, does that mean he is emotionless and stupid? No.

But it does mean that he doesn’t have a great capacity for wisdom, empathy and compassion. He just doesn’t go there. You may have noticed how shallow his attacks on the other candidates are in the recent debate. He doesn’t deal much with the actual issues, just throws out provocative remarks about the others. He doesn’t have any real information to offer but continues to promise that it’s coming. Even so, his chart works quite well without the water and many people consider him a great success.

What Donald Trump does have in his chart is lots of fire, which in his case represents resource. This fire element represents what he has been given through the help of his parents as well as his education.

Curious about your own natal chart? Do you have water? Resource?

Determining Resource in Your Natal Chart

The element in the day stem is called the self element or the day master. You use it to guide your understanding of all the other elements in the chart and vice versa. Here are the elements that represent resource for each day master:

Wood person (Jia, Yi) = water
Fire person (Bing, Ding) = wood
Earth person (Wu, Ji) = fire
Metal person (Geng, Xin) = earth
Water person (Ren, Gui) = metal

If you don’t already have a copy of your chart, please click here to calculate it or ask me to send you a copy. You’ll need to provide your birth date, including the hour if possible and the location where you were born.

Election Year 2016 – Year of the Fire Monkey

With the advent of the Fire Monkey year Donald Trump will have more access to the water element due to a Monkey -Snake combination in his chart. Some people have said this will be lucky for him but I’m not convinced. It will definitely create a situation that he will have to work to control. Even if it was good for the chart, the water energy is so unfamiliar to him that I don’t think he can use it to his advantage.

Cesar Millan

This is the Four Pillars Chart of Cesar Millan. He was born August 27, 1969 in Culiacán, Mexico. The birth hour is unknown.

Dog in the Day Branch : Is What You See What You Get?

Natal Chart of Cesar Milan Born August 27, 1969
Cesar Milan Born August 27, 1969

Cesar is a Jia (yang wood) person with a Xu or Dog day branch. The Dog branch is associated with the earth element. It contains the hidden elements of metal and fire. For Cesar earth represents money and his wife or girlfriend.

The location of Dog in the chart is the day branch or spouse palace. If you want to know what sort of environment a person lives in or what their spouse is like this is one place to look. What if the element that represents the person’s spouse is not in the spouse palace? Look elsewhwere.

Speaking of Dog I am talking about energy – not actual dogs. Still, I find it fascinating that he has spent most of his life around dogs and continues to do so. He even lives with them. Cesar himself says he is good with dog relationships but not as good at human relationships. A coincidence?

The Dog Whisperer : Indirect Resource

The month stem in Cesar’s chart is Ren (yang water), the resource and producer of the wood element. It is his main support in the chart. This type of water is called indirect resource and is the source of his intuition and his calm, patient presence. It gives him the ability to “read” the dogs by identifying patterns of behavior. Then he acts in accordance with what each dog needs, instinctively providing it in a way that changes the dog’s life for the better.

Timing and Combinations

2010 was a Metal Tiger (Geng Yin) year and it was a tough year for Cesar. As you will see, whenever Geng (yang metal) comes into the chart it triggers a combination that makes his life difficult. In this case, Daddy, Cesar’s wife and his money were combined out of the chart. His wife took the sons with her. In an interview Cesar says he lost his pack.

Cesar’s star dog Daddy died from cancer on February 19, 2010 (Tiger month in Tiger year). This was a huge loss to him. Cesar often remarked that his dog Daddy, a pit bull terrier was his main supporter and that he couldn’t have had the success that he did without him. He saw Daddy as a source of wisdom – a role model or mentor.

Every 10 years, the metal in the stem creates a metal combination in the branches. This is not good for a wood person like Cesar because when metal goes against wood there can be a lot of damage. Jia (yang wood) represents the head in five elements. When the metal attacks the wood in this chart, that can mean an attack on the head. A person may have mental illness, depression or even actually get hit in the head.

In March 2010 Cesar’s wife filed for divorce. The divorce led to his separation from his two sons Andre (born 1995) and Calvin (born in 2000?). He attempted suicide. Cesar started a new relationship with Jahira Dar in August of the same year. The flow of qi in his chart is pretty smooth so he was able to recover fairly quickly.

Whenever Geng comes into the chart he finds himself alone and starting over. He came to the US from Mexico in 1990 (Geng Wu or Metal Horse) and lived under bridges because he didn’t know anyone and didn’t know any English. I wonder what happened in 2000 (Geng Chen or Metal Dragon).

What’s Coming Next?

In 2016 Cesar will leave behind his 10 year luck pillar of Wu Chen (Earth Dragon). He is about enter a new luck pillar of Ding Mao (Fire Rabbit). With that being the case, another tough combination is coming that takes the water out of the chart and turns it into to a metal vs. wood situation. This will be intensified in 2017, the year of Ding You (Fire Rooster).

I wish him the best of luck.

Sources

*Rescuing Cesar Millan Men’s Journal February 2013

Wikipedia

Cesar Millan : The Dog Whisperer Elle Magazine January 2010

Rooster Traits and Self Penalty

Ashworth quote

The Rooster is one of three animal signs in the Chinese Zodiac that consist of a single element. The other two are Rat (yin water) and Rabbit (yin wood). The energy of the Rooster is pure metal. Being yin indicates a feminine quality, but most of our perceptions about Roosters have to do with an energy we would characterize as male. Naturally, the more extreme (i.e. unbalanced) cases stand out.

Traits of metal brown

Common expressions or sayings about roosters and what they mean:

  • Hatching rooster eggs: Wasting time or resources
  • Cock-eyed: turned or twisted to one side
  • Cock and Bull story: tall tales and elaborate lies
  • Cock sure: to brag
  • Cock of the walk: to be the boss
  • Strutting around like a rooster: to show off
  • Rooster games: preferring to fight instead of trying to work out a problem


The character Foghorn Leghorn, a famous Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies rooster, seems to embody the idea of roosters as too loud and self important, making a racket and attracting attention to themselves. Attention that they expect you to pay.

Foghorn Leghorn: “Now let me know when I come to something that interests you.” He says this because he is going to keep talking until that happens.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LCsiWL6gn0[/embedyt]

Then again, who wouldn’t be “cocky” walking around with all that plumage, a really loud voice, not to mention some nice sharp talons?

The rooster is one of the zodiac animals that carries with it the dreaded “self penalty”. This occurs when the rooster encounters another rooster, either in the natal chart or through timing. A rooster self penalty might closely resemble Foghorn Leghorn’s behavior in general, but in real life a self penalty is relative to your day master. If you have a rooster in your chart, you have probably experienced the self penalty before. Depending on your day master the rooster self penalty may show up in one of these five ways:

  • Metal day master: Relationships. Fighting with coworkers, friends, peers, siblings
  • Water day master: Resources. Problems with food, drink, health.
  • Wood day master: Power and control. Possibly a lack of self control or over controlling others. Or both.
  • Fire day master: Money. Bad decisions or reckless risk taking about money.
  • Earth day master: Output. Cockiness in speech, trash talking, too-sharp criticism.



Do you have a rooster in your chart?*

Rooster Years: 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017
Rooster Month: September
Rooster Day: Depends on year and month
Rooster Hour: 5-7 pm (17:00-19:00)

I’ll end this post with the chart of well known chef and restaurateur Michael Symon who has at least 3 roosters in his natal chart. I say at least because I don’t know what time he was born. His chart is a special case where it looks like the roosters (his wealth) take over the chart. Clearly that’s working out well for him!

Birth Chart of Michael Symon
Born September 19, 1969

Michael Symon Birth Chart brown

More about that later…

One last thing: I hope you’ve noticed how throughout this post I’ve talked about rooster qualities and energy, rather than rooster people. There is no intention to criticize anyone here.

*Warning: Chinese calendar dates do not match up with the Gregorian calendar. Please contact me if you’d like to know more about your chart.

Using BaZi for Genealogy

family-tree

Earlier this year I was talking with a genealogist about a family tree she was researching. Genealogists collect lots of birth and death data as well as other documentation of a person’s life so I thought it would be fun to see if we could use Four Pillars natal chart analysis to ferret out new leads and she was open to it. We didn’t know the hour pillar (time of birth) but were still able to glean some clues from the chart that led to new information. The genealogist did know the man she was researching had been married once and some other helpful and significant details.

Remember, for this to actually work the birth data (year, month, day) has to be accurate but the hour pillar is not necessary.

I’m going to keep this next part general for the sake of privacy. Also, I want to make it very clear that none of my readings or research are ever intended to reveal scandals or skeletons in the closet. I do it to help by providing information when it is welcome, i.e. only when asked.

Here are the clues I found that would help the genealogist to find further information about the man’s residences, travels, wives and possible children:

When I looked at the chart I could see that the man who we were researching probably had two wives and married the first when he was pretty young. It looked like neither marriage would last very long. I shared this information with the genealogist and she said she thought the man had only been married once and that was in his 30s. I told her that the chart indicated that he was first married when he was younger than that. It turned out that he actually did marry for the first time at age 23. The marriage the genealogist already knew of had occurred when the man was married for the second time at age 33.

Adding this information about a second, formerly unknown marriage to a genealogist’s records is a big deal, not to mention so much fun for me. Opportunities to read charts and get feed back are always welcome. If you’re researching family genealogy and would like a no-frills natal chart analysis please contact me.

Yin Water Pig Month and the Water Element

Thursday November 7th is the first day of the Yin Water Pig Month, also known as Gui Hai. Since the main element of the pig is yang water, the pillar for the month is yin water sitting on top of yang water. An entire pillar of water (except for that tiny bit of yang wood hidden in the pig). In terms of feng shui and bazi the element of water represents many different things.

The Element

Gui Hai Pillar for SJS

The element of water is yin by nature and represents wisdom. The presence, location and strength of the water in a chart can tell you something about a person’s intelligence. The water element also represents the emotion of fear, the season of winter, cold, a salty taste, a putrid* smell, and the colors blue and black. Qualities of water are flexibility, calmness, and a yielding or receptive nature. The natural movement of water is downward, seeking the lowest point.

In general terms of five elements and bazi, water is about output: emotions, words, talents, creativity. Too much output in a bazi chart elementally works against a person’s self control. Lots of water in a chart may also make it difficult for a person to sit still or stay put because of its inherent quality of movement.

The Month

The month of the pig will provide a big contrast to the fiery phases we experienced in month of the dog that just ended. For some people the water energy will provide a welcome respite from the fire. For others it may “put a damper” on things. It all depends on your day master and your favorable elements. Don’t know if water is a favorable element for you? Maybe you should have a Four Pillars analysis – OR – just keep track of events during the month and come to your own conclusions. You might be surprised by what you learn about yourself.

Very General Predictions by Day Master

To determine your day master or day pillar, click here. The element at the top of the “Day” column is your day master.

Wood Day Master

If you are a wood day master water is your resource. If water is favorable to you then you might find it easier to absorb and use information this month. You might feel smarter or feel your intuition is stronger than usual.

Fire Day Master

For fire day masters when water is a favorable element it can enhance your self control, power and fame. This might be a good time to ask for a raise, for a promotion or seek a new job.

Earth Day Master

If you are an earth day master and water is a favorable element in your chart you might find more money coming in November. If you are a man you may find you are more interested in or captivated by women this month.

Metal Day Master

Metal day masters who have water as a favorable element in the chart may find themselves more creative and expressive than usual. You could be a great communicator or teacher this month.

Water Day Master

For water day masters the element of water represents peers and friends. If water is favorable in your chart it could be a month where you get support and help from others, as well as enjoying socializing.

As always, none of this information applies unless you ACT. Don’t sit back and wait for good luck to happen. Keep things rolling along in the direction you want to go.

*Putrefaction is the stage of decomposition that changes solids into liquids – seems like the appropriate word choice.

Roseanne Barr

Roseanne Barr plays Ruth Patchett, a home-making wife betrayed by her husband, in her first movie She Devil (1989) Watch as her rebellion against domesticity begins. She is just getting started.

[embedyt]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xG80L74PSY[/embedyt]

This scene is a great example of a possible expression of the type of energy called 7 Killings. 7 Killings can manifest as a “win at all costs” type of approach to a situation. In the movie the main character Ruth destroys her own house and even abandons her children as part of her plan to get revenge on her husband. Because Roseanne plays that scene with such inspiration, I decided to check her bazi to see if this type of energy might be familiar to her. Having been a fan of her’s for many years I was curious to see how my impression of her matches up with her bazi.

Roseanne-Barr-Birth-Chart

Roseanne Barr is a yin water day master.Yin Water is known to be rebellious and uncontainable. As you read the rest of this post, keep in mind that earth is the element that controls water.

The first thing that stands out to me is that in her branches are Sheep, Ox, Dog and Dragon. These are the “four earths”. All four earth branches are present in the chart and perfectly arranged to clash with each other. Often this can indicate problems with family relationships. Roseanne’s history would support that idea. She has a reputation for being willing to trash her relationships and even act crude or offensive to prove her point. When I look at her eyes I see how smart she really is. I think she knows exactly what she is doing.

For a woman who is a yin water day master, yin earth represents the “7 killings”, boyfriend or competitive and daring energy. The yang earth represents the “Officer”, husband, career or self control type of energy. These earths in Roseanne’s chart can also represent husbands (yang earth) or boyfriends (yin earth). Having both yin and yang earth energy in her chart makes it difficult for her to be successful in marriage type relationships. Have you ever noticed Roseanne Barr is particularly outspoken about men (in general) trying to control her?

BaZi isn’t just about counting up the elements but in Roseanne’s case it matches up pretty well. There are four long term relationships with men in her history:

  • Bill Pentland: They married February 4, 1974 and divorced January 16, 1990 (Metal Horse)
  • Tom Arnold: They married January 20, 1990 (Metal Horse) and filed for divorce April 18, 1994 (Wood Dog).
  • Ben Thomas: They married February 14, 1995 (Wood Pig) and divorced in 2002 (Water Horse).
  • Johnny Argent – they met in 2002 (Water Horse) and started dating in 2003. Now they live together in Hawaii.

Almost every time the horse year shows up in the year pillar she gets married and/or divorced. Next year is a Wood Horse year…will her relationship survive?

I wish her luck and happiness.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

It wasn’t gardening, that’s for sure. I’ve got the weeds and mess to prove it. This was the first year that my young garden was able to survive with very little attention. Some things even thrived. My little forest is growing up. I’ll give some of the credit to this temperate year of the Water Dragon which has now turned very dry. About the only thing I’ve done regularly in my garden is water and I didn’t even start that until late August.

This summer I spent every spare moment (and some borrowed and stolen ones too) studying the art and science of ba zi or Four Pillars of Destiny. Ba zi is an ancient Chinese method of predicting one’s overall life path and personality traits based on the birth data. The 4 pillars consist of the birth hour, day, month and year.

The birth chart analysis is based on observations of over a thousand years of data, theories from the I Ching (Book of Changes), and 5 Elements theory. It is said that when you take your first breath you inhale your destiny, which is based on the elemental phases present at the time. Ba zi is often called Chinese Astrology but it can be better explained as a statistical and logical analysis of the data, used in conjunction with certain algorithms. There are software programs written to decode ba zi charts but none will ever be able to compete with a human brain when it comes to recognizing the subtleties of human nature.

Having your chart analyzed is a great way to get to know yourself better and make choices that will improve your life. It can also be uncomfortable as no one likes to think about the aspects of themselves they perceive as unattractive or undesirable. Every quality about us has both helpful and unhelpful characteristics depending on how we wield it. Ba zi is not about judgement. It’s simply meant to help us understand why we do what we do, why certain relationships in our lives are the way they are, and what our hidden talents may be. The goal is to provide a solid foundation of understanding so you can make the best choices for yourself.

For example, each person has favorable and unfavorable elements in their chart. These elements will also come into play through timing. Most of us end up choosing a career that corresponds to the dominant (not necessarily favorable) element in the chart. That doesn’t mean that you’re in the wrong career. It just means that you might be happier in a career that corresponds to your favorable element or you could take a fun new direction in your current career. As the BaZi Queen says (I’m paraphrasing): The point of the analysis is to find out what your special gifts are and set them free.

If you made it this far and you’d like to see what elements are in your chart click here and enter your birth data, including time of birth. If you were born when daylight savings time was in effect subtract one hour from your birth time.

Well – that’s enough of the technical stuff for now. I’ll be writing more about feng shui and ba zi in the weeks and months to come. If you’d like to know more about how I ended up in Seattle studying Chinese Metaphysics click here.

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