The BaZi glossary

bā zì

The Four Pillars birth-chart system built from the year, month, day, and hour pillars.

sì zhù

The four time layers of a natal chart: year, month, day, and hour.

yīn yáng

The polarity principle describing paired modes of expression such as inward and outward, receptive and active.

wǔ xíng

Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water, the elemental language underlying BaZi interpretation.

tiān gān

The visible upper layer of each pillar, combining the Five Elements with Yin or Yang polarity.

dì zhī

The lower pillar layer linked to zodiac animals, seasonality, hidden stems, and interaction patterns.

cáng gān

The elemental sub-layers stored inside each Earthly Branch.

liù shí jiǎ zǐ

The 60 stem-branch combinations that form the core calendrical cycle used in BaZi timing.

èr shí sì jié qì

The seasonal qi calendar that anchors BaZi timing more precisely than ordinary month labels.

rì zhǔ

The Heavenly Stem on the day pillar and the core reference point for reading the rest of the chart.

The judgment of whether the Day Master is well-supported, overpowered, or balanced by the chart environment.

shí shén

The ten relationship categories created by comparing other stems and branches to the Day Master.

gé jú

The broader pattern logic of a chart once Day Master, season, and branch support are understood.

hé chōng xíng hài pò

The branch and stem interaction rules that describe attraction, collision, punishment, harm, and breakage.

pèi ǒu gōng

A common English label for the day branch when discussing partnership and close relationship themes.

dà yùn

Ten-year timing cycles that show how a natal chart is activated in different life periods.

liú nián

The influence of a given year when read against the natal chart and current Luck Pillar.

kōng wáng

A classical rule that marks certain branches as empty or unavailable within a given xun.

cháng shēng shí èr shén

The symbolic sequence describing how an element emerges, peaks, declines, and stores itself.

shén shà

Symbolic star markers used to add narrative nuance after core chart structure is established.

zǐ wēi dǒu shù

A palace-and-star Chinese metaphysics system that is related to, but distinct from, BaZi.

qí mén dùn jiǎ

A strategic divination system used for timing, direction, and situational decision-making.

dà liù rén

A classical situational divination system traditionally used for event-focused inquiry.

bā guà

The arrangement of the Eight Trigrams into a spatial and symbolic map.

fēng shuǐ

The environmental art of studying orientation, placement, and spatial flow rather than natal timing.