American Feng Shui Institute: AS201a - Zi Wei Dou Shu 1, Beginning Class, Part 1

American Feng Shui Institute
presents
AS201a – Zi Wei Dou Shu 1, Beginning Class, Part 1
© 2006 by the American Feng Shui Institute Zi Wei Dou Shu Astrology 1 1-i
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© 2006 by the American Feng Shui Institute Zi Wei Dou Shu Astrology 1 1-ii
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© 2006 by the American Feng Shui Institute Zi Wei Dou Shu Astrology 1 1-iii
AS201a – Zi Wei Dou Shu 1, Beginning Class, Part 1
Table of Contents
Introduction...............................................................................................................................1
Pinyin Pronunciation..................................................................................................................... 5
Review of the Stems and Branches and the Chinese Calendar...............................................7

十天干)................................................................................................
十天干
The Ten Heavenly Stems (十天干 7
十二地支)
十二地支 ................................................................................... 8
The Twelve Earthly Branches (十二地支
Oppositions (六沖 liu chong) ................................................................................................................ 9
The Three Combinations (三合 san he) ............................................................................................... 10
六十甲子)
六十甲子 .................................................................................................... 11
The Cycle of Sixty (六十甲子
The Chinese Calendar ................................................................................................................. 11

Further Discussion of the Hour or Time ............................................................................................... 14
Setting Up the Zi Wei Dou Shu Chart ....................................................................................20

The Palace Stems ......................................................................................................................... 21
Quiz 1 ................................................................................................................................................... 23
Quiz 1 Answers..................................................................................................................................... 25
Locating the Ming and Shen Palaces ......................................................................................... 27
Interpreting the Location of Ming and Shen............................................................................. 30

The Three Groupings for Ming Gong ................................................................................................... 30
The Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong....................................................................................................... 33
Quiz 2 ................................................................................................................................................... 37
Quiz 2 Answers..................................................................................................................................... 39
Locating the Twelve Palace Categories...................................................................................... 42
The Meaning of the Twelve Palace Categories.......................................................................... 45

Quiz 3 ................................................................................................................................................... 51
Quiz 3 Answers..................................................................................................................................... 52
Blank Chart .............................................................................................................................53
© 2006 by the American Feng Shui Institute Zi Wei Dou Shu Astrology 1 1-iv
Introduction
Zi Wei Dou Shu (紫微斗數), also known as Zi Wei Astrology, is a widely used system
of fate calculation in China but is not well known in the West. It is named for Zi Wei, “the
Purple Emperor,” the first star you locate when making a chart. Dou Shu means calculation.
The stars of Zi Wei Astrology are called by their ancient names. These are the stars of
the “Purple Palace” (the region around the pole star) and are associated with the Chinese
imperial family. Prominent among them are the stars of the Big Dipper, as well as the sun and
the moon. We call all these ‘stars’ even though many are not what modern astronomers would
include in this category. The truth is, most of the stars of Zi Wei Dou Shu cannot be identified
in the sky today, either because the star is no longer known by that name, or because many of
them are ‘virtual stars.’ You can think of each star as a type of qi that influences some aspect
of your life, but do not take the term ‘star’ too literally.
The movement of the planets is not used in this system, nor are the familiar animals
found in other types of Chinese astrology.
Zi Wei Astrology was said to be created by Daoist philosopher Chen Tuan (陳搏), also
known as Chen Xiyi (陳希夷), in the early Song Dynasty (died c.990).1 Others say the Zi
Wei system is actually much older, dating back to the first century BCE.
Chen Xiyi was born in Hao Zhou Zhen Yuan (毫州貞源). There are many stories about
Chen; these stories have probably grown over the years and are not documented. Legend says
that when Chen was a child, he could not speak. When he was four or five years old, he was
playing by a river. There, he met a lady dressed in green who took him in her arms and gave
him milk.
After that, Chen spoke and was smarter than other children. By the time he finished
school, he learned everything his teachers knew but it wasn’t enough for him. He traveled,
seeking knowledge until he mastered all subjects by himself. It is said that when he was 26,
he understood the universe.
1
Chen Xiyi wrote many detailed books on predicting human destiny: Zi Wei Dou Shu, face reading, Feng Shui,
Chinese medicine, and the Yi Jing. He worked with the form of the Luo Shu (Luo Script) and He Tu (River
Diagram). He strongly influenced many Song Dynasty scholars that came after him. Most notable was Shao
Kangjie (邵康節), the who is said to be the originator of the Plum Flower Calculation (梅花心數 meihua
xinshu).
Some say that Master Shao and others say that Master Chen created Iron Board Calculation (鐵版神數
tieban shenshu). Iron Board, although not well known, is the most accurate and the highest level of Chinese
astrology.
© 2006 by the American Feng Shui Institute Zi Wei Dou Shu Astrology 1 1-1
The first emperor of the Song Dynasty wanted to build a fortress on a mountain (華山
Hua Shan) where many Daoist monks, including Chen Xiyi, lived and meditated. Chen Xiyi
challenged the emperor to a game of chess (weiqi). The stakes were the rights to use this
sacred mountain - for the monks if Chen won, and for the military if the emperor won. Using
his skills in divination, Chen Xiyi was able to best the emperor, who was an expert at the
game. The monks were able to remain.
Master Chen liked to meditate for long periods of time without eating. He is famous for
developing a sleeping meditation. It is said that he spent more than 20 years in a cave on the
mountain. Legend says that he lived for 118 years.
Master Chen Xiyi Practicing Sleep Meditation
Zi Wei Astrology has some similarities to Western astrology. It has Twelve Palaces,
similar to the Twelve Houses of Western astrology, but fundamental differences exist between
the two systems. In Zi Wei Astrology, the Twelve Palaces are associated with the Twelve
Earthly Branches. Each palace relates to a different aspect of life (Career, Spouse, Travel,
etc). These palace categories are different from the Twelve Houses of Western astrology.
The stars are distributed throughout the Twelve Palaces by calculations and tables.
Most stars remain in the same palace in a chart but some move to other palaces from year to
year.
Each star has its own meaning. Interpretation is based on the relationships between stars
and on the palaces in which they fall. Simplified versions use a small number of stars; e.g.,
some systems use only the Fourteen Major Stars. This class will teach the location and
interpretation of 113 stars.
Time must also be taken into account: you will learn to read charts for an overall
lifetime, as well as by ten-year, one-year, and monthly periods of time. Although it will not be
taught in this class, Zi Wei Dou Shu charts can even be constructed for a person based on the
current day or current hour. This level of detail may actually be counterproductive as people
should focus on living their life, not on watching their chart.
Zi Wei Astrology is surprisingly accurate in describing the personality through the
subject’s chart. It also can be quite accurate in predicting events in a person’s life, but this
takes a higher level of skill. For example, star 6 Lian Zhen when combined with star 48 Hua
Ji means bleeding or fires. Only with experience can one know which event is likely to take
place and when. These deeper levels will be discussed in the later lessons.
Over the years, many people have helped to make this class happen. I would like to
thank Master Sang first, for his generosity in sharing this amazing method. Beyond this,
Salina Sang, Jessie Cho, Anhtien Nguyen, Sebastian Aschitsch, Mika Yu, and Betty Stone
have all contributed a lot at various times. However, any errors in the writing belong to me
alone.
Lorraine Wilcox L.Ac.

Assistant to Master Sang
Los Angeles
July 2006
Course Outline: This class consists of five sections:
AS201a Zi Wei Dou Shu 1, Beginning Class, Part 1:
• Introduction.
• How to set up a Zi Wei Dou Shu chart.
• The Twelve Palace Categories and their interpretation.
• You can begin to interpret the chart and understand preliminary information about the
character of those around you, such as a business partner or spouse. The information
in this class is the foundation for everything that follows.
AS201b Zi Wei Dou Shu 2, Beginning Class, Part 2:
• How to calculate the Fourteen Major Stars and their interpretation
• At the end of this class you will have a good picture of the personality of the subject
of the chart and his overall circumstances. The picture is painted with broad strokes
and begins to come into focus.
AS211 Zi Wei Dou Shu 3, Intermediate Class:
• How to calculate 75 other stars that sit in the lifetime chart, and their interpretation.
• At the end of this class you will have a very clear and detailed picture of the
personality of the subject of the chart and his overall circumstances
AS301a Zi Wei Dou Shu 4, Advanced Class, Part 1:
• This class discusses the element of time. You will learn to predict events or changes
over time:
o The Large Cycle (changes in luck over ten year periods of time)
o The Small Cycle (changes in luck for each year based on age)
o The Current Year (the influence of the current year, including stars that change
each year)
o Monthly predictions
• At the end of this class you will know how to characterize different periods of time
for the subject of the chart and how to predict events in their life.
AS301b Zi Wei Dou Shu 5, Advanced Class, Part 2:
• This class uses case studies to illustrate how to read a chart and make predictions.
Some of our case studies have dramatic events such as a murder, a father’s suicide, or
a brain aneurism. Others are more routine, yet the kind of information your clients
will ask you: heartbreak and divorce, the prognosis for a cancer patient, the suitability
of buying investment property, etc. There will also be a few special charts: someone
who is likely to make great spiritual growth in the next ten years, or a chart that shows
tremendous opportunity and potential.
Beyond this, in the near future we plan to have a series of Zi Wei Dou Shu Advanced Case
Study Classes.
Pinyin Pronunciation
The stars are given a number to help you index them, but are generally referred to by
their Chinese Mandarin pronunciation using Pinyin. Pinyin is a system of transliteration, or
phonetically spelling the sounds of Mandarin Chinese with our alphabet.
Of course Chinese language was not originally written with the English alphabet. A
Chinese character is always included in the first reference to a star.
Mandarin uses four tones. We have transliterated without indicating the tones.
A simplified guide to Pinyin pronunciation follows:
Beginning Consonants:
c as -ts in its
g always hard like g in get
j always hard like j in jingle
q similar to ch
x similar to sh
z as -ds in pads
zh similar to j
others similar to English
Vowels, Vowel Combinations, and Word Endings:
a as -a in father
ai as -ye in rye
an as -ohn in john
ang as -ong in Hong Kong
ao similar to -ow in cow
e as -a in sofa
ei as -ay in bay
en as -un in fun
eng as -ung in lung
i after ch, sh, zh something like –urr, but shorter and with the
tongue on the palate
after c, s, z something like uh, but very short
after any other letter as –e in be
in as -een in sheen
o as -au in maudlin
ong as - in lung
ou similar to -ow in mow
u after j, q, x, y, 1 or n something like -ew in knew, but with the
lips more pursed
after any other letter as -oo in boo
ua as -ua in guava
uai as -ui in quiet
uan as -uan in quantity
uang similar to -uan above, but with an –ng ending
ui similar to -uay in quay
un after j, q, x, y, 1, or n something like -une in June, but with the
lips more pursed
after any other letter between -one in done and -win in twin
uo as wa- in war
Other combinations that are pronounced as one would expect are not discussed here.
Review of the Stems and Branches
and the Chinese Calendar
We will now do a quick review of aspects of the calendar used in Zi Wei Dou Shu. All this
review information comes from AS101 Stems and Branches and the Chinese Calendar Class.
Here, it is tailored for Zi Wei Dou Shu. If you need additional review, please refer to the
Stems and Branches Class.
十天干)
十天干
The Ten Heavenly Stems (十天干
The ten stems represent heavenly qi spiraling downward. They repeat in a cyclical fashion.
The stems consist of:
The Ten Stems

Chinese Pinyin Number Element
甲 Jia 1 Yang Wood
乙 Yi 2 Yin Wood
丙 Bing 3 Yang Fire
丁 Ding 4 Yin Fire
戊 Wu 5 Yang Earth
己 Ji 6 Yin Earth
庚 Geng 7 Yang Metal
辛 Xin 8 Yin Metal
壬 Ren 9 Yang Water
癸 Gui 10 Yin Water
The Twelve Earthly Branches (十二地支)
The earthly branches flow in a cycle of twelve. They represent the qi of the earth radiating
outward.
The Twelve Branches
Chinese Branch Number Animal Element
子 Zi 1 Rat Yang Water
丑 Chou 2 Ox Yin Earth
寅 Yin 3 Tiger Yang Wood
卯 Mao 4 Rabbit Yin Wood
辰 Chen 5 Dragon Yang Earth
巳 Si 6 Snake Yin Fire
午 Wu 7 Horse Yang Fire
未 Wei 8 Sheep Yin Earth
申 Shen 9 Monkey Yang Metal
酉 You 10 Rooster Yin Metal
戌 Xu 11 Dog Yang Earth
亥 Hai 12 Pig Yin Water
The number twelve represents the dimension of time. We have twelve months in a year,
and twelve double-hours in a day. Each branch represents one month and one double-hour,
illustrated below.
Branch Number Hour Month
Zi 1 11 pm – 1 am 11th
Chou 2 1 – 3 am 12th
Yin 3 3 – 5 am 1st
Mao 4 5 – 7 am 2nd
Chen 5 7 – 9 am 3rd
Si 6 9 – 11 am 4th
Wu 7 11 am – 1 pm 5th
Wei 8 1 – 3 pm 6th
Shen 9 3 – 5 pm 7th
You 10 5 – 7 pm 8th
Xu 11 7 – 9 pm 9th
Hai 12 9 – 11 pm 10th
Note that the Chinese day starts at 11 p.m. on the prior evening, not at midnight as it
does in the West. Therefore if someone is born at 11:15 pm on June 20th, you would need to
convert the time and date to the zi hour of June 21st.
Zi Wei Dou Shu uses the branches to name its twelve palaces:
si wu wei shen
chen you
mao xu
yin chou zi hai
The branches are always placed in the palaces in this manner. Zi (associated with north)
is always the second palace from the right on the bottom row. Yin is always in the bottom left
palace. In this way, if someone says ‘the zi palace,’ you always know where to look.
Oppositions (六沖 liu chong)

The relationship of oppositions is important in Zi Wei Dou Shu. However, in this type of
astrology, oppositions are not necessarily negative as they are in other Chinese arts.
Oppositions
Zi Wu
Chou Wei
Yin Shen
Mao You
Chen Xu
Si Hai
Zi Wei Dou Shu uses the twelve-palace grid, so oppositions look like this:
The Three Combinations (三合 san he)

The three combinations are also quite important in Zi Wei Dou Shu.
The Three Combinations

Shen, Zi, Chen Water North
Si, You, Chou Metal West
Yin, Wu, Xu Fire South
Hai, Mao, Wei Wood East
In a Zi Wei Dou Shu twelve-palace chart, the three combinations no longer look like an
equilateral triangle, but if you check the three branches, you will see it is the same
relationship. Here is what the combination yin wu xu looks like:
The Cycle of Sixty (六十甲子)

The stems and branches progress in parallel cycles. When the two forces (ten stems and
twelve branches) combine, they become a greater cycle of sixty. This Cycle of Sixty consists
of six rotations of the stems and five rotations of the branches.
In Zi Wei Astrology, the stem and branch representing the year of birth are used for
various calculations. The branch of the month and hour of birth are also used. Each of the
twelve palaces in a chart is identified by a stem and branch. This will become clearer as you
begin to make astrological charts.
The Chinese Calendar

The Western calendar is called the Gregorian Calendar after Pope Gregory, who had it
developed into its current form. The Gregorian Calendar is a solar calendar because it is
based on the earth’s rotation around the sun. It consists of 365 days per year, except on a leap
year when an extra day is added on February 29th.
A leap year occurs every fourth year. Years ending in two zeros are not leap years (e.g.,
1900); however, a leap day is added in years ending in three zeros (e.g., 2000).
These complex rules keep months in their associated season. Without leap years, January
eventually would take place in spring because the earth takes approximately 365-1/4 days to
circle the sun. The extra quarter day adds up in time, affecting the accuracy of the calendar.
Adding a leap day periodically compensates for this quarter-day discrepancy.
The Chinese developed a lunar calendar instead, based on the phases of the moon.
Twelve lunar months make up a year: this leaves us about ten days short of a solar year. To
correct this, a leap month is added periodically so that the First Month of the Chinese lunar
calendar appears at the expect time. Therefore, a year consists of 12 or 13 lunar months.
A leap month is added seven times in 19 years in order to keep the calendar ‘in accord
with heaven.’ Certain solar events must always take place at specific times in the lunar
calendar, e.g., the winter solstice must always take place in the 11th lunar month. When a leap
month is added, it must be put in the place that will keep the solstices, equinoxes, and New
Year Day’s within the correct time frame.
Leap Month Rule: The first 15 days of a leap month maintain the same branch and
number as the month preceding it. From day 16 on, the branch and number of a leap month
are counted as the following month. The day of the month is read the same way, but the leap
month is divided between the previous and the next month. This results in two months of
about 45 days.
For example, look at the page for 2006 in the Ten-Thousand Year Calendar. There is a
leap month between the seventh and eighth lunar months. Days 1 through 15 (August 24th
through September 7th inclusive) belong to the seventh month. The funny thing is that July
29th and August 28th of 2006 both wind up being the fifth day of the seventh lunar month.
The sixteenth through the twenty-ninth day (there is no thirtieth day this month) of the
leap month (September 8th through September 21st inclusive) belong to the following eighth
month. Therefore, September 15th and October 14th 2006 both are the twenty-third day of the
eighth lunar month.
Each month begins on the day of the new moon and lasts for 29 or 30 days, as it takes
about 29-1/2 days from new moon to new moon. The full moon always takes place on the
fifteenth day of a lunar month.
Chinese months do not have standard names; they are simply referred to as the First
Month, the Second Month, the Third Month, etc. In these lessons, names such as ‘January’
refer to the Gregorian Calendar. Numbered months, such as the ‘eleventh month,’ refer to the
Chinese lunar calendar.
The Chinese also developed a solar calendar, but Zi Wei Astrology uses the lunar
calendar, so we will not discuss it here.
In order to do the calculations necessary for Zi Wei Astrology, we must convert the date
of birth from the Gregorian calendar to the Chinese lunar calendar. We need to find the:
Stem and branch for the year of birth (Remember, the year begins with Chinese lunar
New Year which is the first day of the first lunar month. For example, January 28th of
1995 receives the stem and branch of 1994 because it fell in the 12th month of the
previous year in the Chinese lunar calendar. We do not follow the February 4th rule
used in Feng Shui. For dates in January or early February, refer to the Ten-Thousand
Year Calendar to ascertain in which Chinese year they fall.)
Chinese lunar month of birth: branch and month number (Remember the leap month
rule if applicable.),
Day of the lunar month,
Chinese double-hour: branch and number.
You will also need to know the stem and branch of the current year in order to make
predictions for the current year. This will be used in the Advanced Zi Wei Dou Shu Class.
You have already learned to how to find this information in the Ten-Thousand-Year
Calendar (萬年曆) in the stems and branches class.
This information is placed in the center of the chart.
Further Discussion of the Hour or Time
The hour table is repeated here for your convenience:
The Hour Branches
Branch
Branch Double Hour
Number
Zi 1 23:00-01:00 11 pm-1 am
Chou 2 01:00-03:00 1-3 am
Yin 3 03:00-05:00 3-5 am
Mao 4 05:00-07:00 5-7 am
Chen 5 07:00-09:00 7-9 am
Si 6 09:00-11:00 9-11 am
Wu 7 11:00-13:00 11 am-1 pm
Wei 8 13:00-15:00 1-3 pm
Shen 9 15:00-17:00 3-5 pm
You 10 17:00-19:00 5-7 pm
Xu 11 19:00-21:00 7-9 pm
Hai 12 21:00-23:00 9-11 pm
• Remember that the day starts with the first branch, zi, at 11 p.m. of the evening before.
Therefore, if someone was born at 11:18 p.m. on September 16th, we would say the
birth hour is the first branch, zi, on September 17th.
• Always use local time. We do not need to convert the hour to Greenwich Mean Time
or any other standard. We are concerned only with the time according to the position
of the sun in the place of birth. The time when the sun is most closely perpendicular
overhead (noon) is always wu, the 7th hour.
• We must consider Daylight Savings Time if it was in effect at the time of birth. The
current law in the United States is that the time moves forward one hour starting at 2
a.m. on the first Sunday in April, and returns back to Standard Time at 2 a.m. on the
last Sunday in October. Before 1966 there was no federal law regarding Daylight
Savings Time, and local governments may or may not have used it. We correct for
Daylight Saving Time by ‘falling back,’ or subtracting one hour from the stated time.
In addition, during World War 2, some places had ‘war time’ and moved the clocks
forward two hours. In Asia, many countries that came under Japanese control were
switched to Tokyo time, even if that was quite different than the sun’s time.
Wherever the subject was born, you need to research the situation regarding the
time there. When a birth time occurred during Daylight Savings Time or some other
manipulation of the clock, the accuracy of a chart affected.
A series of books can be used as reference if the status of Daylight Savings Time
is not known for a birth date: Time Changes in the U.S.A., Time Changes in Canada
and Mexico, Time Changes in the World, and various Time Change Updates, by Doris
Chase Doane. These books can often be found at amazon.com.
• Beyond this, if you are in doubt about a chart, you may want to check the longitude to
calculate the exact sun time in a location. Some countries also make unusual times
zones that are not very close to the actual sun time. Here is some information on time
zones:2
The world is divided into 24 time zones. If there were a clock for every time zone
together in the same room, they would each show a different hour, but the minute hand of the
clocks would all be in the same position. This is not the reality of sun time. The time
according to the sun varies by minutes within a time zone. We just agree to make the whole
time zone the same time to avoid confusion, and to have a standard time within a geographic
area.
Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is the standard time on which all zones base their clocks.
This means that Greenwich, England has an accurate time according to the sun. We can
calculate from Greenwich Mean Time to improve accuracy because it is the one place that
uses local sun time and all other time zones are derived from it, not from their own local sun
time.
Calculating Sun Time
You can calculate local sun time up to the minute, using the longitude of a location. This
is not necessary if the chart seems to match the person and the birth time is not to close to the
borderline between time periods.
You need three pieces of information to do this:
• the birth time
• the longitude of the birth place
• the time zone where the birth took place
Longitude means the lines that go around the earth through the north and south poles. It
is written like this: 52°W39’. This is read “52 degrees and 39 minutes west” of Greenwich
England. Unfortunately, the term minute is used both for time and for longitude. There are 60
minutes of longitude in one degree.
Each degree of longitude is equal to four minutes of time. Fifteen degrees of longitude
equals one hour. Hence, most time zones are 15 degrees wide.
2
The following discussion is somewhat simplified. To learn more, search on-line using the phrase ‘time zones.’
Here is how you can calculate local sun time:
• Find the longitude of the birth location in an atlas or on the internet.
• Divide the degrees of longitude by 15. Use the whole-number part of the answer as
the hours in the calculation below.
• Multiply the decimal part of the answer by 60 to get minutes of time.
• Take the minutes of longitude and round them off as follows:
o If it is near 0, add 0 minutes of time to the minutes found in the previous step.
o If it is near 15, add 1 minute of time to the minutes found in the previous step.
o If it is near 30, add 2 minutes of time to the minutes found in the previous
step.
step.
step.
• Add the hours and minutes of time found in the above steps to find the sun-time
difference between the birth location and Greenwich, England (0° longitude).
• Some resources will list the time for a city as ‘GMT minus 5 hours,’ for example.
(Minus means west of Greenwich. Plus means east of Greenwich.) If you calculated 4
hours and 49 minutes, you know the time is 11 minutes off because the calculated 4
hours and 49 minutes is 11 minutes different than the listed 5 hours. This 11 minutes
is the correction factor. In this case, you need to add a correction factor of eleven
minutes to the birth time.
West of Greenwich East of Greenwich
Do we add or subtract the difference?
GMT minus hours GMT plus hours
Calculated number add difference subtract difference
is less than listed number to birth time from birth time
Calculated number subtract difference add difference
is greater than listed number from birth time to birth time
• If you do not already have the GMT time difference for the city, find the time zone in
which the birth city is located in the table below:
Time Zones of the World
West East
GMT
Standard Name of Standard Name GMT plus
Longitude minus Longitude
Zone of Zone hours
hours
Greenwich Mean Greenwich Mean
0° 0 0° 0
Time Time
West Africa 15°W 1 Central Europe 15°E 1
Azores 30°W 2 Eastern Europe 30°E 2
Brazil Zone 2 45°W 3 Baghdad 45°E 3
Newfoundland 52°W30’ 3:30
(No agreed
Atlantic 60°W 4 60°E 4
name)
(No agreed
Eastern 75°W 5 75°E 5
name)
Indian 82°E30’ 5:30
(No agreed
Central 90°W 6 90°E 6
name)
North Sumatra
97°E30’ 6:30
(Burma)
Mountain 105°W 7 South Sumatra 105°E 7
Java 112°E30’ 7:30
Pacific 120°W 8 China Coast 120°E 8
Yukon 135°W 9 Japan 135°E 9
South Australia 142°E30’ 9:30
Alaska-Hawaii 150°W 10 Guam 150°E 10
Hawaiian 157°W30’ 10:30
(No agreed
Bearing (Samoa) 165°W 11 165°E 11
name)
International Date
180°W 12 New Zealand 180°E 12
Line
• Take the time you calculated and compare it to the number of the birth time zone in
the GMT plus or minus hours column above. The difference between these two times
is the correction factor.
• Determine if you need to add or subtract the correction factor from the birth time as
follows:
West of Greenwich East of Greenwich
Do we add or subtract the difference?
GMT minus hours GMT plus hours
Calculated number add difference subtract difference
is less than listed number to birth time from birth time
Calculated number subtract difference add difference
is greater than listed number from birth time to birth time
• Be sure to correct for Daylight Savings Time as well, if in effect at the time.
Let’s do an example:
• The longitude of Los Angeles is 118°W16’. This means it is 118 degrees and 16
minutes west of Greenwich, England (0°).
• 118° divided by 15 is 7.8666666667. The whole number is 7, so we have 7 hours.
• .8666666667 times 60 is 52. We add 52 minutes to make 7 hours and 52 minutes.
• 16’ can be rounded off to 15. So we add 1 more minute of time to total 7 hours and 53
minutes. This is the sun-time difference between Los Angeles and Greenwich.
• Los Angeles is in the Pacific Time Zone, 120°W, or 8 hours behind Greenwich Mean
Time. We compare the Pacific Time Zone 8 hours to the sun-time difference of 7
hours and 53 minutes. The calculated time is 7 minutes less than the listed time, so the
correction factor is 7 minutes.
• Since L.A. is west of Greenwich (GMT minus 8 hours) and the calculated number is 7
minutes less than the listed number, we need to add 7 minutes to Pacific Standard
Time for someone born in L.A. (If it was during DST, we would also need to subtract
an hour.) If a birth time is on the border between two time periods, we need to add 7
minutes to be more precise. If it is in the middle of the time period, it won’t make any
difference.
This means that when the clock says noon in Greenwich, it will say 4 a.m. in Los Angeles
(earlier in the same day). However, if the clock were set to sun time, it would say 4:07 a.m.
In any other location, a different calculation would apply.
In most cases, a precise calculation such as this is not necessary. Since we only need an
accuracy within a two-hour period, there is a lot of leeway. The people who often have the
biggest problem are those who are told they were born at an odd-numbered hour, for example
7 a.m. In that case we need to know if it was a few minutes before or a few minutes after. It
can change the time from the mao to the chen hour, which makes a big difference in the chart.
In general, the Chinese are not as obsessed with this level of accuracy as are people from
the West. For example, if an astrology reading has a border-line time, they will simply make
two charts and compare them to the person’s character and situation. This is reasonable, as
we cannot be sure the birth time was accurately recorded in the first place. This is what
Master Sang does, and with experience you will be able to compare the charts and choose the
right one for the client too.
Now we are ready to begin making the chart.
Setting Up the Zi Wei Dou Shu Chart
A blank chart consists of twelve boxes arranged into a square. Each of the twelve boxes
represents one palace or gong (宮). The twelve branches are placed in the bottom right corner
of each palace. Zi always starts in the second palace from the right in the bottom row. The
other branches flow clockwise around the square. The yin branch palace is generally
considered the first of the twelve palaces. It is always in the bottom left corner. The branches
fall in this manner in all charts. They never move or change. Because these branches never
move, we use them to name or identify each palace position. They are called the palace
branches. The palace branch is like an address; it always takes you to the same place in the
chart. A blank chart looks like this:
Si Wu Wei Shen
Name:
Date: (Western birth date)
Time: (Western birth time)
Chen You
Year: (year stem and branch)
Month: (lunar month number and branch)
Day: (day of the lunar month)
Mao Hour: (hour branch and number) Xu
Yin Chou Zi Hai

Fill out the center with the appropriate information. You will also need to know if the
subject is male or female.
A blank chart for you to copy and use is provided at the end of this document. Please
note that it has some lines in the center that we have not yet discussed. Leave them blank for
now.
As you fill out the palaces, you need to write small because eventually each palace will
contain a lot of information. You may also want to use pencil, so you can erase errors in
calculation.
The Palace Stems
We now need to add the stems for each of the twelve palaces (called the palace stems).
The palace branches are already in their fixed location on the chart.
The palace stems are based on the stem of the subject’s year of birth. Find the palace
stem for the yin branch palace from the following table:
Stems For the 12 Palaces

Branch Stem of Year of Birth
of the Jia Yi Bing Ding Wu
Palace or Ji or Geng or Xin or Ren or Gui
Yin Bing Wu Geng Ren Jia
Mao Ding Ji Xin Gui Yi
Chen Wu Geng Ren Jia Bing
Si Ji Xin Gui Yi Ding
Wu Geng Ren Jia Bing Wu
Wei Xin Gui Yi Ding Ji
Shen Ren Jia Bing Wu Geng
You Gui Yi Ding Ji Xin
Xu Jia Bing Wu Geng Ren
Hai Yi Ding Ji Xin Gui
Zi Bing Wu Geng Ren Jia
Chou Ding Ji Xin Gui Yi
In a jia year (1984 for example), the bing stem goes in the yin palace, making bing yin.
The same layout occurs in a ji year (1979, for example).
The stems progress in order clockwise around the chart from the first palace, (yin
branch). The stems of the eleventh and twelfth palaces (zi and chou) always repeat the stems
of the first and second palaces (yin and mao). This is because ten stems are distributed
through twelve palaces.
The uses of these palace stems will be described in future lessons. However, they should
be placed on the chart at this point. Be sure to place the palace stem close to and just over the
palace branch.
Explanation: You are actually setting up the stems and branches of the twelve palaces to
mirror the stems and branches of the months from the year the subject was born. You can
check this by looking in the Ten-Thousand Year Calendar at the subject’s birth year. To
review, the first month is always the third branch, yin. The palaces also start with yin.
The two stems that head each column in the above table are in the five combinations
relationship with each other, so they have a close affinity
Example:
• AB was born in a bing stem year.
• In the table on the previous page we find the column for bing (and xin).
• We find that yin, the first palace, receives the stem geng.
• The other palaces follow in order clockwise.
• Stems geng and xin repeat in the zi and chou palace.
Gui Jia Yi Bing

Si Wu Wei Shen
Name: AB
Date: 8/24/56
Ren Time: 10:50 am Ding
Chen You
Year: Bing Shen
Month: 7 Shen
Xin Day: 19th Wu
Mao Hour: 6 Si Xu
Geng Xin Geng Ji

Yin Chou Zi Hai
If you look in the Ten-Thousand Year Calendar, you will find the first month of 1956 was
geng yin, the same as in the yin palace in this chart. This is not important for performing the
calculation, but may help you to conceptualize what you are doing.
Note: In these classes, a chart refers to an astrology chart for a person. A table will always
refer to information arranged in rows and columns such as this, such as on the previous page.
Quiz 1
1. Place the palace stems in the chart for someone born in 1944. What is their year stem?
si wu wei shen
Year stem:
chen you
mao xu
yin chou zi hai
2. What other year stem will have the same palace stems as in Question 1?
si wu wei shen
Year stem:
chen you
mao xu
yin chou zi hai
si wu wei shen
Year stem:
chen you
mao xu
yin chou zi hai
si wu wei shen
Year stem:
chen you
mao xu
yin chou zi hai
si wu wei shen
Year stem:
chen you
mao xu
yin chou zi hai
Quiz 1 Answers
1. Place the palace stems in the chart for someone born in 1944. What is their year stem? jia
2. What other year stem will have the same palace stems as in Question 1? ji
ji geng xin ren

si wu wei shen
wu Year stem: gui
chen jia or ji you
ding jia
mao xu
bing ding bing yi
yin chou zi hai
3. Place the palace stems in the chart for someone born in 1965. What is their year stem? yi
4. What other year stem will have the same palace stems as in Question 3? geng
xin ren gui jia

si wu wei shen
geng Year stem: yi
chen yi or geng you
ji bing
mao xu
wu ji wu ding
yin chou zi hai
5. Place the palace stems in the chart for someone born in 1976. What is the year stem? bing
6. What other year stem will have the same palace stems as in Question 5? xin
gui jia yi bing

si wu wei shen
ren Year stem: ding
chen bing or xin you
xin wu
mao xu
geng xin geng ji
yin chou zi hai
7. Place the palace stems in the chart for someone born in 1987. What is the year stem? ding
8. What other year stem will have the same palace stems as in Question 7? ren
yi bing ding wu
si wu wei shen
jia Year stem: ji
chen ding or ren you
gui geng
mao xu
ren gui ren xin
yin chou zi hai
9. Place the palace stems in the chart for someone born in 1958. What is their year stem? wu
10. What other year stem will have the same palace stems as in Question 9? gui
ding wu ji geng
si wu wei shen
bing Year stem: xin
chen wu or gui you
yi ren
mao xu
jia yi jia gui
yin chou zi hai
Note: These are the only five possible arrangements of the palace stems. You can use this
answer key as a cheat-sheet if you like.
Locating the Ming and Shen Palaces
We now need to find which two palaces most represent the subject of the chart.
Ming Gong (命宮) is the Destiny or Fate Palace. It is considered pre-heaven, which
means what a person is born into, his or her constitution or inheritance. Ming gong is also
considered the palace that most represents the individual’s personality.
Shen Gong (身宮) is the Body Palace and is considered post-heaven. This is what
happens to a person after he or she is born.
Basically, pre-heaven (ming) is like the car that you have, and post-heaven (shen) is the
road you drive it on. This will be explained more below.
1. Find the palace that contains the same branch as that of the birth month of your
subject.
2. Take the branch of the hour of birth. Which number is associated with it?
Branch
Branch Double Hour
Number
Zi 1 23:00-01:00 11 pm-1 am
Chou 2 01:00-03:00 1-3 am
Yin 3 03:00-05:00 3-5 am
Mao 4 05:00-07:00 5-7 am
Chen 5 07:00-09:00 7-9 am
Si 6 09:00-11:00 9-11 am
Wu 7 11:00-13:00 11 am-1 pm
Wei 8 13:00-15:00 1-3 pm
Shen 9 15:00-17:00 3-5 pm
You 10 17:00-19:00 5-7 pm
Xu 11 19:00-21:00 7-9 pm
Hai 12 21:00-23:00 9-11 pm
3. Call the palace with the branch of the birth month “1,” and count counterclockwise
(ccw) the number of palaces equal to the number of the hour.2 This is the location of the
Ming Gong or Fate Palace. For example, if the hour branch is wu, then count back
seven palaces, since wu is the seventh branch.
2
Many similar calculations exist in Zi Wei Astrology where we count clockwise or counterclockwise from a
palace to locate a star. The counting always starts with the palace in question as “1,” not the first palace to either
side.
Instead of using the number of the hour branch, the Chinese would generally call the first palace ‘zi’ and
count the rest of the palaces as chou, yin, mao, etc. up to the hour of birth, rather than 2, 3, 4, etc.
4. For the Shen Gong or Body Palace, count clockwise (cw) the same number of
palaces (equal to the number of the hour) from the palace that contains the month
branch. Remember to call the palace containing the month branch “1.”
Example:
Month Branch
4 3 2 1
Gui Jia Yi Bing
Si Wu Wei Shen
Name: AB
5 Date: 8/24/56 2
Chen You
MING Year: Bing Shen
6 Month: 7 Shen 3
th
Xin Day: 19 Wu
Mao Hour: 6 Si Xu
SHEN
6 5 4
Geng Xin Geng Ji
Yin Chou Zi Hai
3
The branch for AB’s month of birth is shen. We mark Month Branch in the palace that
contains the shen branch.
The branch for AB’s hour of birth is si. Si is the 6th branch.
We count six palaces counterclockwise from the shen branch palace (the month branch)
because si is the 6th branch. This puts us in the mao palace. The ming gong is located here.
We count six palaces clockwise from the palace that contains the month branch (shen)
because si is the 6th branch. That places the shen gong (身宮) in the chou palace.
Explanation: Since ming is pre-heaven, we count backwards (counterclockwise). Since shen
is post-heaven, we count forward (clockwise).
3
Don’t confuse the shen (申) branch palace with shen gong (身宮), the body palace. These are different words
in the Chinese language.
You can look up the ming gong and shen gong in the following tables if you do not wish to
do the calculation:
Ming and Shen Palaces

Birth Month
st nd rd th th
Birth 1 2 3 4 5 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th
Hour Palace Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou
Ming Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou
Zi
Shen Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou
Ming Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi
Chou
Shen Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin
Ming Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai
Yin
Shen Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao
Ming Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu
Mao
Shen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen
Ming Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You
Chen
Shen Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si
Ming You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen
Si
Shen Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu
Ming Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei
Wu
Shen Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei
Ming Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu
Wei
Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen
Ming Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si
Shen
Shen Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You
Ming Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen
You
Shen Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu
Ming Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao
Xu
Shen Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai
Ming Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin
Hai
Shen Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi
Notice that if the hour branch is zi or wu, both ming and shen will be located in the same
palace. This signifies that there will be extremes in the subject’s life. Details will be discussed
below.
Interpreting the Location of Ming and
Shen
The location of both ming gong and shen gong are important in interpreting the chart.
As we will see, ming gong is your starting place, and shen gong is the direction in which you
travel.
The Three Groupings for Ming Gong

Ming Gong (命宮) is the Destiny or Fate Palace. It is considered pre-heaven, which means
that it is what you are born with or born into, your constitution or inheritance. Ming gong is
also considered the personal palace most representing you.
The location of ming gong is one factor in determining your basic personality. What is
the branch of the palace that contains ming gong? Find it in the following tables and note its
group: Is it one of the four corners, the four directions, or the four earths? This grouping is
based on the three combinations:
Four Corners Four Directions Four Earths

Shen Zi (north) Chen
Hai Mao (east) Wei
Yin Wu (south) Xu
Si You (west) Chou
corner south earth corner

si wu wei shen
earth west
chen you
east earth
mao xu
corner earth north corner
yin chou zi hai
The Four Earths are also called the Four Graves (四墓). These are the four branches
associated with the earth element. Earth is heavy and does not want to move. People with
ming in an earth palace have to struggle more in life. They find it hard to change and progress
since inertia is strong. They need to expend double the effort to achieve. It is better for these
people to move far from their birthplaces and seek development elsewhere in order to become
‘unstuck.’
This is especially true if ming is located in chen or xu (the two yang earth branches).
Chen is called the Heaven Net (天羅) and xu is called the Earth Net (地網). In either case
you must always break through a net to achieve things.
The Four Directions are Zi, mao, wu, and you, as these branches represent North, East,
South, and West respectively. They were also traditionally called the Four Failures (四敗)
because of their attraction to a lifestyle of romance, fun, parties, social life, drinking,
gambling, and excessive spending.
This type of person is said to be a peach blossom (桃花). Peach blossoms bloom on trees
from the end of twelfth month until the spring rains destroy them in the first month (yin).
They are bright, colorful, fresh, and beautiful – but easily blown away. They do not last long.
In the past, a person considered to be a peach blossom was not believed to lead a
productive life; hence, the name the ‘Four Failures.’ However, this lifestyle may work today
for people in the sales or entertainment industry, for example.
The Four Corners are the four branches in the corner positions of a twelve-palace chart.
They are also called the Four Horses (四馬) since people with their ming in a corner palace
like to travel and move a lot. The corners signify a restless person who may invite trouble for
no apparent reason.
Palace categories other than ming are also affected by the grouping in which they fall.
(You will learn about the other palace categories later in this class.) For example, if the
spouse palace is in one of the four corners, there may be more than one marriage, since
corners may mean too much activity. If the career palace is in one of the corners, that person
will change jobs, or have a job on the side.
Shen gong, as we have said, is the ‘body palace’ and is considered post-heaven. This is
what happens to people after they are born. Again, an analogy is that pre-heaven is the car
you own, and post-heaven is the road you drive it on.
The location of shen gong gives similar effects as the location of ming gong. The
difference is that ming gong tends to represent the earlier part of your life, while shen gong
represents the latter, perhaps after the age of 35.
Stars may generally be good in ming but bad in shen, or the other way around. (We have
not yet learned any stars, but we will begin with the Fourteen Major Stars in Part 2 of the
Beginning Zi Wei Dou Shu Class.) What do these variations signify?
Stars in Ming Good Bad Good Bad

Stars in Shen Bad Good Good Bad
Not sufficient Life improves
Very good luck Very bad luck
Meaning in material after age of
overall. overall.
things 35
Note: The Fourteen Major Stars cannot really be called ‘good’ or ‘bad.’ Each has its
own strong and weak characteristics. Some are easier to get along with, others may achieve
more, but society needs many types of people. However, many of the minor stars can be
considered good or bad, and certain star combinations are certainly more difficult. In addition,
each star has certain palaces that bring out its good attributes and others that do the opposite.
If the branch of the birth hour is zi or wu, both ming and shen will be in the same palace.
This means that the subject’s life will be extremely easy or extremely difficult, or intense in
some other way. This is because the stars in the ming palace are not balanced by other stars in
shen, since both contain the same stars. In addition, both ming and shen will belong to an
earth, or to a corner, or to a direction, so these characteristics will also be doubled.
The Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong
Besides the three groupings for ming gong, the branch of the ming palace determines
certain characteristics of a person’s life. However, the influence of a palace is strongly
affected by the stars that are located inside them. Therefore, the effect of the palace itself is
not always apparent immediately. (We will begin discussing the stars in Part 2 of the
Beginning Zi Wei Dou Shu Class.)
Find the palace that contains ming and read the associated text below.
1. Ming in Zi Palace
You embrace joy and have an attitude of optimism towards life. Your temperament is
refined and elegant. You have deep affection for old friends; you could not leave them for
new ones. You are able to be patient with your spouse.
You are intelligent and sincere. You like to be original and unconventional; your
judgment of things is different from the masses. You are very subjective and eccentric,
possibly even unreasonable. You are strong-willed.
You debate the matter, not the person. You don’t carry grudges; you are
magnanimous.
It is easy for you to fall prey to peach blossom. You like to make contact with people.
You tend to make promises lightly but go back on your word or break your promises.
2. Ming in Chou Palace

Your outward appearance is cool-headed but you have nobody to turn to. It is better if
you leave your birthplace early to seek development in a far-off location.
You like to do deeds of merit to win honor; you aspire to rise and flourish. You are
willing to take on heavy responsibilities without calculating personal gain or loss.
You tend to treat others arrogantly and try to teach them lessons. You like others to
have confidence in you, and to respect and praise you. When others oppose your opinions, it
is easy for you to get angry. You tend to show off too much.
You have to toil. You strive to prolong your life despite illness. It is easy for you to
suffer from other people’s jealousy and resentment, and easy for you to be framed by others.
3. Ming in Yin Palace
Your life is toilsome. You are smart, diligent and hard working. You invite troubles for
no apparent reason. You like to take shortcuts to obtain your goals. You do not like to be
restricted.
You are sharp-sighted and have a lively temperament. Your style of conversation
makes a deep impression on people. You are kind-hearted. You like to share your success
with others. You make extensive contact with people and have fairly good relations with
others.
Your personality is steadfast and resolute. You will have riches and honor.
4. Ming in Mao Palace

It is easy for you to fall prey to peach blossom; you are elegant but have a weakness
for romance. You like to make contact with people.
You had a relatively weak constitution in youth, but became stronger in adulthood.
Your nerves are overly sensitive. You are easily angered. You tend to get in arguments over
trivial things.
You are cautious about everything because of previous setbacks. You are able to
exercise self-restraint and you are observant. You have nobody to turn to; you have to
struggle alone.
You are understanding and have perspective in dealing with both people and affairs.
You clearly distinguish right from wrong. Remember, if jade is not cut, it cannot become a
useful vessel. You have originality and special merits.
5. Ming in Chen Palace

Your outward appearance is cool-headed but you have nobody to turn to. It is better if
you leave your birthplace early to seek development in a far-off location.
Your conduct is refined and courteous. Your nature is meek and good-natured, yet a
little too friendly.
You take pleasure in mediating disputes for others. You are considerate, balanced, and
impartial. You like to serve as a middleman. You are intelligent, shrewd and tactful in
handling affairs, leisurely and unhurried.
You are indecisive. It is easy for you to stir up trouble for yourself. (Good-heartedness
often meets with no reward.)
6. Ming in Si Palace
You go out of the way to look for weak points; you look at the small and miss the big.
You know how to work diligently, yet you invite troubles for no apparent reason. It is easy for
you to receive restraint from people.
You have a cool-headed manner, yet you worry too much. Your life is toilsome; it is
easy for you to be alone.
You are honest, ambitious, intelligent, cautious, and shrewd. You make a little go a
long way, and are good at engaging in business and trade.
7. Ming in Wu Palace
You are arrogant and conceited. You are elegant but have a weakness for romance and
the pleasures of the flesh. You like to make contact with people. You are proud.
You will surpass all the others. You are broadminded and outspoken; your family’s
fortune will prosper. You are magnanimous. You are good at artful words to bring you
pleasures of the flesh, and you boast and flatter. You fail to think of others when something is
beneficial for you, or you don’t say what you think, tending to flatter others in order to please
them. It is appropriate to be open, sincere, and straightforward in order to succeed.
8. Ming in Wei Palace

You do not take other people’s ideas easily. You appear soft on the outside, but are
strong on the inside. You handle affairs carefully and are conscientious at work.
You have too many ideals and too few achievements. You are too sensitive and easily
angered. You are bashful or coy in every gesture and movement.
You are lonely and narrow-minded. You have nobody to turn to. It is better if you
leave your birthplace early to seek development in a far-off location.
9. Ming in Shen Palace

Sometimes you are full of self-confidence; sometimes you contradict yourself. It is
appropriate for you to get married late.
You are clever and sharp-witted. Your speech and bearing is quite good. You are
talented in the performing arts. There is loss and gain in everything.
10. Ming in You Palace
You are kind-hearted, honest, faithful, and dependable.
If you think you are so clever, it will often lead to failure. You are strong-minded and
unyielding to others; you like to act alone.
You love to travel, especially to enjoy places of historic interest and scenic beauty.
You are able to console yourself and solve problems that vex you, even in times of
frustration or disappointment.
It is easy for you to fall prey to peach blossom.
11. Ming in Xu Palace

You are disheartened when you unexpectedly receive an upset. Others often need to
encourage, support, and cheer you up. Your outward appearance is cool-headed, but you have
nobody to turn to. It is better if you leave your birthplace early to seek development in a
far-off location.
You work enthusiastically and are courageous. You can learn anything with one look;
as soon as you learn it, you can do it. However, you lack patience. You are calm and not
excitable. This horse will not gallop fast without some whipping.
12. Ming in Hai Palace

You are tender-hearted, emotional, and sensitive. You are easily moved to tears by the
environment. You receive other people warmly.
If you hear something once, you understand it.
You are humble and compassionate toward others. You do not attach importance to
your own riches; you like to share your success with others.
You invite troubles for no apparent reason. You are industrious and very
hard-working.
Please remember, this is only the beginning, only one of many influences. The three
groupings (corner, direction, earth) are more important, and the stars in a palace can override
the influence of the palace if they are strong.
In some cases, the descriptions above are rather negative. Every chart has good and bad
in it. If there is something troublesome in your reading, then you can work to overcome it.
Our charts can definitely be used as guides for personal growth.
Quiz 2
1. Find the ming and shen palaces for the following person and briefly describe what this tells
you about them.
ji geng xin ren

si wu wei shen
Year: jia chen
wu Month: 11, zi gui
chen Day: 15th you
Hour: 4, mao
ding jia
mao xu
bing ding bing yi

yin chou zi hai
you about them.
gui jia yi bing

si wu wei shen
Year: xin you
ren Month: 1, yin ding
chen Day: 12th you
Hour: 7, wu
xin wu
mao xu
geng xin geng ji

yin chou zi hai
you about them.
ding wu ji geng
si wu wei shen
Year: gui si
bing Month: 5, wu xin
chen Day: 5th you
Hour: 5, chen
yi ren
mao xu
jia yi jia gui

yin chou zi hai
Quiz 2 Answers
you about them.
ji geng xin ren

si wu wei shen
Year: jia chen 4 Ming
wu Month: 11, zi gui
chen Day: 15th you
4 Shen Hour: 4, mao 3
ding jia
mao xu
3 2 1 month 2
bing ding bing yi
yin chou zi hai
Description: Ming is in you, one of the Four Directions, signifying peach blossom. Shen is
in mao, also one of the Four Directions. This doubles the peach blossom effect, although
these two palaces will have different stars, so it is possible that this chart is not too extreme.
Nevertheless, this person will probably be very social and focused on having a good time
with the opposite sex. They are likely to be attractive, care about their looks, and have some
charisma. You can also read more details about them under mao and you in the section called
the Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong.
you about them.
4 5 6 7 Ming Shen
gui jia yi bing
si wu wei shen
3 Year: xin you 6
ren Month: 1, yin ding
chen Day: 12th you
2 Hour: 7, wu 5
xin wu
mao xu
1 month 2 3 4
geng xin geng ji
yin chou zi hai
Description: Ming and shen both end up in the shen branch palace. This person has a double
dose of the Four Corners. Not only that, when we learn the stars, we will find that they have
a double dose of the same stars. It is easy for this chart to be out of balance. Since this relates
to the corners, the person is like to be very impulsive, making big changes on a whim.
Therefore, they will lack stability. They often bring trouble on themselves by forgetting the
advice, “If it is not broken, don’t fix it.” This person will always be active and busy, mentally
and physically, and will like to multi-task. You can also read more details about them under
shen in the section called the Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong.
you about them.
2 1 month 2 3
ding wu ji geng
si wu wei shen
3 Year: gui si 4
chen Day: 5th you
4 Hour: 5, chen 5 Shen
yi ren
mao xu
5 Ming
jia yi jia gui
yin chou zi hai
Description: Ming is in yin, one of the Four Corners, signifying activity. Shen is in xu, one
of the Four Earths, giving stability. The activity and stability help to balance each other. This
person will be more active early in life and gain stability as s/he ages. You can also read more
details about them under yin and xu in the section called the Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong.
Locating the Twelve Palace Categories
Each of the twelve palaces has an area or category of life that is described by the stars in
that palace. In the table below are these twelve categories. Notice that the first category is the
ming gong or the fate palace, which we have located in the previous section.
The Twelve Palace Categories

Palace Chinese Pinyin
1 Fate 命宮 Ming Gong
2 Parents 父母宮 Fu Mu Gong
3 Karma 福德宮 Fu De Gong
4 Property 田宅宮 Tian Zhai Gong
5 Career 事業宮 Shi Yi Gong
6 Friends 交友宮 Shi Ye Gong
7 Travel 遷移宮 Qian Yi Gong
8 Illness 疾厄宮 Ji E Gong
9 Money 財帛宮 Cai Bo Gong
10 Children 子女宮 Zi Nu Gong
11 Spouse 夫妻宮 Fu Qi Gong
12 Siblings 兄弟宮 Xiong Di Gong
To assign the twelve palace categories, start with the palace containing ming gong.
Continue placing the other eleven palaces in order in a clockwise direction. The palaces
progress in the same order in all charts, but the location of the starting point – ming gong –
will vary from chart to chart.
Later on, in the Advanced Zi Wei Dou Shu Class, you will need to use this table a lot.
You can memorize them directly, or if you like, here is a sentence to help you remember the
order of the palaces:
My parent’s car probably careens freely,

Ming Parents Karma Property Career Friends
traveling illegally Monday, chiefly speeding sideways.

Travel Illness Money Children Spouse Siblings
This sentence makes no sense, but it is useful for remembering the order.
Example:
KARMA PROPERTY CAREER FRIENDS
Bing
Gui Jia Yi Shen
Si Wu Wei
PARENTS Name: AB TRAVEL
Date: 8/24/56
Chen You
MING Year: Bing Shen ILLNESS
Month: 7 Shen
Xin Day: 19th Wu
Mao Hour: 6 Si Xu
SIBLINGS SPOUSE CHILDREN MONEY
SHEN
Geng Xin Geng Ji
Yin Chou Zi Hai
We determined earlier that AB’s ming gong is in the mao palace. The rest of the palaces
follow in order, clockwise. Notice in the above example that spouse and shen gong fall in the
same palace (chou). Shen gong always shares its palace. It is the only palace that does. The
meaning of this will be discussed below.
You can also place the palace categories using the following table:
Ming Gong
Parents Karma Property Career Friends Travel Illness Money Children Spouse Siblings
Location
Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai
Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi
Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou
Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin
Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao
Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen
Wu Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si
Wei Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu
Shen You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei
You Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen
Xu Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You
Hai Zi Chou Yin Mao Chen Si Wu Wei Shen You Xu
However, it is generally easier to find the ming and then place the rest in order in the chart than it is to use a table like this.
The Meaning of the Twelve Palace
Categories
Each category represents a certain aspect of life. However, sometimes it represents aspects
that are not obvious to a modern person or a Westerner.
MING: Fate or destiny. Represents the basic personality as perceived by others, the
pre-heaven nature, or the constitution of the subject. It is what you are or who you are. This
has been discussed above.
PARENTS: Gives information about our parents, their character and fate. Since we often
look like our parents, this palace also can be examined to determine a person’s beauty.
Therefore, it is sometimes referred to as the ‘appearance palace.’ The parents palace can be
viewed to predict the nature of the subject’s boss as well.
KARMA: This palace category, 福德宮 (fu de gong), is difficult to translate into English.
Fu means ‘Happiness, good fortune, good luck, a blessing.’ De means ‘virtue, morals, moral
character.’ Gong, of course, means ‘palace.’ While others have translated this category as
‘Luck and Fortune,’ this doesn’t take into account the morality aspect. Though not a literal or
perfect translation, we have chosen Karma, which implies luck, as well as a lot about our
character.
This palace describes our emotional outlook or inner make-up. It also relates to our
financial fortune since the money palace is opposite from the karma palace. It is desirable to
see good stars here. If so, the person will be happy regardless of their circumstances.
PROPERTY: Refers to land or buildings we will own, as well as preferences for types of
places to live. This palace also gives some information about the family since we often live
with our families.
CAREER: Type of career that suits us and the amount of success we will have. If the subject
is a student (even as a child), this palace represents those efforts as well.
FRIENDS: Originally called the Servants Palace. Since most people can’t afford servants
today, we rely on our friends for help instead. Therefore, this palace tells you if you can rely
on your friends. It also gives information on the character of the friends and can be checked
to see the subject’s relationship with business partners.
TRAVEL: This palace has a business connotation, as people did not travel as much for
pleasure in the past. Most people have to go outside the home to make money. This palace
tells your fate while you are traveling. It can even warn of car or airplane accidents.
Travel is always opposite ming and has a strong effect on it. Bad stars (such as 37 Qing
Yang or 48 Hua Ji) in the travel palace are worse than when in ming. Good stars in travel can
also be stronger than when in ming.
If you move, you can look at the travel palace as your temporary ming.
ILLNESS: From a Chinese, not Western, medical perspective.
MONEY: The money, career, and ming palaces form an important triangle called the three
combinations relationship. (There will be more discussion of this relationship later.)
CHILDREN: The character of our children. It can also refer to our apprentices or students if
we are close to them in mentoring relationships. It does not really refer to students in general
if you teach in a classroom situation.
SPOUSE: The ability to have a significant relationship. The character of your husband or
wife.
If the major stars in your spouse palace are not considered good, a good match is still
possible if you marry someone who has those same stars in the ming gong of their chart. Also,
if there are bad stars in the spouse palace, it is better to marry later in life or to marry an older
person. We will begin discussing the stars in Part 2 of the Beginning Zi Wei Dou Shu Class.
SIBLINGS: The character of our brothers and sisters and our relationship with them.
The 13th palace, shen gong, overlaps with one of the previous twelve palaces:
SHEN: The Body Palace. A person’s post-heaven nature or development. The road you drive
down. This palace can be located in any of the palaces, including ming. The location of your
shen palace focuses on your later life, most representing the time after the age of 35.
The palace category that is shared with the shen palace is of special interest. It is an area
of focus or attention in your life. If it is in career, then career is extremely important you. It
may also be an area where you have issues that need to be worked out. If it is in spouse, it
may be that married life is very important to you, but there are also cases where a person may
avoid marriage due to their own fears.
If shen overlaps with karma, the person usually cares a lot about their emotions and
wants to feel comfortable. Is this good or bad? If they use it to grow spiritually, it is one thing.
It is quite another if they have tantrums when they don’t get what they want.
If shen overlaps with ming, the person may be self-obsessed, or they may have issues
with taking care of themselves. Somehow, their attention will be on the self, but in a more
outward way than with the karma palace.
If shen overlaps with spouse, then marriage is very important. Often, they will put a lot
of energy into taking care of their spouse.
Ming, career, money, and spouse are generally the most important palaces in interpreting
a chart if the person has a career. The first three form an equilateral triangle on the chart,
called the Three Combinations Relationship, (this was reviewed above). The spouse palace is
always opposite career. Travel also has a special importance because it faces the ming palace.
Traditionally, ming, karma, and spouse were considered the most important palaces for a
female’s happiness. Today, it depends on whether a woman has a career and manages her own
money, or if she chooses to stay home for a more traditional life.
Palace categories other than ming may also be affected by the grouping (Four Earths,
Four Directions, or Four Corners) in which they fall. For example, if the spouse palace is in
one of the four corners, there may be more than one marriage because the corners mean
movement or activity. If it is in one of the four directions, there may be problems with
flirtations because the four directions have a peach blossom influence.
If the career palace is in one of the corners, that person will change jobs, or have a job
on the side. If it is in one of the four earths, the career will be more stable or even stagnant.
However, the influence of a palace is moderated by the stars that are inside it. For
example, if a corner palace has very stable stars in it, there will be less movement. If an earth
palace has very stable stars, the person may be so stable that they are easily stuck in their
situation and lack imagination. We will begin discussing the stars in Part 2 of the Beginning
Zi Wei Dou Shu Class.
Discussion of the Example:
Bing
Gui Jia Yi Shen
Si Wu Wei
PARENTS Name: AB TRAVEL
Date: 8/24/56
Chen You
MING Year: Bing Shen ILLNESS
Month: 7 Shen
Xin Day: 19th Wu
Mao Hour: 6 Si Xu
SIBLINGS SPOUSE CHILDREN MONEY
SHEN
Geng Xin Geng Ji
Yin Chou Zi Hai
AB’s ming gong falls into the mao palace. Mao is one of the four directions. Therefore,
when he was younger (before the age of 35), AB would tend to lead a ‘peach blossom’ life.
You can read more details under the heading of Mao in the Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong,
above.
AB’s shen gong falls into the chou palace. Chou is one of the four earths. This means
that AB will become more stable and responsible as he ages, but he may have a feeling of
being stuck in life. More details may be read under the heading of Chou in the Twelve
Palaces of Ming Gong, above.
His shen palace also coincides with his spouse palace. Therefore, somehow a
relationship with a significant other is important in his life. (In fact this person was tricked by
a woman when he was young. After that, he would date women but would never get married
or live with them.)
Siblings, karma, friends, and money are in the four corners, so these palace categories
will be more active and changeable. Spouse, parents, career, and illness are in the four earths,
and will be more stable, possibly involving struggle. Children, property, travel, and ming are
in the four directions. These will tend to be more related to social activity and play, rather
than hard work.
At this stage, Master Sang can often tell if a chart does not belong to a person, perhaps
because they have the wrong birth time. For example, if someone has both ming and shen in
the four directions, they should have enough peach blossom qi to have some charisma and to
look attractive, whether male or female. If both are in the earth palaces, the person will have
slow and deliberate movements and seem fairly conservative. If both are in the four corners,
the person will be very busy, even nervous and fidgety, and it is easy for them to multi-task. It
is usually obvious in cases like this, unless all the stars in the palace really add up to
counteract these effects.
It is not quite so obvious when ming is in one type of palace and shen is in another, but
the overall effect will be a combination of the two, with the third element lacking. For
example if ming is in a direction and shen is in a corner, the person should be somewhat
attractive and fairly active, but not very conservative or methodical.
These three types of palaces seem to have a much stronger effect than the information
presented under the heading of Twelve Palaces of Ming Gong.
One important note should be made regarding interpretation of the chart. If you are
reading a chart that doesn’t seem to describe the subject, check the time and date. To make an
accurate reading, you must know the actual date and time of birth. Sometimes the subject
does not know the exact time of birth. Sometimes the subject may even give the wrong
information on purpose. Could the time have been during daylight savings time?
If you are unsure, make a few charts, using the hour before and the hour after the
supposed time, and see which one best describes the subject. You need not do a full chart for
this. If you find the natal ming gong and place the Fourteen Major Stars (described in the
Beginning Zi Wei Dou Shu Class, Part 2), it should be apparent which chart describes the
subject.
This is the end of the Beginning Zi Wei Dou Shu Class, Part 1. It is true that you have
not yet learned much about how to read a chart or make predictions, but without this
foundation, you can not progress to the next level. By the end of Beginning Zi Wei Dou Shu
Class, Part 2, the picture painted by a chart will be much clearer. When you have learned the
Fourteen Major Stars, you can know quite a bit about the subject of your chart.
When you finish the Zi Wei Dou Shu Advanced Class, your charts will look as complex
as the one on the next page and you will have learned how to analyze this information.
Ming Parents Karma Ke(8) Property
5 Tian Tong 1 LU (Lu) 4 Wu Qu 2 3 Tai Yang 3 9 Tan Lang 3 Ji
15 Wen Chang KE (Ke) 7 Tian Fu 2 8 Tai Yin 3 69 Xiao Hao
36 Lu Cun 18 Di Kong 20 Feng Gao 87 Jue
41 Tian Guan 37 Qing Yang 21 Huo Xing
44 Kong Wang 67 Li Shi 26 Tian Yao
65 Xun Kong 85 Si 54 Hong Luan
66 Bo Shi 57 Gua Su
84 Bing 68 Qing Long
Parents Karma 86 Mu Property Career
8 20 32 44 56 Gui 9 21 33 45 57 Jia 10 22 34 46 58 Yi 11 23 35 47 59 Bing
23-32 Si 33-42 Wu 43-52 Wei 53-62 Shen
PARENTS TRAVEL
Lu 14 Po Jun 2 Name: AB in 1986 (bing yin year) 2 Tian Ji 2 QUAN (Quan)
17 Di Jie Date: 8/24/56 10 Ju Men 1 Quan
S 24 You Bi Time: 10:50 am 16 Wen Qu
i 32 San Tai 39 Tian Kui C
b 38 Tuo Luo Year: Bing Shen 51 Tian Kong a
l 43 Jie Lu Month: th7 Shen 58 Xian Chi r
i 50 Hua Gai Day: 19 62 Po Sui e
n 61 Fei Lian Hour: 6 Si 64 Tian Shou e
g 65 Xun Kong 70 Jiang Jun r
s 77 Guan Fu Type: Wood 3 88 Tai
83 Shuai Ming YYMF: Yang Male Friends
7 19 31 43 55 Ren 12 24 36 48 60 Ding
13-22 Chen Ming Ruler: 16 Wen Qu 63-72 You
S MING Shen Ruler: 12 Tian Liang ILLNESS F
p 22 Ling Xing 1 Zi Wei 4 r
o 25 Tian Xing The First Month of a Zi Year is: hai. 11 Tian Xiang 4 i
u 76 Fu Bing 23 Zuo Fu e
s 82 Di Wang 33 Ba Zuo n
e 34 En Guang d
52 Tian Ku s
71 Zou Shu
Siblings 89 Yang Travel
6 18 30 42 54 Xin 1 13 25 37 49 61 Wu
3-12 Mao 73-82 Xu
SIBLINGS SPOUSE SHEN CHILDREN MONEY
6 Lian Zhen 1 JI (Ji) 55 Tian Xi 13 Qi Sha 2 12 Tian Liang 5
27 Yue Ma 74 Bing Fu 42 Tian Fu 19 Tai Fu
28 Jie Shen 80 Guan Dai 59 Long Chi 30 Tian Yue
29 Tian Wu 73 Xi Shen 40 Tian Yue
31 Yin Sha 79 Mu Yu 56 Gu Chen
35 Tian Gui 63 Tian Cai
49 Ming Ma 72 Fei Lian
53 Tian Xu 78 Chang Sheng
60 Feng Ge
75 Da Hao
81 Lin Guan Spouse Children Money Illness
5 17 29 41 53 Geng 4 16 28 40 52 Xin 3 15 27 39 51 Geng 2 14 26 38 50 62 Ji
113-122 Yin 103-112 Chou 93-102 Zi 83-92 Hai
Children Money Illness Travel
Quiz 3
1. We already saw this chart in Quiz 2, Question 3. Place the other palace categories in it, and
then answer the questions below.
Property wx Career wx Friends Travel

ding wu ji geng
si wu wei shen
Karma Year: gui si Illness
chen Day: 5th you
wx Parents Hour: 5, chen Money Shen
yi ren
mao xu
Ming wx Siblings Spouse Children
jia yi jia gui
yin chou zi hai
2. Which category would be of special interest, focus, or an area where this person would
have issues in his or her life?
3. Which four categories would tend to be very stable, maybe even stagnant (unless later we
find out there are very unstable stars there)?
Quiz 3 Answers
1. We already saw this chart in Quiz 2, Question 3. Place the other palace categories in it, and
then answer the questions below.
Property wx Career wx Friends Travel

ding wu ji geng
si wu wei shen
Karma Year: gui si Illness
chen Day: 5th you
wx Parents Hour: 5, chen Money Shen
yi ren
mao xu
Ming wx Siblings Spouse Children
jia yi jia gui
yin chou zi hai
2. Which category would be of special interest, focus, or an area where this person would
have issues in his or her life?
Answer: Money, because the shen palace overlaps with money in the xu palace.
3. Which four categories would tend to be very stable, maybe even stagnant (unless later we
find out there are very unstable stars there)?
Answer: Siblings, Karma, Friends, and Money because they are in the four earth palaces
(chou, chen, wei, and xu respectively).
Blank Chart
Si Wu Wei Shen
NAME:
DATE:
HOUR:
YEAR:
MONTH:
DAY:
Chen HOUR: You
AGE:
YYMF:
TYPE:
MING:
SHEN:
Mao Xu
First month of a Zi Year is:
Yin Chou Zi Hai

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AS201a – Zi Wei Dou Shu 1, Beginning Class, Part 1

If you need anything administrative, please email [email protected] This

Review of the Stems and Branches and the Chinese Calendar...............................................7

The Chinese Calendar ................................................................................................................. 11

Setting Up the Zi Wei Dou Shu Chart ....................................................................................20

Locating the Ming and Shen Palaces ......................................................................................... 27

Interpreting the Location of Ming and Shen............................................................................. 30

Locating the Twelve Palace Categories...................................................................................... 42

The Meaning of the Twelve Palace Categories.......................................................................... 45

Blank Chart .............................................................................................................................53

Master Chen Xiyi Practicing Sleep Meditation

Lorraine Wilcox L.Ac.

The stems consist of:

The Ten Stems

Oppositions (六沖 liu chong)

The Three Combinations (三合 san he)

The Three Combinations

The Cycle of Sixty (六十甲子)

The Chinese Calendar

This information is placed in the center of the chart.

Now we are ready to begin making the chart.

Yin Chou Zi Hai

Stems For the 12 Palaces

Gui Jia Yi Bing

Geng Xin Geng Ji

yin chou zi hai

yin chou zi hai

yin chou zi hai

yin chou zi hai

yin chou zi hai

ji geng xin ren

xin ren gui jia

gui jia yi bing

Ming and Shen Palaces

The Three Groupings for Ming Gong

Four Corners Four Directions Four Earths

corner south earth corner

Stars in Ming Good Bad Good Bad

2. Ming in Chou Palace

4. Ming in Mao Palace

5. Ming in Chen Palace

8. Ming in Wei Palace

9. Ming in Shen Palace

11. Ming in Xu Palace

12. Ming in Hai Palace

ji geng xin ren

bing ding bing yi

gui jia yi bing

geng xin geng ji

jia yi jia gui

ji geng xin ren

The Twelve Palace Categories

My parent’s car probably careens freely,

traveling illegally Monday, chiefly speeding sideways.

ILLNESS: From a Chinese, not Western, medical perspective.

Property wx Career wx Friends Travel

Property wx Career wx Friends Travel

Yin Chou Zi Hai