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Bazi foundations

Twelve Earthly Branches in Bazi

Learn the order, elements, Yin-Yang, seasons, double-hours, hidden stems, combinations, clashes, and chart roles of the Twelve Earthly Branches.

Editorially reviewed:

Overview

The Twelve Earthly Branches organize seasonal time and hold hidden stems inside each Four Pillars chart. Read them as a relationship system, not as twelve zodiac personality labels.

At a glance

Canonical order
子 Zi · 丑 Chou · 寅 Yin · 卯 Mao · 辰 Chen · 巳 Si · 午 Wu · 未 Wei · 申 Shen · 酉 You · 戌 Xu · 亥 Hai
Calendar structure
12 solar months and 12 conventional double-hours
Internal structure
Each branch contains one or more hidden Heavenly Stems
Relationship system
Harmony, clash, trines, punishments, harms, and breaks require chart context
Chart placement
One branch below each Year, Month, Day, and Hour Stem

Explore concepts

Order, seasons, and the calendar

The sequence runs Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu, and Hai, then repeats. Branch months follow solar-term boundaries, while branch hours divide the day into twelve conventional two-hour periods.

  • Yin–Mao–Chen: spring
  • Si–Wu–Wei: summer
  • Shen–You–Xu: autumn
  • Hai–Zi–Chou: winter

Why a branch is more than one character

Every branch contains one or more hidden Heavenly Stems. These layers help describe roots, seasonal continuity, and latent relationships, but their strength and relevance depend on the complete chart and the calculation method.

  • Visible presence and hidden root are different.
  • A hidden stem is not automatically active or useful.
  • Weighting conventions vary, so this Wiki lists composition without inventing universal percentages.

Harmony, clash, and larger relationship groups

Branches form named pairs and groups such as Six Harmonies, Six Clashes, and Three Harmonies. These labels identify structural relationships; they do not automatically mean good, bad, union, separation, or transformation.

  • Check whether the full group is present.
  • Check season, support, and competing relations.
  • Separate a relationship pattern from its actual chart function.

The reliable reading boundary

A branch page defines one calendrical chart symbol. Reliable interpretation still requires pillar position, month command, hidden stems, stem-branch links, element balance, interactions, and active timing.

  • The zodiac animal is a mnemonic, not a personality diagnosis.
  • The branch phase is not the whole internal composition.
  • No single branch decides career, relationships, health, or fortune.

Sources and editorial basis

  1. Hong Kong Observatory: Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches
    An official modern reference for the canonical stem and branch orders, the sexagenary cycle, and calendrical use.
  2. 《御定星曆考原》卷一
    A historical source for stem and branch Yin-Yang, Five Phase, direction, seasonal, and calendrical correspondences.
  3. 《淵海子平》 (Yuanhai Ziping)
    A foundational Ziping reference for branch months, hidden stems, roots, and stem-branch relationships.
  4. 《子平真詮》 (True Explanations of Ziping)
    A major reference for month-command, structure, and contextual Bazi interpretation.
  5. OpenFate Editorial Methodology
    OpenFate separates deterministic chart calculation, traditional interpretation, and modern editorial explanation.

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