Pillars — MING COSMOS

The signature methodology of Sanming Tonghui is the construction of the Four Pillars of Destiny (Bazi / 八字)—literally "Eight Characters," because each pillar contains two characters (one Stem, one Branch).

Year

甲

Jiǎ (Wood, Yang)

子

Zǐ (Rat)

Month

丙

Bǐng (Fire, Yang)

寅

Yín (Tiger)

Day

庚

Gēng (Metal, Yang)

午

Wǔ (Horse)

Hour

壬

Rén (Water, Yang)

申

Shēn (Monkey)

The Structure

Pillar	Chinese	Pinyin	Represents	Temporal Unit
Year	年柱	Nián Zhù	Ancestry, cultural epoch	Birth year
Month	月柱	Yuè Zhù	Parents, early environment	Birth month
Day	日柱	Rì Zhù	Self, core identity	Birth day
Hour	时柱	Shí Zhù	Children, late life	Birth hour

The Day Stem (Ri Yuan / 日元)—the Heavenly Stem of the Day Pillar—is considered the "Self" or Day Master. All other characters in the chart are interpreted in relation to this central reference point.

How a Ming Scholar Read a Chart

Quality of Day Master

Which Agent? Yin or Yang? Strong or weak?

Seasonal Context

Does the season support or weaken the Day Master?

Character Relationships

Which Agents generate or control the Day Master?

System Balance

Is one Agent dominant? Is Yin-Yang equilibrium maintained?

Important: The "Hour" pillar uses the Chinese double-hour system (Shí Chén / 时辰), where each Branch governs a 2-hour period. This reflects the premodern Chinese division of the day, tied to the movement of the Big Dipper in traditional astronomy.

Related Explorations

📖 Bazi Chart Calculator — Generate your own Four Pillars chart
📖 Bazi Glossary — Extended terminology for Four Pillars analysis
📖 Ten Cosmic Agents — The relational archetypes derived from your chart
📖 Solar-Lunar Converter — Convert between calendar systems for chart construction
📖 Life Patterns — How the Four Pillars combine into structural configurations

Next: Agents →