What Is a Bazi Chart?
Bazi has been used in China for over 3,000 years to understand personality, predict life trends, and make informed decisions about career, relationships, and health.
The Structure of Your Bazi Chart
The Four Pillars
Your Bazi chart is divided into four pillars, each containing one Heavenly Stem and one Earthly Branch:
| Pillar | Heavenly Stem | Earthly Branch | Represents |
|---|
The Heavenly Stems (10 Stems)
| Year | Ancestral stem | Zodiac animal | Ancestry, early life, public image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Career stem | Seasonal branch | Parents, career, education |
| Day | Day Master (YOU) | Spouse Palace | Your core self, marriage, middle age |
| Hour | Inner stem | Hidden talents branch | Children, later life, hidden self |
| Element | Yang Stem | Yin Stem |
|---|
The Earthly Branches (12 Branches)
| Wood | 甲 Jia (mighty tree) | 乙 Yi (flexible vine) |
|---|---|---|
| Fire | 丙 Bing (sun) | 丁 Ding (candle) |
| Earth | 戊 Wu (mountain) | 己 Ji (garden soil) |
| Metal | 庚 Geng (sword) | 辛 Xin (jewelry) |
| Water | 壬 Ren (ocean) | 癸 Gui (rain) |
| Branch | Animal | Hidden Stems |
|---|
How to Read Your Bazi Chart
Step 1: Find Your Day Master
| 子 Zi | Rat | 癸 Gui (Water) |
|---|---|---|
| 丑 Chou | Ox | 己 Ji (Earth), 辛 Xin (Metal), 癸 Gui (Water) |
| 寅 Yin | Tiger | 甲 Jia (Wood), 丙 Bing (Fire), 戊 Wu (Earth) |
| 卯 Mao | Rabbit | 乙 Yi (Wood) |
| 辰 Chen | Dragon | 戊 Wu (Earth), 乙 Yi (Wood), 癸 Gui (Water) |
| 巳 Si | Snake | 丙 Bing (Fire), 庚 Geng (Metal), 戊 Wu (Earth) |
| 午 Wu | Horse | 丁 Ding (Fire), 己 Ji (Earth) |
| 未 Wei | Goat | 己 Ji (Earth), 丁 Ding (Fire), 乙 Yi (Wood) |
| 申 Shen | Monkey | 庚 Geng (Metal), 壬 Ren (Water), 戊 Wu (Earth) |
| 酉 You | Rooster | 辛 Xin (Metal) |
| 戌 Xu | Dog | 戊 Wu (Earth), 辛 Xin (Metal), 丁 Ding (Fire) |
| 亥 Hai | Pig | 壬 Ren (Water), 甲 Jia (Wood) |
Your Day Master is the reference point for everything in your chart. Every other character in your Bazi is analyzed in relation to your Day Master.
Step 2: Analyze the Five Elements Balance
Count the occurrence of each element in your chart (including Hidden Stems in the Earthly Branches):
- ✦Wood: Growth, creativity, flexibility
- ✦Fire: Passion, expression, social energy
- ✦Earth: Stability, nurturing, practicality
- ✦Metal: Structure, precision, decisiveness
- ✦Water: Wisdom, adaptability, depth
The element that appears most is your dominant element — it shapes your natural tendencies. The element that appears least (or is missing) is your deficient element — areas where you may need extra attention.
Step 3: Determine Your Day Master's Strength
A strong or weak Day Master determines your favorable elements (the elements that support you):
- ✦Strong Day Master: Favorable elements are those that drain or control your element (wealth, output, power)
- ✦Weak Day Master: Favorable elements are those that support your element (resource, companion)
This is the foundation for all Bazi analysis — your favorable elements determine your lucky colors, directions, career fields, and more.
Step 4: Examine the Ten Gods
The relationship between your Day Master and every other character in your chart is classified as one of the Ten Gods (十神):
| Ten God | Relationship to Day Master | Life Area |
|---|
Step 5: Analyze the Spouse Palace
| Direct Resource (正印) | Produces Day Master | Education, mentors, protection |
|---|---|---|
| Indirect Resource (偏印) | Produces Day Master (unconventional) | Spirituality, unique skills |
| Direct Companion (比肩) | Same element, opposite polarity | Friends, colleagues, competition |
| Indirect Companion (劫财) | Same element, same polarity | Siblings, partnerships |
| Direct Output (食神) | Day Master produces | Creativity, expression, joy |
| Indirect Output (伤官) | Day Master produces (intense) | Innovation, rebellion, talent |
| Direct Wealth (正财) | Day Master controls (stable) | Steady income, practical wealth |
| Indirect Wealth (偏财) | Day Master controls (volatile) | Investment, business, windfalls |
| Direct Power (正官) | Controls Day Master (fairly) | Authority, discipline, career |
| Indirect Power (七杀) | Controls Day Master (intensely) | Challenge, ambition, transformation |
- ✦The type of partner you're naturally attracted to
- ✦Your relationship style and expectations
- ✦Potential patterns in your romantic life
- ✦Your spouse's general characteristics
Step 6: Look at the Year and Hour Pillars
- ✦Year Pillar: Your public persona, ancestral influence, and early environment. Also represents your relationship with authority and society.
- ✦Hour Pillar: Your private self, innermost desires, relationship with children, and later-life fortune. This is the "hidden" dimension of your chart.
What Your Bazi Chart Reveals
Personality and Character
Your Day Master and Five Elements balance create your core personality profile. A strong Fire Day Master with abundant Wood will be passionate and expansive. A weak Metal Day Master with strong Water will be thoughtful and introspective.
Career and Wealth
Your Ten Gods reveal your natural career strengths. Strong Wealth stars suggest business aptitude. Strong Power stars suggest leadership. Strong Resource stars suggest academic or teaching paths.
Relationships and Marriage
Your Spouse Palace and the presence of Wealth stars (for men) or Power stars (for women) reveal your relationship patterns, timing of marriage, and ideal partner characteristics.
Health and Wellness
Your deficient elements point to vulnerable organ systems in Traditional Chinese Medicine. For example, a deficient Fire element may indicate weak cardiovascular health.
Life Cycles
Your Bazi chart is the foundation for calculating your Fortune Cycles (大运) — 10-year periods that reveal when different life areas are favored or challenged.
How to Get Your Bazi Chart
You can generate your complete Bazi chart for free at bornchart.app. Enter your birth date, time, and location, and you'll receive your Four Pillars with Day Master identification, Five Elements balance, and Nobleman Stars.
For a detailed interpretation of your chart including career guidance, wealth analysis, and relationship insights, explore our paid Bazi reading service.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is a Bazi chart?
The calculation is based on traditional Chinese astronomical formulas and is mathematically precise. Interpretation accuracy depends on the reader's skill and the completeness of birth data.
Do I need my exact birth time?
Yes, for a complete chart. The hour pillar is essential for accurate analysis. Without it, the Hour Pillar cannot be determined.
Can my Bazi chart change?
No. Your Bazi chart is fixed at birth. What changes are your Fortune Cycles (大运) and annual influences.
How is Bazi different from Chinese Zodiac?
Chinese zodiac only uses your birth year (one pillar). Bazi uses all four pillars — year, month, day, and hour — for a complete destiny profile.
Get your free Bazi chart and discover what your Four Pillers reveal about your destiny.
Want to explore your own destiny?
Get your free Bazi chart and discover the Four Pillars of your destiny.
✨ Get Your Free Bazi Chart