Five Elements in Liu Yao: what represents “self”?
In Liu Yao, the element of the hexagram’s palace represents “self.” Comparing each line’s element with it shows what supports or controls it. The casting month and day are then used to assess each line’s strength.
The palace: a hexagram’s family
The sixty-four hexagrams are divided into eight palaces (宫), each led by one of the eight pure hexagrams: Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen or Dui. Each palace contains eight hexagrams. The element of a hexagram’s palace represents “self” within it.
| Hexagram palace | Five Elements |
|---|---|
| Qian and Dui (乾、兑) | Metal |
| Li (离) | Fire |
| Zhen and Xun (震、巽) | Wood |
| Kan (坎) | Water |
| Gen and Kun (艮、坤) | Earth |
For example, Gou belongs to the Qian palace, so its reference element, or “self,” is Metal.
Five relationships
Comparing a line’s element with the palace element produces five named relationships:
| Relationship | Name | Examples in the Qian palace (Metal) |
|---|---|---|
| Same element as self | Brothers | Shen Metal and You Metal (申金、酉金) |
| Self generates it | Descendants | Zi Water and Hai Water (子水、亥水): Metal generates Water |
| Self controls it | Spouse and wealth | Yin Wood and Mao Wood (寅木、卯木): Metal controls Wood |
| It controls self | Official/Ghost | Wu Fire and Si Fire (午火、巳火): Fire controls Metal |
| It generates self | Parents | Chen, Xu, Chou and Wei Earth (辰土、戌土、丑土、未土): Earth generates Metal |
These five categories are collectively called the Six Relations (六亲). See the Six Relations article for the people and matters associated with each.
Line strength: the month and day
The casting month’s branch is called the month ruler (月建), and the day’s branch the day marker (日辰). A line is considered strong when it shares their element or receives their generation; it is weaker when they control or drain it.
For example, in the Wu month—roughly from Mangzhong around June 6 to Xiaoshu around July 7—Fire is in season. Fire lines are therefore strong, while Metal lines, controlled by Fire, are weaker. The same hexagram cast in another month may have very different strengths.
Finer rules such as cycle void (旬空) and month break (月破) differ somewhat among schools. Pay attention to each author’s assumptions when comparing books.
This page introduces traditional culture knowledge for reference only; it makes no predictions or guarantees about fate, health, relationships or wealth.