# BaZi glossary Definitions and traditional symbolism shared with the public glossary and chart tooltips; not factual claims about a person's character or future. Canonical page: https://truenoon.io/glossary Language: en ## Day Master The heavenly stem at the top of the day column. Other stems receive their ten-god labels by comparing their element and polarity with this reference. ## Heavenly Stem Stems are the ten surface characters of the Chinese calendar. Each carries a polarity (yin/yang) and an element. The Day Stem is the Day Master. ## Earthly Branch The lower character in each pillar, selected from twelve calendar symbols. Each has a traditional element and hidden-stem mapping; the month branch also indicates the solar-term season. ## Ten Gods Ten names for five element relationships to the Day Master, each split by matching or opposite polarity: peers, output, wealth, authority, and resource. The names describe chart relationships. ## Hidden Stems A traditional mapping assigns one to three stems to each branch. Truenoon includes these stems in its element score and labels their relationships to the Day Master. ## Life Stage Twelve symbolic stages assigned to the Day Master in each branch. Names such as Growth, Peak, and Ailing belong to this traditional cycle; they do not describe a person's actual age or health. ## Na Yin Thirty traditional names assigned to the sixty stem-branch pairs, with two pairs sharing each name. This classification is separate from the Day Master's element. ## Element balance A relative score of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water under Truenoon's chart rules, including hidden stems. It is not a personality percentage, and it does not by itself identify a favorable element. ## 木 · Wood Traditionally associated with growth and extension. In the generation cycle, Water generates Wood and Wood generates Fire. ## 火 · Fire Traditionally associated with light and warmth. Wood generates Fire, and Fire generates Earth. ## 土 · Earth Traditionally associated with receiving and supporting. Fire generates Earth, and Earth generates Metal. ## 金 · Metal Traditionally associated with form and cutting. Earth generates Metal, and Metal generates Water. ## 水 · Water Traditionally associated with flow and moisture. Metal generates Water, and Water generates Wood. ## 日主 · Day Master The day stem, used as the reference for the other ten-god labels. ## 比肩 · Peer Same element and polarity as the Day Master. Traditional interpretation associates this relationship with peers and acting independently. ## 劫财 · Rival Wealth Same element, opposite polarity to the Day Master. Traditional themes include sharing and competition; the name does not mean that money will be taken away. ## 食神 · Output (Gentle) An element produced by the Day Master, with matching polarity. A traditional output category, often discussed through expression and craft. ## 伤官 · Output (Sharp) An element produced by the Day Master, with opposite polarity. Traditional interpretation often connects this output category with questioning and direct expression. ## 偏财 · Indirect Wealth An element controlled by the Day Master, with matching polarity. One of the two traditional wealth categories; it is not a forecast of income or investment returns. ## 正财 · Direct Wealth An element controlled by the Day Master, with opposite polarity. Traditional writing relates it to resources and exchange; the label does not measure actual wealth. ## 七杀 · Pressure An element that controls the Day Master, with matching polarity. Pressure and challenge are traditional themes for this relationship, not a statement that danger is coming. ## 正官 · Authority An element that controls the Day Master, with opposite polarity. Traditional themes include rules, duties, and formal roles. ## 偏印 · Indirect Resource An element that generates the Day Master, with matching polarity. Traditional interpretation links it with learning and less conventional forms of support. ## 正印 · Direct Resource An element that generates the Day Master, with opposite polarity. Traditional themes include care, teaching, and support; it does not establish a person's education or family history. ## 长生 · Growth The cycle's growth image: the beginning of development in the traditional sequence. ## 沐浴 · Bathing The bathing image follows Growth, traditionally illustrating an early, still-forming stage. ## 冠带 · Coming of age The image of putting on a cap and sash: taking shape and preparing for a role in the traditional cycle. ## 临官 · Taking office The image of taking office, conventionally placed before Peak in the twelve-stage sequence. ## 帝旺 · Peak The peak image in the traditional cycle, followed by Waning. It is a symbolic stage label. ## 衰 · Waning The waning image after Peak: a shift from expansion toward withdrawal in the symbolic sequence. ## 病 · Ailing A traditional stage name between Waning and Dormant. The word is not a medical assessment. ## 死 · Dormant The dormant image in the cycle, followed by Storage. It does not predict a death. ## 墓 · Storage The storage image: gathering inward in the traditional sequence. ## 绝 · Void A transition image between Storage and Conception, conventionally marking a break before a new cycle. ## 胎 · Conception The conception image for the start of a new symbolic cycle, not a pregnancy prediction. ## 养 · Nurture The nurture image before the sequence returns to Growth. ## The thirty Na Yin 海中金: Gold in the Sea 炉中火: Furnace Fire 大林木: Great Forest Wood 路旁土: Roadside Earth 剑锋金: Sword-Edge Gold 山头火: Mountaintop Fire 涧下水: Ravine Water 城头土: City-Wall Earth 白蜡金: White-Wax Gold 杨柳木: Willow Wood 泉中水: Spring Water 屋上土: Rooftop Earth 霹雳火: Thunderbolt Fire 松柏木: Pine-and-Cypress Wood 长流水: Long-Flowing Water 沙中金: Gold in the Sand 山下火: Mountain-Foot Fire 平地木: Plains Wood 壁上土: Plaster-Wall Earth 金箔金: Gold-Leaf Gold 覆灯火: Lantern Fire 天河水: Sky-River Water 大驿土: Post-Road Earth 钗钏金: Hairpin Gold 桑柘木: Mulberry Wood 大溪水: Broad-Stream Water 沙中土: Earth in the Sand 天上火: Sky Fire 石榴木: Pomegranate Wood 大海水: Ocean Water