Foundations

This section is the base language of the Ba Zi library. It explains the symbols, relationships, and timing concepts that later pattern reading depends on.

Core foundations

• Five Elements: the generative and controlling logic behind chart relationships.
• Heavenly Stems: the visible forces that define expression, interaction, and transformation.
• Earthly Branches: the hidden roots, seasonal forces, and branch relationships in a chart.
• Ten Gods: the relational language used to read people, events, and functions.
• Shen Sha: symbolic stars and auxiliary markers used in traditional readings.
• Na Yin: a traditional stem-branch sound-element system.
• Void: the empty-branch concept used in timing and structural judgment.
• Twelve Life Stages: the cycle used to describe elemental vitality across branches.