The ten Day Masters of BaZi
Last checked · verses from the Di Tian Sui on Chinese Wikisource
The Day Master is the Heavenly Stem of the day pillar in a BaZi chart. There are ten, one yang and one yin stem for each of the five elements, and they repeat every ten days. The Di Tian Sui (滴天髓), a classic of Four Pillars astrology, opens its chapter on the stems with an eight-line verse for each; every page below quotes it in full with our translation.
Find your Day Master
Your Day Master is the first character of your day pillar. The BaZi calculator finds it from your birth date, time and place, and shows how it was reached.
The ten stems
| Day Master | Element | Image in the Di Tian Sui annotation | Opening of its verse | Combines / clashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 甲 Jia Wood | Yang Wood 木 | the wood of root and trunk | 甲木參天 Jia wood towers to the sky | 己 / 庚 |
| 乙 Yi Wood | Yin Wood 木 | the wood of branches and leaves | 乙木雖柔 Yi wood, though soft, can cut the Goat and carve the Ox | 庚 / 辛 |
| 丙 Bing Fire | Yang Fire 火 | blazing, burning fire | 丙火猛烈 Bing fire is fierce | 辛 / 壬 |
| 丁 Ding Fire | Yin Fire 火 | warm, gentle fire | 丁火柔中 Ding fire is soft and centered, its inner nature bright and clear | 壬 / 癸 |
| 戊 Wu Earth | Yang Earth 土 | the earth of hills and ridges | 戊土固重 Wu earth is solid and heavy, central and upright | 癸 / none |
| 己 Ji Earth | Yin Earth 土 | the earth of fields and gardens | 己土卑濕 Ji earth is low and moist, central and upright, storing and holding | 甲 / none |
| 庚 Geng Metal | Yang Metal 金 | yang metal, the essence of Venus | 庚金帶煞 Geng metal carries a killing edge | 乙 / 甲 |
| 辛 Xin Metal | Yin Metal 金 | yin metal: not jewels or jade, simply warm, soft, clear and moist | 辛金軟弱 Xin metal is soft and weak, warm, moist and clear | 丙 / 乙 |
| 壬 Ren Water | Yang Water 水 | the source of Gui water, which is both the hundred rivers and the rain and dew | 壬水汪洋 Ren water is vast as the ocean | 丁 / 丙 |
| 癸 Gui Water | Yin Water 水 | pure yin and the weakest stem | 癸水至弱 Gui water is the weakest of all, yet it reaches the Heavenly Ford (天津, a star group in Cygnus) | 戊 / 丁 |
FAQ
What is my Day Master?
The Heavenly Stem of your day pillar, the first character of the day's two. The BaZi calculator finds it from your birth date, time and time zone, and links to its page here.
Why are there ten Day Masters?
There are ten Heavenly Stems: a yang and a yin stem for each of the five elements, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. They follow each other day by day in a fixed order, so each Day Master comes round every ten days.
Does a Day Master describe personality?
This site lists calendar facts and classical quotations only; it does not give character readings. The Di Tian Sui verses speak of how stems act on one another in a chart, not of people.
Sources
Related
This page quotes classical texts and lists calendar facts; it is not a character reading, a prediction or advice.