Zi Ping Zhen Quan (子平真詮) , or "The Authentic Interpretation of Zi Ping," is the definitive textbook for structural BaZi. Written by the Qing Dynasty scholar Shen Xiao Zhan (沈孝瞻) , it stripped away the confusion of earlier eras to present a strictly logical, "technical" method for analyzing destiny. If Di Tian Sui is the philosophy, Zi Ping Zhen Quan is the engineering manual.
Zi Ping Zhen Quan (子平真詮)
The Authentic Interpretation of Zi Ping: Structural Analysis
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📜 Historical Context
Before Shen Xiao Zhan, BaZi analysis was often a mix of folklore, star gods, and unverified theories. Shen, a top scholar (Jinshi), applied the rigor of the civil service examination mindset to BaZi. He declared that the Month Command (月令) is the sole ruler of the chart, and all analysis must flow from this central point.
🔑 Core Concepts
1. The Useful God (Yong Shen 用神)
In this classic, "Useful God" does not mean "what balances the chart" (as in Di Tian Sui ). It specifically means The God in Charge of the Month . It is the "Structure" itself. You do not "choose" it; you identify it, then determine if it is successful.
2. The Two Categories of Gods
Shen categorized the Ten Gods into two distinct groups requiring opposite treatments:
- The Four Auspicious Gods (Four Sentimental): Wealth (財), Officer (官), Seal/Resource (印), Eating God (食).
- The Four Inauspicious Gods (Four Non-Sentimental): Seven Killings (殺), Hurting Officer (傷), Owl/Indirect Resource (梟), Yang Knife (刃).
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Treatment of Structures (順用與逆用)
The core algorithm of Zi Ping Zhen Quan is simple but strict:
1. Progressive Use (Shun Yong 順用)
For Auspicious Gods: You must protect and support them.
- Officer (官): Needs Wealth to generate it, or Seal to protect it. Cannot meet Hurting Officer.
- Wealth (財): Needs Eating God to source it, or Officer to guard it. Cannot meet Rob Wealth.
- Seal (印): Needs Officer to generate it. Cannot meet Wealth (which breaks the Seal).
- Eating God (食): Needs to flow into Wealth. Cannot meet Owl (which snatches food).
2. Regressive Use (Ni Yong 逆用)
For Inauspicious Gods: You must control or transform them.
- Seven Killings (殺): Must be controlled by Eating God, or transformed by Seal. Uncontrolled Killing is a disaster.
- Hurting Officer (傷): Must be controlled by Seal, or used to generate Wealth (exhausting it).
- Yang Knife (刃): Must be controlled by Seven Killings (combining force with authority).
- Owl (梟): Must be controlled by Wealth to protect the Eating God.
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The Root: The Month Command (專求月令)
八字用神，專求月令，以日干配月支，察其生旺死絕。
"The Useful God of the Eight Characters is sought specifically from the Month Command; by matching the Day Stem with the Month Branch, observe its stages of birth, prosperity, death, and extinction."
Insight: The season of birth is the most powerful influence. A chart's structure is determined by the organ (element) that is currently "in command" of the climate.
八字用神，專求月令，以日干配月支，觀察其所處的狀態（長生、沐浴、冠帶、臨官、帝旺、衰、病、死、墓、絕、胎、養）。
Categories: Good and Perverse Gods (用神善惡)
善而順用，不善而逆用。
"For the good, use them with the flow (protect); for the not-good, use them against the flow (control)."
Insight:
- Good Gods: Official, Wealth, Resource, Eating God. They should be supported.
- Perverse Gods: Killing, Hurting Officer, Owl (Indirect Resource), Blade. They should be subdued or transformed.
善而順用，不善而逆用。
釋義： 對於吉神（財官印食），應當順應其勢，予以生扶保護；對於凶神（殺傷梟刃），則應逆其勢，予以制伏或化解。
💡 Why It Matters Today
For the professional practitioner, Zi Ping Zhen Quan offers the clearest diagnostic criteria. Before asking "Is this person lucky?", this method asks "Is this chart functioning ?" A chart with a broken structure (e.g., an Officer destroyed by Hurting Officer with no cure) is functionally impaired, regardless of the seasonal flow.
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🔢 The Five-Step Systematic Framework
The Zi Ping Zhen Quan establishes BaZi as a procedural discipline. Shen Xiaozhan's method follows a strict five-step sequence — skip a step and the analysis collapses:
| Step | Action | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Step 1 | Identify the Day Master (日主 rì zhǔ) | The Heavenly Stem of the Day Pillar. This is the "self" — the anchor of all analysis. |
| Step 2 | Examine the Month Branch (月令 yuè lìng) | The single most powerful influence. The month determines the season and which element is in command. |
| Step 3 | Determine the Ge Ju (格局 gé jú) | The "Structure" or "Pattern" — based on the relationship between Day Master and the god emerging from the Month Branch. |
| Step 4 | Assess Cheng Ge vs. Po Ge (成格 / 破格) | Is the structure successful or broken? Does any destructive element undermine the key god? |
| Step 5 | Determine favorable and unfavorable elements | Based on what the Ge Ju needs to succeed and what it cannot tolerate. |
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👤 The Complete Ten Gods (十神 Shí Shén)
The Zi Ping Zhen Quan defines all Ten Gods with precision, based on their relationship to the Day Master in terms of element and Yin/Yang polarity (正 Zhèng = cross polarity; 偏 Piān = same polarity):
| Ten God | Chinese | Pinyin | Relationship to Day Master |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zheng Guan | 正官 | Zhèng Guān | Element that controls DM — cross polarity (the "Proper Officer") |
| Qi Sha | 七杀 (偏官) | Qī Shā | Element that controls DM — same polarity (the "Seven Killings") |
| Zheng Yin | 正印 | Zhèng Yìn | Element that produces DM — cross polarity (the "Proper Seal") |
| Pian Yin | 偏印 (枭神) | Piān Yìn | Element that produces DM — same polarity (the "Partial Seal / Owl God") |
| Zheng Cai | 正财 | Zhèng Cái | Element controlled by DM — cross polarity (the "Proper Wealth") |
| Pian Cai | 偏财 | Piān Cái | Element controlled by DM — same polarity (the "Partial Wealth") |
| Shi Shen | 食神 | Shí Shén | Element produced by DM — cross polarity (the "Food God") |
| Shang Guan | 伤官 | Shāng Guān | Element produced by DM — same polarity (the "Hurting Officer") |
| Bi Jian | 比肩 | Bǐ Jiān | Same element, same polarity as DM (the "Shoulder to Shoulder") |
| Jie Cai | 劫财 | Jié Cái | Same element, different polarity from DM (the "Rob Wealth") |
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🏗️ The Eight Standard Ge Ju (八格 Bā Gé)
The heart of the Zi Ping Zhen Quan is its Ge Ju theory — eight standard structures based on what emerges from the Month Branch. Each structure has specific requirements, a characteristic "break" condition, and a potential "rescue":
| Structure | Chinese | Key Need | Break Condition (破格) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zheng Guan Ge | 正官格 | Wealth generates Officer; Seal protects Officer | Shang Guan attacks Officer (伤官见官 — "disaster innumerable") |
| Qi Sha Ge | 七杀格 | Shi Shen controls Qi Sha (食神制杀); or Seal transforms it | No control — raw Qi Sha signals great danger or great power depending on the chart's strength |
| Zheng Yin Ge | 正印格 | Officer generates Seal; Seal protected | Wealth destroys Seal (财星破印 — cái pò yìn) |
| Pian Yin Ge | 偏印格 | Wealth controls the Owl (prevents snatching Food) | Pian Yin meets Shi Shen → "Owl Snatches Food" (枭神夺食), causing loss and illness |
| Zheng Cai Ge | 正财格 | Self must be strong to hold Wealth; Officer guards it | Bi Jie (Rob Wealth) steals the Wealth (比劫破财) |
| Pian Cai Ge | 偏财格 | Similar to Zheng Cai but for windfall/speculative wealth | Same — Bi Jie attacks. More volatile than Zheng Cai structure. |
| Shi Shen Ge | 食神格 | Food God must flow into Wealth for output to produce gain | Pian Yin snatches the Food God (枭印夺食) |
| Shang Guan Ge | 伤官格 | Channel into Wealth (伤官生财) or control with Seal (伤官佩印) | Shang Guan meets Officer without Seal rescue — brilliant talent turns destructive |
Cheng Ge / Po Ge / Jiu Ge (成格 / 破格 / 救格)
- 成格 (Chéng Gé, Successful Structure): The key god is properly supported, protected, and functional. The chart's elements work in harmony with the structure's needs.
- 破格 (Pò Gé, Broken Structure): A destructive element undermines the key god — e.g., Shang Guan destroys Officer, Wealth destroys Seal, Owl destroys Food God.
- 救格 (Jiù Gé, Rescued Structure): A broken structure can sometimes be "rescued" by a third element that removes the destructive force. Example: Shang Guan breaks Officer, but Seal controls Shang Guan → Officer Structure is rescued (印来解救).
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📋 Applied Case Studies
Case ZPZQ-1: Successful Zheng Guan Ge (正官格成格) | Male, born Spring 1955
| Pillar | Heavenly Stem | Earthly Branch |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 乙 Yǐ (Wood) | 未 Wèi (Goat) |
| Month | 己 Jǐ (Earth) | 卯 Mǎo (Rabbit) |
| Day | 庚 Gēng (Metal) | 申 Shēn (Monkey) |
| Hour | 丙 Bǐng (Fire) | 子 Zǐ (Rat) |
Analysis: Day Master Gēng Metal. Month Branch Mǎo (卯) reveals Yǐ Wood — Gēng's Zheng Cai (Proper Wealth). Month Stem Jǐ Earth (Seal) supports the self. Year Stem Yǐ Wood (Wealth) produces Hour Stem Bǐng Fire (Officer). Gēng is strongly rooted in Shēn (申). The complete chain: Seal (Jǐ) → Self (Gēng) → controls Wealth (Yǐ) → Wealth produces Officer (Bǐng). Cheng Ge — the structure succeeds cleanly.
Outcome: Government official who rose to provincial-level leadership. Classic Zheng Guan Ge with complete, unbroken chain.
Case ZPZQ-2: Broken Structure — Shang Guan Jian Guan (伤官见官) | Male, born 1970
| Pillar | Heavenly Stem | Earthly Branch |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 庚 Gēng (Metal) | 戌 Xū (Dog) |
| Month | 戊 Wù (Earth) | 子 Zǐ (Rat) |
| Day | 己 Jǐ (Earth) | 卯 Mǎo (Rabbit) |
| Hour | 丙 Bǐng (Fire) | 寅 Yín (Tiger) |
Analysis: Day Master Jǐ Earth. Day Branch Mǎo (卯) = Jǐ's Qi Sha (Seven Killings). Year Stem Gēng Metal = Jǐ's Shang Guan (Hurting Officer). Shang Guan confronts Qi Sha across the chart — a volatile, unstable configuration. Seal (Bǐng Fire at Hour) attempts rescue but cannot fully neutralize the conflict between Gēng and Mǎo.
Outcome: Turbulent career; multiple job changes and legal trouble in the Yǐ Mǎo (乙卯) luck pillar when double Mǎo intensified the Killings attack on the Day Master. The "rescue" operated but incompletely.
Case ZPZQ-3: Food God Structure with Wealth Conversion (食神生财格) | Female, born 1980
| Pillar | Heavenly Stem | Earthly Branch |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 庚 Gēng (Metal) | 申 Shēn (Monkey) |
| Month | 戊 Wù (Earth) | 子 Zǐ (Rat) |
| Day | 庚 Gēng (Metal) | 辰 Chén (Dragon) |
| Hour | 壬 Rén (Water) | 午 Wǔ (Horse) |
Analysis: Day Master Gēng Metal. Hour Stem Rén Water = Gēng's Shi Shen (Food God). Month Stem Wù Earth (Pian Yin / Owl God) threatens to "snatch" the Food God (枭神夺食). However, Wù Earth sits on Zǐ (Water), weakening the Pian Yin's power. The Water elements are strong and well-rooted. Day Branch Chén contains hidden Yǐ Wood (Wealth for Gēng) — the Food God producing Wealth through the hidden structure.
Outcome: Creative professional (writer/artist). Achieved financial stability through artistic output — classic Food God generating Wealth pattern. The threatened "Owl Snatches Food" scenario was neutralized by the Pian Yin's unfavorable positioning.