Multi-Story Building Analysis (後天派樓房分析法)
One of the most distinctive contributions of Hou Tian Pai is its systematic method for analysing multi-story buildings. While most Feng Shui schools treat apartments identically to ground-level houses, Hou Tian Pai recognises that each floor has a different Master Star (宅主星), derived through the He Tu generation number system. This explains why residents in vertically stacked units can experience vastly different fortunes.
He Tu Floor System (河圖樓層系統)
The He Tu (River Chart) pairs numbers into five elemental groups. Each pair shares the same element:
| He Tu Pair | Element | Mnemonic | Sample Floors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–6 | Water 水 | 一六共宗 | 1F, 6F, 11F, 16F, 21F, 26F |
| 2–7 | Fire 火 | 二七同道 | 2F, 7F, 12F, 17F, 22F, 27F |
| 3–8 | Wood 木 | 三八為朋 | 3F, 8F, 13F, 18F, 23F, 28F |
| 4–9 | Metal 金 | 四九為友 | 4F, 9F, 14F, 19F, 24F, 29F |
| 5–10 | Earth 土 | 五十同途 | 5F, 10F, 15F, 20F, 25F, 30F |
Master Star Per Floor (各層宅主星)
The Master Star (宅主星) represents the "Body" (Ti 體) of the dwelling. For multi-story buildings, the Master Star changes with each floor because the He Tu element changes. The process:
- Determine the floor number.
- Calculate the He Tu element:
(floor - 1) % 5 + 1gives the He Tu group (1=Water, 2=Fire, 3=Wood, 4=Metal, 5=Earth). - The He Tu element becomes the floor's elemental influence on the Master Star.
- Cross-reference with the building's sitting trigram to determine the specific wandering star assignment.
Guan Jing Technique (貫井交媾)
Guan Jing (Penetrating Well) refers to the vertical qi channel created by stairwells and elevator shafts. This channel "intercourses" (交媾) qi between floors, creating a continuous vertical energy conduit. Key principles:
- The position of the stairwell/elevator within the building's 16-direction grid determines which trigram sector the vertical qi channel occupies.
- If the Guan Jing falls in an auspicious sector (Sheng Qi, Tian Yi, Yan Nian), it distributes positive qi upward through all floors.
- If it falls in an inauspicious sector (Wu Gui, Liu Sha, Jue Ming), negative qi permeates the entire building.
- Modern buildings with multiple elevator cores create multiple Guan Jing channels — the one closest to a unit's entrance has the strongest influence.
Floor Selection Guidelines
- Match the floor's He Tu element to be generative with the building's facing direction element (floor element generates facing element = good).
- Avoid floors where the He Tu element destroys the facing direction element.
- Consider the resident's personal element needs from BaZi — a person needing Water benefits from floors 1, 6, 11, 16, etc.
- Higher floors receive more wind qi (風氣) but less earth qi (地氣); lower floors have the reverse balance.
Case Study: Taipei Xinyi District, 25F Building, Floor 18
Building faces South (Li trigram). Analysis of Floor 18:
- He Tu calculation: (18 - 1) % 5 + 1 = 3 → Wood (三八為朋)
- Floor 18 Master Star element: Wood
- Elevator shaft in Southeast (Xun = Wind/Wood)
- Wood in Xun palace = harmony (比和) — same element, stable qi field
- Door faces South (Li = Fire): Wood generates Fire = supportive relationship
- Assessment: Favorable floor — Wood feeds the Fire-facing building naturally, and the Guan Jing channel in the Wood sector reinforces this