Casting Step by Step
Take 15 October 2026, 10:00 (UTC+8). Its four pillars are Bing-Wu year, Wu-Xu month, Ren-Xu day and Yi-Si hour.
1. Find the structure
The day falls after Cold Dew and before Frost Descent, so the term is Cold Dew. Counting back from the Ren-Xu day, the nearest Jia or Ji day is Ji-Wei; Wei is one of Chen, Xu, Chou, Wei, so this is the lower period. Cold Dew is a yin term with structures 6, 9, 3, so the lower period is yin structure 3.
2. Lay the earth plate
Yin 3: Wu in Zhen 3, then backward: Ji in Kun 2, Geng in Kan 1, Xin in Li 9, Ren in Gen 8, Gui in Dui 7, Ding in Qian 6, Bing in the centre, Yi in Xun 4.
3. Find the Chief and Envoy
The hour Yi-Si belongs to the Jia-Chen decade, and Jia-Chen hides in Ren. Ren sits in Gen 8 on the earth plate, whose own star is Tian Ren and door is Life, so the Chief is Tian Ren and the Envoy is the Life door.
4. Lay the heaven plate
The hour stem is Yi, which sits in Xun 4 on the earth plate, so the Chief Tian Ren, carrying its Ren, moves from Gen 8 to Xun 4. The other stars (with Tian Qin riding along with Tian Rui) turn clockwise by the same amount.
5. Lay the door plate
The Envoy, the Life door, starts from Gen 8, the decade head's palace. Jia-Chen is step 0 and Yi-Si step 1; in a yin structure it steps backward from 8 to 7, so the Life door lands in Dui 7 and the other doors turn with it.
6. Lay the spirits
The Chief spirit joins the Chief star in Xun 4, and in a yin structure the Serpent, Moon, Harmony and the rest follow counter-clockwise.
The finished chart
| Xun 4 Chief Tian Ren 壬 Fear earth 乙 | Li 9 Heaven Tian Chong 戊 Open earth 辛 | Kun 2 Earth Tian Fu 乙 Rest earth 己丙 |
| Zhen 3 Serpent Tian Peng 庚 Death earth 戊 | Yin 3 Cold Dew, lower | Dui 7 Tortoise Tian Ying 辛 Life earth 癸 |
| Gen 8 Moon Tian Xin 丁 Scenery earth 壬 | Kan 1 Harmony Tian Zhu 癸 Closure earth 庚 | Qian 6 Tiger Tian Rui・Tian Qin 己丙 Harm earth 丁 |
The void branches are 寅 and 卯 (in Gen 8 and Zhen 3), and the Horse is 亥 (Qian 6).
Enter the same time in our Qimen tool to see the same chart with its patterns and use god.
This is fixed text compiled from general convention, not a reading of any individual and not a prediction. For important decisions, please consult qualified professionals.