Section One: Heavenly Stems Mutual Transformation
As a form of material movement, the element of force directly influenced the essence of the Five Elements’ generation and restraint. In the active generation and passive generation relationships of active restraint and passive restraint, the role of force exhibits considerable differences. The effect of this phenomenon ultimately led to the relationship between quantitative change and qualitative change, and thus correspondingly produced the relationship of “control” and “transformation”.
Generation, Restraint, Control, and Transformation ‘s basic principles, in a broader spatiotemporal context, reflect the changes between quality and quantity in the development of things, and concretize each link of the Five Elements. That is to say, the basic principles of the Five Elements’ Generation, Restraint, Control, and Transformation, simulate the effects and modes of material movement. However, it differs from the seriousness of material movement; it uses the effects and modes of material movement to describe in detail the causal relationships in the development of things. Therefore, through the Five Elements’ Generation, Restraint, Control, and Transformation, one can trace past history and predict future developments. The Generation, Restraint, Control, and Transformation among the Five Elements is not philosophy in the general sense.
Heavenly Stems Mutual Transformation is specifically aimed at the Heavenly Stems’ Five Elements’ Generation, Restraint, Control, and Transformation. In terms of its basic principles, “Heavenly Stems Mutual Transformation” as an academic concept can more intuitively reflect the generation, restraint, and transformation among the Heavenly Stems. Its content includes the generation and restraint of adjacent Heavenly Stems, separated Heavenly Stems, distantly separated Heavenly Stems, and the Heavenly Stems of the year, month, day, and hour against those of the Grand Cycle and fleeting years, in terms of their generation and restraint. By converting the five-element generation and restraint forces among the Heavenly Stems, based on their arrangement in the Bazi, it reflects the mutual effects and meanings among the Heavenly Stems, and the factual truth of certain specific links in the development of events; at the same time, it also provides a solid theoretical basis for intuitive fortune-telling.
Heavenly Stems Mutual Transformation reflects the mutual generation and restraint of the Five Elements in terms of leakage, consumption, and restraint. Through Heavenly Stems Mutual Transformation, one can specifically evaluate the relationships existing between each of the Five Elements.
I. Several Classification Forms of Heavenly Stems Mutual Transformation
1. When the generator is restrained, it does not generate:
The Day Master Yi Wood has its root in the Hour Branch, with the Month Stem Ren Water closely generating it. The Year Stem Wu Earth is out of season but rooted in the Month Branch, and has qi in the Year Branch, aided by the Hour Stem Ji Earth, making it strong. The Month Stem Ren Water is in season, rooted in the Year Branch with qi, but its strength is inferior to Wu Earth. Wu Earth restrains Ren Water (Ren Water also consumes Wu Earth’s strength), so Ren Water cannot generate Yi Wood. This forms the situation of “when the generator is restrained, it does not generate”.
In this generation and restraint relationship among the Bazi Heavenly Stems, the strengths of Ren Water and Yi Wood, two Five Elements, can be added together to contend with Wu and Ji Earth.
Therefore, under the condition that the producer is restrained and thus cannot produce, several characteristics can be summarized:
- If the producing element (Wu Xing) is completely restrained, it cannot produce the element it is supposed to produce.
- The strength of the restraining element (Wu Xing) must be greater than or equal to the strength of the producing element.
- By categorization, the strengths of the mutually producing elements (Wu Xing) are added together to contend with the strengths of other elements.
2. If the restrainer is restrained, it cannot restrain, and its restraining power is reduced:
The Day Master Yi Wood is closely supported by the Hour Stem Jia Wood, and its energy connects to the Year Branch and Month Branch. Xin Metal gains the season’s command and is rooted in the Hour Branch, closely restraining and attacking Wood. The Year Stem Ding Fire has energy in the Year Branch and strong roots in the Day Branch, forming a restraint against the Month Stem Xin Metal. While Xin Metal is restrained by Ding Fire, it no longer has the strength to restrain Yi Wood. For Yi Wood, this is a case where the restrainer is restrained and thus cannot restrain.
Thus, the strength of Yi Wood and the strength of Year Stem Ding Fire are added together to contend with the strength of Month Stem Xin Metal, forming two opposing Five Elements.
- The principle ‘if the restrainer is restrained, it cannot restrain’ also has several prominent characteristics:
- If the restraining element (Wu Xing) is restrained, it cannot restrain the next element.
- The element that restrains the restraining element (Wu Xing) must have a strength greater than or equal to the restraining element.
- By classifying the Five Elements, combine the mutually generating Five Elements to contend with the other Five Elements.
- By classifying the Five Elements, the generation and restraint between separated Heavenly Stems can be regarded as generation and restraint between closely aligned ones.
The Day Master Bing Fire is weak and rootless. The Gui Water in the month pillar has roots in the year and hour branches, and is strong in the day branch, closely restraining the self. The Ji Earth in the year pillar is in season, has roots in the day branch, and closely restrains Gui Water. While Gui Water restrains Bing Fire, it also consumes a certain amount of its strength due to Ji Earth. In this way, Gui Water’s power to restrain Bing Fire is reduced. The presence of Ji Earth means that for Gui Water restraining Bing Fire, the restrainer’s restraining power is diminished.
Several characteristics of a restrainer with diminished restraining power:
- For the main restraining Five Element, there simultaneously appears a Five Element that restrains it, but its power is less than that of the main restraining Five Element.
- The main restraining Five Element must first consume an equivalent amount of power from the Five Element that restrains it, before it can restrain the next Five Element.
- By classifying, combine the mutually generating Five Elements to contend with the other Five Elements.
3. Restrainer transforms into mutual generation:
The Day Master Jia Wood sits on its own prosperity, the month branch is a storage root, and there are resource and companion elements in the Heavenly Stems to support it. Earth and Metal are taken as useful elements. The Geng Metal in the year pillar restrains the Day Master Jia Wood, but the Gui Water in the month pillar completely transforms the power of Geng Metal, so Geng Metal cannot restrain Jia Wood. Through the transformation of Gui Water’s power, a continuous mutual generation is formed.
Forms and characteristics of a restrainer that transforms into mutual generation:
- The power of the dominant suppressing element is completely transformed and cannot suppress the next element.
- Between two elements in a suppressing relationship, a mediating element appears, and its power is greater than or equal to the power of the dominant suppressing element.
- In a birth chart, the intervening stem between two suppressing elements is the mediating element.
4. When the suppressor is transformed, it does not suppress.
The Day Master Wutu (Earth) is rooted in the year, month, day, and hour. The Month Stem Jiamu (Wood) is out of season, and Jiamu closely suppresses Wutu. However, the Year Stem Dinghuo (Fire) appears and triggers the earthly branches, Si-Wu-Wei three-harmony fire formation successfully, completely transforming the power of Jiamu, making Jiamu unable to suppress Wutu. At this point, Jiamu’s relationship with Wutu becomes “when the suppressor is transformed, it does not suppress.”
“When the suppressor is transformed, it does not suppress” has the following characteristics:
- The power of the dominant suppressing element is completely transformed and cannot suppress the next element.
- For the dominant suppressing element, its produced element appears, and its power is greater than or equal to the dominant suppressing element.
- When it comes to the main overcoming element, both the elements it generates and the elements that overcome it appear simultaneously. The main overcoming element’s entire power is neutralized by the generated element, thus preventing it from overcoming the next element.
5. The Controller’s Overcoming Power is Weakened by Drainage
The Day Master Gui Water is in season and has qi in the month branch. The month stem Ji Earth is rooted in the year, month, and day branches, closely adhering to and overcoming Gui Water. The year stem Geng Metal is a “storehouse” in the month branch and in “long life” in the day branch, closely adhering to Ji Earth to drain it. Ji Earth first generates Geng Metal, and then uses its remaining power to overcome Gui Water. This is referred to as ‘the controller’s overcoming power is weakened by drainage’.
Similarly, in this situation, the forces of the Five Elements that have a generating relationship are added together and used to contend against the forces of other Five Elements. At this point, we can combine the Earth and Metal elements to contend against Water and Wood.
The concept of ‘the controller’s overcoming power is weakened by drainage’ has the following characteristics:
- Regarding the main overcoming element, a generated element appears whose strength is less than that of the main overcoming element.
- The main overcoming element first expends an equal amount of power on the generated element, and then proceeds to overcome the next element.
- Through categorization, the forces of the elements that are overcome and the elements that are generated can be combined to contend against the main overcoming element.
The various categorization forms of Heavenly Stem interactions are specific applications of the basic principles of generation, overcoming, control, and transformation. As categorization, it is merely a summary of forms. In practical application, various forms and contents of categorization may coexist or appear intertwined. Therefore, one must have the ability to understand and use them flexibly. Regardless of the form of categorization, it achieves mutual checks and balances and mutual contention among the Five Elements through the methods of draining, consuming, and controlling among the Heavenly Stems. Only in this way can the Five Elements achieve relative balance and peace. If a certain Five Element cannot check another Five Element, related chain reactions will lead to two extremes: auspiciousness and inauspiciousness.
II. Situations Where Separated or Remotely Separated Generation and Overcoming Can Be Considered as Closely Adhering
Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches complement each other, sharing both prosperity and decline. Heavenly Stems govern external forms, while Earthly Branches represent internal essence. What Heavenly Stems express is the internal essence of Earthly Branches, and this internal essence must be manifested through the external forms of Heavenly Stems. The power of Heavenly Stems originates from the interactions between Earthly Branches, specifically through Punishment, Clash, Combination, and Harm Their effects. The Punishment, Clash, Combination, and Harm interactions between Earthly Branches determine the generating and controlling relationships of Heavenly Stems results and capabilities. Therefore, the generating and controlling relationships between Heavenly Stems, whether separated by one stem or by a greater distance, must always conform to the power transformations among Earthly Branches.
When the Earthly Branches Zi Water and Mao Wood are closely adjacent in the Day and Hour pillars, and Heavenly Stems manifest the two elements of Water and Wood as transforming deities, the Zi-Mao Punishment conditions are met, and the Mao Wood in the Year Branch gains strength. Since Earthly Branches represent internal essence, Heavenly Stems must reflect the corresponding external forms. Therefore, the Hour Stem Gui Water and Day Stem Ren Water, which generate the Year Stem Yi Wood across a stem, can be considered to generate it as if closely adjacent, because the transformation through the Earthly Branches directly reflects onto the Heavenly Stem Yi Wood. It would be a misunderstanding to consider the strength of generating relationships across a stem or at a distance as weak or almost non-existent in this context. In this Bazi chart, the Resource star sits in the death stage, the Output star is extremely strong, Earth is absent in the pillars, and Metal is very weak, unable to control Water and Wood. This person is unrestrained and willful, harmful to their father, wife, and mother, and also unfavorable for children.
When the Earth Branches Yin and Shen are closely adjacent in the year and month branches, and Geng Metal and Yi Wood appear in the Heavenly Stems, forming the conditions for a clash, although the Heavenly Stems Geng Metal and Yi Wood are considered a distant clash, they must obey the essential requirements of the Earth Branches. This distant clash can be viewed through the Earth Branch clash as a close clash. Therefore, Geng Metal clashing Yi Wood signifies being shattered, or with Geng Metal as the head and Yi Wood as the feet, it also signifies being dismembered. If Geng Metal and Yi Wood are considered a distant clash, and having almost no power, it would not align with the person’s destiny.
III. Regarding the Mutual Transformation of Heavenly Stems: Differences in Several Classification Forms
1. The difference between “transformation of the controller leading to indirect generation” and “transformation of the controller leading to no control”:
(1) “Transformation of the controller leading to indirect generation” is the result of continuous generation under separated stems, where the separated stem is a mediating element, and its strength is greater than or equal to the strength of the main controlling element.
(2) “Transformation of the controller leading to no control” refers to the main controlling element simultaneously encountering adjacent generating and adjacent controlling elements, where the main controlling element’s strength is completely transformed, and thus cannot control the next element.
Therefore, although both involve transformation of the controller, the difference between indirect generation and no control lies in the different arrangement of generating and controlling positions among the Heavenly Stems.
2. The difference between “transformation of the controller leading to no control” and “transformation of the controller leading to weak control due to leakage”:
(1) “Transformation of the controller leading to no control” refers to the main controlling element simultaneously encountering adjacent generating and adjacent controlling elements, where the main controlling element’s strength is completely transformed, and thus cannot control the next element.
(2) “Transformation of the controller leading to weak control due to leakage” refers to the main controlling element simultaneously encountering adjacent generating and adjacent controlling elements, where the main controlling element’s strength is partially transformed, and then it controls the next element.
The difference between these two situations lies in the generated elements adjacent to the main controlling element, specifically the difference in their respective strengths.
IV. Differences in the Manifestation of Generating and Controlling Strengths in the Mutual Transformation of Heavenly Stems
1. Leakage (Transformation): When the main generating element is less than or equal to the generated element, it transfers all its strength to the generated element.
2. When the generating element is stronger than the generated element, after the generating element has released (transformed) an equivalent amount of energy as the generated element, it will then restrain the next element in sequence.
3. When the controlling element is weaker than the controlled element, the controlled element will completely exhaust the power of the controlling element. This type of control is referred to as “depletion”.
Yihun’s Four Pillars Treatise, Chapter Two, Section Two: Mutual Generation of Heavenly Stems