Walter Benjamin's Zi Wei Dou Shu chart

German philosopher and cultural critic · born July 15, 1892 in Berlin, Germany

The German thinker best known for The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. His Life Palace is an Empty Palace, read through the opposite palace's Tian Ji (De) and Tai Yin (Wang).

Tap a palace for its San Fang Si Zheng; pull up the panel to read it.

Thinkers · Empty Palace (borrows Tian Ji)1892 · M6 D22 · Hai hour

YearRenChen

MonthDingWei

DayWuShen

HourGuiHai

Earth 5 Bureau

Life Master Lian Zhen

Body Master Wen Chang

Life Palace

You are gentle, bright, and good at working things out, and careful in what you do.

Terms in this palace · Tap for a plain explanation

You are gentle, bright, and good at working things out, and careful in what you do.From the classic

In a team you are often the one who gets things sorted.

Stars

Tian Ji NatureYour mind moves fast; you love working out a plan and seeing how everything fits. You think a lot, so remember to act on it too.

Tai Yin NatureYou are gentle and perceptive, attentive to feelings and good at building up reserves. When a lot is on your mind, saying it out loud helps.

Tian Ji–Tai YinTian Ji is at De in Yin and Tai Yin is at Wang, so you are gentle, bright, and attentive. You are good at minding the details and getting things in order.

Borrowed StarsWith no main star in your Life Palace, your basic character is borrowed from Tian Ji and Tai Yin opposite, with less force than if they sat here. The people and setting around you shape you more deeply than most.

Life Master Lian ZhenYou carry a firm inner yardstick and strong emotions. When principle and passion live side by side, you shine. Your Life Master sits in your Siblings Palace, so your thoughts often circle around your peers.

Flying StarsThis part follows the Flying Star school: where this palace's stem sends its transformations. It is a different method from the classical reading above.

Lu to HealthThe palace stem sends Tan Lang Hua Lu into your Health Palace: the effort you put in here tends to pay off in body and mind.

Ji Clashes BackWhat happens outside tends to come back and shake you, and things go back and forth. Out in the world, aim for steady before fast.

Minor Stars

Ba ZuoYou are easily pushed into the spotlight, with chances to be nominated or appointed. Once you are up there, staying steady matters more than showing off.

Long ChiYou have taste and ingenuity, with a keen eye for beauty and handcraft. Put that gift to use.

Twelve Gods

Chang ShengNew life is stirring, and fresh starts often sprout here. Nurture them slowly and they grow stronger.

Da HaoThings and energy slip away easily, going out faster than they come in. Think before you spend.

The Life Palace is about: Who you are at the core: your temperament and innate makeup. Every chart reading starts here.

What the Quan Shu says about this palaceThe sun and moon guarding the Life Palace are not as good as shining on it from elsewhere; where Yin and Fu gather, one need not fear danger.“Tai Wei Fu” ›Hua Quan and Hua Lu make the nine apertures wonderfully keen; the Hao star scatters the blessings accumulated over a lifetime.“Xing Xing Fu” ›When Yin (Tian Liang) and Fu (Tian Tong) are present, there is no fear of malign stars striking; the sun and moon (Tai Yang and Tai Yin) meeting together is not as good as their shining in from the trine.“Chong Bu Dou Shu Gou Lü” ›My Quan Shu (8 lines on this palace) ›

Where the chart lines up

Blending many schools of thought

Benjamin has been described as an eclectic thinker who combined German idealism, Jewish mysticism, Western Marxism and post-Kantian philosophy, contributing to the philosophy of history, metaphysics, historical materialism, criticism and aesthetics. In his chart, the Life Palace is an Empty Palace that borrows Tian Ji (De) from the opposite palace. Tian Ji is the star of active thinking and adaptability, which lines up with his drawing on many schools to build a path of his own.

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A doctorate summa cum laude in 1919

In 1919 Benjamin earned his doctorate summa cum laude with the dissertation The Concept of Art Criticism in German Romanticism; in 1923 he published his translation of Baudelaire's Tableaux Parisiens. In his Decade Luck for nominal ages 25–34 (1916–1925), the decade's Tai Yang (Xian) takes Hua Lu (Transformation of Wealth) and enters the natal Career Palace. The Career Palace covers work and career, and Hua Lu is returns, which lines up with the degree and the translation of these years.

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A circle of friends spanning many fields

Knowing Benjamin was a thread linking important figures across philosophy, theatre and literature. Gershom Scholem was his lifelong friend, he was a frequent house guest of Bertolt Brecht, Martin Buber funded his trip to Moscow, and Theodor W. Adorno's 1931 and 1932 seminars were devoted to close reading of his The Origin of German Tragic Drama. In his chart, the Friends Palace holds Tian Fu (Miao) with Hua Ke (Transformation of Fame). The Friends Palace covers friends and Hua Ke is reputation, which fits friends promoting and closely reading his work.

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Life Palace

Walter Benjamin's Life Palace has no main star (an Empty Palace); it borrows Tian Ji from the opposite palace. Xingge's name for this persona: The Traveler. With the Earth 5 Bureau, that makes the Earth 5 · Empty Palace type among Xingge's 75.

Empty Palace · The Traveler ›Earth 5 · Empty Palace type ›

Birth-year transformations

The stem of Walter Benjamin's birth year transforms four stars:

Birth data

Local time 1892-07-15 22:30, from Astro-Databank, Rodden rating AA (birth certificate or record). In true solar time at the birthplace that is 22:24, the Hai hour.

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Late Zi hour (born 23:00–24:00)Born in a leap monthNew year starts atUse Zhongzhou school star placement (Life Ruler by birth-year branch, some minor stars differ)Four Transformations table

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Others with Empty Palace in the Life Palace

Clint Eastwood Marlon Brando Elizabeth Taylor Agatha Christie Tom Hanks Michael Chang

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