What is Shui Cheng Gui E (Clear Water, Osmanthus Blossom)?

The Zi palace belongs to water, and Tai Yin is the moon. Moonlight falls on clear water, and in the reflection you can still see the osmanthus said to grow on the moon. The ancients gave this picture a beautiful name: Shui Cheng Gui E (clear water and osmanthus blossom). It is a pattern the Quan Shu names right at the start, in the Tai Wei Fu. To see whether you have it, draw your chart.

The conditions for Shui Cheng Gui E

The condition is: the Life Palace is in Zi, and its main stars are Tian Tong and Tai Yin.

In Zi, Tai Yin always shares the palace with Tian Tong, so the condition is really "Tai Yin in the Life Palace in Zi." Their brightness in Zi is Miao for Tai Yin and Wang for Tian Tong, both good positions. By this condition, about 1 chart in 120 has it.

What the classics say

The Tai Wei Fu in volume one of the Quan Shu says:

Tai Yin in Zi is called clear water and osmanthus blossom: a pure and important post, a loyal adviser.

"A pure and important post" is an honorable, important position: not necessarily the highest office, but at the center, where your words are heard. "A loyal adviser" is someone willing to tell those above them the truth.

When volume three discusses Tai Yin, it adds:

Tai Yin in Zi, for Bing and Ding years: wealth, standing, loyalty and goodness. Born at night, it fits the pattern.

"Bing and Ding" are people born in Bing and Ding years. Look at the transformations: in Bing years Tian Tong takes Hua Lu; in Ding years Tai Yin takes Hua Lu and Tian Tong takes Hua Quan, so both stars in the Life Palace light up. "Born at night, it fits the pattern" means a night birth is fully qualified, because the moon is the light of the night. Xingge's detection doesn't depend on birth time and marks daytime births too; by the classics, night births have the fullest strength.

How to read it today

Tai Yin is refined, reserved and feeling; Tian Tong is easygoing, gentle and childlike at heart. With both in their most comfortable position, a closer reading:

• A clear mind and a sense of proportion. You see things in fine detail without getting stuck on them, and you know what to say and when.
• Gentle, yet willing to speak the truth. This is the most interesting part of "loyal adviser": not loudness, but the fact that you are usually gentle and trustworthy, so when you do speak up, people listen.
• Suited to professional, honorable roles. Research, law, editing, review and audit, education, public service, advisory work: jobs that may not be out front but where your words carry weight.

Where Shui Cheng Gui E tends to get stuck

First, too comfortable to move. Tian Tong loves comfort and Tai Yin values security; with both in comfortable positions, it's easy to stay put whenever life is going smoothly.

Second, feelings kept too deep. Gentle on the outside, you care a great deal inside. If you don't say it, others won't know you've been uncomfortable for a long time.

Third, avoiding conflict. "Loyal adviser" is a gift, but when it is actually time to speak, Tian Tong's side wants to let it go.

What weakens it

• Tai Yin taking Hua Ji in Yi years. Ripples on the clear water; the worry is often about family, money or security.
• Tian Tong taking Hua Ji in Geng years. The easygoing side carries more grievances, and the comfort you want is often out of reach.
• Qing Yang, Tuo Luo, Huo Xing or Ling Xing in the Life Palace. The calm is disturbed, and refinement turns into sensitivity.

On the other hand, Bing and Ding years are the years the classics single out; Zuo Fu, You Bi, Wen Chang or Wen Qu in the San Fang also make this clarity easier for others to see.

How to check whether you have Shui Cheng Gui E

1. Draw your chart and see whether your Life Palace is in Zi.
2. Check whether its main stars are Tian Tong and Tai Yin.
3. Then look at your birth-year stem and birth time, and compare with the classics' Bing and Ding years and night birth.

Tai Yin alone in the Life Palace in Hai is a different pattern, Yue Lang Tian Men. For the two stars' personalities, see Tai Yin, Tian Tong and the Tai Yang and Tai Yin lesson.

Common questions

What does Shui Cheng Gui E mean?

The Zi palace belongs to water and Tai Yin is the moon: moonlight on clear water, with the moon's osmanthus in the reflection, hence the name. The Tai Wei Fu in the Quan Shu says "Tai Yin in Zi is called clear water and osmanthus blossom: a pure and important post, a loyal adviser," which today reads as a clear mind and a gentle manner that still dares to speak the truth, suited to honorable professional roles.

Does Shui Cheng Gui E need Tian Tong in the same palace?

Tai Yin in Zi always shares the palace with Tian Tong; that is a fixed result of how the main stars are placed, so you don't need to look for it separately. The classics only say "Tai Yin in Zi," and Xingge's description of Tian Tong and Tai Yin in Zi means the same thing.

Why do the classics say Bing and Ding years are best?

In Bing years Tian Tong takes Hua Lu; in Ding years Tai Yin takes Hua Lu and Tian Tong takes Hua Quan, so both stars in the Life Palace are lit by the transformations. That is what volume three of the Quan Shu means by "Tai Yin in Zi, for Bing and Ding years: wealth, standing, loyalty and goodness."

How common is Shui Cheng Gui E?

Not common: about 1 chart in 120. It needs Tian Tong and Tai Yin in the Life Palace exactly in Zi.