Tian Ji and Tian Liang: the Strategist and the Elder

Tian Ji: transforms into Goodness

The *Quan Shu* calls Tian Ji "the third star of the Southern Dipper, the good star that extends one's reckoning", and its Hua Qi is Goodness. Goodness here isn't only about being kind; it's closer to "good at": good at thinking, planning and adapting. The *Quan Shu* describes it as having "a mind for clever adaptation; it sees the fish in the deep and does things with method". Seeing fish in deep water means noticing fine detail; noticing that much also makes it easy to overthink.

Practitioners tend to read people with Tian Ji in the Life Palace as quick-minded, full of ideas and fast learners. They're suited to work that needs judgment and planning, not to repeating the same task. Think of it at work: put someone with a strong Tian Ji on a fixed process and within three months they're thinking about how to change it.

Tian Ji is also a star of movement. The *Quan Shu* says that when the Decade or Minor Luck reaches Tian Ji, there's "building the household, starting ventures, making changes"; those periods are often when people change jobs, move house or change direction.

Tian Ji's brightness

On the brightness table Xingge uses, Tian Ji is brightest (Miao) in Zi and Wu, Wang in Mao and You, and at Xian in Chou and Wei. Tian Ji at Xian is still clever; it just tangles itself up and goes back and forth more easily, thinking a thing through three times without starting.

The song of Tian Ji in volume one of the *Quan Shu* says "in Chen, Xu, Zi and Wu, entering the temple, it wins renown", which doesn't quite match the table in volume two for Chen and Xu (rated Li there). Discrepancies between chapters of the same book are common; Xingge follows the volume-two table throughout.

Tian Liang: transforms into Shelter

Tian Liang is "the star of the Southern Dipper that governs longevity", and its Hua Qi is Shelter. Shelter as in the shade of a tree: shading others from the sun and giving them something to lean on. People with Tian Liang in the Life Palace often act grown-up early, love looking after people, stick to principles and like to explain things, and friends treat them as someone to consult.

The *Quan Shu* says Tian Liang can "turn violence into peace", and that "when Tai Sui clashes, it becomes blessing; when Bai Hu arrives, there is no harm". Later practitioners turned this trait into "when trouble comes, there's often a way out". Practitioners add a very down-to-earth note: before the way out, the trouble usually comes first. Tian Liang's life is often "run into a problem, then learn to solve it", which is why it gains more weight with age. Tian Liang's challenge lies here too: after looking after people for long enough, it's easy to take over. A friend only wants to vent, and Tian Liang is already giving advice.

Ji Liang, a pair

Tian Ji belongs to the Zi Wei group and Tian Liang to the Tian Fu group; the two share a palace in the Chen and Xu cells, which the ancients called "Ji Liang". The *Quan Shu* says Tian Ji "meeting Tian Liang surely carries a fine skill"; the song of Tian Liang says "with the two stars in Chen or Xu, fortune and long life need no discussion"; and the "Tai Wei Fu" line "goodness and shelter at court, the elder of kindness" is about this pair too.

The same book has another voice as well: the song of Tian Ji says "with Tian Liang in the same place, one surely becomes a Daoist or a monk". The ancients read Ji Liang as a combination leaning toward the high-minded and the specialized, not one to chase worldly things. Today, it suits planning, consulting, research and teaching, work that takes both thought and responsibility. The money may not be the biggest, but people listen when they speak.

Both stars also belong to the Ji Yue Tong Liang group: Tian Ji, Tai Yin, Tian Tong and Tian Liang, a steady, thoughtful rhythm covered in detail in Chapter 5.

A note on the transformations

By the transformation rhyme in volume two of the *Quan Shu*, Tian Ji takes Hua Lu in Yi years, Hua Quan in Bing years, Hua Ke in Ding years and Hua Ji in Wu years; Tian Liang takes Hua Lu in Ren years, Hua Quan in Yi years and Hua Ke in Ji years, and never Hua Ji. Tian Liang is one of the few main stars that never takes Hua Ji, which suits its sheltering nature.