XinggeMen's and Women's Charts Compared
〈論男女命同異〉
The Complete Book of Zi Wei Dou Shu, Volume 3: Reading a life and its luck periods · Original text with translation
Introduction
Men's and Women's Charts Compared (論男女命同異), in volume three of the Complete Book of Zi Wei Dou Shu, has just two paragraphs, one for men and one for women. Its point is that on the same kind of chart, men and women are read with different priorities.
For men the order is: first the Body and Life Palaces, then Wealth, Career and Travel, which must be Miao or Wang to be good; third, Hua Quan, Hua Lu, Di Jie and Di Kong in the Fortune Palace; then Property, Friends and Health; and last the three palaces of Parents, Spouse and Children, where Di Jie, Di Kong, killing stars and Hua Ji in all three make the life of a monk or priest. This is broadly the same procedure as Essentials of Reading the Stars.
For women it is a different scheme altogether: first the Body and Life Palaces, and Tan Lang, Qi Sha or Qing Yang there is 「不美」, not good; next the Fortune Palace, where 「七殺單居福德必為娼婢」; third the husband, fourth the children, wealth and property. The Quan Shu states plainly 「女因夫貴，女命貴格反為無用」, a woman is ennobled through her husband, and a noble pattern in a woman's chart is of no use; for women the Children Palace, the husband and the Fortune Palace matter most, with Property and Wealth next.
This is how Ming society valued women. The wording is harsh, and the translation gives it as meant; how to read it today is left to the commentary. The base text's 下濺 is an error for 下賤, 'low and base'.
1男女命不同，星辰各別。男命先看身命，次看財帛宮祿遷移，俱要廟旺為吉，落陷聚凶為凶。三看福德，權祿劫空廟陷吉忌。又看田宅奴僕疾厄宮吉凶，吉凶已算於後。又看父母妻子三宮，俱有劫空殺忌則僧道之命，否則貧窮孤獨。須要仔細參詳，方可斷人禍福榮辱。
TranslationMen's and women's charts are not the same, and the stars differ for each. For a man, look first at the Body and Life Palaces, next at Wealth, Career and Travel; all should be Miao or Wang to be good, and fallen with malefic stars gathered is bad. Third, look at the Fortune Palace: Hua Quan, Hua Lu, Di Jie, Di Kong, Miao or Xian, lucky stars or Hua Ji. Then look at the good and bad of the Property, Friends and Health Palaces; these are worked out later. Then look at the three palaces of Parents, Spouse and Children: if all three have Di Jie, Di Kong, killing stars and Hua Ji, it is the life of a monk or Taoist priest; otherwise, poverty and solitude. One must weigh it all carefully in detail before judging a person's fortune and misfortune, honour and disgrace.
- 財帛宮祿遷移
- The Wealth, Career and Travel Palaces.
- 奴僕
- The old name of the Friends Palace.
- 妻子
- The Spouse Palace and the Children Palace.
The method for men almost repeats the order of Essentials of Reading the Stars: Body and Life, then Wealth, Career and Travel, then Fortune, then Property, Friends and Health, and finally the three kin palaces of Parents, Spouse and Children. The standards are the same too: Miao or Wang is good, fallen with malefic stars gathered is bad, and Di Jie, Di Kong, killing stars and Hua Ji in all three kin palaces make the life of a monk or priest. So the Quan Shu's 'essentials of reading a chart' were basically written with a man's chart as the model, and only in the next paragraph, for women, is a separate scheme set up. On a Xingge chart you can follow this order palace by palace: first the Life Palace and the Body Palace, then the San Fang Si Zheng, then Fortune, and last the kin palaces.
2女命先看身命吉凶，如貪狼七殺擎羊則不美。次看福德宮吉凶，若七殺單居福德必為娼婢。三看夫君，四看子媳財帛田宅。若桃花刑殺要敗絕空亡為凶，若諸吉廟旺則佳，雖是艱辛貧困亦不為下濺夭折論。女因夫貴，女命貴格反為無用，以子媳夫君福德為正強。田宅財帛為次強。宮祿遷移七殺為陷。
TranslationFor a woman, look first at the good and bad of the Body and Life Palaces; Tan Lang, Qi Sha or Qing Yang there is not good. Next look at the good and bad of the Fortune Palace; if Qi Sha sits alone in the Fortune Palace, she will certainly be a prostitute or a maidservant. Third, look at the husband (the Spouse Palace); fourth, at children, wealth and property. If peach-blossom stars and punishing or killing stars meet the Bai and Jue positions or emptiness, it is bad; if the lucky stars are in Miao or Wang, it is good, and even with hardship and poverty she is not judged low and base or doomed to early death. A woman is ennobled through her husband; a noble pattern in a woman's chart is of no use instead. The children, the husband and the Fortune Palace are what matter most; Property and Wealth come next. Qi Sha in the Career or Travel Palace counts as fallen.
- 娼婢
- Prostitutes and maidservants.
- 子媳
- Children and daughters-in-law: the Children Palace.
- 夫君
- The husband: the Spouse Palace.
- 敗絕
- Bai and Jue: Mu Yu ('defeat') and Jue ('extinction') among the twelve stages of the Chang Sheng cycle.
Textual note: The 下濺 in 「亦不為下濺夭折論」 should be 下賤, 'low and base'.
This paragraph on women is where the Quan Shu's period outlook is strongest, and it should be read as meant. Taken apart, the conditions are: Tan Lang, Qi Sha or Qing Yang in the Life or Body Palace is not good; Qi Sha alone in the Fortune Palace is judged a prostitute or maidservant; the weight falls on the Spouse, Children and Fortune Palaces, with Property and Wealth next, and Qi Sha in Career or Travel counts as fallen; and 「女因夫貴，女命貴格反為無用」. 「敗絕」 are the Mu Yu and Jue stages of the twelve Chang Sheng spirits, which Xingge's detailed chart lists for every palace. Seen from the present, the passage shows how the ancients tied a woman's fate to marriage and children, which is why a noble pattern in the Career Palace was seen as useless; for a modern woman the Career Palace is read just as it is for a man. The Quan Shu has a separate chapter, the Women's Gu Sui Fu.
Base text (Wikisource, partly in simplified Chinese)
FAQ
How do men's and women's charts differ in Zi Wei Dou Shu?
Men's and Women's Charts Compared says that for men one looks first at the Body and Life Palaces, then Wealth, Career and Travel, then the Fortune Palace and others; for women, first the Body and Life Palaces, then the Fortune Palace, third the husband (the Spouse Palace), and fourth the children, wealth and property. It also says 「女因夫貴，女命貴格反為無用」: a woman is ennobled through her husband, and a noble pattern in her own chart is of no use.
What does Qi Sha in the Fortune Palace mean in a woman's chart?
The original reads 「若七殺單居福德必為娼婢」: if Qi Sha sits alone in the Fortune Palace, the woman will certainly become a prostitute or a maidservant. It is a Ming-dynasty verdict on women's charts, recorded as it stands; for a modern reading see the commentary.
Is Tan Lang or Qi Sha in the Life Palace good for a woman?
This chapter says that for a woman one first looks at the Body and Life Palaces, and 「如貪狼七殺擎羊則不美」: Tan Lang, Qi Sha or Qing Yang in the Life or Body Palace is rated not good by the Quan Shu.
Main stars in this section