XinggeWhat Does Tian Yao Govern?
〈問天姚星所主若何？〉
The Complete Book of Zi Wei Dou Shu, Volume 1: Rhapsodies, questions on the stars, and chart patterns · Original text with translation
Introduction
This is the Tian Yao question in the Zhu Xing Wen Da Lun (Questions and Answers on the Stars) in volume one of the Complete Book of Zi Wei Dou Shu: 「問天姚星所主若何？」, what does Tian Yao govern? Tian Yao is a minor star of the peach-blossom kind, and the Quan Shu's verdicts almost all circle around desire. Guarding the Body or Life Palace, the nature is dark and venomous, suspicious, fond of beauty, dashing with many maids, and lewd. In Miao or Wang it means wealth, rank and many servants, and in Hai, learning. Meeting evil stars, the family and property are ruined and one runs foul of the law through lust. In a luck period, 「不用媒妁，招手成婚」. With Hong Luan added, lewder still; with 刑刃 added, an early death. Three seven-character verses say that in Xu, Mao, You and Hai (Pisces) Tian Yao brings deep blessings and a love of wine and women; with a ruinous star it is a 'broom star among men'; in a place of birth and strength, one may rise to the highest rank and still be a rake.
'Pisces' is the Western zodiac sign, corresponding to the branch Hai; 刑刃 means Tian Xing and Qing Yang.
1希夷先生答曰：天姚守身命，心性陰毒，多疑恐、善顏色、風流多婢、主淫。入廟旺主富貴多奴，居亥有學識。會惡星破家敗產，因色犯刑。六合重逢，少年夭折。若臨限不用媒妁，招手成婚。或紫微吉星加，剛柔相濟，主風騷，加紅鸞愈淫，加刑刃主夭。
TranslationMaster Xiyi answered: Tian Yao guarding the Body or Life Palace makes the nature dark and venomous, much given to suspicion and fear, fond of beauty, dashing with many maids, and lewd. In Miao or Wang it means wealth, rank and many servants; in Hai, learning. Meeting evil stars, the family is ruined and the property lost, and one runs foul of the law through lust. Meeting the Six Harmonies over and over, death in youth. If it comes upon a luck period, with no need of a matchmaker one marries at a wave of the hand. Or with Zi Wei and lucky stars added, hardness and softness balance each other, and it means a charming rake; with Hong Luan added, lewder still; with Tian Xing and Qing Yang (punishment and blade) added, it means an early death.
- 善顏色
- Fond of beauty and sensual looks.
- 六合
- The Six Harmonies of the Earthly Branches (Zi-Chou, Yin-Hai, Mao-Xu, Chen-You, Si-Shen, Wu-Wei).
- 媒妁
- A matchmaker.
- 刑刃
- Tian Xing and Qing Yang (the 'goat blade').
Tian Yao is the Quan Shu's most typical peach-blossom minor star, placed by birth month counting forward from Chou for the first month. The character portrait in this passage is extreme: dark and venomous, suspicious and fearful, fond of beauty, dashing with many maids, lewd. But it too has a turn: in Miao or Wang, wealth, rank and many servants; in Hai, learning.
As for combinations: 「會惡星破家敗產，因色犯刑」. 「臨限不用媒妁，招手成婚」 is how Tian Yao shows up in a luck period; in old times it meant a private engagement, and today it is simply a love match, or even a whirlwind marriage. 「紫微吉星加，剛柔相濟，主風騷」: Zi Wei's steadiness joined to Tian Yao's allure makes a person of charm. With Hong Luan added, lewder; with Tian Xing and Qing Yang, an early death. One fact about the chart: Tian Xing starts from You and Tian Yao from Chou, both counting forward by month, so the two stars are always four palaces apart, in each other's trine. Tian Xing meeting Tian Yao from the trine is therefore on every chart, and the original's 'added' should be read as sharing a palace.
歌曰
3天姚居戌卯酉遊，更入雙魚一並求，福厚生成耽酒色，無災無禍度春秋，
TranslationTian Yao roaming in Xu, Mao and You, and also entering Pisces (Hai), all alike: deep blessings, born to indulge in wine and women, passing the springs and autumns without disaster or misfortune.
- 雙魚
- Pisces, the Western zodiac sign, corresponding to the branch Hai.
- 耽
- To indulge in.
This verse gives Tian Yao's temple positions: Xu, Mao, You and Hai (Pisces). 'Pisces' is a name from the Western zodiac; the Quan Shu mixing in Western sign names is a trace of the astronomical exchange between East and West from the Ming dynasty on.
「福厚生成耽酒色，無災無禍度春秋」 is interesting: Tian Yao in its temple indulges in wine and women yet lives without disaster. Here the Quan Shu does not treat wine and women as a calamity but as one sign of deep blessings. A modern reading is someone who enjoys life and knows how to have fun, not a moral criticism. Tian Yao has no brightness mark on a Xingge chart, so judge it from the branch.
4天姚星與敗星同，號曰人間掃氣囂，辛苦平生過一世，不曾安跡在客中，
TranslationTian Yao in the same palace as a ruinous star is called a broom star among men, loud and baleful. One toils hard all one's life and never finds a settled place, always living as a stranger.
- 敗星
- A ruinous star; the original does not say which, possibly Po Jun or Da Hao.
- 掃氣囂
- Unclear; probably a broom star or star of bad luck. 囂 does not rhyme with the lines around it, and may be a miscopied character.
「天姚星與敗星同，號曰人間掃氣囂」: Tian Yao meeting a ruinous star becomes a star of bad luck. As the note says, it is unclear which star is meant, and 囂 may be an error. The second half, 「辛苦平生過一世，不曾安跡在客中」, says one rushes about all one's life, always a guest in a strange place.
Tian Yao's peach-blossom nature, meeting waste and ruin, turns into wandering. Read now: instability in both love and daily life, moving house or changing surroundings easily because of people or romance.
5人身偶爾值天姚，戀色貪花性帚凶，此曜若居生旺地，位登極品亦風騷。
TranslationIf a person's Body Palace happens to meet Tian Yao, he is infatuated with beauty and greedy for flowers, and fierce by nature. If this star sits in a place of birth and strength, he may rise to the highest rank and still be a rake.
- 性帚凶
- 帚 (broom) makes no sense here and may be a miscopied character; the gist is a fierce nature.
- 風騷
- Rakish, dissolute.
「人身偶爾值天姚」: Tian Yao in the Body Palace means infatuation with beauty. 「此曜若居生旺地，位登極品亦風騷」: even at the very top, one is still a rake. This agrees with segment 3's 「福厚生成耽酒色」: in a good position Tian Yao does not harm wealth and rank, but it cannot change a romantic nature.
The Quan Shu's view of Tian Yao can be summed up this way: Tian Yao decides style, not success or failure. In Miao or Wang it makes a person of charm who knows how to enjoy life; only fallen and with malefic stars does lust bring disaster. Today Tian Yao can be seen as popularity, charm and artistic sense; see Peach-Blossom Stars.
Base text (Wikisource, partly in simplified Chinese)
FAQ
What does Tian Yao govern in the Complete Book of Zi Wei Dou Shu?
Master Xiyi says that with Tian Yao guarding the Body or Life Palace, the nature is dark and venomous, suspicious and fearful, fond of beauty, dashing with many maids, and lewd. In Miao or Wang it means wealth, rank and many servants, and in Hai, learning; meeting evil stars, the family and property are ruined and one runs foul of the law through lust.
What happens when Tian Yao shares a palace with Hong Luan?
The original says Tian Yao 「加紅鸞愈淫，加刑刃主夭」: with Hong Luan added it is lewder still, with Tian Xing and Qing Yang added it means an early death. With Zi Wei and lucky stars added, hardness and softness balance each other and the person is a charming rake.
In which palaces is Tian Yao good?
The verse says 「天姚居戌卯酉遊，更入雙魚一並求，福厚生成耽酒色，無災無禍度春秋」: Tian Yao in Xu, Mao, You and Hai brings deep blessings, though the person is born to indulge in wine and women, and passes the years without disaster or misfortune.
Main stars in this section