The Nature of Lian Zhen

This is the general description of Lian Zhen in the Life Palace. Its transformed qi is three things at once, the secondary peach blossom, the killer and the prisoner, making it the most complex of the fourteen main stars: the secondary peach blossom speaks to charm and desire, the killer to fierceness, the prisoner to restraint. The Quan Shu's picture of Lian Zhen's temperament leans negative, 「性硬浮蕩，好忿爭」, and the chapter on what Lian Zhen governs goes further: 「主人心狠性狂，不習禮義」 (see the original).

Today Lian Zhen's 'prisoner' side is often read as self-discipline and principle, and its 'secondary peach blossom' as skill at public relations and socialising; that is a modern extension, while the Quan Shu itself stresses how hard the star is to control. On a Xingge chart Lian Zhen is Miao (Temple) in Yin and Shen and Xian (Fallen) in Si and Hai.

This segment lists five kinds of Lian Zhen in one breath: in its temple, rank in military office; meeting Tian Fu, Tian Xiang, Zuo Fu and You Bi with lucky transformations or Lu Cun in the same palace, wealth and rank; meeting Wen Chang, Wen Qu and Qi Sha, military merit; with Qing Yang in the same palace, quarrels every day; and with Po Jun, Huo Xing and Ling Xing in the same palace, 「狗悻狼心」, translated literally from the original.

The Quan Shu's method for Lian Zhen can be seen here: when it meets stars that rein it in (Tian Fu, Tian Xiang, Lu Cun, lucky transformations) it becomes useful, and when it meets stars that feed its fierceness (Qing Yang, Po Jun, Huo Xing, Ling Xing) it runs out of control. Star Combinations: Lian Zhen says 「廉貞四殺遭刑戮」, the extreme version of the same logic.

In Si and Hai Lian Zhen is fallen and always shares the palace with Tan Lang, what later writers call 'Lian Tan'. With two peach-blossom stars sitting together in a fallen position, the Quan Shu judges that one leaves the ancestral home, lives alone, and works in crafts, as a monk or Daoist, or in the army.

The verse in the chapter on what Lian Zhen governs says 「廉貪巳亥宮，遇吉福盈豐，應過三旬後，須防不善終」 (see the original), giving a fuller sense of time: when young and meeting lucky stars there can be plenty, but after the middle years one must guard against a bad end. Read today, the issues for Lian Zhen with Tan Lang in Si or Hai are mostly desire and boundaries.

In Yin and Shen Lian Zhen is in its temple, standing alone, with Tan Lang opposite. In Jia years Lian Zhen's Hua Lu sits in the Life Palace and Lu Cun is in Yin, hence 'top pattern'; in Ding and Ji years Lu Cun is in Wu, in the trine of Yin, and in Ji years Wu Qu's Hua Lu is also in the trine, so they come next.

Star Combinations: Lian Zhen has 「廉貞申未宮無殺，富貴聲揚播遠名」, with a note naming it the 'Xiong Su Chao Yuan' (the masculine star facing the source) pattern. Yin and Shen are Lian Zhen's best positions, which contradicts segment 13's description of Lian Zhen in Yin as Ping; see that segment.

Of Lian Zhen in Zi, Wu, Mao and You: in Zi and Wu it shares the palace with Tian Xiang, in Mao and You with Po Jun. In Bing years Lian Zhen takes Hua Ji, the prisoner star with Hua Ji in the Life Palace, hence 「橫發橫破不耐久」: there is explosive force, but it cannot be held.

Read this together with segments 11 and 12: the lucky years for Lian Zhen and Tian Xiang in Zi and Wu are Jia, Ding and Ji, and for Lian Zhen and Po Jun in Mao and You they are Yi, Xin and Gui, none of them Bing. Star Combinations: Lian Zhen also says 「廉貞卯酉宮加殺，公胥無面官人」; Lian Zhen with Po Jun in Mao or You is a combination that needs reining in to begin with.

In the four tomb palaces, Lian Zhen shares the palace with Tian Fu in Chen and Xu and with Qi Sha in Chou and Wei. In Jia years Lian Zhen's Hua Lu sits in the Life Palace, so it is a wealth and office pattern; in Bing years Lian Zhen's Hua Ji sits there, and in Wu years Tuo Luo is in Chen (for those with it in Chen), so there are quarrels, success and failure.

Notice that segments 4 to 6 divide Lian Zhen's twelve palaces into three groups, and Jia years are lucky in every group while Bing years are unlucky in every group, because Lian Zhen takes Hua Lu in Jia years and Hua Ji in Bing years. This is the simplest key to Lian Zhen's year stems.

The condition is Lian Zhen in Si or Hai (the fallen Lian Zhen with Tan Lang) sharing the palace with Wen Chang, Wen Qu and Hua Ji. In Bing years Lian Zhen takes Hua Ji and Wen Chang Hua Ke, hence 「六丙生人有禍」. In Jia years Lian Zhen takes Hua Lu and should by rights do well, yet the original still says it is unsuitable; the likelier reason is that Lian Zhen and Tan Lang fallen, with Wen Chang and Wen Qu added, is an unstable combination in itself, which even Hua Lu cannot prop up.

Wen Chang and Wen Qu are not lucky stars here. The Quan Shu often says that with Lian Zhen or Tan Lang they slide into hollowness; the chapter on what Tan Lang governs says 「昌曲同度，必多虛而少實」 (see the original).

The first half, 「未申生人命居未申宮，化祿逢吉」: as the note says, 'people born in Wei or Shen' may mean people born in Wei or Shen years. Lian Zhen shares the palace with Qi Sha in Wei and stands alone in its temple in Shen, and takes Hua Lu only in Jia years. The Xiong Su Chao Yuan pattern in Star Combinations: Lian Zhen is also written with 'Shen and Wei', so both passages single out these two palaces.

The second half says that Lian Zhen in the other palaces, meeting the four malefic stars and Hua Ji clashing and breaking it, means disability. Lian Zhen belongs to fire, and its transformed qi is the prisoner and the killer; when it meets malefic stars and Hua Ji the Quan Shu most often predicts bloodshed and disability, and the 「膿血刑災」 of segment 26 points the same way.

A woman's Lian Zhen with lucky stars embracing it from the trine receives honours; even with fierce killing stars clashing and breaking it, it is not a low pattern. This is one of the Quan Shu's more lenient lines on Lian Zhen in a woman's chart, very different in tone from the ready talk of punishment and execution in a man's.

Star Combinations: Lian Zhen says 「廉貞清白能相守」, with a note listing which year stems and palaces fit the pattern for a woman and adding 「若辰戌丑未反賤」, setting out the conditions in finer detail.

The first half continues the woman's chart: Lian Zhen in its temple (Yin or Shen) with Hua Lu (Jia years) makes her fierce and clever, refined, helpful to husband and children. A monk or Daoist with lucky stars gains a master's title.

The last line is the key to reading Lian Zhen: 「此星最喜天相同宮能化其惡」. Lian Zhen's transformed qi is the prisoner and Tian Xiang's is the seal, and the seal can keep the prisoner in hand, so Lian Zhen with Tian Xiang in Zi or Wu is one of Lian Zhen's steadiest combinations. The chart comparison marks this line as a condition of its own: Lian Zhen and Tian Xiang in the same palace, for men and women alike.

In Zi and Wu Lian Zhen shares a palace with Tian Xiang, the 'transforming its evil' of the previous segment, with Po Jun opposite. In Jia years Lian Zhen's Hua Lu sits in the Life Palace, Po Jun's Hua Quan is opposite and Wu Qu's Hua Ke is in the trine; in Ding and Ji years Lu Cun is in Wu; in Ji years Wu Qu's Hua Lu enters the trine; hence a wealth and office pattern.

Po Jun opposite Lian Zhen and Tian Xiang in Zi or Wu is often read as shocks from the outside world; with Tian Xiang in the Life Palace holding the seal and keeping watch, Lian Zhen's hardness can be put to proper use.

In Mao and You Lian Zhen shares a palace with Po Jun, two stars that both govern change and fierceness, with Tian Xiang opposite. In Yi years Lu Cun is in Mao and in Xin years in You, and in Gui years Po Jun's Hua Lu sits in the Life Palace, hence lucky.

Set this against segment 2: 「破軍火鈴同，狗悻狼心」 is precisely Lian Zhen and Po Jun with Huo Xing and Ling Xing added. The same Lian Zhen and Po Jun is lucky with Lu Cun or Hua Lu and bad with Huo Xing and Ling Xing; the dividing line is clear. Star Combinations: Lian Zhen says 「廉貞破火居陷地，自縊投河」, the worst end of the scale.

This line calls Lian Zhen in Yin 'Ping' and in Shen 'in its temple'; as the Xingge approach above points out, the brightness table and the Xingge chart both have it Miao in both palaces. Star Combinations: Lian Zhen also writes 「廉貞廟寅申」, so in most places the Quan Shu treats Yin and Shen as equal, and the 'Ping' here stands alone.

As for the year stems: in Yin, Jia years put Lian Zhen's Hua Lu and Lu Cun together in Yin, Geng years put Lu Cun in Shen shining from opposite, and Ji years put Lu Cun in Wu, in the trine; in Shen, Jia years give Lian Zhen's Hua Lu with Lu Cun in Yin shining from opposite, Geng years put Lu Cun in Shen itself, and Wu years put Tan Lang's Hua Lu in Yin, shining from opposite. The 'Bing years come next' for Shen is harder to explain, since Lian Zhen takes Hua Ji in Bing years.

In Si and Hai Lian Zhen is fallen and shares the palace with Tan Lang. In Jia years Lian Zhen takes Hua Lu, in Ji years Tan Lang takes Hua Quan, in Wu years Tan Lang takes Hua Lu and Lu Cun is in Si, and in Bing years Lu Cun is in Si; all four years bring some help, hence 'blessings'; but blessings in a fallen position 「不耐久」.

This is the same palace as in segments 3 and 7, and reading the three together, the Quan Shu's steady view of Lian Zhen with Tan Lang in Si or Hai is blessings without long life, gains without the means to keep them.

In Chen and Xu Lian Zhen shares a palace with Tian Fu, with Qi Sha opposite. In Jia years Lian Zhen's Hua Lu sits in the Life Palace; in Geng years Lu Cun is in Shen, in the trine of Chen, and Wu Qu's Hua Quan is in the trine too; hence a wealth and office pattern.

Tian Fu is the commanding star and the treasury, and like Tian Xiang it can rein in Lian Zhen. Star Combinations: Tian Fu also has 「天府居午戌，天相來朝，甲人一品之貴」; Lian Zhen and Tian Fu in Xu is a very high pattern in Jia years.

In Chou and Wei Lian Zhen shares a palace with Qi Sha, with Tian Fu opposite. The original lists no year stems and says only 「加吉星財官格」. Star Combinations: Lian Zhen says 「廉貞七殺居廟旺，反為積富之人」, with a note: 「若陷地化忌，貧賤殘疾」.

Lian Zhen and Qi Sha are both hard stars, and together they are marked by endurance and the will to fight, which is why later writers say Lian Zhen with Qi Sha 'accumulates wealth' through labour. On a Xingge chart, in Chou and Wei Lian Zhen is Li and Qi Sha Miao.

A man with Lian Zhen guarding the Life Palace is lofty by nature and strong in ambition, 「格故鼎新官大貴」, pure and eminent in office. This verse is Lian Zhen's most favourable praise and the counterweight to segment 1's 'fond of quarrels': the same fierceness, turned to reform, makes a capable minister.

「為官清顯」 also fits the transformed qi of the prisoner: a Lian Zhen that can restrain itself is best at keeping its hands clean. The chart comparison marks a man with Lian Zhen in the Life Palace; good or bad still depends on what meets it, as segment 2 says.

Lian Zhen in the Life Palace in an idle palace, meeting Tan Lang, Po Jun, Qing Yang, Huo Xing and Hua Ji. The list of idle palaces in Life Master, Body Master and Notes on Chart Setup does not include Lian Zhen, so 'idle palace' here can only be read loosely as a position without strength.

The relation of Tan Lang and Po Jun to Lian Zhen is fixed: Lian Zhen and Tan Lang share a palace in Si and Hai, Lian Zhen and Po Jun in Mao and You, and in the other palaces they often meet across the San Fang. The real dividing line is Qing Yang, Huo Xing and Hua Ji; only with these is it 'not fine'.

The condition is Lian Zhen fallen (Si or Hai) and in an idle palace: even with lucky stars there is misfortune, disaster and disability of the waist and feet, and with fierce killing stars added, 「命該終」. Lian Zhen governing bloodshed and disability is consistent throughout the Quan Shu.

'Disaster and disability of the waist and feet' is Lian Zhen's concrete verdict on the body. Read today, it can be taken to mean that a person with Lian Zhen fallen should look after bones and sinews, injuries and long-term strain. 「命該終」 is the old book's extreme way of speaking; the Quan Shu itself requires 「更加惡殺」 for it to hold, and no verdict should rest on a fallen Lian Zhen alone.

A woman with Lian Zhen in the Body or Life Palace runs the household honestly and her pattern is fresh; with the lucky stars embracing it and no killing stars or Po Jun, she receives honours while young. This verse is in tune with segment 9, affirming Lian Zhen in a woman's chart.

「內政清廉」 is interesting: for a man Lian Zhen means honesty in office, and for a woman it becomes honesty in managing the home. Both come from the self-restraint of the 'prisoner'.

The condition is a woman with Lian Zhen meeting Tan Lang, Po Jun and Wen Qu, with Tuo Luo and Huo Xing as well. The verdict follows the original: utterly base and common, harming husband and children, a secondary wife, prostitute or maidservant. This is the Quan Shu's heaviest line on Lian Zhen in a woman's chart, and it seems to contradict segment 9's 「雖惡殺沖破不為下局」.

The dividing line lies in the combination: segment 9 is about malefic stars clashing in general, while this verse brings together Lian Zhen, Tan Lang and Po Jun, the three most restless stars, plus Wen Qu, Tuo Luo and Huo Xing, so that peach-blossom and malefic stars all gather in one place. The Quan Shu takes a dim view of this combination for both men and women; Star Combinations: Tan Lang says 「貪狼廉貞同度，男多浪蕩女多淫」. The chart comparison marks it only when both sets of meeting stars hold.

Lian Zhen in a luck period, in a strong palace and meeting lucky stars: blessings arrive together, money accumulates, and one does well in office. Lian Zhen is in its temple in Yin and Shen, and Li in Chen, Xu, Chou and Wei.

The chapter on what Lian Zhen governs says Lian Zhen 「只宜官祿身命之位，遇吉福映」 (see the original), and the same holds in the luck periods: a Lian Zhen period needs lucky stars to turn its hard drive into achievement.

Lian Zhen in a luck period, with Tian Xing, Hua Ji and Qing Yang intruding, means disasters of pus and blood and of punishment; with Po Jun, Tan Lang and Qi Sha as well, 「赴幽冥」. This is the worst combination for a Lian Zhen period, the condition being Tian Xing, Hua Ji and Qing Yang stacked on top of Qi Sha, Po Jun and Tan Lang.

The chapter on what Lian Zhen governs says Lian Zhen 「遇刑忌則膿血不免」 (see the original), and Star Combinations says 「廉貞白虎，刑杖難逃」; both tie a Lian Zhen period to bloodshed and punishment. Today it can be taken as a reminder about surgery, injuries or lawsuits, and the conclusion still depends on whether the natal chart and the Annual Luck are bad at the same time.