The Nature of Zi Wei

This is the general description of Zi Wei in the Life Palace, and it has only one condition: Zi Wei sits in the Life Palace. The 'purple face' and 'full waist and back' come from old face-reading, and there is no need to hold to them when looking at someone's appearance today. The temperament, 'loyal and steady, modest and upright', is how the Quan Shu describes Zi Wei throughout; the Xing Xing Fu likewise says 「紫微帝座，生為厚重之容」 (see the original).

「威制七殺降火鈴」 extends Zi Wei's transformed qi of honour: an emperor can bring a fierce general to heel and keep malefic stars down. That is why, where Zi Wei and Qi Sha share a palace in Si and Hai, the Quan Shu reads it instead as turning the killing star into power. On a Xingge chart Zi Wei is never Xian (Fallen); its weakest is Ping (Average), in Zi.

The condition is Zi Wei in the Life Palace, with lucky stars in its San Fang Si Zheng; the original lists Tian Fu, Tian Xiang, Zuo Fu and You Bi, the sun and moon, and Wen Chang and Wen Qu. Zi Wei, Tian Fu and Tian Xiang stand in fixed relation to one another: with Zi Wei in the Life Palace, Tian Fu and Tian Xiang are usually in the same palace or in its San Fang Si Zheng, but with Zi Wei and Tan Lang in Mao or You neither one is reached, with Zi Wei and Po Jun in Chou or Wei Tian Fu is not reached, and with Zi Wei and Qi Sha in Si or Hai Tian Xiang is not reached. So beyond Tian Fu and Tian Xiang, what really counts is whether Zuo Fu and You Bi and Wen Chang and Wen Qu enter the San Fang, and the more the better. Tai Yang and Tai Yin, on the other hand, are never in Zi Wei's San Fang Si Zheng, so the sun and moon in the list can only be taken as a general phrase.

「食祿千鍾，巨富大貴」 is the highest praise of old times. On your own chart, take the four palaces of the Life Palace's San Fang Si Zheng and count these stars there to get the answer. Zi Wei surrounded by the court of officials is the pattern called Jun Chen Qing Hui (ruler and ministers in happy meeting); the Quan Shu chapter on what Zi Wei governs also says 「若得府相左右昌曲吉集，無有不貴」 (see the original).

The three sentences describe three kinds of Zi Wei: with Lu Cun in the same palace it is lucky; not in its temple and without Zuo Fu and You Bi it is a 'lone ruler'; with Po Jun in the same palace it is a 'petty clerk'. The logic of the lone ruler is an emperor without ministers, holding the throne in name but unable to use it, so he lives quietly or leaves the household life; see Gu Jun (the lone ruler).

「與破軍同為胥吏」 contradicts segment 11 of this chapter, which says Zi Wei and Po Jun in Chou or Wei are in their temple and make a wealth and office pattern for people of six year stems. The chapter Star Combinations: Zi Wei supplies the missing condition: 「紫微破軍無左右無吉曜，凶惡胥吏之徒」, meaning that Zi Wei with Po Jun is a petty clerk only when lucky stars are lacking. Read the two passages together and the contradiction resolves.

This segment takes up the malefic stars: when Qing Yang, Tuo Luo, Huo Xing and Ling Xing clash or meet but the lucky stars are many, wealth can still come, only the chart drops to the lucky life of a commoner and is no longer high rank. This is exactly what Zi Wei 'taming Huo Xing and Ling Xing' looks like in practice: the damage of the malefic stars is held down, but the nobility is also cut.

For a woman the passage says only 「會吉清秀，旺夫益子」, with the condition that she meets lucky stars. In old times a woman's chart centred on husband and children; today it can be read as getting on well with people and being able to help one's family. The chart comparison splits this segment into two sets of conditions, and it is marked if either one holds.

In Zi, Zi Wei is Ping, its weakest position, with Tan Lang in the opposite palace. Why each year stem is good or bad can be seen from the four transformations and Lu Cun: in Ding and Ji years Lu Cun is in Wu and shines on the Life Palace from opposite, Wu Qu's Hua Lu in Ji years and Wu Qu's Hua Quan in Geng years both sit in the trine; in Ren years Wu Qu's Hua Ji enters the trine and Qing Yang sits in the Life Palace, and in Gui years Tan Lang's Hua Ji clashes with the Life Palace from opposite, hence 'does not last'.

The Quan Shu's Song of the Life Palace and the Luck Periods says instead that Zi Wei in Zi brings 「丙戊生人悔吝」. In Bing and Wu years Qing Yang is in Wu and clashes with the Life Palace from opposite, which fits the reasoning here; the two passages simply list different year stems and can fill each other out.

Zi Wei in Wu is Miao (in its temple), its best position, the pattern Ji Xiang Li Ming (the pole star facing the bright south). Why Jia, Ding and Ji years are good: in Ding and Ji years Lu Cun sits right in Wu, in the Life Palace, and in Jia years Lian Zhen's Hua Lu and Wu Qu's Hua Ke both sit in the trine. Why Bing and Wu years bring 'success and failure with illness': in both years Qing Yang is in Wu, in the same palace as Zi Wei.

The chapter Star Combinations: Zi Wei spells out the reason: 「紫微居午無刑忌，甲丁己命至公卿，加刑忌平常，刑乃擎羊也」. However good the emperor star is, Qing Yang in the same palace marks it down.

In Mao and You, Zi Wei always shares the palace with Tan Lang, and the opposite palace is empty. What the four year stems Yi, Xin, Jia and Geng have in common is that Lu Cun or Qing Yang lands on the Mao-You line (Lu Cun in Mao for Yi, in You for Xin; Qing Yang in Mao for Jia, in You for Geng): there is nobility but it is unsteady.

The deeper reason lies in the combination itself. The Tai Wei Fu says 「桃花犯主為至淫」 (see the original), where the peach blossom is Tan Lang and the ruler is Zi Wei: with the emperor star sharing a palace with the peach-blossom star, the ancients held that the throne is pulled about by romance and hard to keep. Segment 15 of this chapter also says Zi Wei with Tan Lang in Mao or You is 「為臣失義」, in the same tone.

In Yin and Shen Zi Wei and Tian Fu share a palace, the emperor star sitting with the treasury star: the Zi Fu Tong Gong (Zi Wei and Tian Fu in one palace) pattern, with Qi Sha in the opposite palace. In Jia years Lu Cun is in Yin, in Geng years in Shen, and in Ding and Ji years in Wu, which is in the trine of Zi Wei and Tian Fu in Yin (from Shen it is not reached); Wu Qu's Hua Lu in Ji years is also in the trine, so these four year stems make a wealth and office pattern.

Star Combinations: Zi Wei also has 「紫微天府同宮無殺湊，甲人享幅終身」 (幅 is the base text's miswriting of 福, blessings), which adds the condition 'with no malefic stars gathering'. On a Xingge chart Zi Wei in Yin or Shen is marked Wang, while Tian Fu is marked Miao in Yin and De in Shen.

Zi Wei with Qi Sha in Si or Hai is the working example of segment 1's 'its authority subdues Qi Sha': the emperor star takes the general into his own service. Why Yi and Wu years fit: in Wu years Lu Cun is in Si and Tan Lang's Hua Lu enters the trine; in Yi years Zi Wei's Hua Ke sits in the Life Palace, and for Zi Wei in Hai there is also Lu Cun in Mao, in the trine.

The chapter on what Zi Wei governs says 「帝降七殺為權」 (see the original), so Zi Wei and Qi Sha together are actually a good combination. Keep this apart from segment 16, which says 「七殺同宮多不貴」; the premise there is that Qing Yang, Tuo Luo, Huo Xing and Ling Xing come to meet it as well.

In Chen and Xu Zi Wei shares a palace with Tian Xiang, with Po Jun in the opposite palace. Yi, Ji, Jia, Geng and Gui years all put transformations in the San Fang Si Zheng: in Jia years Lian Zhen's Hua Lu, Po Jun's Hua Quan and Wu Qu's Hua Ke all come in; in Ji years Wu Qu's Hua Lu; in Geng years Wu Qu's Hua Quan; in Gui years Po Jun's Hua Lu in the opposite palace; and in Yi years Zi Wei's Hua Ke in the Life Palace.

Here Chen and Xu are called a wealth and office pattern, yet segment 15 of this chapter says 「紫微辰戌遇破軍，富而不貴有虛名」, and the Gu Sui Fu repeats the line word for word (see the original). The two can be reconciled this way: this segment is about particular year stems that bring lucky transformations, while segment 15 is about the side effect of Po Jun clashing from opposite in the ordinary case.

In Chou and Wei Zi Wei shares a palace with Po Jun, Zi Wei Miao and Po Jun Wang. Most of the six year stems put transformations into the San Fang Si Zheng: in Jia years Po Jun's Hua Quan sits in the Life Palace with Lian Zhen's Hua Lu and Wu Qu's Hua Ke in the trine; in Ji years Wu Qu's Hua Lu and Tan Lang's Hua Quan; in Yi years Zi Wei's Hua Ke; in Geng years Wu Qu's Hua Quan; in Ren years Zi Wei's Hua Quan (though in the same year Wu Qu's Hua Ji enters the trine). In Ding years Qing Yang is in Wei, yet the original still lists Ding, a rather generous listing.

This segment runs against segment 3's 「與破軍同為胥吏」; for the differing conditions see the note there. The line in Star Combinations: Zi Wei, 「紫破命臨於辰戍丑未，再加吉曜，富貴堪期」 (戍 is the base text's miswriting of 戌, Xu), says the same thing: Zi Wei with Po Jun needs lucky stars to make a pattern.

This verse widens the condition to the Body Palace: Zi Wei in either the Life or the Body Palace counts, and both blessings and wealth flourish. The last two lines add a bonus: 'assisting stars' means stars of support such as Tian Xiang, Zuo Fu and You Bi, and when they meet in the palace there are both wealth and rank.

When reading the verses, remember that they boil the prose conclusions down into lines easy to memorise, and their conditions are looser than the prose. To judge wealth and rank properly, go back to segment 2 and count the lucky stars in the San Fang Si Zheng.

The original does not say which 'two killing stars' are meant, as the note points out. Since the next line lists Qing Yang, Tuo Luo, Huo Xing and Ling Xing, they may be two of these; some read them as Qi Sha and Po Jun. The weight of the verse is in its last two lines: Zi Wei in the Life Palace met by the four malefic stars, 「只好空門禮梵王」.

In old times 'leaving the household life' was often a way of saying a person had no part in worldly wealth and rank, or had thin ties to family. A modern reader can take it to mean that such a chart does not easily find satisfaction in worldly power and position, and is better suited to paths away from fame and gain, such as religion, spiritual practice or a specialist craft. This is the old book's judgment of tendency; the Decade Luck and the other palaces still have to be looked at.

The first two lines describe Zi Wei in Chen or Xu with Po Jun clashing from the opposite palace. The Quan Shu treats this line as an important verdict on Zi Wei, and the Gu Sui Fu copies it (see the original); the 'Twelve Palaces in Strong Positions' verse also says Zi Wei in Xu is 「富而不貴有虛名，更加吉曜多權祿，只利開張貿易人」. So the old meaning is clear: there is money, but not in official life.

The last two lines say Zi Wei with Tan Lang in Mao or You 「為臣失義」, echoing segment 7. 'Rich but without rank' can be understood today as doing well financially, while social standing and reputation lag behind the wealth; it is not a put-down, but a pointer that this combination heads toward business rather than office.

This verse sets two ways Zi Wei's pattern is broken side by side: the four malefic stars meeting it, or Qi Sha in the same palace. Note how it relates to segment 9: Zi Wei and Qi Sha in Si or Hai are by themselves a good combination that turns the killing star into power, and this verse is about Zi Wei with Qi Sha plus Qing Yang, Tuo Luo, Huo Xing and Ling Xing. With too many malefic stars even the emperor star cannot hold them down, and the result turns into bullying, loneliness, punishment and injury.

「若是空門為吉利」 is a remedy the Quan Shu often gives: a person with a bad pattern who leaves the household life to practise turns the bad nature into purity. Where the Quan Shu discusses the charts of monks and priests it also mentions 「天機天梁七殺破軍天空地劫並犯帝座紫微」 (see The Ten Grades of Wealth, Rank and Poverty).

The conditions of this verse are tightly drawn: a woman's chart, Zi Wei in the Body Palace (or the Life Palace) with Tian Fu in the same palace, which is Zi Wei and Tian Fu together in Yin or Shen, plus lucky stars shining on it. 'The golden crown and honours' was the glory of a titled lady in old times, granted because her husband or son held office.

A modern reading can take it as the woman herself having standing and being respected, without making it depend on her husband. The Women's Gu Sui Fu also says 「端正紫微太陽星，早遇賢夫性可憑」; the Quan Shu has always rated Zi Wei highly in a woman's chart.

This verse looks at a woman's Spouse Palace: Zi Wei there with lucky stars embracing it from the San Fang means glory, a spouse with standing. With Zi Wei in the Spouse Palace, Qi Sha or Po Jun appears in the opposite or the same palace in these cases: Zi Wei and Tian Fu in Yin or Shen (Qi Sha opposite), Zi Wei and Tian Xiang in Chen or Xu (Po Jun opposite), Zi Wei with Qi Sha in Si or Hai, and Zi Wei with Po Jun in Chou or Wei.

The last two lines say that when Qi Sha and Po Jun clash and break it, 「衣祿盈餘淫巧容」, which taken literally refers to the woman herself. Old times tied an unhappy marriage to a woman's conduct; today the more reasonable reading is a marriage with big swings and two strong personalities, and the line should not be taken straight as a verdict on her character.

The luck-period verses look at timing: when the Decade or Minor Luck reaches the palace where Zi Wei sits, and lucky stars are in that palace too, it is a time of flourishing blessings and income. On a Xingge chart, the Decade Luck ages shown in Zi Wei's palace tell at what age one walks this stretch; switching to a given year's Annual Luck shows whether the Minor Luck lands here.

The Gu Sui Fu says 「運衰限衰，喜紫微之解凶厄」 (see the original): Zi Wei's main role in the luck periods is to dissolve trouble, and only together with lucky stars does it bring promotion and money.

This verse is the other side of the luck periods: Zi Wei in a luck period is lucky in itself, but fears Qi Sha, Po Jun and Tan Lang in the San Fang. Note that these three stars always meet one another across the San Fang: if Zi Wei shares a palace with one of them (with Qi Sha, Po Jun or Tan Lang), the other two are certain to be in its San Fang; with Zi Wei and Tian Fu, or Zi Wei and Tian Xiang, there is Qi Sha or Po Jun in the opposite palace; and with Zi Wei in Zi or Wu, the opposite palace holds Tan Lang. In other words, wherever Zi Wei sits, at least one of Qi Sha, Po Jun and Tan Lang is in its San Fang Si Zheng, so 「只恐」 cannot be read literally as bad luck whenever one appears; look at whether those palaces carry malefic stars or Hua Ji.

「官員降謫有驚傷」 is the old way of putting it; today it can be read as a change of position or a challenge at work. Zi Wei by nature subdues the killing star and turns it into power, so the same combination becomes authority with lucky stars and fright and injury with many malefic stars and Hua Ji; the conclusion still depends on what it meets.