Spouse: the star and the palace

In Four Pillars of Destiny (BaZi), the books look at the spouse through both the star and the palace. The star is the relationship that stands for the spouse: Wealth in a man’s chart, Authority in a woman’s. The palace is the day branch, the same seat for a man’s chart and a woman’s.

Look at both

既看妻宫，又看妻星。

Our translation: Look at the spouse palace, and look at the spouse star as well.

The True Interpretation of Ziping (子平真诠; Qing dynasty, 18th century) says to look at both the palace and the star. Its example is a man’s chart: the spouse palace is the day branch, and the spouse star is Wealth on the stems.

The True Interpretation of Ziping · On Wife and Children

The spouse star

A man’s chart takes Wealth as the wife, Direct Wealth and Indirect Wealth alike. The original notes to Dripping Heavenly Marrow (滴天髓) say the same: the wife is looked at, on the whole, through Wealth.

A woman’s chart takes Authority as the husband, with Direct Officer and Seven Killings both counted as the husband star. On women’s charts, the original notes say that an Officer that stands clear and runs smoothly in the chart is good for the marriage; they add that the husband need not be tied to the Officer alone, and that the whole chart must be weighed.

Dripping Heavenly Marrow · Husband and Wife, original notes; Dripping Heavenly Marrow · Women’s Charts, original notes; The Deep Sea of Ziping · General Discussion of Family Relations; Comprehensive Guide to the Three Fates · On Family Relations

If the spouse star does not appear in your chart, the spouse relation simply does not stand out in this chart; it does not mean there is no spouse. The day branch is still looked at.

The spouse palace: the day branch

The day stem is you, and the day branch is the spouse palace. The books’ example of a palace is the wife palace in a man’s chart; in a woman’s chart the same day branch is taken as the spouse palace.

What is good in the day branch depends on the structure. The Deep Sea of Ziping (渊海子平; Ming dynasty, 16th century) says that Wealth or an Officer in the day branch often means a spouse who helps. The True Interpretation of Ziping adds that this is decided by the structure taken from the month branch:

• A Hurting Officer in the day branch: in a Wealth structure it generates Wealth, and in a Seven Killings structure it checks Seven Killings, so the spouse is often a help after all.
• A Yang Blade in the day branch: if the structure is formed but the Day Master has no strength, and relies wholly on the Blade in the day branch for support, the spouse is also a help.
• In a chart with a Resource structure, Wealth in the day branch spoils the Resource, which does not suit.
• In a chart with a Hurting Officer structure, an Officer in the day branch runs against the Hurting Officer, and things do not go smoothly.

Commentary on the True Interpretation of Ziping (子平真诠评注; ROC, 1936) sums it up: if the character in the day branch is one the chart favors, it is good; if it is one the chart does not favor, more care is called for.

The Deep Sea of Ziping · On Wives and Concubines; The True Interpretation of Ziping · On Wife and Children; Commentary on the True Interpretation of Ziping · On Wife and Children

When star and palace disagree

The book says the star leads.

• Wealth revealed on a stem that helps the structure form, such as a Direct Officer structure with Wealth revealed to generate the Officer, heavy Resource with Wealth revealed, or Output with revealed Wealth as the useful element: the spouse is often still a help, even when the day branch is of no use.
• Wealth revealed on a stem that leaves the structure broken, such as a weak Day Master using Resource with Wealth breaking the Resource, or the Food Star checking Seven Killings with Wealth turning the Food Star into support for Seven Killings: there is something to be mindful of, even when the day branch is of use.

One more case is noted separately: the spouse star helps the structure, or the day branch itself is of use, but the day branch is struck by a clash or a punishment. The book says that the spouse is then a good one, yet staying together takes more care. A good star does not change this.

The True Interpretation of Ziping · On Wife and Children; Commentary on the True Interpretation of Ziping · On Wife and Children

More than one spouse star

When more than one spouse star is revealed on the stems, it is a tendency: more than one marriage or long relationship over a lifetime.

The True Interpretation of Ziping, on the spouse, says that when a man’s chart reveals the wife star twice on the stems, Direct Wealth and Indirect Wealth mixed, it calls for care. On women’s charts, the same book says a woman takes the Officer as her husband, so many Officers means more than one husband star. The book gives one case for a man’s chart and one for a woman’s; treating both the same way is this series’ own approach.

This series reads it with three limits:

• Only the stems count. A spouse star held in a branch does not count here.
• In a woman’s chart, Direct Officer and Seven Killings are both the husband star. Seven Killings mixed in with the Officer is not the sign in itself; the sign is more than one star revealed on the stems.
• A chart whose Day Master is weak is not looked at this way. For Day Master strength, see the lesson on Day Master strength.

The True Interpretation of Ziping · On Wife and Children; The True Interpretation of Ziping · On Why the Stars Do Not Decide the Structure

All of this describes tendencies and how a couple gets along. It is not a judgment of a spouse as a person.

Try it on your chart

1. In a man’s chart, find Direct Wealth and Indirect Wealth; in a woman’s, Direct Officer and Seven Killings. Note those revealed on the stems, and those that are the main stem of a branch.
2. See which relationship is the main stem of your day branch, and whether it helps or harms your structure.
3. For a star revealed on a stem, see whether it helps the structure form or leaves it broken. When star and palace disagree, the star leads.
4. See whether the day branch is struck by a clash or a punishment, and note it separately.
5. If more than one spouse star is revealed on the stems, note it as a tendency, in a man’s chart or a woman’s; those in the branches do not count, and a chart with a weak Day Master is not looked at this way.
6. If the star does not appear, look at the day branch.

See also: Family relations: the star and the palace

See also: Chart structure starts from the month

See also: How a structure forms, breaks and recovers

See also: The Yang Blade structure

See also: Children: the star and the palace