Annual Luck in the Grand Luck Cycle -3

Below is still about the major cycles and annual cycles. I'll explain in more and more detail. When it comes to annual cycles, it will go down to monthly cycles. There are twelve months in a year. You say this year is not good for me? Well, it's okay to say so. But let me ask you one more detailed question. Exactly which month is the worst? Then we have to talk about monthly cycles. We don't talk about daily cycles. Daily cycles are for choosing auspicious days! In fortune - telling, we don't calculate which specific day; we only calculate up to the month. The major cycles I'm talking about today will only cover at most one step of the cycle. Usually, in fortune - telling, we only calculate six steps of major cycles, up to the age of sixty - something, and each step of the cycle is different. This process that goes all the way to annual cycles and monthly cycles means you can be considered to have entered the door of fortune - telling.

Before talking about the major and minor cycles of fortune, we need to make some detailed supplements to what was previously said about the clashes, combinations, and unions among the earthly branches and heavenly stems. What was previously said was just an outline. At that time, we considered that you might not have memorized the basic rules of the Four Pillars of Destiny thoroughly enough. Now, it should be okay. The so - called detailed supplements still mainly revolve around the clashes, combinations, and unions. The problem lies in the detailed coordination among the heavenly stems, earthly branches, and the Four Pillars.

First, let's talk about conflicts. It's quite easy to understand the conflicts between Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches. For example, when Jiazi meets Gengwu, it's a double conflict. According to the previous way of speaking, it depends on which pillar in the Four Pillars it is. If it's in the Year and Month Pillars, it concerns the situation around the age of thirty; if it's in the Month and Day Pillars, it's related to middle age; for the Great Luck Pillar, it's about a ten - year period; and for the Annual Pillar, it's about one year. This is the basic way of explanation. Going deeper, we need to look at what kind of relatives are affected when the Heavenly Stems of Peer - Competitors, Gourmet God, and Hurting Officials are in conflict. As for the Earthly Branches, we need to see if there are any Auspicious or Inauspicious Stars, and the focus is on the Auspicious or Inauspicious Stars related to relatives. Although many things happen in thirty - year periods, we mainly discuss based on the representative factors such as Proper Wealth, Proper Official, or Peach Blossom and Nobleman.

Going a bit further, it's just human nature. Similarly, when there is a clash with the proper official star, it depends on your age. If it appears in the year pillar, you can't discuss career; if it appears in the hour pillar, it's too late. When these three aspects are combined, they are what we used to call the "Three Arrivals" - the arrival of time, the arrival of relatives, and the arrival of personality.

What needs to be supplemented now is something beyond these three types. What exactly is beyond these three types?

First, I'll talk about the double clashes of two pillars: Jiazi clashes with Gengwu, and this cycle lasts for thirty years. There are also degrees of severity within these thirty years. Is it the first fifteen years that are more serious, or the latter fifteen years? A clash can lead to success through troubles, or it can bring only troubles without any benefits at all. So, how about this level? It can be applied to the Bazi (Eight Characters) and also to the annual luck. What's the difference? We need to consider the "lu" (auspicious position) and "jue" (inauspicious position). The "lu" of Jia is in Yin, and the "jue" is in Shen (the "lu" and "jue" positions of the ten Heavenly Stems).

Now, let me give an example: On the day of Jia Yin and in the month of Geng Shen. The lucky position of Jia is Yin, and that of Geng is Shen. Both are in prosperous positions. When two strong forces confront each other, there will surely be disputes. The personalities of one's relatives are exactly as described. But in fortune - telling, what is this situation called? It is called "righteous qi without punishment". When there is a clash and punishment in the proper position, it means achieving success because of the clash.

This first situation involves sitting in the prosperous position but facing the opposite direction.

The second type: One is prosperous, and the other is in decline. For example, on a Gengshen day, when it meets the Gengyin month, the earthly branches are also in conflict, and there is a conflict between the heavenly stems being the same and the earthly branches. They seem the same on the surface but have a hidden conflict inside. Whenever the heavenly stems are the same and the earthly branches are in conflict, in terms of relatives and friends, it means that there is a hidden conflict among your peers, which outsiders can't see, and it's an internal struggle! So, there is a conflict between the heavenly stems being the same and the earthly branches for Gengyin and Gengshen.

If we take another example, the Gengshen day is at the peak position. Then, when there is a clash between Yin and Shen, we need to see what the Heavenly Stem is. It could be Jiayin, Bingyin, or Gengyin. When the strong clashes with the weak, Gengyin is the position of Geng's exhaustion, and Bingyin is the position of the birth of Fire. So, when the strong clashes with the weak, the weak side is clashed away. For example, Jia is exhausted at Shen. If someone is born in the Jiashen month and the Heavenly Stem is sitting at the position of exhaustion, then we call it "covering the head". Whether or not the character Shen is actually the position of exhaustion is beside the point; it's of little use. In terms of Shen, Jia is exhausted at Shen, and in terms of Jia, it's also the case that Jia is exhausted at Shen. When using Jia to analyze, it's called "cutting the feet". So, with "covering the head" and "cutting the feet", the situations in the first and second seven - and - a - half - year periods are different. When the strong clashes, the more it clashes, the more prosperous it becomes. When the exhausted clashes, many troublesome things will be encountered.

Now let's talk about the punishments. As you all know, there are the three - punishments among Chou, Xu and Wei, and the three - punishments among Yin, Si and Shen. So, what if only two of them appear? It's called half - punishment, just half. Of course, its effect is much lighter and the time - effect is also much shorter. Let's take Yin, Si and Shen as an example. It could be Yin and Shen, Yin and Si, or Si and Shen. When only half of the three - punishment combination appears. If it's Yin and Shen, we consider it as a clash rather than a punishment because originally there is a clash between Yin and Shen! What about Yin and Si? This is called half - punishment, which is not commonly used in fortune - telling because the time is short and the effect is only half.

Only when the characters "巳" and "申" appear together, the situation becomes ambiguous. In the "Three Punishments of Yin, Si, and Shen", when "巳" and "申" are encountered, it is called "Half Punishment". However, in the "Six Combinations", "巳" and "申" form the combination of "Si and Shen to form Water", just like "Zi and Chou to form Earth", which belongs to the "Six Combinations". So, should it be regarded as "Half Punishment" or "Combination"? The decision lies in the Heavenly Stems. For example, in the cases of "Yisi" and "Bingshen", since the Heavenly Stems of Wood and Fire generate each other, the Earthly Branches are regarded as a "Six Combination". If it is "Yisi" and "Gengshen", with both the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches in combination, it becomes a "Double Six Combination". If the Heavenly Stems counteract each other and the Earthly Branches are "Si and Shen", it is considered "Half Punishment". In actual fortune - telling, "Half Punishment" is rarely taken into account, and only the "Three Punishments" are fully considered.

In the case of the Three Combinations and the Three Meetings, sometimes only two characters are present. For example, in the Shen-Zi-Chen Three Combination for Water, what if there are only two characters? There is the half-combination of Shen and Zi, and the half-combination of Zi and Chen. What if it's Shen and Chen? It's completely not counted! Whenever only two characters of the Three Combinations or the Three Meetings are seen, the four cardinal signs of Zi, Wu, Mao, and You in the middle must be involved. Only then can it be considered a half-combination. Two half-meetings or half-combinations can be regarded as one Three Combination. For instance, the Shen-Zi-Chen Three Combination for Water and the Hai-Zi-Chou Three Meeting for Water. If there is only Shen and Zi without Chen, and for Hai-Zi-Chou, there is a Hai at the back, making it half a Three Combination and half a Three Meeting. This kind of combined and mixed situation also has the power of a Three Combination, but the real process of life is very complicated. This kind of mixed Bazi is like me giving you a 100-yuan banknote or 100 yuan in change. The value is the same, but it's very inconvenient to use. So, if only half of the Three Combinations or the Three Meetings is present, then there is a half-combination or half-meeting, and the four cardinal signs of Zi, Wu, Mao, and You must be involved. Without them, it can't be considered a half-combination or half-meeting.

This is all about the clashes, punishments, combinations, and unions in the zodiac! Considering only half of the situation, we see only one part. Similarly, for Chou (Ox), Xu (Dog), and Wei (Goat), Chou and Xu form a half - punishment, Chou and Wei are in a clash, and Xu and Wei also form a half - punishment. In actual fortune - telling, the influence of half - punishments and half - unions is rarely taken into account, but one must know about these half - situations. Well, after discussing the clashes, punishments, combinations, and unions, let's move on.

The major fortune can also clash with the eight characters of one's birth date, and the annual fortune can even clash doubly. It can clash with the eight characters of one's birth date and also with the major fortune. It's all about double - clashes, and they are all used to judge good and bad luck, but the time - effects are different. For example, if you were born in the Year of Gengwu, when you encounter the Year of Jiazi, it is the annual fortune clashing with the eight characters of your birth date. Whenever the major fortune or the annual fortune clashes with the eight characters of one's birth date, whether the event triggered in the eight characters is good or bad, it is something that originally existed. For instance, if two people had an unpleasant incident in the past and didn't mention it for three to five years, something related to it will crop up this year.

In general, when the major fortune or the annual luck clashes with the eight characters of the birth chart, it refers to old matters. As for what kind of old matters they are, it depends on the Heavenly Stems. The ten gods, such as wealth, official, and seal, or the divine signs in the Earthly Branches, will show a tendency in this regard. On the contrary, if the annual luck only clashes with the major fortune but not with the eight characters of the birth chart. For example, there is no Gengwu in the eight characters, but there is Gengwu in the major fortune, and the Jiazichou annual luck clashes with the major fortune. It is also a double clash, which is interpreted as new matters. If at the same time, one column in the eight characters is clashed and one column in the major fortune is also clashed, it means there are both new and old matters, but it's just one event. This is the problem that occurs when the three columns of fortune, annual luck, and birth chart are in conflict.

For example, in the Yiyou month and Gengchen day, the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches form double harmonious combinations. If there are no other clashes or punishments, it means that from youth until the age of 45, everything will go smoothly for this person. After the age of 45, this smoothness will disappear. The disappearance doesn't mean that he will encounter any great misfortune; it just means that the favorable influence fades away.

If there are double conflicts in both the date and the hour, it's different. For example, in the Bingxu hour, there are first double combinations and then double conflicts, which makes it complicated. When there is a combination, there is a conflict following it. When there is a conflict later, there is a combination preceding it. It cannot be explained that the first thirty years are good and after thirty years it turns bad. It's not like that. He is affected simultaneously. If there is a conflict involved, even if the earlier part is good, there are still nuisances. Although there is a conflict later, because there was a combination earlier, even if it's not good, there is still a little leeway. So, whether it's a conflict first and then a combination or a combination first and then a conflict, we'd rather choose the former. We'd rather have the troubles in the front than have a combination first and then a conflict.

First, let's combine this issue. In Bazi (Chinese zodiac and four pillars of destiny), it covers a long period, up to thirty years. It's most likely to happen in the flowing years. This year, the flowing year has a double - harmony, and next year, the flowing year has a double - clash. So, we can't simply explain it as a good year when there is harmony and a bad year when there is a clash. It's not like that. With double - harmony this year and double - clash next year, it should be interpreted as the benefits of this year turning into the drawbacks of next year. The most feared is in matters of affection. Usually within a year, a relationship can be extremely good at first and then turn the two people into enemies. If there is a double - clash in the previous year and a double - harmony in the following year, bad things remain bad and good things remain good. However, in the actual process, it is precisely because of the bad situation that it leads to the achievements in the second year.

So, this is about the clashes and combinations in the eight characters of one's birth chart, the major fortune cycles, and the annual luck. There is a kind of chain - like correlation. Some birth charts have combinations for three consecutive years, while others have clashes for three consecutive years. You can't simply interpret it as three consecutive years of good luck, nor can you interpret it as three consecutive years of bad luck. When it comes to clashes and combinations that last for more than two years, say three or four years, let's take three consecutive years of clashes as an example. It's actually the second year that matters; the first two years don't have much impact. Just like when we play billiards, if five balls are clustered together, when you hit the first ball, it's the last ball that moves, not all five balls at once.

Therefore, in the case of clashes and combinations, if things go well for thirty years, the good or bad outcome is determined in the last year. For example, in a lawsuit! If someone is sentenced to ten years in prison and actually serves the full ten years, will there be ten consecutive bad years in the flowing years? No. Then what causes him to have this ten - year situation? Speaking from a major perspective. From a minor perspective, if a person stumbles in terms of finance and goes bankrupt, some people can recover in two years, while others take ten years to recover. There isn't a situation where all ten years are bad in the flowing years. So when you are actually making fortune - telling judgments, when you encounter clashes and punishments in a certain year, theoretically it means that this year is bad. Just because the year of clashes and punishments has passed doesn't mean that the good or bad fortune has passed. It's like when I use a match to light something. The match goes out, but the thing I lit doesn't go out. It's only when the fire is completely extinguished that the matter is considered settled.

In general, truly extremely unlucky or extremely lucky situations are rare. Out of a hundred or eighty cases, most are ordinary troubles. Usually, these troubles will resolve themselves within a year. If one encounters a year of extreme luck or extreme misfortune, when the second such situation occurs, it will be connected to the previous one. For example, to give a more understandable illustration, if a couple gets divorced this year due to a conflicting astrological situation, just because there is no such conflict next year, it doesn't mean a new marriage will come. It won't happen until a favorable year with harmonious astrological combinations arrives. Often, one has to wait for two or three years, or even five or six years.

So when a period of bad luck passes, it only means that the original event is over. Although the event has passed, its impact still remains! For example, if we kill someone with a knife this year, after the act, there may seem to be no immediate consequence, but the law exists. So for significant matters, the clash and punishment can only be interpreted as a cause. As to when it will truly pass, we have to wait for the next favorable flowing year for this matter to finally come to an end! Fortunately, just as the wheel of fortune turns, things will get better within a few years.

So, for small matters, we consider them on a one - year basis. For major matters, it's not about a one - year consideration; it only counts when the matter is resolved. So when we encounter someone going through a major unlucky period, we don't just talk about the year. We persuade them to quickly handle the matter. Often, when we come across a birth chart that will clash and punish in the coming year, we'll give such advice. For example, if it's already November now, I'll persuade them that if they can handle it this year, just do it this year and accept a little loss. If they can't handle it in time this year, I'll persuade them to postpone it until next year and deal with it after next year, getting through the bad period.

This is the explanation of clashes and punishments in the practice of consulting. It's not a rigid interpretation based on these exact words. Well, the situations of two favorable elements sandwiching one unfavorable one, or two unfavorable elements sandwiching one favorable one, can be skipped over. I also mentioned this last time. Generally, when people ask about their horoscopes, they actually only ask about a specific year's fortune. When it comes to a specific year, it's usually about double clashes, not double combinations. Now, I'll give a few examples to see if you can follow. I have a clash this year and a combination next year. There's no need to check every year. In the sixty-year cycle of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, the permutations and combinations are written in great detail. You can refer to my book *Thorough Explanation of Clashes, Combinations, Conjunctions, and Gatherings in the Four-Corner Square Matrix*. For example, in the previous years of the Yi You (Year of the Rooster) and Bing Xu (Year of the Dog), these two years were consecutive, and everyone would experience them. However, if there is Geng Chen in your horoscope, it's different. When Geng Chen meets Yi You, it's a double combination, and in the following year of Bing Xu, it's a double clash. For more than one-seventh of the horoscopes, clashes and combinations alternate every two years. Some have single clashes or combinations that are far apart and independent, with one good year followed by one bad year. When there are both clashes and combinations occurring together, one can only make the most of that one year, which is what we often say, "seize the opportunity when it's good and withdraw." You can take a look at my book *Thorough Explanation of Clashes, Combinations, Conjunctions, and Gatherings in the Four-Corner Square Matrix*. So, calculating the fortune of a specific year isn't the same for every horoscope. Some are easy to calculate, while others are difficult.