On the Three Wonders

Original Text

《珞录子》曰：「奇为贵也；奇者，异也。」谓物以贵为奇也。乙丙丁出于贵人乾德配支之妙，阴贵甲德起子，则乙德在丑，丙德在寅，丁德在卯，三干相连而无间。阴贵甲德起申、乙在未，丙在午，丁在已，三间相连而无间，以其随贵人在天，故曰「天上三奇」，十干惟此为异，馀则或间罗网，或间天空，或不重临，又不相联，不可以为奇。《玉霄宝鉴》谓古人以正月为岁之始，日出于乙，故以乙为日奇；老人星见为瑞，见于丁位，故以丁为星奇；月照夜到丙位而天下明，故以丙为月奇。若甲戊庚亦以为天上三奇，以甲戊庚俱临丑未，乃贵人家在斗牛之次，出乎井鬼之舍，先后天起贵而三干适临之，与别干不同，其理亦通。《三车一览》以甲为阳木之魁，戊为阳土之君，庚为阳金之精，地有此三物为奇，谓之地之奇，其说太凿，《太乙经》以辛壬癸为水奇，谓之人间三奇，其说无据，但辛壬癸天干连珠，谓之三台，亦为难得。《紫虚局》又有四奇之说。夫奇，奇数也，四则偶矣，谓之奇，可乎？三奇要顺布，不欲倒乱，如乙丙丁、甲戊庚，天干年月日时顺布为吉。《广录》又以乙人丙月丁时，是乙生丙丁，秀气下降，主平常。若乙时丙日丁年，是秀气上达，反为贵，似又不论顺逆。甲戊庚却以顺者为贵，逆者福慢，乱者不寿，气清则贵，气浊则富。经曰：五行各有奇仪，须分逆顺。若日月倒乱，得顺三奇，亦不谓倒命。有三奇，要得体得地，不欲失时。如乙丙丁夜生，甲戊庚昼生，得体；乙丙丁柱有亥，则三光有所依附，甲戊庚柱有申，则三物有所凭籍；或乙丙丁得丑寅卯未午巳，甲戊庚得丑未金，皆为得地。三奇再遇三合，如乙丙丁得金水局，甲戊庚得水火局。又遇六仪，甲子旬戊，甲戌旬己，甲申旬庚，甲午旬辛，甲辰旬壬，甲寅旬癸，俱吉。《珞录子》云：「重犯奇仪，蕴藉抱出群之器。」《遁甲》曰：「顺布三奇，逆六仪。」如命出甲子、甲申二旬遇甲戊庚，是重犯奇仪也。

凡命遇三奇，主人精神异常，襟怀卓越，好奇尚大，博学多能。带天乙贵者，勋业超群；带天月二德者，凶灾不犯。带六仪者，才智出类。带三合入局者，国家柱石，带官符劫煞者，器识宏远。带空亡生旺者，脱尘离俗，富贵不淫；威武不屈，值元辰、咸池、冲破、天罗地网者，为无用。论三奇，太岁不带而月日时带著，孤独。诗曰：「顺十干神乙丙丁，神童及第播声名；日时禄马公卿煞，换武除文佐圣明。」又曰：「顺十干神甲戊庚，兼得长生丙府名；若然无禄兼无马，只是财中蓄积人。」又曰：「三奇须是重逢贵，方是荣华福寿人；只有空奇无贵地，贫穷下贱被欺凌。」又曰：「乙丙丁、甲戊庚，上局相生生复生，不是蓬莱三岛客，也应金殿玉阶行。」又曰：「欲识岩廊官赫奕，名仙多诞癸壬辛，三奇玉藉传消息，轻薄时师莫与评。」合诸诗观三奇，喜忌见矣。

Interpretation

The "Luoluzipu" says: "The rare is precious; the rare means the extraordinary." It means that things are regarded as rare because they are precious. The combination of Yi, Bing, and Ding with the noble celestial stems and earthly branches is wonderful. For the Yin noble, when the noble virtue of Jia starts from Zi, then the virtue of Yi is in Chou, the virtue of Bing is in Yin, and the virtue of Ding is in Mao. These three stems are connected without interruption. When the noble virtue of Jia starts from Shen for the Yin noble, Yi is in Wei, Bing is in Wu, and Ding is in Si. These three are also connected without interruption. Since they follow the noble stars in the sky, they are called the "Three Heavenly Wonders". Among the ten celestial stems, only these are extraordinary. The rest may be interrupted by obstacles, or be in the empty space, or not overlap, or not be connected, so they cannot be regarded as wonders. The "Yuxiao Baojian" says that the ancients regarded the first month as the beginning of the year. The sun rises from the direction of Yi, so Yi is regarded as the wonder of the sun; the appearance of the Old Man Star is regarded as auspicious, and it appears in the position of Ding, so Ding is regarded as the wonder of the star; the moon shines at night and when it reaches the position of Bing, the world becomes bright, so Bing is regarded as the wonder of the moon. Some also think that Jia, Wu, and Geng are the Three Heavenly Wonders. Because Jia, Wu, and Geng all arrive at Chou and Wei. The noble families are in the constellations related to Niu and Dou, and come out from the constellations of Jing and Gui. The noble stars rise according to the pre - and post - celestial arrangements, and these three stems happen to arrive there, which is different from other stems. This theory also makes sense. The "Sanche Yilan" says that Jia is the leader of Yang wood, Wu is the king of Yang earth, and Geng is the essence of Yang metal. It is regarded as rare for the earth to have these three things, so it is called the "Three Earthly Wonders". This theory is too far - fetched. The "Taiyi Jing" takes Xin, Ren, and Gui as the water wonders, calling them the "Three Human Wonders". This theory has no basis. However, Xin, Ren, and Gui are consecutive celestial stems, called the Three Platforms, which are also rare. The "Zixuju" also has the theory of Four Wonders. But the word "wonder" originally refers to odd numbers, and four is an even number. Can it be called a wonder? The Three Wonders should be arranged in order, not in a chaotic way. For example, when Yi, Bing, and Ding or Jia, Wu, and Geng are arranged in order in the year, month, day, and hour of the celestial stems, it is auspicious. The "Guanglu" says that if Yi is in the day, Bing is in the month, and Ding is in the hour, it means that Yi gives birth to Bing and Ding, and the elegant qi descends, indicating an ordinary life. If Yi is in the hour, Bing is in the day, and Ding is in the year, it means that the elegant qi ascends, which is actually a sign of nobility. It seems that the order does not matter in this case. For Jia, Wu, and Geng, the order arrangement is regarded as noble, the reverse arrangement brings slow - coming fortune, and the chaotic arrangement leads to a short life. If the qi is clear, it indicates nobility; if the qi is turbid, it indicates wealth. The classic says that each of the five elements has its own wonders and auspicious arrangements, and the order and reverse should be distinguished. Even if the sun and moon are in a chaotic state, if one gets the Three Wonders in order, it cannot be regarded as an inauspicious fate. For those with the Three Wonders, they should be in a proper state and position, and not out of time. For example, if a person with Yi, Bing, and Ding is born at night, and a person with Jia, Wu, and Geng is born in the daytime, it is in a proper state. If there is Hai in the columns of Yi, Bing, and Ding, then the three lights (sun, moon, and star) have a place to rely on; if there is Shen in the columns of Jia, Wu, and Geng, then the three things have a basis. Or if Yi, Bing, and Ding get Chou, Yin, Mao, Wei, Wu, Si, and Jia, Wu, and Geng get Chou, Wei, and metal, they are all in a proper position. If the Three Wonders meet the three - combination formations again, such as Yi, Bing, and Ding meeting the water - metal formation, and Jia, Wu, and Geng meeting the water - fire formation. And if they meet the Six Auspicious Arrangements (in the Jiazi cycle, it is Wu; in the Jiaxu cycle, it is Ji; in the Jiashen cycle, it is Geng; in the Jiawu cycle, it is Xin; in the Jiachen cycle, it is Ren; in the Jiayin cycle, it is Gui), it is all auspicious. The "Luoluzipu" says: "If one repeatedly encounters the wonders and auspicious arrangements, one has the potential to stand out from the crowd." The "Dunjia" says: "Arrange the Three Wonders in order and the Six Auspicious Arrangements in reverse." For example, if one's fate is in the Jiazi or Jiashen cycles and encounters Jia, Wu, and Geng, it means repeatedly encountering the wonders and auspicious arrangements.

When one's fate encounters the Three Auspicious Stars, they are usually of extraordinary spirit, with an outstanding mind, a penchant for the extraordinary and the grand, and are learned and versatile. If they have the Heavenly Worthy Star, they will achieve outstanding feats. If they have the Heavenly and Monthly Virtue Stars, they will be free from disasters. If they have the Six Instruments, they will be exceptionally intelligent. If the Three Combinations are in their chart, they will be pillars of the state. If they have the Official Talisman and Robber Omen Stars, they will have broad vision and great wisdom. If they have the Empty and Dead Stars in a prosperous state, they will be detached from the mundane world, remaining uncorrupted by wealth and honor, and unyielding in the face of power. However, if they have the Yuan Chen, Salt Pond, Breakthrough, Heavenly Net and Earthly Net Stars, they will be of no use. Regarding the Three Auspicious Stars, if they appear in the month, day, or hour but not in the year of the birth chart, the person will be lonely. There is a poem that says: "The Three Auspicious Stars in the order of the ten Heavenly Stems, namely Yi, Bing, and Ding, bring fame like a child prodigy passing the imperial examination. With the lucky stars of salary and horse in the day and hour, they can assist the sage emperor, either in military or civil service." Another poem says: "The Three Auspicious Stars in the order of the ten Heavenly Stems, namely Jia, Wu, and Geng, combined with the Long - Life Star, bring a good reputation. But if there are no lucky stars of salary and horse, they will only be good at accumulating wealth." Yet another poem says: "The Three Auspicious Stars need to be accompanied by noble stars to bring prosperity, fortune, and a long life. If there are only the Three Auspicious Stars without noble positions, the person will be poor and low - class, and be bullied." One more poem says: "The Three Auspicious Stars of Yi, Bing, Ding and Jia, Wu, Geng in an upper - level combination bring continuous good fortune. Such a person is either a guest on the three fairy islands or will walk on the jade steps in the palace." And another poem says: "To recognize those in high - ranking official positions, many famous immortals are born under the stars of Gui, Ren, and Xin. The Three Auspicious Stars spread the news, and those shallow - minded fortune - tellers should not make random comments." By looking at these poems about the Three Auspicious Stars, the preferences and taboos can be seen.