I was asked recently ‘What are the pillars in the Four Pillars?” So I am writing this article to begin explaining the concept and some of the terms of Four Pillars of Destiny.
I will start with the Five Types of Qi commonly called the Five Elements. It could be said that the Five Types of Qi are the building blocks to the world as we know it like amino acids are to protein.
The Five Types of Qi are named Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. They are not the actual items of wood, etc., but they act like their namesakes. These Five Types of Qi also have their yin and yang attributes. Yin is the quieter of the two while Yang is the more active of the two. This is easy to understand because we all have our quiet times and our active times.
Yang Wood is like a tree, tall, sturdy, stubborn, and ever growing upward.
Yin Wood is like a shrub or grass, tactful and unyielding, ever growing. Yin Wood is actually stronger than Yang Wood because Yin Wood is more graceful and knows how to bend under pressure then come back strong, but not break like Yang Wood.
Yang Fire is like a forest fire, hot, burning high without stopping.
Yin Fire is like a furnace fire, hot, burning slowly, giving heat without scorching.
Yang Earth is hard, crusty soil like the ground in a desert with no rain for a long period of time.
Yin Earth is like garden soil, fluffy and loamy, rich in nutrients to grow wonderful food.
Yang Metal is outward piercing, intelligence that needs to know everything, aggressive and strong.
Yin Metal is inward looking, intelligence that has wisdom, beautiful and powerful.
Yang Water is like an ocean, deep and very active with many waves.
Yin Water is like a lake, deep and calm on the surface but strong currents underneath.
These types of Qi also come in combinations that we call the ’12 animals’. The 12 animals are the Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. These are the guys that you see on the placemats at some Chinese restaurants.
One other thing that is important to know is that the year on which Four Pillars is calculated is not the Gregorian Year. It is the Chinese Solar Year. It doesn’t start on January 1st. It stars anywhere from February 4th to the 6th. So if you were born in January (say) 1946 you would do your calculations based on 1945. The calculations are based on the solar return of the sun and the subsequent cycles of the sun’s orbit.
Now we can get to the definition of the pillars. There are four ‘pillars’ in the Four Pillars of Destiny Chart. Each pillar has an animal at the bottom and one of the Five Types of Qi in Yin or Yang expression at the top.
The first pillar is calculated on the year of birth so it is called the “Year Pillar”.
The second pillar is calculated on the month of birth so it is called the “Month Pillar”.
The third pillar is calculated on the day of birth so it is called the “Day Pillar”.
The fourth pillar is calculated on the hour of birth so it is called the “Hour Pillar”.
The Five Types of Qi in their Yin and Yang expressions are called “The Ten Heavenly Stems” and the 12 Animals are called “The Twelve Earthly Branches”. The qi interacts in specific ways with each other, just like we do in groups of people or families. The qi does all kinds of things like combine, clash, strengthen, weaken, assist, and control.
The Four Pillars of Destiny astrologer can look at these interactions and tell you your destiny. Reading the chart can tell the family background, the relationship with the parents, grandparents, children, and marriage as well as how you function in the public, with superiors, peers, and subordinates.
The most important Pillar is the Day Pillar. The stem (top) is the Day Master. That is you – your spirit. The branch (bottom) is the marriage palace. It will tell you the quality of your marriage.
The Month Pillar is called the Parents Palace. It is where you can see the relationship between you and your parents. You can also read your childhood in this pillar and there will be an indication of the type of family in which you grew up.
The Hour Pillar is called the Children Palace. It is where you can see the relationship between you and your children. This can also tell you about your old age.
The Year Pillar is called the Grandparents Palace. It is where you can see the relationship between you and your grandparents. It can also represent your family background and society. This can show subtle impacts on a person’s achievement.
Of course there is much, much more to this art, but this article is intended to give you some basic understanding of what the pillars represent.
May your Destiny be filled with great love, joy, health, and abundance.
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