Explicating the Dipper-Handle Seven Stars Method for Date Selection

Today one sees a so-called “Seven Stars” method that runs:

First month: the dipper handle points to Yin—build, repair, or bury on the Yin and Gen mountains; choose Ding-Wei or Ren-Yin day and hour.

Second month: handle points to Mao—build, repair, or bury on the Jia-Mao mountain; choose Bing-Shen or Xin-Mao day and hour.

Third month: handle points to Chen—build, repair, or bury on the Yi-Chen mountains; choose Yi-You or Geng-Chen day and hour.

Fourth month: handle points to Si—build, repair, or bury on the Xun-Si mountains; choose Jia-Zi, Jia-Xu, or Ji-Si day and hour.

Fifth month: handle points to Wu—build, repair, or bury on the Bing-Wu mountains; choose Wu-Wu, Gui-Chou, or Gui-Hai day and hour.

Sixth month: handle points to Wei—build, repair, or bury on the Ding-Wei mountains; choose Ding-Wei or Ren-Yin day and hour.

Seventh month: handle points to Shen—build, repair, or bury on the Kun-Shen mountains; choose Bing-Shen or Xin-Mao day and hour.

Eighth month: handle points to You—build, repair, or bury on the Geng-You mountains; choose Yi-You or Geng-Chen day and hour.

Ninth month: handle points to Xu—build, repair, or bury on the Xin-Xu mountains; choose Jia-Zi, Jia-Xu, or Ji-Si day and hour.

Tenth month: handle points to Hai—build, repair, or bury on the Qian-Hai mountains; choose Wu-Wu, Gui-Chou, or Gui-Hai day and hour.

Eleventh month: handle points to Zi—build, repair, or bury on the Ren-Zi mountains; choose Jia-Zi, Jia-Xu, or Ji-Si day and hour.

Twelfth month: handle points to Chou—build, repair, or bury on the Gui-Chou mountains; choose Wu-Wu, Gui-Chou, or Gui-Hai day and hour.

It also speaks of the sun passing through the palaces:

Great Cold: five days—the sun reaches Gui; after fifteen days it passes Zi.

Start of Spring: the sun is at Zi; after fifteen days it passes Ren.

Rain Water: the sun reaches Ren; after fifteen days it passes Hai.

Awakening of Insects: the sun is at Hai; after fifteen days it passes Qian.

Spring Equinox: six days—the sun reaches Qian; after fifteen days it passes Xu.

Clear and Bright: the sun is at Xu; after fifteen days it passes Xin.

Grain Rain: nine days—the sun reaches Xin; after fifteen days it passes You.

Start of Summer: the sun is at You; after fifteen days it passes Geng.

Grain Full: nine days—the sun is at Geng; after fifteen days it passes Shen.

Grain in Ear: the sun is at Shen; after fifteen days it passes Kun.

Summer Solstice: seven days—the sun reaches Kun; after fifteen days it passes Wei.

Minor Heat: the sun is at Wei; after fifteen days it passes Ding.

Great Heat: nine days—the sun reaches Ding; after fifteen days it passes Wu.

Start of Autumn: the sun is at Wu; after fifteen days it passes Bing.

End of Heat: eleven days—the sun reaches Bing; after fifteen days it passes Si.

White Dew: the sun is at Si; after fifteen days it passes Xun.

Autumn Equinox: twelve days—the sun reaches Xun; after fifteen days it passes Chen.

Cold Dew: the sun is at Chen; after fifteen days it passes Yi.

Frost’s Descent: twelve days—the sun reaches Yi; after fifteen days it passes Mao.

Start of Winter: the sun is at Mao; after fifteen days it passes Jia.

Minor Snow: eleven days—the sun reaches Jia; after fifteen days it passes Yin.

Great Snow: the sun is at Yin; after fifteen days it passes Gen.

Winter Solstice: nine days—the sun reaches Gen; after fifteen days it passes Chou.

Minor Cold: the sun is at Chou; after fifteen days it passes Gui.

The so-called Dipper-Handle Seven Stars method is that the Heavenly Emperor arrives at the mountain; the day and hour chosen all follow the Doushou Yuanchen arrangement.

Day-chart heavenly stems:  Jia-Ji    Yi-Geng  Bing-Xin  Ding-Ren  Wu-Gui
Ren-Zi earth mountain:    Yuanchen  Lianzhen Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan
Gui-Chou fire mountain:   Lianzhen  Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen
Gen-Yin wood mountain:    Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen  Lianzhen
Jia-Mao water mountain:   Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen  Lianzhen  Wucai
Yi-Chen metal mountain:   Guan-tan  Yuanchen  Lianzhen Wucai     Pojun
Xun-Si earth mountain:    Yuanchen  Lianzhen  Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan
Bing-Wu fire mountain:    Lianzhen  Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen
Ding-Wei wood mountain:   Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen  Lianzhen
Kun-Shen water mountain:  Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen  Lianzhen  Wucai
Geng-You metal mountain:  Guan-tan  Yuanchen  Lianzhen Wucai     Pojun
Xin-Xu earth mountain:    Yuanchen  Lianzhen  Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan
Qian-Hai fire mountain:   Lianzhen  Wucai     Pojun    Guan-tan  Yuanchen

For example, for the Gen-Yin mountain, Ding and Ren are Yuanchen; when the Heavenly Emperor arrives at the mountain, use Ding or Ren—by this principle it connects.

Also, according to the True Movement of the Heart of Heaven:

Ren-Yin-Xun-Wei-Xin are Wood phase; Ding-Wei, Ren-Yin are Yuanchen
Zi-Xu-Kun-Si-Jia are Earth phase; Jia-Zi, Ji-Si are Yuanchen
Gui-Mao-Bing-Shen-Qian are Water phase; Bing-Shen, Xin-Mao are Yuanchen
Yi-Chou-Geng-Wu-Hai are Fire phase; Wu-Wu, Gui-Chou are Yuanchen
Gen-Ding-Chen-You     are Metal phase; Yi-You, Geng-Chen are Yuanchen

By a date-selection example on an online forum: “Day chart for commencing work on a yang residence sitting due south on the Wu needle: Ding-Hai year (2007), Yi-Si month, Yi-Si day, Xin-Si hour.”

For this chart the Wu residence takes Wu-Wu and Gui-Chou as Yuanchen. It also takes Wu Yuanchen’s lu at Si and Gui Yuanchen’s nobleman at Si; in a Ding year the lu is at Wu, and at a Xin hour the nobleman is at Wu arriving at the mountain for use.

It uses the Start of Summer node: the Heavenly Emperor uses Si month, Si day, Si hour after Start of Summer. When the Heavenly Emperor arrives at Si all sha are removed; with the sun shining into You and Geng, and able to cast also on the trine Si, the qi of the Heavenly Emperor and the sun join—this may be called an auspicious chart.

The feedback on this chart was: “The master assisted two brothers of the same village, same sitting orientation. The elder brother, knowing many feng shui friends, had them all appraise it as inauspicious. The younger brother, poor at socializing and without spare money to hire appraisers, gambled and used it. The day after the time had passed, the master met the elder brother at the market and volunteered: ‘That day was too clashing—didn’t you use it?’ The brother said: ‘That’s right—I asked many people and they all said it was inauspicious, too clashing. My younger brother used it.’ The master said: ‘Whether you used it or not was within my expectation.’ The elder brother was still the same old way; but the younger brother had already surpassed him in living. The younger brother’s life gradually improved; the next year he went to the city market every day to buy pigskins and started a pigskin processing business. From the first day of the year to the thirtieth—365 days without rest—daily profits of five to seven hundred yuan. Roughly the situation is like this.”

In both of these charts the Yuanchen combinations match. Only in the Dipper-Handle Seven Stars method it says: “Winter solstice: nine days—the sun reaches Gen; after fifteen days it passes Chou.” This divides winter solstice by nine and six.

Whereas according to the True Movement of the Heart of Heaven chart, at winter solstice the sun is at Chou, turning rightward and proceeding palace by palace.

Taking winter solstice sun as celestial longitude 270°, the same as spring equinox 0° in the sense of the chart’s reference, one should take 270° as Chou. This Chou is really in the equatorial coordinate system—right ascension 18h, the entry position of the Chou palace—and is divided into twelve branch positions. If following the Twenty-Four Mountains it is still Zi position; but converting to the horizon coordinate system for calculation, according to the Xieji computed for the capital at polar altitude thirty-nine degrees fifty-five minutes: “Winter solstice, Chou palace beginning degree: sunrise at Chen first quarter plus one ke ten fen; daylight thirty-six ke ten fen; sunset at Shen second quarter plus two ke five fen; night fifty-nine ke five fen.”

Therefore, according to the saying that at winter solstice after nine days the sun reaches Gen, one does not know which plate is used and against which motion degree. If it enters Yin for six days and this is taken as winter solstice, then following today’s solar-term chart-setting would certainly be wrong.

It roughly follows the oral formulas of the Xiangji Tongshu: “The sun’s moving degrees do not move in vain: Great Cold, sixth day, in the Aquarius palace; Rain Water, sixth morning, meets at Hai; Spring Equinox, seven or eight, then goes to Xu; Grain Rain, tenth morning, passes the You palace; Grain Full, eleventh, arrives at Shen; Summer Solstice, tenth day, goes seeking Wei; Great Heat, tenth morning, rides the horse and goes; End of Heat, tenth day, enters the Snake country; Autumn Equinox, tenth day, under the Dragon Pool; Frost’s Descent, fourteenth, at the center of Mao; Minor Search, thirteenth, goes up to Yin; Winter Solstice, ninth day, hides in the Chou palace. These are the sun’s moving degrees—in the sixteen palaces it never pauses.”

Also according to the Chen Zixing Cangshu:

The sun’s moving degrees do not move in vain; Great Cold fifth day Zi greets.

Rain Water five days rests on Hai; Spring Equinox seventh day Xu is clear.

Grain Rain ninth morning reaches You; Grain Full tenth day passes the middle.

Summer Solstice ninth morning returns to Wei; Great Heat ninth day travels within Wu.

End of Heat must add ten at Si; Autumn Equinox twelve first comes to Chen.

Frost’s Descent thirteenth the bird leaves Mao; Minor Snow twelve first resides at Yin.

Winter Solstice eighth day comes to Chou position; in the twelve palaces it never pauses.

Both of these books were compiled in the Qing dynasty. The Chen Zixing Cangshu was compiled in the twenty-third year of Kangxi; the Xiangji Tongshu by Wei Jian in the sixtieth year of Kangxi—thirty-four years apart—yet winter solstice already differs as nine days versus eight. Though there is precession, the difference should not be so great.

According to the Lixiang Kaocheng of the fifty-third year of Kangxi: although the astronomy section cites the Western ecliptic, it also broke the original equatorial use of Chinese astronomy; so its principles were quite backward, leading to frequent confusion everywhere. It was not improved until the seventh year of Qianlong, while famous feng shui masters still used the equatorial degrees of the Song-dynasty Kaixi Calendar.

Therefore one should still follow the Xieji as standard.