Nine-star systems in calendars
The numbered sequence
A nine-star calendar entry combines a number from one to nine with a colour and a five-phase association. “One White Water” and “Nine Purple Fire” are examples. Year, month, day and hour entries can each have their own value. The number identifies a traditional classification, not a star's brightness or its observed position in the sky.
The spatial framework is the jiugong (九宫), or nine palaces: eight surrounding positions and a centre. A chart places the numbered stars in these palaces. In moving or “flying” arrangements, the numbers shift through the palaces according to the calculation's rules. A diagram can be named after the number and colour occupying its centre, which is why an almanac may print one label where a full chart shows nine positions.
Several divinatory traditions use nine-star arrangements. Almanac displays may distinguish name sets labelled Xuan Kong, Qi Men and Tai Yi. Their shared numbering provides a way to compare names, but the traditions have different methods of calculation and interpretation.
Nine-star reference
The final column gives each number's base palace and direction. These are the starting correspondences, not the position that the number must occupy in every moving chart. Kan, Kun and the other palace names come from the eight trigrams, with the centre forming the ninth position. “Jade” for number three translates bi, a blue-green colour term, and remains distinct from Green at number four.
| Number | Colour | Phase | Base palace and direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | White | Water | Kan · North |
| 2 | Black | Earth | Kun · Southwest |
| 3 | Jade | Wood | Zhen · East |
| 4 | Green | Wood | Xun · Southeast |
| 5 | Yellow | Earth | Centre |
| 6 | White | Metal | Qian · Northwest |
| 7 | Red | Metal | Dui · West |
| 8 | White | Earth | Gen · Northeast |
| 9 | Purple | Fire | Li · South |
The following table compares three name sets used in almanac entries. Tai Yi here labels the set beginning Taiyi, Sheti and Xuanyuan. The column is a name lookup, not a complete account of Tai Yi divination.
| Number | Xuan Kong name | Qi Men name | Tai Yi name |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tanlang 贪狼 | Tianpeng 天蓬 | Taiyi 太乙 |
| 2 | Jumen 巨门 | Tianrui 天芮 | Sheti 摄提 |
| 3 | Lucun 禄存 | Tianchong 天冲 | Xuanyuan 轩辕 |
| 4 | Wenqu 文曲 | Tianfu 天辅 | Zhaoyao 招摇 |
| 5 | Lianzhen 廉贞 | Tianqin 天禽 | Tianfu 天符 |
| 6 | Wuqu 武曲 | Tianxin 天心 | Qinglong 青龙 |
| 7 | Pojun 破军 | Tianzhu 天柱 | Xianchi 咸池 |
| 8 | Zuofu 左辅 | Tianren 天任 | Taiyin 太阴 |
| 9 | Youbi 右弼 | Tianying 天英 | Tianyi 天乙 |
Tianfu 天辅 in the Qi Men column and Tianfu 天符 in the Tai Yi column are different names despite their shared romanisation.
Reading a daily entry
A daily almanac may show an annual star alongside monthly, daily or hourly stars. Each value describes its own interval. The daily value is not obtained simply by copying the annual one, and the base direction in the reference table does not by itself show where a star falls in a chart for that date.
A name or auspiciousness judgement belongs to the system under which it is printed. A favourable label in one name set cannot be substituted for a judgement in another. More detailed readings also consider the arrangement of the chart rather than treating a number as an overall rating of the day.
The year and month boundaries are part of the calculation. Annual entries can use Chinese New Year or Lichun, Beginning of Spring. Solar-term-based month entries may change at midnight on the term's date or at the term's exact instant. Near one of these boundaries, the same civil date can fall into different intervals under different conventions.