The 60 day pillars
In Korean Saju, the pillar of the day you were born says the most about you. Its top character is your day master, and its bottom character, an animal, sits in the “spouse seat” that shows how you are with the person closest to you. Ten day masters times six animals make 60 day pillars.
Yang Wood 甲 · a tall, straight tree
Like a tall tree growing straight toward the sky, you have clear goals and keep pushing once you decide. You would rather make your own path than lean on others, so you often end up leading. Work that often suits this day master: planning, teaching, starting a business, leading a team.
Yin Wood 乙 · vines, flowers and soft grass
Like grass that bends in the wind but never breaks, you adapt well to any setting. You connect people gently and have a practical sense for what really matters. Work that often suits this day master: counseling, service, design, negotiation.
Wood Ox 乙丑a flower pushing up through frozen ground
Wood Pig 乙亥a lotus blooming on the water
Wood Rooster 乙酉an autumn flower blooming in a crack in the rock
Wood Goat 乙未a cactus blooming in the desert
Wood Snake 乙巳a flower in full bloom under bright sunshine
Wood Rabbit 乙卯spring wildflowers spreading as far as the eye can see
Yang Fire 丙 · the sun in the sky
Like the sun that shines on everyone, you are bright, open and hard to miss. You say what you feel and bring energy into every room. Work that often suits this day master: media, marketing, sales, teaching, the stage.
Fire Tiger 丙寅the morning sun rising over a forest
Fire Rat 丙子the sun reflected on a calm lake
Fire Dog 丙戌a warm sunset glowing beyond the mountains
Fire Monkey 丙申an evening sun resting on the western hills
Fire Horse 丙午the noon sun at the height of summer
Fire Dragon 丙辰spring sunlight spilling across a wide field
Yin Fire 丁 · a candle in the dark
Like a small candle that lights up a dark room, you are warm and attentive. You may look calm on the outside, but there is deep passion and focus inside. Work that often suits this day master: research, the arts, health care, skilled specialist work.
Yang Earth 戊 · a great mountain
Like a mountain that does not move, you are solid and dependable. You are hard to shake and make room for many people, so you often end up as the one who keeps the peace. Work that often suits this day master: management and operations, real estate, public service, mediation.
Yin Earth 己 · a field that grows the harvest
Like rich farmland that turns seeds into a harvest, you help people and projects grow. You are practical and careful, and good at running a household or a budget. Work that often suits this day master: education, accounting and finance, food, HR and social work.
- Earth Snake 己巳a rich, sunlit field ready for planting
- Earth Rabbit 己卯a spring field with fresh sprouts breaking through
- Earth Ox 己丑a winter field under a blanket of snow
- Earth Pig 己亥a rich field soaked with water
- Earth Rooster 己酉an autumn field where the grain is ripening
- Earth Goat 己未a dry field under the midsummer sun
Yang Metal 庚 · raw ore and iron
Like iron before it is forged, you are strong and decisive. You don't back down from what you believe is right, and once you are loyal to someone, you stay loyal. Work that often suits this day master: military or police, engineering, sports, turnaround work.
- Metal Horse 庚午iron tempered in fire until it becomes a fine sword
- Metal Dragon 庚辰raw iron resting in a mountain where a dragon sleeps
- Metal Tiger 庚寅an axe shaping a wild forest
- Metal Rat 庚子iron washed clean in clear water
- Metal Dog 庚戌iron being tempered in a hot kiln
- Metal Monkey 庚申a pile of raw, uncut ore
Yin Metal 辛 · a polished jewel
Like a well-cut gem, you are polished and have a fine eye. Your standards are high, and you are only satisfied when the work meets them. Work that often suits this day master: finance, fashion and beauty, law, precise professional work.
Yang Water 壬 · a wide river flowing to the sea
Like a great river or the sea, you are broad-minded and think on a big scale. You would rather keep moving and learning than stay in one place, and you see the big picture. Work that often suits this day master: trade, strategy and planning, travel and international work, media.
- Water Monkey 壬申spring water bursting from a crack in the rocks
- Water Horse 壬午a river glowing with the colors of sunset
- Water Dragon 壬辰a deep lake where a dragon lives
- Water Tiger 壬寅a river running through a spring forest
- Water Rat 壬子a winter sea stretching to the horizon
- Water Dog 壬戌a great body of water held behind a dam
Yin Water 癸 · rain and morning dew
Like a quiet spring rain that soaks everything, you are gentle and highly intuitive. You help others without drawing attention and can read how people feel. Work that often suits this day master: counseling and psychology, research, writing and the arts, support roles.
- Water Rooster 癸酉a clear spring running between rocks
- Water Goat 癸未a welcome rain falling on dry land
- Water Snake 癸巳a sun shower sparkling in bright daylight
- Water Rabbit 癸卯a new sprout catching spring rain
- Water Ox 癸丑water flowing quietly beneath frozen ground
- Water Pig 癸亥a vast ocean that holds everything
How we read a day pillar
Every day in the traditional calendar has a two-character name, and the 60 names repeat in a fixed cycle. The name of the day you were born is your day pillar. Its top character is a heavenly stem, your day master: one of ten energies (Yang Wood, Yin Wood, Yang Fire and so on) that stands for you in the chart. Six day pillars share each day master, which is why this page groups them in tens.
The bottom character is an earthly branch, one of the twelve zodiac animals. In Saju it sits in the spouse seat, the place we look at for how you are with a partner and the people closest to you. Each branch holds hidden stems, and the main one is compared with your day master to give one of the ten relationships (Friend, Eating God, Direct Wealth and the rest). That relationship is the backbone of each page's love section.
We also note the day master's strength on its branch using the 12 life stages, from Birth and Prime to Tomb and Severance. A day master at Prime or Peak stands on firm ground, while one at Sickness or Death tends to work more inwardly. None of these stages is good or bad on its own.
For the year ahead, each page compares the year's two characters with the day pillar. The year's stem is read against your day master, and the year's branch against your spouse seat, looking for harmonies (six harmony, three harmony, seasonal group) and frictions (clash, punishment, break, harm, wonjin).
A day pillar is one of the four pillars in a birth chart, so two people with the same day pillar can live very different years. Real timing in love and work depends on the whole chart and the 10-year luck cycles, which you can see in a free reading. Treat these pages as a starting point for reflection, not the whole story.