Metal Nayin: Gold in the Sea, Sword-Edge Metal, White Wax Metal, Gold in the Sand, Gold Foil, Hairpin and Bracelet Metal
When someone says "I'm a Gold in the Sea life," they mean the Nayin of their year pillar. There are six kinds of Metal life, and each has an image of its own. Metal pictures hardness, decisiveness and refinement. Some Metal Nayin lie hidden and wait for their time (Gold in the Sea, Gold in the Sand), some are already finished objects (Sword-Edge Metal, Hairpin and Bracelet Metal), one is still being smelted (White Wax Metal), and one is thin and ornate (Gold Foil).
The six Metal Nayin at a glance
| Nayin | Stem-branch pair | What it pictures | Birth years (from the Start of Spring) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold in the Sea (海中金) | Jia-Zi, Yi-Chou | Gold lying at the bottom of the sea, a treasure kept out of sight until its time comes | 1924, 1925, 1984, 1985 |
| Sword-Edge Metal (劍鋒金) | Ren-Shen, Gui-You | The metal of a blade's edge, sharp and hard, the most refined of all | 1932, 1933, 1992, 1993 |
| White Wax Metal (白蠟金) | Geng-Chen, Xin-Si | Metal still being smelted, not yet in shape, needing fire to finish it | 1940, 1941, 2000, 2001 |
| Gold in the Sand (沙中金) | Jia-Wu, Yi-Wei | Gold mixed in sand, which only shines once it has been panned | 1954, 1955, 2014, 2015 |
| Gold Foil (金箔金) | Ren-Yin, Gui-Mao | Gold leaf, thin and ornate, laid over something else | 1962, 1963, 2022, 2023 |
| Hairpin and Bracelet Metal (釵釧金) | Geng-Xu, Xin-Hai | Metal made into hairpins and bracelets, delicate and valued for its beauty | 1970, 1971, 2030, 2031 |
Years change at the Start of Spring: if you were born before it, you take the previous year's pillar. If your birthday falls between late January and mid-February, check with the tool below.
A Metal life does not mean "add more Metal"
How we counted: our engine cast one chart for every day from 1960 to 2005, with the birth hour drawn by a fixed-seed random sample, 16,802 charts in all. The year life is taken from the year pillar with the year changing at the Start of Spring; favorable and unfavorable elements come from this site's strength engine.
"I'm a Metal life, so I should wear more white" is a common mistake. The Nayin is only a symbol taken from the year pillar, and in our sample the year-life Nayin element is favorable in just 45.3% of charts. What you should strengthen comes from your favorable elements.
Nayin production, control and marriage matching
Classical marriage matching often compared two people's year lives: Earth produces Metal is a producing match, Fire controls Metal a controlling one. But the classics also carve out exceptions based on the images; for example, the classics say "unfinished" Metal such as Gold in the Sea and Gold in the Sand actually needs Fire to be forged into something useful. Schools disagree on the details. Our compatibility reading looks at how two whole charts interact; the year-life Nayin is reference only, and a "controlling" Nayin pair is never taken to mean a bad match.
Find your Nayin: which "life" are you?
Enter your date of birth to see your year-life Nayin (with the year changing at the Start of Spring), the Nayin of all four pillars and what each pictures, and whether your year-life element is one of your favorable elements. If you were born between late January and mid-February, the tool also shows what changes if the year is counted from Lunar New Year. Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Your year life needs only your date of birth; the hour only affects the hour pillar's Nayin and the favorable-element check.
A straight word: your Nayin is a classical symbol, not your whole chart
The Nayin element is a "year life" worked out from the year pillar. It was widely used in classical marriage matching and date selection, but Zi Ping BaZi reads a person from the Day Master and the interplay of the four pillars. In our sample, the year-life Nayin element is one of the chart's favorable elements in only 45.3% of cases and an unfavorable one in 48.1%, about as good as a coin toss. Enjoy the Nayin as an image; for what to strengthen and which way to go, look at your favorable elements. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment.
Which Metal life are you?
Enter your birth date to see your year-life Nayin, the Nayin of all four pillars, and whether it is one of your favorable elements.
Metal Nayin FAQ
What are the six Metal Nayin?
Gold in the Sea (Jia-Zi and Yi-Chou); Sword-Edge Metal (Ren-Shen and Gui-You); White Wax Metal (Geng-Chen and Xin-Si); Gold in the Sand (Jia-Wu and Yi-Wei); Gold Foil (Ren-Yin and Gui-Mao); Hairpin and Bracelet Metal (Geng-Xu and Xin-Hai).
Which birth years are Gold in the Sea?
People whose year pillar is Jia-Zi and Yi-Chou. Between 1924 and 2043 that is 1924, 1925, 1984, 1985, with the year changing at the Start of Spring.
Does a Metal life need more Metal?
Not necessarily. The Nayin is a year-life symbol; what to strengthen depends on your favorable elements. In our sample the year-life Nayin element is favorable in only 45.3% of charts.