Qiong Tong Bao Jian Table: Useful Gods for Ten Day Masters in Twelve Months
The Qiong Tong Bao Jian, a Qing-era classic on climate adjustment, is written in an unusual way. Instead of starting from strength, it goes straight to Day Master and birth month and names the useful god (用神) each most needs. Jia Wood in winter mostly takes Bing Fire first; Geng Metal in summer mostly takes Ren Water first. This page gathers all 120 cells into one table and checks how far it lands from a whole-chart reading.
The twelve months
The book counts months by Earthly Branch, starting from Yin month at Start of Spring. Months follow the solar terms, so the dates below are approximate and shift by a day or two each year.
| Month | Approx. dates | Season | Climate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yin | Feb 4 – Mar 5 | Early spring | Lingering cold |
| Mao | Mar 6 – Apr 4 | Mid-spring | Wood at its peak |
| Chen | Apr 5 – May 5 | Late spring | Damp Earth in command |
| Si | May 6 – Jun 5 | Early summer | Fire rising |
| Wu | Jun 6 – Jul 6 | Midsummer | Scorching heat |
| Wei | Jul 7 – Aug 7 | Late summer | Dry Earth in command |
| Shen | Aug 8 – Sep 7 | Early autumn | Metal emerging |
| You | Sep 8 – Oct 7 | Mid-autumn | Metal at its peak |
| Xu | Oct 8 – Nov 6 | Late autumn | Dry Earth in command |
| Hai | Nov 7 – Dec 6 | Early winter | Cold setting in |
| Zi | Dec 7 – Jan 5 | Midwinter | Bitter cold |
| Chou | Jan 6 – Feb 3 | Late winter | Frozen, damp Earth |
Ten Day Masters × twelve months
| Day Master | Yin | Mao | Chen | Si | Wu | Wei | Shen | You | Xu | Hai | Zi | Chou |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jia Wood | Bing Gui | Geng Bing Ding Wu Ji | Geng Ding Ren | Gui Ding Geng | Gui Ding Geng | Gui Ding Geng | Geng Ding Ren | Geng Ding Bing | Geng Jia Ding Ren Gui | Geng Ding Bing Wu | Ding Geng Bing | Ding Geng Bing |
| Yi Wood | Bing Gui | Bing Gui | Gui Bing Wu | Gui | Gui Bing | Gui Bing | Bing Gui Ji | Gui Bing Ding | Gui Xin | Bing Wu | Bing | Bing |
| Bing Fire | Ren Geng | Ren Ji | Ren Jia | Ren Gui Geng | Ren Geng | Ren Geng | Ren Wu | Ren Gui | Jia Ren | Jia Wu Geng Ren | Ren Wu Ji | Ren Jia |
| Ding Fire | Jia Geng | Geng Jia | Jia Geng | Jia Geng | Ren Geng Gui | Jia Ren Geng | Jia Geng Bing Wu | Jia Geng Bing Wu | Jia Geng Wu | Jia Geng | Jia Geng | Jia Geng |
| Wu Earth | Bing Jia Gui | Bing Jia Gui | Jia Bing Gui | Jia Bing Gui | Ren Jia Bing | Gui Bing Jia | Bing Gui Jia | Bing Gui | Jia Bing Gui | Jia Bing | Bing Jia | Bing Jia |
| Ji Earth | Bing Geng Jia | Jia Gui Bing | Bing Gui Jia | Gui Bing | Gui Bing | Gui Bing | Bing Gui | Bing Gui | Jia Bing Gui | Bing Jia Wu | Bing Jia Wu | Bing Jia Wu |
| Geng Metal | Wu Jia Ren Bing Ding | Ding Jia Geng Bing | Jia Ding Ren Gui | Ren Wu Bing Ding | Ren Gui | Ding Jia | Ding Jia | Ding Jia Bing | Jia Ren | Ding Bing | Ding Jia Bing | Bing Ding Jia |
| Xin Metal | Ji Ren Geng | Ren Jia | Ren Jia | Ren Jia Gui | Ren Ji Gui | Ren Geng Jia | Ren Jia Wu | Ren Jia | Ren Jia | Ren Bing | Bing Wu Ren Jia | Bing Ren Wu Ji |
| Ren Water | Geng Bing Wu | Wu Xin Geng | Jia Geng | Ren Xin Geng Gui | Gui Geng Xin | Xin Jia | Wu Ding | Jia Geng | Jia Bing | Wu Bing Geng | Wu Bing | Bing Ding Jia |
| Gui Water | Xin Bing | Geng Xin | Bing Xin Jia | Xin | Geng Xin Ren Gui | Geng Xin Ren Gui | Ding | Xin Bing | Xin Jia Ren Gui | Geng Xin Wu Ding | Bing Xin | Bing Ding |
Stems in each cell are listed roughly in order of priority; the first is the first choice. Based on the commonly circulated table; cells where that table differs from the original text (Jia Wood in Si, Wu and Wei months; Xin Metal in Hai, Zi and Chou months) have been checked against the original. For Geng Metal in Yin month the original sums up as "Bing and Jia are best, Ding Fire next," while the table also lists Wu and Ren; we show the table and note this on the Geng Metal page. Months follow the solar terms: Yin month begins at Start of Spring (see how the month pillar works).
How we counted: our engine cast one chart for every day from 1960 to 2005, with the birth hour drawn at random from a fixed seed, 16,802 charts in all, and compared the Qiong Tong Bao Jian's useful gods for that Day Master and month with the favorable elements our engine worked out.
Find your climate useful gods
Enter your date of birth to find your Day Master and birth month, see which useful gods the Qiong Tong Bao Jian lists for them, and check each one against the favorable elements our engine works out from your whole chart. Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Uses your Gregorian birth date. The month follows the solar terms, not the calendar month: Yin month begins at Start of Spring, Mao month at Awakening of Insects, and so on (see how the month pillar works).
Looking it up versus reading the whole chart
| Qiong Tong Bao Jian lookup | Our favorable elements | |
|---|---|---|
| Based on | Day Master and birth month | Strength, temperature, and illness and remedy across the whole chart |
| Strength | Intuitive; gives a direction at a glance | Accounts for how much Fire and Water the chart already holds |
| Limit | Charts born in the same month differ a lot; the table can only say "usually" | Needs the full chart |
| How we use it | Listed for reference | Supporting and suppressing as the base, climate to fill gaps |
The two do not fight each other. At least one listed useful god falls among our favorable elements 85.2% of the time, so they broadly point the same way. The first choice often differs, though, because our engine first asks whether the Day Master can carry its load. For the principle behind the table, see climate adjustment.
Three common misunderstandings
The useful god in the table is my favorable element.
The table says what people born in that month usually need. In our test, the book's first choice matched our top favorable element only 35.3% of the time.
The Qiong Tong Bao Jian is only about hot and cold.
The book also deals with strength and with illness and remedy: strong spring Wood is pruned with Geng Metal, dry summer Earth is moistened with Ren Water. The common table merges all these cases, which is why one cell often holds several useful gods.
The month is the calendar month, Gregorian or lunar.
Months follow the solar terms: Yin month starts only after Start of Spring, Mao month only after Awakening of Insects.
Month by month for each Day Master
A straight word: the Qiong Tong Bao Jian is a good map, but it is not your location
The Qiong Tong Bao Jian lists useful gods by Day Master and birth month, which tells you what people born in that month usually need. Two people born in the same month can still hold very different amounts of Fire and Water. In our own test, the book's first choice matched the top favorable element our engine worked out from the whole chart only 35.3% of the time; at least one of the listed useful gods was among the favorable elements 85.2% of the time. Use it for a sense of direction, and read the whole chart in the end. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment.
After the table, read the whole chart
The favorable elements lookup weighs supporting and suppressing, climate, and illness and remedy together, and tells you what this particular chart actually needs.
Qiong Tong Bao Jian FAQ
What is the Qiong Tong Bao Jian?
A BaZi classic handed down from the Qing dynasty, also called Lan Jiang Wang. It lists the climate useful god each of the ten Day Masters needs in each of the twelve months, and is the best-known text of the climate-first school.
What is the useful god for Jia Wood born in Yin month?
The common table lists Bing Fire and Gui Water: in early spring the cold has not yet lifted, so Bing Fire comes first to warm the chart and Gui Water to nourish the roots.
Can I use the climate useful-god table as my favorable elements?
As a reference, yes, but not on its own. In our test the book's first choice matched our top favorable element only 35.3% of the time; you still have to look at the strength of the whole chart and how warm or cold it already runs.
Should the month be counted by the Gregorian or the lunar calendar?
Neither: by the solar terms. Yin month begins at Start of Spring, Mao month at Awakening of Insects, and so on.