Geng Metal in All Twelve Months: Useful Gods from the Qiong Tong Bao Jian
The same Geng Metal Day Master born in deep winter and in high summer needs completely different things. The Qiong Tong Bao Jian, a Qing-era classic on climate adjustment, goes through all twelve months for Geng Metal one by one. This page puts them in a single table, then checks how close they come to the favorable elements our engine works out from the whole chart.
Useful gods for each month
| Month | Climate | Useful gods (first choice in bold, Ten God in brackets) | At least one among our favorable elements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yin month (early spring, ~Feb 4 – Mar 5) | lingering cold | Wu Earth (Indirect Resource), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth), Ren Water (Eating God), Bing Fire (Seven Killings), Ding Fire (Direct Officer) | 100% |
| Mao month (mid-spring, ~Mar 6 – Apr 4) | Wood at its peak | Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth), Geng Metal (Friend), Bing Fire (Seven Killings) | 100% |
| Chen month (late spring, ~Apr 5 – May 5) | damp Earth in command | Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth), Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Ren Water (Eating God), Gui Water (Hurting Officer) | 49.3% |
| Si month (early summer, ~May 6 – Jun 5) | Fire rising | Ren Water (Eating God), Wu Earth (Indirect Resource), Bing Fire (Seven Killings), Ding Fire (Direct Officer) | 100% |
| Wu month (midsummer, ~Jun 6 – Jul 6) | scorching heat | Ren Water (Eating God), Gui Water (Hurting Officer) | 57.1% |
| Wei month (late summer, ~Jul 7 – Aug 7) | dry Earth in command | Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth) | 38.7% |
| Shen month (early autumn, ~Aug 8 – Sep 7) | Metal emerging | Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth) | 62.8% |
| You month (mid-autumn, ~Sep 8 – Oct 7) | Metal at its peak | Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth), Bing Fire (Seven Killings) | 79.3% |
| Xu month (late autumn, ~Oct 8 – Nov 6) | dry Earth in command | Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth), Ren Water (Eating God) | 76.8% |
| Hai month (early winter, ~Nov 7 – Dec 6) | cold setting in | Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Bing Fire (Seven Killings) | 34.3% |
| Zi month (midwinter, ~Dec 7 – Jan 5) | bitter cold | Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth), Bing Fire (Seven Killings) | 35.8% |
| Chou month (late winter, ~Jan 6 – Feb 3) | frozen, damp Earth | Bing Fire (Seven Killings), Ding Fire (Direct Officer), Jia Wood (Indirect Wealth) | 65.7% |
Useful gods follow the commonly circulated table of the Qiong Tong Bao Jian, listed roughly in order of priority. The original text often chooses differently depending on the rest of the chart; the table gathers all those cases into one list. Across the twelve months, the most frequent first choice is Ding Fire (6 months). Month dates are approximate and shift by a day or two each year with the solar terms.
The four seasons at a glance
| Season | Months | What the table emphasizes |
|---|---|---|
| Spring | Yin, Mao, Chen | For Yin month the common table lists Wu, Jia, Ren, Bing and Ding, while the original text sums it up as "Bing and Jia are best, Ding Fire next." Mao month takes Ding, Jia, Geng and Bing; Chen month takes Jia, Ding, Ren and Gui. |
| Summer | Si, Wu, Wei | Si month takes Ren, Wu, Bing and Ding. In Wu month the Fire is strong enough to melt Metal, so Ren and Gui. Wei month takes Ding and Jia. |
| Autumn | Shen, You, Xu | In autumn Metal is strong, and the key is Ding Fire to forge it with Jia Wood to kindle the Ding; in You month Bing Fire assists. Xu month takes Jia and Ren. |
| Winter | Hai, Zi, Chou | In winter the Metal is cold and the Water chilly: Hai month takes Ding and Bing, Zi month Ding, Jia and Bing, Chou month Bing, Ding and Jia. |
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).
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.
Are you a Geng Metal Day Master?
Enter your birth date to see which useful gods the Qiong Tong Bao Jian gives for your birth month, and whether they are among your favorable elements.
Geng Metal climate adjustment FAQ
What is the useful god for Geng Metal born in Yin month?
The common Qiong Tong Bao Jian table lists Wu Earth, Jia Wood, Ren Water, Bing Fire and Ding Fire, with Wu Earth as the first choice.
What is the useful god for Geng Metal born in Zi month?
The table lists Ding Fire, Jia Wood and Bing Fire, with Ding Fire as the first choice.
Is the Geng Metal climate useful god the same as my favorable element?
Not necessarily. In our test, the first-choice climate useful god for Geng Metal matched our top favorable element 12.7% of the time, and at least one of the listed useful gods was among the favorable elements 66.7% of the time. Favorable elements also depend on the strength of the whole chart and how warm or cold it already runs.