Wu Earth in the Di Tian Sui: "Solid and Weighty," Line by Line
Wu Earth (戊) is yang Earth, usually pictured as a mountain, a city wall, thick heavy earth. The Di Tian Sui gives it eight four-character lines: 戊土固重，既中且正，靜翕動闢，萬物司命，水潤物生，火燥物病，若在艮坤，怕沖宜靜。 This page takes the verse apart line by line and tests the lines that set out checkable conditions against real charts. For Wu Earth as you, your personality, career and relationships, see Wu Earth Day Master.
The verse, line by line
| Original | In English | Plain reading |
|---|---|---|
| 戊土固重，既中且正 | Wu Earth is solid and weighty, both central and upright. | Wu Earth is a high mountain and thick earth, yang Earth: steady, sitting at the center and upright. |
| 靜翕動闢，萬物司命 | At rest it gathers in, in motion it opens out; it holds the life of all things in its keeping. | At rest it draws in; in motion it opens out. It presides over the growth of all things. |
| 水潤物生，火燥物病 | Moistened by Water, things grow; parched by Fire, things sicken. | With Water to moisten it, things can grow; when Fire is too strong and bakes the earth dry, things fall ill. |
| 若在艮坤，怕沖宜靜 | If it sits at Gen or Kun, it fears a clash and should keep still. | Born in the months at Yin (Gen) or Shen (Kun), Wu Earth fears a clash most of all, and does better keeping still than moving. |
Text follows the Di Tian Sui Chan Wei (滴天髓闡微), the edition with Ren Tieqiao's commentary. Commentators over the centuries have read some lines differently; we follow the more widely accepted reading.
How often the verse's conditions show up in real charts
Some lines set out conditions that can be checked on a chart: the season, whether a certain stem appears, whether an element runs heavy. Of the 16,802 charts our engine cast, about 1,680 have Wu Earth as the day stem. Here is how they fall:
| Line | Condition checked | Share of charts |
|---|---|---|
| 水潤物生 (Moistened by Water, things grow) | Water shows on a stem | 57.3% have Water on a stem; 5.6% have no Water at all |
| 火燥物病 (parched by Fire, things sicken) | Fire runs heavy and there is no Water | 1.7% |
| 若在艮坤 (If it sits at Gen or Kun) | Born in a Yin or Shen month, with a Yin–Shen clash in the chart | Yin or Shen month: 16.5%; with the clash: 4.6% |
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, about 1,680 for each day stem. Each percentage uses that day stem's charts as the base. This describes how chart structures are distributed; it says nothing about anyone's luck.
Wu Earth meets the other nine stems
| Meets | Element | Relationship | Combine / clash |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jia Wood | Wood | It controls me | — |
| Yi Wood | Wood | It controls me | — |
| Bing Fire | Fire | It produces me | — |
| Ding Fire | Fire | It produces me | — |
| Ji Earth | Earth | Same element, opposite polarity | — |
| Geng Metal | Metal | I produce it | — |
| Xin Metal | Metal | I produce it | — |
| Ren Water | Water | I control it | — |
| Gui Water | Water | I control it | Combine (transforming to Fire) |
"I" in the table means Wu Earth. For the full rules on stem combinations and clashes, see the Ten Heavenly Stems and stem and branch relations. When Wu Earth is the day stem, these relationships become the Ten Gods; see the Ten Gods.
Wu Earth on the year, month or hour stem
When Wu Earth is not on the day pillar, it speaks about the area of life its position stands for: on the year stem, the mountain quality in your family and early surroundings; on the month stem, the mountain quality on your stage at work; on the hour stem, later life and long-term plans. Whether it helps or pressures you depends on how it relates to your day stem (the table above) and on your favorable elements.
What Wu Earth needs in each birth month
The Di Tian Sui describes Wu Earth's general nature. The Qiong Tong Bao Jian goes further and sets out, month by month, what Wu Earth takes for climate adjustment in each of the twelve months; see Wu Earth climate by month.
Your day stem in the Di Tian Sui: the verse's conditions, checked one by one
Enter your date of birth (the hour is optional). You will see your day stem's verse, whether each line that sets out a checkable condition holds in your chart, and whether your year, month and hour stems produce, control or combine with your day stem. Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Uses your Gregorian birth date, with the day changing at 11 p.m. "On a stem" means it appears on the year, month or hour stem; "hidden in the branches" means it appears among the hidden stems of the branches.
A straight word: an old verse is a point of view, not a verdict
The Di Tian Sui is one of the most respected classical texts on BaZi from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and its section on the ten stems sums up each stem's nature and needs in four-character lines. Its strength is its brevity, and so is its weakness: commentators over the centuries have read the same line in different ways. We test the lines that set out checkable conditions against real charts and present the rest as written, without stretching them into predictions of good or bad fortune. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment.
Does your chart have what Wu Earth needs?
Enter your birth date to check your day stem's verse conditions one by one on your chart, and see whether your year, month and hour stems produce, control or combine with it.
Wu Earth (Heavenly Stem) FAQ
What is the Di Tian Sui verse on Wu Earth?
戊土固重，既中且正，靜翕動闢，萬物司命，水潤物生，火燥物病，若在艮坤，怕沖宜靜。 In English: "Wu Earth is solid and weighty, both central and upright. At rest it gathers in, in motion it opens out; it holds the life of all things in its keeping. Moistened by Water, things grow; parched by Fire, things sicken. If it sits at Gen or Kun, it fears a clash and should keep still." Eight lines in all.
What does "Wu Earth is solid and weighty, both central and upright" mean?
Wu Earth is a high mountain and thick earth, yang Earth: steady, sitting at the center and upright.
What does "At rest it gathers in, in motion it opens out; it holds the life of all things in its keeping" mean?
At rest it draws in; in motion it opens out. It presides over the growth of all things.
What is the imagery of Wu Earth?
Wu Earth is yang Earth, usually pictured as a mountain, a city wall, thick heavy earth. The other Earth stem is Ji Earth; with the opposite polarity, it behaves quite differently.