Calculating the BaZi - WanNianLi and the Philosophies Behind Chinese Astrology

Oct 12, 2026

Calculating the BaZi explains the foundations of Chinese astrology through the GanZhi system and the WanNianLi (10,000-year) lunisolar calendar. It links the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches to cyclical interactions between cosmic and earthly energies, supported by historical and astronomical context. The text outlines Dao, YinYang, and WuXing as core philosophies, describing how these principles guide birth-information analysis and how chart patterns can be applied for deeper insight into health, lifestyle, and relationship dynamics.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryGeneral

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time4 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

GanZhi, Heavenly Stems, and Earthly Branches

WanNianLi (10,000-year calendar)

Calculating the BaZi

Dao

YinYang

WuXing

Reference charts

Calculating the BaZi GanZhi BaZi Calendar The DunHuang 敦煌 star map, the world’s oldest complete star atlas to date (dated to the Tang Dynasty, 618–907 ce), suggests that the Chinese have long been “thinking in oceans,” engrossed by the mysterious yet tangible inner workings of outer space for perhaps longer than any other culture on earth. In Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, 1 Master Zhongxian Wu and I showed the connection between the patterns of the stars and the 22 ancient GanZhi干支 characters (the term “GanZhi” is the accepted shorthand of TianGan 天干, Heavenly Stems, and DiZhi地支, Earthly Branches) . Together, the GanZhi represent cyclical patterns of the interactions between and among cosmic and earthly energies. These 22 characters, the Heavenly Stems (of which there are ten) and Earthly Branches (of which there are 12), are the “alphabet” of all traditional Chinese wisdom traditions—from astrology to cosmology, from medicine to music. GanZhi has been widely used throughout China for at least 4000 years—archeological evidence from the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties depicting the GanZhi characters provides us with historical evidence of Chinese astrology as a complex science drawing on the sophisticated understandings of cosmology, astronomy, and “big picture” scholarly philosophies. It comes as no great surprise that the Chinese long ago created an all-encompassing, multidimensional calendar that systemized the mysterious yet tangible outer influences of the heavens and earth on the inner worlds ofour human experience. This calendar, the WanNianLi萬年曆(10,000-year calendar), is a lunisolar calendar that tracks the cyclical movements and energetic patterns of Daoism’s most fundamental philosophies: unity (Dao道), duality (YinYang 陰陽), the pentad (WuXing五行), and the octad (BaGua八卦). The WanNianLi is also the GanZhi calendar, by which I mean it is the one we use in our Chinese astrology practice. As it contains layers of significance, capturing the movements of several things at once, grasping the basics of the calendar can feel a little confusing at first. 1 Master Zhongxian Wu and Dr Karin Taylor Wu (2016) Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches—TianGan DiZhi: The Heart of Chinese Wisdom Traditions. London: Singing Dragon. 26 Introduction A section from the WanNianLi萬年曆(10,000-year calendar) On that note, here is a very brief overview of the philosophies upon which the calendar was built, specifically as they relate to Chinese astrology. 27 Calculating the BaZi Dao道 The Dao is the momentum of life and the source of everything, that which is without beginning and without end. As LaoZi states in the DaoDeJing道德經, there are no words that can adequately describe what the Dao truly is. With that caveat, I will simply say that the Dao expresses herself as both the great oneness as well as the path towards unity. To the best of our ability, we follow the Dao when calculating and analyzing anyone’s personal birth information. We always strive to approach the task from a heart-centered place ofwholism, trying our best to coalesce masses of patterns into one unifying picture that allows us to provide guidance and support to the very best of our ability. YinYang陰陽 YinYang is the central, most basic tenet of all Chinese wisdom traditions. Although Yin and Yang have distinguishable qualities (Yin 陰 quite literally means “shady side of the hill” and is often described as dark, feminine, hidden, passive, and lunar, whereas Yang 陽, which means “sunny side of the hill,” is seen as bright, masculine, outward, active, and solar), in truth YinYang is an interconnected, inseparable, fluid, and fluctuating union. YinYang interact with and transform each other at all times, and are the driving force behind the creation of all phenomena, those of human being, the natural world, and the cosmos. The Stems and Branches each have Yin and Yang manifestations—five Yin and five Yang Stems, six Yin and six Yang Branches—whi

FAQs

What are GanZhi in the BaZi system?

GanZhi are the 22 cyclical characters made up of Heavenly Stems (10) and Earthly Branches (12), representing interactions between cosmic and earthly energies.

What does the WanNianLi calendar track?

The WanNianLi is a lunisolar, GanZhi-based calendar that follows cyclical movements and energetic patterns tied to Daoist philosophies like unity, YinYang, WuXing, and BaGua.

How are Dao, YinYang, and WuXing used when calculating BaZi?

Dao frames life’s momentum and unity, YinYang explains interconnected transformation, and WuXing describes how elemental energies interact—together shaping how birth information is analyzed and interpreted in astrology charts.

Oct 12, 2026

Uploaded by Taylor Morgan