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Bushi Zhengzong · The Orthodox Tradition of Divination
Refuting Errors · Life Stages, Self Body and Named Influences
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Refuting Errors about Embryo, Nourishment, Decline and Illness in Supplement to the Forest of Changes
In divination, among Birth, Bathing, Cap and Belt, Approaching Office, Imperial Peak, Decline, Illness, Death, Tomb, Extinction, Embryo and Nourishment, the hexagram gives weight to Birth, Tomb and Extinction. Bathing, Cap and Belt and the other seven items each have their own distinctions of combination, clash, generation, control, support, assistance, Advancing Spirit or Retreating Spirit.
For example, Shen and You Metal have Bathing at Wu. Metal changing into Wu is control turning back upon the original line; divining on a Wu day is control by the day. Shen changing into You is an Advancing Spirit; You changing into Shen is a Retreating Spirit. Metal changing into Wei or Xu Earth is generation turning back. Changing into Mao is Reversing Chant. Shen changing into Chen is generation turning back. You changing into Chen is changing into generation and combination.
The numinous mechanism announces itself through generation, control, restraint, transformation, combination and clash. How could Zhang Xingyuan treat Embryo and Nourishment as half-favorable signs, and Decline and Illness as half-unfavorable calamities?
If Embryo and Nourishment are half favorable, Si and Wu Fire have Birth at Yin and Embryo at Zi; Yin and Mao Wood have Embryo at You; Zi and Hai Water have Nourishment at Wei. Is changing into these Embryo and Nourishment stages a half-favorable sign, or is it changing into control turning back? There is no such half-combination.
If a Metal Useful line moves and changes into Xu Earth, it receives generation turning back: the divination is entirely favorable. Yet Zhang Xingyuan calls Decline and Illness half-unfavorable calamities. Again, Wu Fire changing into Wei Earth changes into combination. If one wishes a matter to disperse, this obstructs it; if one wishes it to succeed, it can succeed. The error of half unfavorable and half favorable misleads people deeply. Therefore I refute it.
Reading note: The source says “other seven,” although its preceding list has twelve stages, and this count is retained. The compact 如化卯日 clause is read as changing into Mao; no new day or hexagram is invented.
Refuting Errors about the Self Body in the Complete Book of Divination
The Complete Book of Divination says: If Zi or Wu holds Self, the Body occupies the first line; Chou or Wei, the second; Yin or Shen, the third; Mao or You, the fourth; Chen or Xu, the fifth; Si or Hai, the sixth.
Its commentary says: If the branch holding Self is Zi, place the Self Body at the first line. If the Self line is in Cycle Void, Month Break, penalty, clash, control or harm from the day, do not examine Self; examine the Body line. Let the Body line undertake the work of the Self line. If Body is favorable, say favorable; if unfavorable, say unfavorable.
People now follow this and greatly mistake the matter. They do not know that what matters in the hexagram is generation, control, restraint, transformation, Void, break, penalty, clash, movement and stillness.
In divining about one’s own good or ill, one should infer from Self. Self represents me, and good or ill is determined from it. If the Self line encounters misfortune but the Body line meets good fortune, does the result lie in Self’s misfortune or Body’s good fortune?
From this, the errors of such rules as Zi or Wu holding Self with Body at the first line are very great.
Distinguishing the Error of the Heavenly Physician Star
When divining about inviting a physician or using medicine, Response represents the physician and Descendants represents medicinal substances. This is an unchanging principle for all ages.
Practitioners now do not examine whether the Response line is usable, nor the Descendants line's movement, stillness, strength or decline. They simply look for the Heavenly Physician Star and say: If Heavenly Physician appears in the hexagram, medicine works and the physician can be used; if it does not, medicine fails and the physician cannot be used.
Suppose Heavenly Physician does not appear, but Response occupies a moving Descendants line, has qi, controls Ghost and generates the person. To declare the physician ignorant and medicine ineffective loses the subtle purport of Prior Heaven. Life and death can be entrusted to a physician; human lives are involved. Therefore I distinguish the error.
Refuting Errors in Reckless Discussion of the Natal Allotment
In every divination about illness, infer from the Useful Spirit. For example, a father divining about a child's illness takes the Descendants line as Useful Spirit for judging good or ill.
Practitioners now do not investigate the Useful Spirit's generation, control, restraint and transformation. They judge good or ill, life or death, from the patient's natal allotment, saying: If the natal allotment appears in the hexagram, judge life; if it does not, judge death.
If the Useful Spirit is injured without rescue, yet the natal allotment appears, should one judge certain death from the Useful Spirit's unrescued injury, or survival from the natal allotment's appearance? Later students must not recklessly judge good or ill from a patient's natal allotment.
Refuting Errors about Spirits and Baneful Stars in the Complete Book of Divination
Long ago Jing Fang wrote divination books and judged hexagrams by spirits and baneful influences. For journeys he avoided Departing Destruction; for illness, such baneful influences as Mourning Carriage, Bathing and Weeping Sound. For medicine he examined Heavenly Physician; for wealth he avoided Robbery Sha; for litigation he examined Official Talisman.
The various stars and baneful influences cannot all be listed. Later students followed them, abandoning the Five Phases' generation, control, restraint and transformation and relying wholly on these influences.
Only when Master Liu Bowen of the Ming wrote in the Rhapsody of a Thousand Gold Pieces, “Since antiquity, the many kinds of spirits and baneful influences cannot compare with the one principle of generation, control, restraint and transformation,” did the method of judging the Changes return to the orthodox tradition.
Distinguishing Errors about Noble Person, Emolument and Horse
People now often take the Noble Person line as an official, the Emolument line as salary, and Traveling Horse as a traveler returning, applying these meanings indiscriminately. They do not know that Noble Person, Emolument and Horse should be judged favorable when attached to Source or Useful Spirits.
For example, in a lifetime divination, a White Tiger Officer line holding Self together with Noble Person promises rank and reputation in military office. Without Noble Person alongside, it should be judged illness and violent oppression.
If a Noble Person line is an Avoided Spirit and moves to control or harm, one cannot call it favorable merely because it is Noble Person. If Noble Person occupies an Officer and Ghost line holding Self, one cannot call Officer and Ghost a calamity and judge it unfavorable.
For a traveler, examine the Useful Spirit. If the Useful Spirit moves with Traveling Horse, a return date may be set. If Traveling Horse moves but the Useful line is injured, one cannot infer the person's return from Traveling Horse.
In asking about salary, Wealth is the Useful Spirit. To abandon the Wealth line's good or ill and use only the Emolument line for salary is also an error. Emolument is the influence of abundance; Horse is the mansion of movement; Noble Person merely distinguishes a person's elevated or humble standing. Attached to an auspicious spirit, these three are favorable; attached to an unfavorable spirit, unfavorable. Students must not infer from them indiscriminately.
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