Contents
This article is about compatibility in Chinese Astrology. Specifically, it is about the BaZi type of destiny reading – the most famous in Asia.
Compatibility in Chinese Astrology: 1 036 800 variations, not 12 X 12 animals
I must make it clear from the start that there are 518,400 variations in a single BaZi chart. Multiply that by 2 and you get 1 036 800. This does not include the different gender, Luck Pillars and Annual Pillars variations. Otherwise the number would go up to a few million per person.
Compare that with the 12 animals compatibility that passes for Chinese Astrology. I mean, people basing the whole compatibility on the year branch/animal. Is this Chinese Astrology? Of course not! No BaZi classical source that I know of gives individual meanings to the branches/animals. Let alone interpretations for when someone is born in the year of the Tiger vs someone born in the year of the Horse, etc. As such, ALL internet websites that base their compatibility interpretation on the 12 animals only are offering pseudo Chinese Astrology and deceive the public.
Why the topic of compatibility is important and does not involve couples only
The topic of compatibility between individual charts has always been one of the most crucial ones in human society. This is for a number of reasons, the main one being that human beings are not only socially oriented, but everything one wants to achieve in life depends on their relationships with other people: family, clients, employers, acquaintances, friends, sexual partners, strangers, and so on.
I want to make it clear that comparing the horoscopes of two people, whether it will be called compatibility or synastry, whether it will be done with Western or Chinese Astrology, the method itself is not limited to couples of any sexual orientation. Ancient Western authors, such as Claudius Ptolemy (2 century CE), contain material for comparing horoscopes not only of couples, but also of friends, enemies, and so on.
Industries devoted to relationships between people
Another thing to note is that there are whole industries dedicated to dealing with people’s relationships, but especially between partners/couples. I cannot deny that some of the books on this subject are useful. After all, they are written by practitioners with years of experience and people at a deep level do have similar needs. However, there is something deeper and more intimate than that, namely personal destiny, shown by your natal chart.
In other words, without considering a native’s horoscope that applies to him/her alone, even the best specialists in any social field can only give general advice based on assigning you to a group and how this group reacts in certain circumstances. Again, although this might be useful, people are very complex individuals, composed of layers under layers and sophistication, which can be revealed in their fullness only by the reliance on the eternal principles/laws of this reality.
General principles and laws for compatibility in Chinese Astrology and Yi Jing
These principles and laws, in their general form, are dealt with and elucidated by the I Ching/Yi Jing – The Book of Changes (hexagrams 31, 32 and 37 concerning the subject of my article). And the I Ching is not only one of the oldest books and the oldest oracle, but a book full of wisdom. It is, however, written in a deceptively simple way that masks its incredible depth and multiplicity. Even if the gigantic differences in the various translations of this book could be overlooked, one would just have it translated into a modern language.
But it is one thing to read a book, it is quite different to understand it, which is especially valid for Chinese Metaphysics and Ancient Astrology. The key thing is that even if one is able to decode the hexagrams from the Yi Jing, the book itself is just the beginning. It gives the general rules, but how these rules will manifest in the lives of individuals is examined by Heaven Luck, namely Astrology.
When it comes to compatibility between individual horoscopes, the topic is multi-layered and can be viewed from different angles. This also applies both to compatibility in Four Pillars of Destiny and in (Ancient) Western Astrology. Despite these options of entering the horoscope, the fundamental principles must always be followed over the secondary and tertiary ones. What do I mean?
Fundamental principles of compatibility in Chinese Astrology
In this case, the fundamental principle is that everyone’s fate is different. Because of this fact, each person takes part in different relationships (family, friendly, love, professional, etc.) based on their destiny shown in his or her horoscope. Of course, in order to have relationships, at least two people, are needed. In other words, the second person in the relationship looks at the relationships in his/her life according to his/her own chart. And here is the first major mistake that the vast majority of astrologers make.
This mistake is that before making an astrological compatibility consultation, it is absolutely essential to read the people’s individual charts. This is because of several reasons that could be summed up in the essence of (Ancient) Astrology, namely, that it shows the Path a Spirit chooses during this life of theirs.
In other words, the BaZi method, in this case, shows what a Spirit needs. Therefore, what the Spirit has chosen to experience. Of course, this does not only apply only to relationships with others, but also to the other major spheres of life. So the compatibility between two people can only be investigated after first establishing what each of them is looking for/what and what he/she needs. Only then can the BaZi astrologer examine to what extent the combination of the two charts is in sync with the needs of the people in question.
The inexplicable synastry cases due to disregarding the principles
If this absolute fundamental principle is disregarded in the study of compatibility with Astrology, there are relatively frequent cases in which the compatibility/synastry between the two horoscopes is very good or even excellent and the relationship between the people gets broken/ends.
Accordingly, one hears explanations of the kind of “free will,” “the complexity of human relationships”, “the modern dynamic way of life” and similar secondary and third-party factors. While somewhat valid, these factors are far below the fundamental and eternal ones. Such astrologers who do not read the individual horoscopes of the two or more people in question, but go directly to analyzing their synastry/compatibility, do not take into account the key factor I explained above.
Whether a given relationship/partnership stands a chance if it does not meet the above criteria
Here’s an example: in your own chart, your partner and your relationship with him/her is described in an X way. You meet a person who you have with a strong attraction with, you are a great fit/have great synastry. This is immediately seen when comparing your horoscopes. Even though you both want both the relationship and there are external indications that he/she is the one for you, unless the relationship between you is not described in the same X way, it relationship will not last.
This is because, despite the strong attraction and harmony between you, there is no matching at the level of Life path that subordinates the information displayed only by the compatibility, which neglects the individual needs of the given Spirit /native in this life.
Here is another example: if there are indications that your partner will have physical problems, he will be sick, etc, and you meet a rich man who is healthy, even if you have a nice compatibility between your Four Pillars of Destiny horoscopes, he will not be your life partner.
Another example: if there are indications that your partner will travel a lot or live abroad, even if you encounter a very attractive woman with whom there is a mutual attraction/connection, good synastry, etc., she will not be your life partner.
I want to make it clear that this does not mean that you cannot have a relationship with such people if you both choose to do so. This is where Man Luck comes in. What this means is this relationship will not last because it is not what you are ultimately looking for.
As far as the strong attraction in question is concerned, how it happens, how it is determined, when it happens, why it does not remain the same, I will touch it on in the second part of this article.