Analysis of marital relations using Zi Wei Dou Shu (ZWDS)
In my Chinese astrology practice course, one of the most common questions is what can I foresee about your marriage now and in the future. Since a marriage has far-reaching effects for many parties directly or indirectly involved, I hope that readers will take this opportunity to learn some general ways to assess the potential of their own marriage.
In Zi Wei Dou Shu (ZWDS), there are 12 palaces that govern the state of affairs of an individual’s life. They are the Palace of Life, the Palace of Brothers, the Palace of the Spouse, the Palace of Children, the Palace of Wealth, the Palace of Health, the Palace of Travel, the Palace of Friends, the Palace de la Carrera, the Palace of Property, the Palace of Blessings and the Palace of the Fathers. In addition to these 12 Palaces, there are 108 stars that can fall on one of these palaces and we can get a good assessment of the state of affairs of each palace by looking at the stars in each palace and the elemental nature of each palace. The elemental nature of each palace is represented by the 12 earthly branches or more commonly known as the 12 Chinese zodiac animals of rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.
As our subject of interest is marriage, the palace of interest will be the Palace of the Husband. The first step is to see in which of the 12 Earthly Branches the Palace of the Husband lands. Of the 12 Terrestrial Branches, we can group them into 4 Horses (Tiger, Monkey, Snake and Pig), 4 Storage (Dragon, Dog, Ox and Goat) and 4 Cardinals (Rat, Horse, Rabbit and Rooster). If the Husband’s Palace falls to the ground from one of the 4 Horses, it is likely to be unstable as the Horses represent movement. If the Palace of Spouses is located on one of the 4 Storage grounds, the relationship will be less open or more secret, as the name “Storage” suggests. As for the situation where the Palace of the Spouses falls to the ground of the 4 cardinals, it will seem very good, since the cardinals are also known for their high rate of romance and attractiveness in Chinese metaphysics. However, whether the marital relationship is good remains inconclusive, since if the spouse is too attractive, it can also cause negative attraction to other members of the opposite sex.
The second step would be to search for the main Zi Wei Dou Shu stars that reside in the Palace of Spouses:
If the star is Tian Xiang (Minister of the Seal), the relationship with the spouse is good since there is rapport and communication during courtship. The spouse one marries will be helpful and understanding, as Tian Xiang is a gentle star.
If the star is Tian Ji (Heavenly Counselor) or Tian Tong (The Hedonist) or Tian Liang (Heavenly Lightning) or Tai Yang (The Sun) / Tai Yin (The Moon), the relationship is likely to be friendly. This is because Tian Ji is kind and intelligent, Tian Tong is calm, while Tian Liang is someone who cares about the well-being of the people around him. However, as these 3 stars are prone to change, this will mean that the spouse may make some surprising decisions along the way that can bring some instability to the marriage. For those with The Sun or The Moon in the Spouse Palace, there is a chance that their spouse is significantly older than they are, as The Sun represents an older man, while The Moon represents an older woman. In addition to the Sun and Moon representing Day versus Night, having either of these stars will also cause the marriage to experience some kind of extremes like day or night.
If the star that resides in the Spouse’s Palace is Zi Wei (The Emperor) or Tian Fu (The Treasurer) or Ju Men (Huge Gate) or Gu Chen (Lonely One) or Gua Su (Widow) or Bing Fu (Sickness), marriage maybe somewhat challenging. This is because the Emperor and the Treasurer like to control others. Huge Door is naturally a skeptical and always suspicious character who makes the marital relationship bereft of trust. Lonesome and Widow have a lonely streak in them and are poor communicators. The disease star also makes the spouse a suspicious character.
Whether Tan Lang (Greedy Wolf) or Wen Qu (Poet) or Tian Kui (Indomitable) or Tian Yue (Nobility) reside individually, or The Sun resides together with The Moon in the Husband’s Palace, the marriage can best be described as tumultuous. . This is because The Sun, when combined with The Moon or Greedy Wolf alone, is likely to make a third party in the marriage. The Sun and the Moon also represent the contrast of day and night, which figuratively means 1 spouse in the bright and another lover whose relationship is kept secret. Covetous Wolf is known as the top romantic star due to her flirtatiousness. Poet, Indomitable, and Nobility also represent lovers in ancient Zi Wei Dou Shu texts.
If the Spouse Palace houses Wu Qu (The General) or Po Jun (Endurance Breaker) or Lian Zhen (Chastity) or Qisha (7 Kills), the marriage falters. The General is a lone star who has no equal and needs to fight. The Resistance Breaker is about breaking up and usually deals with divorce. Chastity is a star who loves anything that looks good and comes with legal implications (including divorce as a possibility). The 7 Killing is also another aggressive star who often brings up a lot of problems in marriage due to his aggression and nonconformity.