Four Storehouses: Chen, Xu, Chou, Wei as Earth Branches

The four branches 辰，戌，丑, and 未 are by nature of the earth element, and they stand at the end of the four seasons respectively. Together they are called the four storehouses, and they are also called the four graves. In Chinese-metaphysics reference material, these two names point to the same four branches, but they emphasize different aspects of how the branches are understood.

四个土支的共同点

The four branches 辰，戌，丑, and 未 share a common elemental nature: their base qi is earth. They are positioned at the transitions between seasons. 辰 is the last month of spring, 未 is the last month of summer, 戌 is the last month of autumn, and 丑 is the last month of winter. Because each of them closes a season, they are treated as earth branches that gather and hold the residual influence of the preceding period.

In the standard arrangement of the twelve earthly branches, these four are grouped together as the earth branches. Their surface element is the same, but the material they store is not the same. That is why the term four storehouses is used for them as a set: they are storage positions within the branch sequence. The alternative term four graves describes the same four branches from the perspective of qi entering a closing or concealed phase.

各自收存的是哪一种余气

Each of the four storehouses contains hidden stems belonging to two other elements in addition to its own earth base qi. These hidden contents are traditionally listed as follows.

辰 stores 乙 wood and 癸 water. 戌 stores 辛 metal and 丁 fire. 丑 stores 癸 water and 辛 metal. 未 stores 乙 wood and 丁 fire.

These pairs are not arbitrary. Each storehouse is associated with the closing phase of a season, and the hidden stems represent the remaining qi of that season as well as qi moving toward the next stage. In the source material, these stored stems are classed under the general heading of residual qi, but when the hidden stems are divided into layers, the two non-earth stems in each storehouse are distinguished as central qi and residual qi.

为什么既叫库又叫墓

The hidden stems of an earthly branch are usually divided into three layers: base qi, central qi, and residual qi. The base qi is the strongest and governs the character of the branch. The central qi and residual qi are progressively weaker. In the four storehouses, earth is the base qi, while the two other stems stored in the branch are the central qi and residual qi.

This layered structure explains why the four branches are called both storehouses and graves. When the stored stems are treated as resources that can be drawn upon, the branch is called a storehouse. When the same branch is treated as a position where a stem becomes concealed, dormant, or enclosed, it is called a grave. The two terms do not refer to different branches; they refer to different readings of the same storage function.

The source facts do not present one term as more correct than the other. They present the double name as a way of indicating that these branches hold qi rather than express it openly. The surface earth element is visible, but the actual informational content of the branch lies partly in what is stored beneath that surface.

同属土，作用并不相同

Although 辰，戌，丑, and 未 all belong to earth, their functions are not the same. The difference comes from the hidden stems. If one looks only at the surface earth element of the four branches, one would conclude that they are equivalent, but that conclusion would miss the information carried by the hidden stems.

For example, 辰 and 未 both store 乙 wood, but 辰 also stores 癸 water, while 未 also stores 丁 fire. 戌 and 丑 both store 辛 metal, but 戌 also stores 丁 fire, while 丑 also stores 癸 water. These differences affect how a heavenly stem may find support in the branch.

A heavenly stem is considered to have a root in an earthly branch when a hidden stem of the same element appears among the branch’s stored stems. The central qi and residual qi directly determine whether such a root is available. A stem may find a root through the central qi or the residual qi, not only through the base qi. Therefore, the same earth branch may provide a root for one stem and not for another, depending on what it stores.

The four storehouses also occupy fixed positions in the three-combination frames. In the frame 申子辰，辰 is the final branch. In 亥卯未，未 is the final branch. In 寅午戌，戌 is the final branch. In 巳酉丑，丑 is the final branch. In each three-combination frame, the middle branch is the prosperity position of that element. The storehouse branch is the closing position.

In addition, the four storehouses form two opposing pairs. 辰 and 戌 clash with each other, and 丑 and 未 clash with each other. These oppositions are part of how the four branches interact in a chart, even though all four are earth branches by surface classification.

在对照表上怎么读这四行

When reading a standard hidden-stem reference table, each of the four storehouse branches is usually shown on its own row. The branch is listed first, followed by its base qi, central qi, and residual qi. In these four rows, the base qi is earth in every case.

For 辰, the table lists earth as the base qi, 乙 as the central qi, and 癸 as the residual qi. For 戌, it lists earth as the base qi, 辛 as the central qi, and 丁 as the residual qi. For 丑, it lists earth as the base qi, 癸 as the central qi, and 辛 as the residual qi. For 未, it lists earth as the base qi, 乙 as the central qi, and 丁 as the residual qi.

The correct way to read these four rows is not to stop at the shared earth base qi. The base qi tells you that the branch is an earth branch. The central qi and residual qi tell you what else the branch contains and therefore what it can support or release. The four rows are parallel in structure, but their content differs.

The source material cautions against treating the four storehouses as interchangeable. If only the surface earth element is read, the same conclusion would be reached for all four. That would discard the stored stems and the distinctions they carry. The four rows in a reference table are therefore read as sets: the base qi identifies the branch’s dominant character, while the central and residual qi identify the hidden resources or dormant influences present in that branch.

Because the four storehouses appear at the end of the seasonal sequence, their hidden contents are understood as transitional. They hold what remains of the outgoing season and, in some readings, what is preparing to emerge later. The table format preserves this by listing the stronger stored stem as central qi and the weaker stored stem as residual qi, with earth always occupying the base position.

In summary, the four storehouses are four earth branches that share a base element but differ in their stored stems, their combination-frame positions, and their opposition pairs. Their double name as storehouses and graves reflects the same branches seen as either holding resources or enclosing dormant qi. In reference use, the four rows should be read with attention to all three layers of hidden stems, not only to the surface earth element.