The Sixty Jiazi are the sixty stem-branch combinations formed by pairing the ten Heavenly Stems with the twelve Earthly Branches in sequence — from "Jia-Zi" to "Gui-Hai," one full cycle of 60, commonly called "one jiazi," i.e. sixty years.
How the Cycle Works
Ten stems and twelve branches pair in order: Jia-Zi, Yi-Chou, Bing-Yin, Ding-Mao… and **yang stems pair only with yang branches, yin with yin** — so it is not 10×12 = 120 but half that, **60**. The least common multiple of 10 and 12 is 60; one full turn is the Sixty Jiazi, repeating endlessly.
Na Yin and Use
- Each jiazi pair corresponds to a [Na Yin](/bazi/glossary/na-yin) element (Jia-Zi and Yi-Chou are "Gold in the Sea"), thirty Na Yin in all.
- The Sixty Jiazi mark year, month, day, and hour — a BaZi chart's four pillars are essentially four of the sixty jiazi.
- Much destiny material is organized by jiazi unit, such as the sixty day-pillar and sixty year-pillar character readings.
Common Misconception
**"Stems and branches can pair freely into 120 combinations."** Because yin and yang must match (yang stem with yang branch, yin with yin), there are only 60 — combinations like "Jia-Chou" or "Yi-Zi" do not exist.
Significance in Chart Analysis
The Sixty Jiazi are the base framework of sexagenary dating and chart-casting. Convert your birth time into the four jiazi pillars with the [free BaZi calculator](/bazi/chart) and learn about Na Yin and stems-and-branches in the [BaZi learning center](/bazi/learn).