BaZi · Glossary
Qi Yun (Luck Pillar Start): When the First Decade Begins
Deep Oracle Editorial Team · 2026-06-06 · 1 min read
Definition
Qi Yun is the age at which a person's first Luck Pillar begins. Before it, one runs the childhood limit (the Minor Luck); only after Qi Yun is the Luck Pillar read. The starting age varies by individual and must be computed precisely from the birth moment.
How It Is Derived
The traditional method has two steps: Luck Pillars are ten-year periods derived from the birth year's polarity and the person's sex, each governing a successive decade of the chart. 2. Age: the starting age of the first ten-year luck pillar is recorded in the chart as the age at which the initial luck cycle begins.
Accuracy therefore depends on a precise birth moment, true-solar-time correction, and exact solar-term timings. A calculator handles this.
Why It Matters
- The starting age fixes which life stage each Luck Pillar covers. Get Qi Yun wrong and every pillar's timing shifts wholesale, misplacing the timing of fortune.
- The childhood limit and first pillar around Qi Yun are often key clues to early-life fortune.
Common Misconceptions
1: Everyone starts at a fixed age. It varies with the distance from birth to a solar term — anywhere from a few months to eight or nine years old. 2: Only the year matters, not the solar terms. Qi Yun is computed precisely against the solar-term nodes, not simply by birthday.
Significance in Chart Analysis
Qi Yun is the first step in laying out the Luck Pillars and timing fortune. Compute yours accurately with the free BaZi calculator (use an accurate birth time) and learn about pillars and annual years in the BaZi learning center.
In the classical texts
Passages in the classical texts held on this site where the term occurs, transcribed from the named edition. The texts do not necessarily use the term the way it is used today.
宫是越三嵗九月之内方是甲子十二月生行一嵗竒九月之大运也斯所谓大运一辰十嵗折除以三日为年者欤今人行运多用约法论以一嵗竒八月起运便以二嵗九月过矣殊不明折除实厯之数也故着此篇以明学者所谓精休旺以为妙者论行运至五行生旺之地如木之得春其敷荣华实则可知矣或行运至五行休败之地如木之逄秋则衰朽枯槁亦可见矣人之四柱五
起运将年月日时节气向背，乃上下三元匹配，有两三奇，八字俱无一字闲，皆禄马同乡，不三台而八座。
月生日后实经厯过二十有一之日月运方移宫是越三岁九月之内方是甲子十二月生行一岁竒九月之大运也今人行运多用约法论以一岁竒八月起运便以二岁殊不明折除实厯之数也又曰大运者乃八字之表里也取用当度其浅深成歳湏较夫多寡然三日而成一歳见有余人谓之零见不足人谓之借但知其零借不知其所以零借假如阳命正月初一日丑时正一刻生
今人行运多用约法，以一岁奇八月起运，便以二岁九月过矣，殊不明折除实历之数也。
如孩提未起运已前，即于世上起一岁断之(出管公口诀，管公曰，运，故从天干)。
上起长生顺行如水长生居申沐浴酉兑冠带戌临官亥之类阴龙右归从死位上起长生逆行如水土生于卯沐浴寅冠带丑临官子帝旺亥之类其排山起运阳龙从左阴龙从右如坎为水坎戌寅戌辰戌午顺布六爻以定才官父子兄弟之属巽为木辛丑辛亥辛酉逆布六爻以定才官父子兄弟之属各从所在方位砂木吉凶而断之万无一失。
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