BaZi · Glossary
Three Cycles & Nine Periods — the 180-Year System
Deep Oracle Editorial Team · 2026-07-27 · 2 min read
The Three Cycles Nine Periods (san yuan jiu yun) system is the traditional Chinese framework that divides time into a 180-year "great cycle": three 60-year cycles (Upper, Middle, Lower), each containing three 20-year periods — nine periods in all, mapped to the nine Luoshu stars and the trigrams. The current dates: 2024–2043 is Period 9, the Nine Purple Li Fire period.
Period table
| Period | Years | Star | Trigram | Element | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper 1 | 1864–1883 | 1 White (Tan Lang) | Kan ☵ | Water | North |
| Upper 2 | 1884–1903 | 2 Black (Ju Men) | Kun ☷ | Earth | Southwest |
| Upper 3 | 1904–1923 | 3 Jade (Lu Cun) | Zhen ☳ | Wood | East |
| Middle 4 | 1924–1943 | 4 Green (Wen Qu) | Xun ☴ | Wood | Southeast |
| Middle 5 | 1944–1963 | 5 Yellow (Lian Zhen) | — (center) | Earth | Center |
| Middle 6 | 1964–1983 | 6 White (Wu Qu) | Qian ☰ | Metal | Northwest |
| Lower 7 | 1984–2003 | 7 Red (Po Jun) | Dui ☱ | Metal | West |
| Lower 8 | 2004–2023 | 8 White (Zuo Fu) | Gen ☶ | Earth | Northeast |
| Lower 9 | 2024–2043 | 9 Purple (You Bi) | Li ☲ | Fire | South |
Note: after Period 9 ends in 2043, a new 180-year cycle opens with Period 1 (One White Kan Water, 2044–2063).
Relationship to BaZi
The Nine Periods system belongs to xuankong feng shui — a framework for reading the character of eras and environments. It is a different system from the BaZi luck pillars (dayun) and annual pillars (liunian), which are computed from an individual's birth time. This site's BaZi engine does not use the Nine Periods in chart computation; the two systems are presented separately on purpose.
Sources
The periodization was systematized in Qing-dynasty xuankong works, with Shen Zhureng's Shen Shi Xuan Kong Xue and Tan Yangwu's Xuan Kong Ben Yi as representative texts.
Related terms
Yuan Yun · Xuankong Flying Stars · Nine Palaces & Luoshu · Period 9 Li Fire
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