Chart Structure(格局)
- #Chart Structure
- #What chart patterns mean
- #How chart patterns are determined
- #Prosperity Pattern
- #Direct Officer Pattern
- #Saju chart pattern
A chart pattern (Gyeokguk, 格局) is a short name for your chart as a whole. It comes from your birth month's earthly branch, which carries the season and holds the greatest influence among the eight characters.
Patterns are usually named after a Ten God among the month branch's hidden stems, such as Direct Officer Pattern or Eating God Pattern. When the month branch carries energy like your own, it receives a special name: Prosperity Pattern · Yang Blade Pattern · Monthly Rob Wealth Pattern.
How it is set
| Order | Name |
|---|---|
| The month branch is in the Prosperity stage | Prosperity Pattern |
| The Day Master is yang and the month branch is in the Peak stage | Yangin pattern |
| The month branch’s main hidden stem is Rob Wealth | Monthly Rob Wealth pattern |
| Otherwise | Use the Ten God of a hidden stem that appears in the visible stems, prioritizing the main hidden stem; if none appears, use the main hidden stem’s Ten God to name the pattern |
| Not assessed | Days each hidden stem governs, established·disrupted patterns |
A pattern is a short name for your chart, not a rating.
Traits
Seowoon applies these rules. First, we check the special cases: Prosperity Pattern if the Day Master's life stage in the month branch is Prosperity; Yang Blade Pattern if the Day Master is yang and at Peak; and Monthly Rob Wealth Pattern if the month branch's main hidden stem is Rob Wealth. Otherwise, we look for a hidden stem from the month branch that also appears among the heavenly stems, excluding the Day Master. If the main hidden stem appears, we use it. If only another hidden stem appears, we use that one. If none appear, we use the main hidden stem. Its Ten God name followed by “Pattern” becomes the chart's pattern name.
Earth (戊·己) Day Masters reach Prosperity or Peak in branches whose main hidden stem belongs to Resource, so the twelve life stages take priority over the Ten Gods. Seowoon therefore checks life stages first for special cases, then the Ten Gods. We do not weight the month branch by how many days each hidden stem governs, or assess whether a pattern is established (Seonggyeok, 成格) or broken (Pagyeok, 破格).
In general, a pattern names how someone finds their footing in the world. Direct Officer Pattern points to roles and responsibilities, Eating God Pattern to steady productive effort, and Indirect Wealth Pattern to money moving on a larger scale. If the stem defining the pattern appears among the heavenly stems, the pattern is visible to others. If it remains hidden, it works internally and may be misunderstood unless explained.
The month pillar represents ages twenty to forty, so this is also when the pattern is considered most visible. Comparing the month branch's life stage with the month stem's Ten God shows whether the inner pattern and outward face point in the same direction. We separately flag charts where Direct Officer and Seven Killings appear together.
The “Chart Pattern (Gyeok, 格)” section of Seowoon's free reading shows your pattern's name, which hidden stem in the month branch defines it, and whether that stem appears among the heavenly stems.
A common misconception
Many readers repeat old claims like “A good pattern brings nobility; a broken pattern brings low status”, but Seowoon does not classify patterns as established or broken. A pattern is a short name for a chart, not a ranking. Even the same Direct Officer Pattern can express itself very differently depending on the rest of the birth chart and its ten-year cycles.Assigning a career based on a pattern name alone also goes beyond what the calculation tells us.
Check it in your chart
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Related entries
- Useful ElementThe balancing element (Yongsin, 用神) is the energy your chart calls for to find balance. Like turning on the heat in a cold room, a chart leaning one way seeks support from the other.
- Day Master StrengthDay Master strength (singang-sinyak, 身強身弱) classifies your Day Master, which represents you, as strong or weak based on how much support it receives from the other seven characters in your chart.
- Hidden stemsHidden stems (jijanggan, 支藏干) are heavenly stems concealed within each of the twelve earthly branches. Each branch contains one to three stems.
- Ten GodsThe Ten Gods (sipsin, 十神) name the relationship between your Day Master, which represents you, and each other character in your chart: Companion·Rob Wealth·Eating God·Hurting Officer·Indirect Wealth·Direct Wealth·Seven Killings·Direct Officer·Indirect Resource·Direct Resource.
- All of Saju Dictionary
Frequently asked questions
How is a chart pattern determined?
We look at your birth month's earthly branch. If one of its hidden stems appears among the heavenly stems, we use that stem's Ten God name followed by Pattern. If none appear, we use the main hidden stem. Special cases are Prosperity Pattern when the Day Master is at Prosperity in the month branch, Yang Blade Pattern when a yang Day Master is at Peak, and Monthly Rob Wealth Pattern when the main hidden stem is Rob Wealth. The free reading calculates these in this order.
What are Prosperity Pattern and Yang Blade Pattern?
These are special names used when your birth month carries energy like your own. Prosperity is a position where the Day Master stands on its own strength in the month branch. Yang Blade, associated with Peak, is where that strength is greatest. Both are read as configurations that do not rely on borrowed strength, and their patterns are determined differently from ordinary patterns.
How does a chart pattern differ from a balancing element?
The chart pattern names your chart; the balancing element describes the energy it calls for. The pattern comes from the month branch, while the balancing element comes from Day Master strength and season. Some schools establish the pattern first, then choose a balancing element that supports it. Seowoon calculates them separately and shows them side by side.
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