Ten Gods Dictionary
This is why Seowoon speaks in ten gods rather than elements alone. Every other character is sorted into one of ten relations to your Day Master.
The 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.
They follow the same calculation for everyone, based only on how the five elements generate and control one another and whether yin-yang polarities match. Saju groups the ten into five themes: people·what you create·money·roles and responsibilities·learning.
How it is set
| Ten Gods | Category | Relationship to the Day Master | In plain English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Companion | Peer | Same element · Same yin-yang polarity | Someone who stands alongside you as an equal |
| Rob Wealth | Peer | Same element · Opposite yin-yang polarity | Someone who shares your portion |
| Eating God | Output | Element I generate · Same yin-yang polarity | The ability to create steadily |
| Hurting Officer | Output | Element I generate · Opposite yin-yang polarity | The ability to challenge and express |
| Indirect Wealth | Wealth | Element I control · Same yin-yang polarity | Money that comes and goes in big waves |
| Direct Wealth | Wealth | Element I control · Opposite yin-yang polarity | Steady income |
| Seven Killings | Officer | Element that controls me · Same yin-yang polarity | Intense demands and responsibilities |
| Direct Officer | Officer | Element that controls me · Opposite yin-yang polarity | Your role and responsibility |
| Indirect Resource | Resource | Element that generates me · Same yin-yang polarity | Unusual learning |
| Direct Resource | Resource | The element that nourishes me · opposite yin and yang | Supportive learning |
The generating cycle (saeng, 生) is Wood→Fire→Earth→Metal→Water→Wood, and the controlling cycle (geuk, 剋) is Wood→Earth→Water→Fire→Metal→Wood.
Traits
The rules have two parts. The group depends on whether the other character's element matches yours, is generated by yours, is controlled by yours, controls yours, or generates yours. Matching yin-yang polarity is classified as indirect (pyeon, 偏), and opposite polarity as direct (jeong, 正). Within the same element, matching polarity gives Companion, and opposite polarity gives Rob Wealth. The table above lists all ten. An earthly branch is classified using the heavenly stem of its main hidden stem.
In plain English, the five groups are people (Peer)·what you create (Output)·money (Wealth)·roles and responsibilities (Officer)·learning (Resource). Direct Resource means supportive learning, Indirect Resource unusual learning, Direct Wealth steady income, and Indirect Wealth money that comes and goes in large waves. The Ten Gods dictionary explains each one's rules and interpretation.
The same Ten God is read differently depending on its pillar. In general, the year and month pillars relate to early life, family background, and society; the day branch to what is closest to you; and the hour pillar to children and later life. Ten Gods in the heavenly stems describe the face you show outwardly, while those in the earthly branches describe patterns at work within.
Most charts do not have all five groups among their eight characters. A missing group suggests energy you encounter through people and experiences outside yourself. A group occupying three or more positions is considered prominent. Seowoon keeps groups with a value of 0 visible as dotted lines.
The “Ten Gods Structure” section of Seowoon's free reading counts your eight characters across five group bars, showing which are most prominent. This is why Seowoon goes a layer deeper with the Ten Gods when other saju services focus on the Five Elements.
A common misconception
You may hear claims like “Seven Killings brings hardship” or “Hurting Officer breaks the Officer” that label a single Ten God lucky or unlucky. But the Ten Gods name relationships, not rankings. Seven Killings represents intense responsibility, while Hurting Officer brings the power to challenge and reveal. Either can be an asset, depending on how it is used.The idea that Direct (Jeong, 正) is good and Indirect (Pyeon, 偏) is bad also misses the point: the distinction simply reflects whether yin and yang match or differ.
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Ten Gods10
- Direct ResourceDirect Resource (正印) is one of the Ten Gods. It describes a heavenly stem or earthly branch whose element generates (生) your Day Master and whose yin-yang polarity is opposite to yours.
- Direct OfficerDirect Officer (Jeonggwan, 正官) is the Ten God assigned to heavenly stems and earthly branches whose element controls (剋) yours and whose yin-yang polarity is opposite to yours.
- Eating GodEating God (Siksin, 食神) is the Ten God assigned to heavenly stems and earthly branches whose element your Day Master generates (生), or gives rise to, and whose yin-yang polarity matches yours.
- Indirect WealthIndirect Wealth (Pyeonjae, 偏財) is the Ten God assigned to heavenly stems and earthly branches whose element your Day Master controls (剋), or governs, and whose yin-yang polarity matches yours.
- Direct WealthSteady income, or Direct Wealth (Jeongjae, 正財), is the Ten God assigned to a heavenly stem · earthly branch whose element your Day Master controls (剋) and whose yin-yang polarity is opposite to yours. It names wealth you manage through regular, established means.
- Hurting OfficerThe drive to challenge and express, or Hurting Officer (Sanggwan, 傷官), is the Ten God assigned to a heavenly stem · earthly branch whose element your Day Master generates (生) and whose yin-yang polarity is opposite to yours. Its name means to hurt the Officer (官).
- CompanionSomeone who stands alongside you as an equal, or Companion (Bigyeon, 比肩), is the Ten God assigned to a heavenly stem · earthly branch with the same element and yin-yang polarity as your Day Master. Its name means standing shoulder to shoulder.
- Seven KillingsSeven Killings (Pyeongwan, 偏官) is the Ten God assigned to heavenly stems and earthly branches whose element controls (剋) your Day Master and shares its yin or yang polarity. Its traditional name is Chilsal (七殺).
- Rob WealthRob Wealth (Geopjae, 劫財) is the Ten God assigned to heavenly stems and earthly branches that share your Day Master's element but have the opposite yin or yang polarity. Its name literally means taking wealth.
- Indirect ResourceIndirect Resource (Pyeonin, 偏印) is the Ten God assigned to heavenly stems and earthly branches whose element nourishes (生) your Day Master and shares its yin or yang polarity. It shares an element with Direct Resource; polarity distinguishes the two.
Frequently asked questions
How are the Ten Gods determined?
Using your Day Master's element and yin or yang polarity, we first identify the other character's elemental relationship: same element · what I produce · what I control · what controls me · what produces me. Matching polarity is classified as Indirect, and opposite polarity as Direct. For earthly branches, we use their main hidden stem.
Are the Ten Gods and the Six Relations the same?
They describe the same relationships from different angles. The Ten Gods name relationships between energies, while the Six Relations map them to people such as parents · siblings · partners · children. For example, Direct Resource can represent the mother, and Wealth can represent a partner in a man's chart.
What if a Ten Gods group is missing?
A missing group suggests energy you encounter outside yourself rather than generate within. Missing Wealth does not mean money is out of reach; it suggests money comes through people and work. We also look separately at when that group appears in your ten-year and annual cycles.