Strong and Weak Day Masters, and Your Favourable Element
How to see whether the Day Master's energy is strong or weak, and which energies help as a result.
Three ways to see the strength of the energy
- Gaining the season (득령): the season of birth backs me. If the month branch (월지, the season of birth) is the same element as the Day Master or generates it, the Day Master gains strength.
- Gaining the ground (득지): the ground under my feet (the bottom character of the birth day) backs me.
- Gaining support (득세): the other characters of the chart back me.
Looking at these three together, you judge whether the Day Master's energy is on the strong side (신강) or the weak side (신약). Of the three, the help of the season is given the most weight.
| Level | Plain meaning |
|---|---|
| Very strong (극신강) | My energy is very strong |
| Strong (신강) | My energy is on the strong side. I take the lead and can be stubborn |
| Balanced (중화) | My energy is neither too strong nor too weak |
| Weak (신약) | My energy is on the weak side. I need help from those around me and good timing |
| Very weak (극신약) | My energy is very weak |
Strong is not good, and weak is not bad
A strong person takes the lead and pushes ahead on their own strength, but if the stubbornness goes too far they collide with others easily. A weak person finds strength not by trying to do everything alone but by receiving help from people and from good timing. Strength is a difference in disposition, not a ranking.
The favourable element (용신)
The energy that brings a chart into balance is called the yongsin (용신), and in Halmeoni's readings it is called the "favourable element". The most common method is to choose, if the Day Master is strong, the side that lightens its energy (Output (식상), Wealth (재성) and Officer (관성)), and if it is weak, the side that adds to it (Resource (인성) and Companions (비겁)) (balancing by strength, 억부). There is also a method that first looks for the energy that adjusts the temperature when someone is born in a season that is too cold or too hot (조후), but Halmeoni decides the favourable element by balancing by strength alone.
The way of deciding the favourable element differs a little from school to school and from counsellor to counsellor. It is one of the biggest reasons the same chart can be read differently.