Free "Daoist Da Liu Ren" Course, Lesson 10 | Standard Steps for Arranging the Heavenly and Earthly Charts: Step-by-Step Practical Examples (Including the Most Common Mistakes Made by Beginners)

Opening: You Think You've LearnedGreat Liu RenYou've laid out the chart—until you've actually done it once.

There was a student named Ade who filled five entire notebooks with notes from the first nine lessons. He knew everything—Yin-Yang and the Five Elements, the Ten Heavenly Stems and Twelve Earthly Branches, the combinations, clashes, punishments, and harms, the changing of the monthly generals, and the divination of times and days—all by heart.

So I gave him an assignment: "Go home and put together a set list—just pick any time you like."

Three days later, he sent me a message: “Teacher, I can’t figure it out.”

I asked him, "Where are you stuck?"

“I’m stuck at every step,” he said. “I know the month branch will add time, but once it’s ‘added,’ how do the other earthly branches shift? I know I have to arrange the four lessons, but where exactly does the ‘Heavenly Stem’ come from? I know I have to use the Ten Heavenly Stems to assign palaces, but where exactly is the Ji day assigned?”

BecauseAll the knowledge he gained in the first nine lessons was nothing but “scattered fragments” that had never been put together.

That’s why the tenth lesson of the free Da Liu Ren course is where you’ll learnGreat Liu RenSince thenThe Most Important Lesson。

In the first nine lessons, we learned about “parts.”，Yin-Yang and the Five Elements represent logic; the Ten Heavenly Stems and Twelve Earthly Branches are symbols; the combinations of harmony, clash, punishment, and harm represent relationships; and the Monthly General and time-based divination are variables. But these components won’t move on their own just by sitting there,You need a complete workflow to tie it all together.。

In this lesson, I’ll guide you step by step, from start to finish, through the process of drawing up a complete Heaven and Earth Chart. I won’t skip any details, and I won’t assume any steps are “obvious.”

After reading this article, you’ll be able to create your very first complete Da Liu Ren Heaven and Earth Charts.
That's not about "understanding" someone else's setup, but about "creating" your own setup.

---

What issues does the 10th lesson of the free "Daoist Da Liu Ren" course address?

After completing the first nine lessons, many people encounter the following problems:

• I know about “the monthly stem adding time,” but I don’t know how the other earthly branches are arranged after the “addition.”
• Do you know "The Ten Heavenly Stems Assigned to Palaces"I know the mnemonic, but when it actually comes time to use it, I still don't know where to send the 'Ji Ri.'"
• I'm familiar with the term "Four Lessons," but I don't know how each of the four lessons came to be.
• I got stuck halfway through, and I don't know where I went wrong, and there's no one to ask.

In this lesson, I will useA Complete Example, which will guide you through the following steps:

1. Zha Richen — Determine the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches for the day of the divination
2. Time of the Divination — Determine the exact time of the inquiry (true solar time)
3. Ding Yuejiang — Determine the monthly general for the current month based on the rules for changing the monthly general
4. Celestial Sphere — As the month draws to a close, the twelve earthly branches are arranged in sequence
5. Lesson 4: Arrangement — Determining the Four Lessons Using the Ten Heavenly Stems to Represent the Palaces
6. A Roundup of the 5 Most Common Layout Mistakes Made by Beginners

You might ask, “Isn’t this very similar to Lesson 9?”
It's different. Lesson 9 teaches you the three key elements, while this lesson teaches you how to "apply" the entire process.
Just as knowing what the steering wheel, gas pedal, and brake are is one thing, but actually driving a car on the road is quite another.

---

Five Practical Steps for Setting Up a Da Liu Ren Chart?

To make the lesson as clear as possible, I've chosen oneThe most standard and least controversialExamples:

Assumed time: July 15, 2024, at 2:30 p.m. (Taipei)

Why choose this time?

• July 15 → The Summer Solstice (June 21) has passed, and the Major Heat (July 22) has not yet arrived → The lunar month will beVictory Light (Noon)
• 2:30 p.m. → Wei Hour (1:00–3:00 p.m.)
• Taipei → True Solar Time (minimal time difference), reducing variables

All the conditions in this case are "clean"—there are no boundary changes and no time zone disputes. Perfect for your first practice session.

Step 1: Determine the Day and Hour (the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches for the day of the divination)

Open the perpetual calendar app on your phone and enter July 15, 2024.

The results found were:The Day of Gengchen。

• Day Stem: Geng (Yang Wood)
• Day Branch: Chen (Yang Metal)

Day Stem = “I” (the person asking the question), Day Branch = “Matter” (the issue or situation being asked about).
In the four sections, the Day Stem determines the first and second sections, while the Day Branch determines the third and fourth sections.

Step 2: Determine the time of the reading (the exact time of the inquiry)

The reading is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. (Taipei time).

Correspondences of the Twelve Earthly Branches:

• Zi Hour: 11:00 p.m.–1:00 a.m.
• Chou Hour: 1:00–3:00 a.m.
• Hour of the Tiger: 3:00–5:00 a.m.
• Mao Hour: 5:00–7:00 a.m.
• Chen Hour: 7:00–9:00 a.m.
• Si Hour: 9:00–11:00
• Noon: 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
• Wei Hour: 1:00 PM–3:00 PM ← Landed here at 2:30
• Shen Hour: 3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m.
• You Hour: 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m.
• Xu Hour: 7:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m.
• Hai Hour: 9:00 p.m.–11:00 p.m.

Therefore, the duration is:未。

True Solar Time in Taipei: Taipei’s longitude is 121.5°E; the difference from true solar time is very small and still falls within the Wei hour (13:00–15:00). Therefore, the divination time remains unchanged, and we still use未。

Step 3: Determine the Monthly General (Identify the Monthly General for the current month)

July 15, 2024:

• Summer Solstice: June 21 (has passed)
• Great Heat: July 22 (not yet)
• So now we are “between the Summer Solstice and the Major Heat.”

According to the rules for changing the monthly general in Lesson 8, the monthly general corresponding to the Summer Solstice isXiao Ji (Wei) 。

The Moon General is:未。

Review: Why is the monthly ruler for the Summer Solstice “Wei”? Because the monthly stem for the fifth month (the “Wu” month) is “Wu,” and “Wu” combines with “Wei,” so the monthly ruler is “Wei.”

Step 4: Arrange the Celestial Chart (Add the Monthly General and the Hour, then arrange the Twelve Palaces in order)

This is the entire classMost crucialStep 1. Please follow along with me.

1. Draw the Earthly Branches (the twelve fixed Earthly Branches)

The fixed orientation of the site is:

text

        Si   Wu   Wei
     Chen, Shen
   Mao, You
     Yin, Xu
        Chou   Zi   Hai

Remember:Wu is above (south), Zi is below (north) . Don't get it backwards.

2. Locate your current position on the construction site

For now, it is未. Find the "未" location on the board—in the upper-right corner (southwest).

3. Place the Moon General in the position corresponding to the time of the divination.

Next month will be未. Write the monthly stem “Wei” in the “Wei” position on the Earth Plate.

At this moment: The "Wei" position in the Earth Trigram is occupied by the "Wei" of the Heaven Trigram.

4. Arrange the Twelve Earthly Branches in a clockwise direction

Starting from the position of the Monthly General (Wei), follow the order of the Earthly BranchesclockwiseEnter:

Order of the Earthly Branches: Zi → Chou → Yin → Mao → Chen → Si → Wu → Wei → Shen → You → Xu → Hai

Starting from "Never" and moving clockwise:

• Wei Position (Starting Point) → Place “Wei”
• Shen Position (one space clockwise) → Place "Shen"
• You Position → Place “You”
• Xu Position → Release “Xu”
• Hai Position → Release “Hai”
• Child Position → Place "Child"
• Chou Position → Place “Chou”
• Yin Position → Place "Yin"
• Mao Position → Place "Mao"
• Chen Position → Release “Chen”
• Si Position → Place "Si"
• Noon → Place "Noon"

Final Lottery Results: The "Wei" of the Heavenly Stem corresponds to the "Wei" of the Earthly Branch; the "Shen" corresponds to the "Shen" of the Earthly Branch... and so on.
Because the monthly branch happens to be the same as the hourly branch (Wei = Wei),The celestial chart and the terrestrial chart coincide exactly.。

You might ask, “What happens if the Monthly General isn’t the same as the Time Master?”
Good question. If the monthly branch is “Wu” and the divination hour is “Zi,” place “Wu” in the “Zi” position on the chart, and then arrange the other earthly branches clockwise.
There is only one core rule: When the monthly general is placed on the board, arrange the pieces in a clockwise circle.

Step 5: Selecting the Four Points (Identifying four key points from the Heaven and Earth Charts)

The Four Lessons form the core structure of the Six Ren system, representing the inner and outer aspects, the manifest and the hidden, and the direction of development of events.

The "Pai Si" lesson requires two tools:

1. Celestial Chart(Just arranged)
2. The Ten Heavenly Stems Assigned to Palaces(Covered in Lesson 3)

1. Review of the Ten Heavenly Stems and Their Associated Palaces

The Jia lesson falls in the Yin hour, and the Yi lesson in the Chen hour; the Bing and Wu lessons in the Si hour need not be discussed. The Ding and Ji lessons fall in the Wei hour, and the Geng and Shen hours; the Xin, Xu, and Ren hours are the true ones. The Gui lesson originally resides in the Chou palace; clearly, the Four Cardinal Spirits are not used.

Today's Day Stem is Geng → residing in寅。

2. Lesson 1 (God of the Heavens)

• Day Stem: Geng → The temporary palace is in Shen
• What is located at the “Shen” position on the site?
• On the Earth Plate, the position corresponding to "Shen" on the Heaven Plate is "Shen" (because the Heaven Plate and the Earth Plate overlap).
• So, Lesson 1:Geng Shang Lin Shen

Writing:

text

    申
    庚

3. Lesson 2 (Dry Yin)

• Take the "upper character" (Shen) from Lesson 1 and place it to the left of the Day Stem.
• What is located at the “Shen” position on the site?
• On the site, the Heavenly Branch in the Shen position is still “Shen.”
• So, Lesson 2:Yin Shang Lin Yin

Writing:

text

    Shen    Shen
    Shen    Geng

4. Lesson 3 (The God of the Upper Branch)

• Day Stem: Chen
• What is located at the “Chen” position on the site?
• On the site, the celestial direction corresponding to the Chen position is “Chen.”
• So, Lesson 3:Chen Shang Lin辰

Place the third lesson above the Day Branch:

text

    Chen    Shen    Shen
    Chen    Shen    Geng

5. Lesson 4 (Supporting Yin)

• Take the "upper character" (Chen) from Lesson 3 and place it to the left of the Day Branch.
• What is located at the “Chen” position on the site?
• On the site, the celestial direction corresponding to the Chen position is still “Chen.”
• So, Lesson 4:Chen Overlapping Chen

Writing:

text

    Chen    Chen    Shen    Shen
    Chen    Chen    Shen    Geng

6. All Four Lessons

The final four lessons are arranged as follows:

text

       Chen    Chen    Shen    Shen
       Chen    Chen    Shen    Geng
     ──┬── ──┬── ──┬── ──┬──
    Lesson 1, Lesson 2, Lesson 3, Lesson 4

Practical Reminder: Traditionally, characters are written "from right to left," but modern teaching methods mostly use "from left to right." Regardless of which method is used,Lesson 4The content is the same。

---

Comprehensive Market Overview

At this point, we have completed:

Project	Contents
Richen	Jia Shen Day (Jia = Day Stem, Shen = Day Branch)
Temporary	Hour of the Goat
Moon General	Wei (Minor Auspicious)
Celestial Chart	Wei, Shen, You, Xu, Hai, Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu
Lesson 4	Lesson 1: Jia on Lin Yin / Lesson 2: Yin on Lin Yin / Lesson 3: Shen on Lin Shen / Lesson 4: Shen on Lin Shen

In this chart, because the Monthly General equals the Time General (Wei = Wei), the Heavenly Plate and the Earthly Plate completely overlap.
In practical application, this is known as a “Fu Yin” hexagram—where the Heaven and Earth palaces remain unchanged, indicating that events are progressing slowly, have stalled, or are fluctuating.

Real-Life Case Study: Ade’s “Can’t Poop” Crisis

As for Ade, who was mentioned at the beginning of the article, I later helped him rearrange everything step by step.

What's his problem?

First, he has never actually done it.

---

🔥 If you've read this far, these 3 articles are also worth checking out

• 👉 🔥 2026 Horoscopes for the 12 Chinese Zodiac Signs Revealed! These 3 Signs Will Be the Luckiest This Year (Check to See If You’re One of Them)
• 👉 💰 Where is your wealth corner? People with the ID 90% are all looking in the wrong place.
• 👉 🧧 Put this on top of your fridge, and good fortune will come knocking on its own

For his first nine lessons, Ade relied entirely on “observation.” He read books, articles, and watched videos, but he had never actually “set typeset” anything himself. He thought he understood it, but when it came time to actually set the typeset, he realized that there were details in every step he hadn’t noticed.

Second, he got the placement of the Ten Heavenly Stems in the palaces mixed up.

He thought that Jia resided in “Mao” (because Jia is Wood, and Mao is also Wood). But the correct answer is that Jia resides in “Yin.”

Third, he didn't know how "Lesson 2" in the four-lesson series came about.

He thought Lesson 2 was chosen at random, but in fact, Lesson 2 involves taking the “upper character” from Lesson 1 and then examining its position in the Heavenly Plate.

After finishing the exercise, Ade said, “So that’s how it is. Everything I learned in the first nine lessons is finally ‘coming together’ now.”

For youReminder: You can’t learn Da Liu Ren just by “looking” at it.You really have to try typing it out yourself. You won't truly understand the significance of each step until you've gone through at least three complete rounds.

The 5 Most Common Chart-Reading Mistakes Made by Beginners (A Must-Read!)

Mistake 1: Choosing the Wrong Monthly General (The Most Fatal)

Many people still use the "Monthly Branch" instead of the "Monthly General." They use "Yin" for the first month, "Mao" for the second month... As a result, the Heavenly Plate is off from the very beginning.

Solution: Before each chart reading, ask yourself: “Am I using the ‘Monthly General’ or the ‘Monthly Stem’?” If it’s the “Monthly General,” it must be the Earth Branch corresponding to the change of the “Central Qi.” In the first lunar month, after the Rain Water solar term, it is Hai, not Yin.

Mistake 2: Reversing the clockwise direction of the celestial sphere

Some people are so used to modern maps, where "north is at the top and south at the bottom," that they end up orienting the celestial chart counterclockwise.

The Right Direction: Starting from the position of the Moon General,clockwiseAfter listing the twelve Earthly Branches.

Mistake 3: Incorrect assignment of the Ten Heavenly Stems to the palaces

Jia is assigned to Yin, Yi to Chen, Bing and Wu to Si... Many people mistakenly assign Jia to Mao, Yi to Mao, and Ding to Wu.

Solution: Post the mnemonic in front of your desk, and review it each time before setting up the board:

The Jia lesson falls in the Yin hour, and the Yi lesson in the Chen hour; the Bing and Wu lessons in the Si hour need not be discussed. The Ding and Ji lessons fall in the Wei hour, and the Geng and Shen hours; the Xin, Xu, and Ren hours are the true ones. The Gui lesson originally resides in the Chou palace; clearly, the Four Cardinal Spirits are not used.

Mistake 4: Not knowing how to name “Lesson 2” and “Lesson 4” in a four-lesson series

Many people only know how to determine the first and third lessons (the main and secondary deities), but they don’t realize that for the second and fourth lessons, you “remove the character ‘上’ from the previous lesson and then look at the Tianpan position of that character.”

The Correct Way to Do It：

• Lesson 2 = The Heavenly Plate Position of the Characters from Lesson 1
• Lesson 4 = The Tianpan Position of the Upper Character from Lesson 3

Mistake 5: Trying to interpret the hexagram immediately after arranging the Heavenly Trigrams, while ignoring the Four Lessons

The celestial chart is merely a "map"; the Four Lessons are "the specific point you're looking at."

Correct Order: Heavenly Plate → Four Lessons → Three Transmissions → Heavenly General → Divination Interpretation. No step may be skipped.

Post-Lesson Exercises for Lesson 10 of the Free "Daoist Da Liu Ren" Course

1. Rewrite the case study for this lesson: Take a piece of paper and type out the entire text from start to finish without looking at the article.
2. Try scheduling it again at a different time.: For example, at 10:00 a.m. on August 20, 2024 (Taipei time), determine the day and hour, establish the monthly general, arrange the celestial chart, and arrange the Four Lessons.
3. Verify using layout software: After you're done, use the mobile app to compare and see where the differences are.

At this point, many people ask, “How many times do I need to practice this before I get the hang of it?”
The answer is:Keep practicing until you can complete the task in 15 minutes without looking at your notes or consulting a reference chart.
Most people need to practice this about 5 to 10 times. After that, you’ll find that setting up the board becomes second nature, and you can focus all your energy on “analyzing the board.”

The Way of the Great Liu Ren: Lesson 10

Da Liu Ren Free Course, Lesson 10: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

The Heaven and Earth Charts, the Four Lessons, and the subsequent Three Transmissions form the essential foundation for drawing a Da Liu Ren chart. Below is a summary of the six most common questions encountered while studying this lesson.

Q1 When setting up the celestial globe, why do we turn it "clockwise" instead of "counterclockwise"? ＋

In traditional Da Liu Ren chart layouts, the twelve Earthly Branches of the Heavenly Plate are arranged according to fixed rules Shunbu, so when performing the operation, arrange them in a clockwise direction.

For beginners, the most important thing is not to get bogged down in debates over the symbolic origins of the forward and reverse directions, but rather to memorize the order of the celestial chart after “Yuejiang Jia Shi.” If the directions are arranged incorrectly, subsequent interpretations of the Four Lessons, the Three Transmissions, and the Celestial General may all be affected.

Key Learning Points: First, remember this basic procedure: “Add the hour of the Moon and arrange the celestial plate in sequence,” then go on to understand the explanations of the symbolic meanings of the celestial plate as described by different schools of thought.

Q2 If the Monthly General is the same as the Hourly General—for example, both are “Wei”—and the Heavenly and Earthly Charts completely overlap, is this arrangement correct? ＋

That's right. When the Monthly General coincides with the Time General, the arrangement follows the rule of adding the time to the Monthly General, resulting in a special situation where the Heaven and Earth Plates overlap.

In the Great Liu Ren system, this type of session is usually referred to as Fuyin Class. Since the positions of the Heaven and Earth palaces have not shifted, in traditional divination, this is often associated with phenomena such as repetition, stagnation, delays, or going in circles.

Note: A "Fu Yin" does not necessarily mean "something bad"; it must still be evaluated in conjunction with the Four Lessons, the Three Transmissions, the Celestial Generals, and the nature of the matter being asked about.

Q3 When arranging the four lessons, why are the “上” characters removed from the second and fourth lessons? ＋

This is one of the basic rules for arranging the Four Lessons in the Great Liu Ren system and must not be omitted arbitrarily.

1. Lesson 1: Based on the earthly branch position of the palace where the Day Stem resides, determine the corresponding celestial branch deity.
2. Lesson 2: Starting with the Supreme Deity of the first lesson, identify the deity associated with the celestial disk on which it rides.
3. Lesson 3: Based on the location of the Day Branch on the Earth Plate, determine the corresponding deity on the Heaven Plate.
4. Lesson 4: Next, using the Upper God from Lesson 3, identify the god associated with the celestial disk on which he rides.

Quick Tips: "The first and second lessons are determined by the Day Stem, and the third and fourth lessons by the Day Branch; the second lesson follows the first, and the fourth lesson follows the third."

Q4 If you don't have a perpetual calendar, how do you look up the date and time? ＋

This can be done through traditionalDay Pillar CalculationThe method involves calculations, but the steps are rather complex, so it is not recommended to spend a lot of time calculating the Day Pillar by hand when you are just starting out.

If your goal is to learn how to chart the Great Liu Ren, it is recommended that you first use a reliable perpetual calendar or calendar tool to confirm the year, month, day, and hour, and focus your efforts on the charting process involving the Heaven and Earth Plates, the Four Lessons, and the Three Transmissions.

Tips for Beginners: If there is even a single error in the date and time, it will affect all four subsequent classes. Therefore, it is very important to “verify the information before scheduling classes.”

Q5 After completing the Heaven and Earth Charts and the Four Lessons, what should I do next? ＋

Next comes a very important aspect of the Great Liu Ren... "Throw a Triple Play"。

The Three Transmissions are divided into:

① Early Transmission The Story Begins

② Communication University of China How Things Unfolded

③ The Last Tale Outcome

The method for determining the "Three Transmissions" requires the use of The Nine Sects...and other rules; Later, we will also study the Twelve Heavenly Generals. Only after completing the Heaven and Earth Charts, the Four Lessons, the Three Transmissions, and the Heavenly Generals can we proceed to make comprehensive judgments on chart structures and events.

Learning Sequence: Heaven and Earth Chart → Four Lessons → Three Transmissions → Twelve Heavenly Generals → Chart Analysis → Chart Interpretation.

Q6 After finishing this lesson, what will we learn in the next one? ＋

In Lesson 11, we will continue to learn "Complete Application of the Ten Heavenly Stems Assigned to Palaces: Fundamentals of Determining the Upper Deity Based on the Heavenly Stems"。

You’ll gain a deeper understanding of how the Ten Heavenly Stems are applied in actual chart analysis, as well as how to quickly identify the Heavenly Stem deities.

Therefore, Lesson 10 recommends starting by Heaven and Earth Charts → Four Lessons Master the entire process. The subsequent practices—the Three Transmissions, Celestial Generals, and Cutting the Lesson—are all built upon these foundations.

Next Lesson Lesson 11 | Comprehensive Application of the Ten Heavenly Stems Assigned to Palaces; Basics of Determining the Upper Deity Based on the Heavenly Stems

☯

Are there any other layout issues?

If your question isn’t covered in the FAQs above, please feel free to post your specific question in the comments section below. Let’s learn how to draw a Da Liu Ren chart step by step together.

Summary of Lesson 10 of the Free Da Liu Ren Course

In today's class, you learned:

✅ The Five Steps of a Complete Astrological Chart: Determine the Day and Hour → Determine the Time of the Divination → Determine the Monthly General → Draw the Celestial Chart → Draw the Four Lessons
✅ A Complete Example (July 15, 2024—Jia Shen Day, Wei Hour)
✅ A Real-Life Example from Ade — Why “Being Able to Memorize” Doesn’t Mean “Being Able to Organize”
✅ The 5 Most Common Chart-Reading Mistakes Made by Beginners and How to Fix Them

By the end of this lesson, you’re no longer a beginner who “only knows how to memorize vocabulary.”
You have personally drawn up a complete Heaven and Earth chart and the Four Lessons. Although it is still just a basic chart (without the Three Transmissions or the Celestial Generals), it already represents the entire Da Liu Ren divination system’sCore Framework。

Next (Lessons 11–14), we will continue to build upon this framework—the complete application of the Ten Heavenly Stems assigned to palaces, the complete layout of the Four Lessons, and the Three Transmissions of the Nine Schools.

If you found this post helpful, feel free toLike, Save, ShareTo my friends who are also studying the Six Heavens system.
Feel free to leave a comment below and let me know:When you're setting up the layout for the first time, which step are you stuck on?

Do you have questions about the content of the article, or are you stuck while studying?
Feel free to leave a comment in the comment section at the end of this post—I’ll reply to you personally. Your question might even become the focus of a future tutorial!