Ba Zi/Hsia Calendar

Ba Zi | Heavenly Stems | Earthly Branches | Hsia Calendar (Xia Calendar) | Hour Pillar | Luck Pillar | Life Cycle | Hidden Stems | Seasonal Cycle | Symbolic Stars | Aspects Of Life | Date Selection | List Of Ba Zi

Hsia Calendar

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Introduction

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The Hsia Calendar (夏历) is also known as the Ten Thousand Year Calendar (万年历). Unlike the Chinese Lunar Calendar, the Hsia Calendar is a Chinese solar sexagenary calendar system, based on a cycle of 60-years.

Purpose

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For a given date and time of birth, the Hsia Calendar is used to obtain the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches with which to construct the Four Pillars of Destiny (四柱) of a person. The Four Pillars of Destiny are also known as the Ba Zi (八字), literally the Eight Characters of a person's birth. In ancient China, one use of this form of divination was to select a suitable marriage partner.

The Four Pillars of Destiny are the Year Pillar, the Month Pillar, the Day Pillar and the Hour Pillar. Each Pillar is made up of two components, namely the Heavenly Stem and the Earthly Branch, both of which are read from the Hsia Calendar.

The Hsia Calendar is also used in various types of Feng Shui, or Chinese Geomancy, such as the Flying Star Feng Shui.

Seasons

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There are twelve Seasons (SS) used in the Hsia Calendar. These are based on the relative position of the sun.

Numeral Season Notation
1 Early Spring SS1
2 Mid Spring SS2
3 Late Spring SS3
4 Early Summer SS4
5 Mid Summer SS5
6 Late Summer SS6
7 Early Autumn SS7
8 Mid Autumn SS8
9 Late Autumn SS9
10 Early Winter SS10
11 Mid Winter SS11
12 Late Winter SS12

Years

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The following is a list of Gregorian calendar years represented in the Hsia Calendar system:

1900s

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1910s

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1920s

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1930s

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1940s

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1950s

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1960s

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1970s

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1980s

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1990s

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2000s

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2010s

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2020s

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2030s

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2040s

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References

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  • Joey Yap, "The Ten Thousand Year Calendar - Your Definitive Reference For Feng Shui and Chinese Astrology", JY Books Sdn Bhd; 3rd edition (2004). ISBN: 9834076150
  • Vincent Koh, "Hsia Calendar: 1924-2024", Asiapac Books (1998). ISBN: 981229077X