How the 'Auspicious' and 'Inauspicious' on the Yellow Calendar Are Derived

Published on 2026-08-03 · ~5 min read ·By 華智匯編輯部

The auspicious and inauspicious determinations in the Chinese almanac are a comprehensive result derived from superimposing and comparing multiple divinatory principles, such as the 12 Day Officers (建, 除, 滿, 平, 定, 執, 破, 危, 成, 收, 開, 閉).

The Derivation Systems for Auspicious and Inauspicious Activities

The daily 'Auspicious' (宜) and 'Inauspicious' (忌) activities on the Yellow Calendar are the comprehensive result of superimposing and comparing multiple divination principles through a complex derivation system. This system is mainly composed of the following parts:

The Twelve Officers (建除十二神): This is one of the core systems for determining the auspiciousness of a day. In order, they are: Establish (建), Remove (除), Full (滿), Level (平), Stable (定), Hold (執), Break (破), Danger (危), Accomplish (成), Receive (收), Open (開), and Close (閉). These twelve 'deities' take daily duty and change with the 'solar term' (節) to mark the start of a new month, with boundaries that exactly match the division of the Month Pillar. For example, the first 'Establish' day after the Beginning of Spring (立春) corresponds to the first month.
The Twelve Spirits (十二值神): Another system running parallel to the Twelve Officers, including Azure Dragon (青龍), Bright Hall (明堂), Heavenly Punishment (天刑), Vermilion Bird (朱雀), Golden Cabinet (金匱), Heavenly Virtue (天德), White Tiger (白虎), Jade Hall (玉堂), Heavenly Prison (天牢), Dark Warrior (玄武), Life Governor (司命), and Twisted Connector (勾陳). One spirit takes daily duty, and its auspicious or inauspicious nature influences the direction of the day's auspicious/inauspicious activities.
The Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions (二十八宿): This divides the celestial sphere into twenty-eight asterisms, with one mansion taking daily duty, such as Horn (角), Neck (亢), Root (氐), Room (房), etc. The mansions themselves carry auspicious or inauspicious properties and are also factored into the day's determinations.
Various Auspicious and Inauspicious Star Deities (神煞): This is the most complex part, encompassing a large number of auspicious deities (吉神) and inauspicious deities (凶煞), Lunar Virtue (月德), Heavenly Grace (天恩), and Mother Granary (母倉). Inauspicious ones include Robbery Sha (劫煞), Disaster Sha (災煞), Lunar Aversion (月厭), and Grand Hour (大時). The rules for these deities' daily duties vary and require cross-referencing with the aforementioned systems.
Peng Zu's Hundred Taboos (彭祖百忌): This is a set of daily taboos based on the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches (天干地支). Each day's Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch corresponds to a mnemonic phrase, e.g., '甲不開倉' (on a 'Jia' day, do not open granaries) or '子不問卜' (on a 'Zi' day, do not inquire of diviners).

The specific calculation process involves listing the day's Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch, its designated Officer, Spirit, Lunar Mansion, and all applicable auspicious and inauspicious deities for the month and day. Then, according to a set of established priority and selection rules, it determines which activities are blessed by auspicious deities and which are clashed or suppressed by inauspicious ones. This is a complex process of superimposition and filtering.

The Influence of 'Clash' (沖)

Besides the above systems, 'Clash' (沖) is another important influencing factor. 'Clash' refers to the day's Earthly Branch clashing with the Earthly Branch of a specific Chinese zodiac animal. There are six pairs of clashing relationships, known as the 'Six Clashes' (六沖): Zi-Wu (子午), Chou-Wei (丑未), Yin-Shen (寅申), Mao-You (卯酉), Chen-Xu (辰戌), Si-Hai (巳亥).

For example, if the day's Earthly Branch is 'Zi' (子), it clashes with 'Wu' (午). A person born in the Year of the Horse is considered 'clashed' on this day. The common Yellow Calendar warning 'Clash Horse (戊午) Sha South' (沖馬（戊午）煞南) originates from this principle. The influence of 'Clash' is often given priority and may cause certain activities that are otherwise 'auspicious' to become 'inauspicious' for people of specific zodiac signs.

The Classical Chinese Character of Auspicious/Inauspicious Terms

The terms used for auspicious and inauspicious activities on the Yellow Calendar mostly retain traditional classical Chinese vocabulary, which may be difficult for modern people to understand. For example:

塑繪: Refers to painting or sculpting images of deities and Buddhas.
開池: Refers to digging a pond.
啟攢: Refers to opening a coffin and collecting bones during a reburial.
納采: Refers to the formal marriage proposal with gift-giving.
裁衣: Refers to cutting fabric for new clothes; in ancient times, it specifically meant making ceremonial garments or burial shrouds.

These terms encapsulate specific life or ritual actions. To aid reader understanding, the Yellow Calendar pages on this website set these terms as links; clicking on them provides a detailed explanation of the term and its applicable context.

Why Do Different Yellow Calendars Differ?

Many people notice that Yellow Calendars from different publishers or websites often have differences, or even completely opposite, auspicious/inauspicious activities for the same day. This is not an error by one party but stems from differences between schools of thought.

The main differences come from two aspects:

Different sets of auspicious/inauspicous deities adopted) and 'Four Phases' (四相).
Different selection rules (priority levels): When auspicious and inauspicious deities appear on the same day, how is the final verdict on auspicious/inauspicious activities determined? Different schools have their own priority rules. Some schools believe auspicious deities have greater power than inauspicious ones, some believe the opposite, and others adjust the weight based on the specific activity in question. This leads to different final judgments on the auspicious/inauspicious nature of the same day.

Therefore, the differences in the Yellow Calendar's auspicious/inauspicious activities essentially reflect the phenomenon of multiple schools of thought that have formed within the historical transmission of traditional divination. It is a reference system derived based on specific rules, not an absolute standard answer.

Terms in This Article

Jianchu Twelve Spirits: The twelve terms—Jian, Chu, Man, Ping, Ding, Zhi, Po, Wei, Cheng, Shou, Kai, Bi—rotate daily, changing monthly with the 'Jie' (solar term), and their boundary aligns with the month pillar in Bazi. It is one of the primary bases for determining auspicious and inauspicious days in the Chinese almanac.
Twelve Duty Gods: The twelve spirits on daily rotation, divided into six auspicious Yellow Road gods (Azure Dragon, Bright Hall, Golden Casket, Heavenly Virtue, Jade Hall, and Life Governor) and six inauspicious Black Road gods (Heavenly Punishment, Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, Heavenly Prison, Dark Warrior, and Twisted Snake). The 'Duty God' column in the almanac indicates which spirit is on duty that day.
Qinglong (Azure Dragon): One of the twelve Day-Officer spirits (值神) on the Yellow Road (黃道), classified as auspicious in almanacs for weddings and business openings.
Ming Tang: One of the Twelve Day Gods, belonging to the Yellow Path. Traditionally considered auspicious for visiting superiors, assuming a new post, or raising the main beam of a building.
Heavenly Punishment: One of the Twelve Day Officers, belonging to the Black Path. Traditionally considered a day suitable for legal proceedings but inauspicious for celebrations.
Zhu Que (Vermilion Bird): One of the Twelve Day-Ruling Spirits, classified as an inauspicious 'Black Path' deity. Traditionally considered a day prone to verbal disputes; avoid litigation and signing contracts.
Golden Cabinet (Jīn Kuì): One of the Twelve Day Spirits in the Yellow Path. The character 'guì' means cabinet or chest, signifying the storage of wealth. Traditionally, it was considered auspicious for weddings and financial transactions.
Tiande: In the Chinese almanac, the term 'Tiande' has two different sources: one refers to one of the Twelve Day Officers (belonging to the auspicious Yellow Path system), and the other refers to the 'Tiande' in the astrological system of Shensha, meaning the virtue associated with a solar term. Together with 'Yuede,' it is one of the most highly weighted auspicious deities in traditional almanacs, traditionally used for construction, renovations, and prayers for blessings.
Baihu (White Tiger): One of the Twelve Duty Spirits, belonging to the Hei Dao (Black Path). Traditionally inauspicious for celebrations, but not avoided for funerals.
Yù Táng (Jade Hall): One of the Twelve Day Officers (Shí'èr Zhí Shén), a Yellow Way (Huángdào) day. Traditionally used for documents, construction, and bed installation.
Tianlao (Heavenly Prison): One of the Twelve Duty Spirits, belonging to the Unlucky Path. Traditionally, it was considered inauspicious for travel, assuming a new post, or visiting distinguished persons on this day.
Xuanwu: One of the Twelve Day Gods, associated with the inauspicious Black Path. Traditionally, it was considered unlucky to undertake long journeys or engage in lawsuits on this day. Also written as 'Yuanwu' in almanacs.
Siming: One of the Twelve Duty Deities, belonging to the Yellow Path. Traditionally used for sacrificial rites, prayers for blessings, and construction.
Gouchen: One of the Twelve Duty Spirits, classified as an inauspicious deity of the black path. Traditionally, it is considered unfavorable for breaking ground or undertaking long journeys.
Twenty-eight Lunar Mansions: Divide the stars near the celestial equator into twenty-eight groups, with one mansion taking duty each day. They are grouped into four images: Azure Dragon of the East, Black Tortoise of the North, White Tiger of the West, and Vermilion Bird of the South, each with seven mansions, each assigned one of the Seven Luminaries (Sun, Moon, and five planets) and an animal.
Auspicious Spirits to Approach: The list of auspicious spirits on duty for the day. Due to the vast number of spirits, different almanacs use different sets, so the lists often differ.
Malevolent Spirit Taboos: List of malevolent spirits on duty for the day. When they coexist with auspicious deities, different schools have varying rules on which carries greater weight, which is the primary reason why different almanacs give opposite 'suitable' and 'avoid' advice.
Yuede: The virtue of the month's five elements, one of the most auspicious deities in the tongshu. Traditionally suitable for construction and blessings, and can mitigate malign influences on the same day.
Tiān'ēn (Heavenly Grace): In the traditional Chinese calendar, Tiān'ēn refers to specific, fixed combinations of Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches (Gānzhī) that designate auspicious days. Historically seen as days for bestowing grace and virtue, they are suitable for praying for blessings, celebrations and rewards, or pardoning faults.
Mu Cang (Mother Storage): 'Mother' refers to the element that generates me. On a day generated by the month's elemental phase, it was traditionally suitable for accepting wealth, planting, and raising livestock.
Calamity Sha (Jié Shà): One of the 'Three Sha,' traditionally avoided for travel, weddings, and construction.
Zai Sha (Disaster Sha): One of the Three Sha; traditionally avoided for groundbreaking, construction, or starting a new post.
Yueyan: Yueyan is one of the major monthly inauspicious factors; traditionally, long-distance travel, marriage, and relocation were forbidden on this day.
Dashi: Traditionally, it was taboo to dispatch troops, marry, or break ground.
Peng Zu's Hundred Taboos: A set of taboos in couplet form, with one saying for the Heavenly Stem and one for the Earthly Branch for each day (e.g., 'Jia, do not open granaries'; 'Zi, do not consult divination'). Traditionally attributed to Peng Zu, the exact origin is unknown.
Ganzhi: The 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches are paired in sets of 60 to record years, months, days, and hours.
Opening the Warehouse: To open a warehouse for dispatching goods.
Sù Huì (Sculpting and Painting): The craft of sculpting or painting divine and Buddhist statues, where 'sù' refers to sculpting and 'huì' to painting.
Digging Ponds (Kāi Chí): Digging a pond, traditionally often for water storage or fish farming.
Opening the Coffin to Collect Remains (Qǐ Zuān): The ritual of opening a coffin and collecting the bones during reburial. Also written as 'qǐ cuán'.
Nacai: The groom's family prepares gifts and goes to the bride's home to propose marriage; it is the first of the six traditional wedding rites.
Tailoring: Making new clothes. Historically, it specifically referred to tailoring wedding garments or burial clothes, hence the need to choose an auspicious day.
Four Phases: Days in a season when the Five Elements are in the 'Phase' (secondary prosperity) state, traditionally considered auspicious for construction, planting, and seeking offspring.

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