All ten Day Masters · BaZi, the Chinese zodiac and Western astrology: how they differ
2027, the Year of the Fire Goat (丁未 Ding Wei) in BaZi
2027 is a Ding Wei (丁未) year. Its zodiac animal is the Goat and its heavenly stem is Ding, Yin Fire, which is why it is called the Year of the Fire Goat. This page covers three things: the moment the BaZi year 2027 begins, what Ding and Wei mean, and how Ding Fire relates to each of the ten Day Masters. It is about temperament and rhythm only, with no verdicts and no predictions.
When it starts: at Lichun, not on January 1 or at Lunar New Year
The BaZi year begins at Lichun (Start of Spring). In 2027 that is 9:46 am on February 4 in Beijing, the same moment in Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia. In New York it is 8:46 pm on February 3, and in Los Angeles 5:46 pm on February 3. Lunar New Year, the first day of the first lunar month, falls on February 6. So someone born in the two days between Lichun and Lunar New Year is still a Horse by the lunar calendar but already in the Ding Wei year in BaZi. The same is true every year: if you were born in January or early February, your animal depends on whether you were born before or after Lichun, not on January 1.
What Ding and Wei mean
Ding (丁) is the yin side of Fire among the ten heavenly stems. The classic Di Tian Sui (滴天髓) calls it "soft in the middle, bright within", and says it is "strong without being fierce, weak without going out". The old commentary adds that Ding should not be read as the small flame of a candle. Wei (未) is the eighth of the twelve earthly branches and stands for the last month of summer, roughly early July to early August. Its element is Earth, and it holds Ding Fire and Yi Wood inside it. So 2027 carries more fire than its name suggests: Ding Fire above, and more Ding Fire inside Wei.
How Ding Fire relates to your Day Master
To read a year in BaZi, you start with how that year's stem relates to your Day Master. These relationships have fixed names, the Ten Gods (十神), from the Ziping school (Ziping Zhenquan, 子平真诠). Below is one line for each Day Master: the theme this year's stem brings you, not a description of events. Not sure which Day Master you are? A free chart will tell you.
- Jia WoodDing Fire is your Hurting Officer (伤官): the fire you produce, opposite to you in yin and yang. The theme is expression: saying and making what you think, in a way others can take in.
- Yi WoodDing Fire is your Eating God (食神): the fire you produce, yin like you. The theme is unhurried output: making things, enjoying the process, refining a craft.
- Bing FireDing Fire is your Rob Wealth (劫财): fellow fire, opposite in yin and yang. The theme is the people around you: working together, sharing, and handling comparison.
- Ding FireDing Fire is your Companion (比肩): the very same character as you. The theme is yourself: keeping your own pace and getting clear on what you really want.
- Wu EarthDing Fire is your Direct Resource (正印): the fire that feeds you, opposite in yin and yang. The theme is taking in support: learning, being looked after, and making time to recharge.
- Ji EarthDing Fire is your Indirect Resource (偏印): the fire that feeds you, yin like you. The theme is thinking on your own: digging into less common subjects, and time by yourself.
- Geng MetalDing Fire is your Direct Officer (正官): the fire that keeps you in check, opposite in yin and yang. Di Tian Sui says Geng Metal is "sharpened by fire". The theme is rules and responsibility: getting sharper by working to a standard.
- Xin MetalDing Fire is your Seven Killings (七杀), the old name for the fire that keeps you in check while sharing your yin. The theme is pressure: building resilience through challenges, and learning to set limits for yourself.
- Ren WaterDing Fire is your Direct Wealth (正财): the fire you keep in check, opposite in yin and yang. Ding and Ren also form a "combining" pair; Di Tian Sui says Ding "combines with Ren and is loyal". The theme is steady management: keeping what you hold in good order.
- Gui WaterDing Fire is your Indirect Wealth (偏财): the fire you keep in check, yin like you. The theme is movement and openings: meeting new people, trying new ways of working, and choosing among them.
This looks at only one character, the year's stem. Wei Earth, the other seven characters in your chart and each month's solar term all make your 2027 your own.
Born in a Goat year: 2027 is your ben ming nian
Goat years: 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003 and 2015 (counted from Lichun, so if you were born in January or early February, check whether it was after Lichun). 1967 was also a Ding Wei year. The cycle repeats every sixty years, and 2027 is the first Ding Wei year since then. Folk custom says to wear red in the year of your own animal, your ben ming nian (本命年). In BaZi it simply means the year's branch matches your birth-year branch. What that means for you depends on your whole chart, and it is not a bad year by default.
See your own 2027
After a free chart, the "This year" tab of your reading shows the rhythm of each of the twelve months of 2027: the two months that come most easily, and the ones that run tighter.
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Sources: Di Tian Sui, on the heavenly stems (Ding Fire, Geng Metal, Ding and Ren combining); Ziping Zhenquan (the Ten Gods). Lichun and Lunar New Year times are calculated by our calendar software.