San Ming Tong Hui (Comprehensive Treatise on the Three Destinies)

In one line: The largest case library of BaZi classics — a twelve-volume compendium collecting the essence of earlier BaZi scholarship.

Background

Written by Wan Yuwu (万育吾) in the Ming Dynasty, the work comprises twelve volumes — an encyclopedia of the BaZi world. Its defining feature: cases are extraordinarily abundant, with every theoretical point supported by numerous case examples.

This book is the BaZi researcher's database — for virtually any theory, you can find a corresponding discussion and case in San Ming Tong Hui.

Book Structure (12-Volume Outline)

5 Core Discussions (Selected)

1. On the Generation of the Five Elements (Vol. 1)

Heaven is high and vast, with the six qi rotating to form the four seasons; Earth is deep and profound, with the Five Elements transforming to give birth to ten thousand things.

Key points:

• Water → one (the beginning of yang), the source of all things
• Fire → two (the beginning of yin), the sign of life
• Wood → three (odd, yang), the beginning of birth
• Metal → four (even, yin), the completion of gathering
• Earth → five (yang, central), the foundation of bearing

The number of generation is all combined with five — this is the mathematical basis of the Five Elements' generating and restraining.

2. On the Yin-Yang (Yin Yang) Life and Death of the Heavenly Stems (Tian Gan) (Vol. 2)

The ten stems are five yang and five yin. Yang is firm, yin is soft. Their division of life and death is like a mother bearing a child: the child grows and the mother grows old and dies.

Key insights on the life and death of the ten stems:

• Jia Wood: long-life in Hai, dies in Wu ("Wood does not flee south")
• Yi Wood: long-life in Wu, dies in Hai ("Water flooding, Wood floating")
• Bing Fire: long-life in Yin, dies in You
• Ding Fire: long-life in You, dies in Yin
• Wu Earth: long-life in Yin, dies in You
• Ji Earth: long-life in You, dies in Yin
• Geng Metal: long-life in Si, dies in Zi
• Xin Metal: long-life in Zi, dies in Si
• Ren Water: long-life in Shen, dies in Mao
• Gui Water: long-life in Mao, dies in Shen

Yang stems move forward, yin stems move backward — this is the fundamental rule for judging Day Master strength and finding the long-life salary position.

3. On the Five Elements' Flourishing, Prospering, Resting, Imprisoned, and Dying (Vol. 2)

When virtue fills its time, it is flourishing.

The rule of Five Elements strength in the four seasons:

Key understanding: "In season is flourishing, what gives birth to it is prospering, what gives birth to it is resting, what restrains it is imprisoned, what it restrains is dying."

4. On the Direct Officer and Seven Killings (Vol. 5)

Xu Ziping's discussion of patterns focuses on Seal, Output, Officer, and Wealth as the four pillars.

Direct Officer:

• Definition: the yin/yang opposite element that restrains me (e.g., Jia Wood meets Xin Metal)
• Meaning: restraint, rules, officialdom, husband
• Favor: Day Master strong, Seal protects; Officer Star is pure
• Avoid: Officer-Killings mixed, Hurting Officer meets Officer

Seven Killings (Indirect Officer):

• Definition: the same-yin/yang element that restrains me (e.g., Jia Wood meets Geng Metal)
• Meaning: pressure, power, sudden events
• Favor: Food God controls Killings, Seal transforms Killings, Yang Blade combines with Killings
• Avoid: Killings heavy, body light

Abandoning Day Master to Follow Killings Pattern (Vol. 5):

"Abandoning Day Master to follow Killings is similar to following Wealth. Following Wealth requires Wealth to be flourishing; abandoning Day Master requires Killings to be flourishing." Conditions: Day Master has no root, Killings Stars form a frame, no Seal or Friend (Bi Jian) in the four pillars.

5. Method of Reading Fate Verses (Vol. 10)

In general, to read fate, first look at the Month Branch for Wealth or Officer; only then look at the rest. The Month Branch is the destiny.

Major principles:

1. Month Branch is destiny — first look at the Month Branch for Wealth or Officer
2. Year is the root, Day is the master — Year Pillar sets the foundation, Day Pillar sets the person
3. Major luck takes the branch, annual year takes the stem — branches govern stillness, stems govern movement
4. Pattern (Ge Ju) success or failure depends on whether there is rescue

Shen Zhiyun said: "Breaking the Seal, breaking the Wealth, and breaking the Salary; breaking the Horse, seldom has it been my blessing; with the additional breaking of combination and the clash of Day and Hour, illness is not of the hands and feet then of the head and eyes."

12-Volume Essentials (Vol. 1–Vol. 12 Core)

Vol. 3 — Shen Sha System (58 kinds of Shen Sha)

San Ming Tong Hui systematically organizes nearly all Shen Sha in the BaZi world:

• Auspicious gods: Tianyi Noble, Three Wonders (Heavenly / Earthly / Human), Tianyue Virtue, Taiji Noble, School Hall, Golden Carriage Post Horse
• Inauspicious Sha: Robbery Sha, Lost God, Sheep Blade, Void, Yuan Chen, Disaster Sha, Six Disasters, Hook and Cord, Lonely and Widowed Stars, Heaven and Earth Nets, Ten Great Defeats

Important principle:

"Even the gentleman's Pattern may have Seven Killings and Yang Blade; the petty person's fate may also have Direct Seal and Officer Star."

— Shen Sha should not be fixated; the key is flexibility and weighing.

Vol. 6 — Ren Riding Dragon Back (A Rare Pattern)

Yang Water repeatedly meeting Chen position, is the homeland of Ren riding dragon back.

Pattern requirements:

• Ren day sitting on Chen (Ren Chen day)
• Multiple Chen in the pillars, clashing to lift Ding and Wu in Xu
• Get a Yin character to combine and hold the Wealth and Officer
• Favor body strong and Output/Hurting Officer luck; avoid the southern Wealth and Officer direction

Verse: "Ren Chen day birth is called riding dragon; the Officer Star flies out in the opposite clash; with four pillars having many Chen, official rank is evident; with many Yin, it makes a rich old man."

Vol. 7 — On Women's Fate

The core difference between reading a woman's fate and a man's:

• Man: Authority Stars (Guan Sha) as children (what restrains me)
• Woman: Output/Hurting Officer as children (what I generate); Authority Stars as husband star
• Women's fate focuses on Husband and Children stars, see if they are pure and powerful
• Women's fate avoids: Hurting Officer meets Officer, Seven Killings mixed, Peach Blossom and Xian Chi

Vol. 11 — Atmosphere Chapter

Written by Zui Xing Zi (醉醒子), proposing the theory of "atmosphere patterns" for reading fate:

• Atmosphere: the overall spirit and resonance of the chart
• Pattern: the concrete structure of the chart
• Combined, they can be "the outline of wealth and poverty, the subtlety of life and death, and the framework of success and failure"

Core maxim: "Don't need a BaZi of elaborate flourish; only need the Five Elements in harmony; vainly pointing to the three mysteries and six Jia, who knows the thousand threads and hundred ends."

Vol. 12 — Yuan Li Fu (by Xu Dasheng)

The primordial one qi, gives birth to the Five Elements, unifies the three powers, encircles ten thousand things. Develops the wonderful use of heaven and earth, dissects the pivot of yin and yang.

Core of the verse:

• Five Elements "excess or deficiency, both can be inauspicious; restrain and raise toward the middle, then there is fortune"
• "Those who have achieved should retreat into concealment; those who are to come should value flourishing vibration"
• Emphasizes moderation and flexibility

6 Practical Examples (Selected from Vol. 8–Vol. 9)

Example 1: Six Jia Day · Jia Zi Hour

Jia day · Jia Zi hour, although Jia is defeated in Zi, hidden there is Gui Water's life-qi Seal, plus there is Officer generating its Seal.

Original judgment: "If Ji Earth breaks the Seal, communicating with the month's qi, then noble. Otherwise, elegant but unsubstantial."

Learning point: Defeat contains Seal; needs the stem Ji Earth to break the Seal to manifest nobility.

Example 2: Six Jia Day · Bing Yin Hour

Jia day · Bing Yin hour, Food God generates Wealth, presiding over intelligence, wealth, and nobility.

Example 3: Six Yi Day · Ji Mao Hour

Yi day · Ji Mao hour, Direct Wealth (Zheng Cai) returns to Salary, body strong then greatly wealthy.

Example 4: Six Bing Day · Wu Zi Hour

Bing day · Wu Zi hour, Food God controls Killings, presiding over military nobility.

Example 5: Six Geng Day · Ren Wu Hour

Geng day · Ren Wu hour, Seven Killings controls the body, needs body strong with Seal to be auspicious.

Example 6: Six Gui Day · Gui Hai Hour

Gui day · Gui Hai hour, disposition is intelligent and elegant, middle age greatly wealthy.

Rule: 60 days × 12 hours = 720 examples, covering virtually all basic combinations.

Relationship to Other Classics

Learning Path Recommendations

Step 1: Read Vol. 1–2 (Foundations)

• Five Elements generation and restraining
• Yin/Yang life and death of Heavenly Stems
• Flourishing, prospering, resting, imprisoned, dying
• Na Yin imagery

Step 2: Read Vol. 3 (Shen Sha)

• No need to memorize, but know what each kind of Shen Sha is
• In practice, when encountering a "strange" chart, you can think of the corresponding Shen Sha

Step 3: Read Vol. 4–6 (Patterns)

• Month-Branch pattern overview
• Direct Officer and Seven Killings details
• Rare patterns like Ren riding dragon back, Zi remote Si salary

Step 4: Carefully Read Vol. 7 (Women's Fate)

• Differences between men's and women's fates
• A woman's "husband star" and "children star" usage

Step 5: Practically Reference Vol. 8–9

• When encountering a specific Day Master, directly look up the corresponding day-hour judgment
• This is reference-book-style usage

Step 6: Savor Vol. 10–12 (Verses)

• Method of Reading Fate Verses, Atmosphere Chapter, Yuan Li Fu
• Elevate theoretical understanding

Study Recommendations

• ✅ Best for: Everyone — both an introductory encyclopedia and a practical tool
• ⚠️ Difficulty: ★★★★ (large in volume but scattered)
• 📖 Recommended edition: Complete vernacular edition (the project's digital edition is included)
• 🎯 Learning path: First read Vol. 1–3 to build foundations, then look up Vol. 8–9 as needed

🔗 Related reading: Zi Ping Zhen Quan (pattern method) · Yuan Hai Zi Ping (Origin of Four Pillars) · Di Tian Sui (Qi-Li method)