Ba Zi punishments, 刑 (xíng), are the least understood of the branch relations. Clashes are loud and combinations are easy to picture, but punishments sit in between: a pairing of earthly branches that works well enough in calm seasons and turns awkward under pressure. This page sets out the bazi punishments exactly as this site’s calculator models them, the three traditional groups, and how to read them without alarm.
If the twelve branches are new to you, start with heavenly stems and earthly branches. Punishments only make sense once you can read the branch row of a chart.
The seven punishment pairs
This site’s calculator flags 刑 for exactly seven pairs of branches. Whenever two of these branches meet, whether inside the natal chart or between the chart and a luck pillar or year, we read it as a punishment.
| Pair | Animals | Group |
|---|---|---|
| 子 Zǐ – 卯 Mǎo | Rat – Rabbit | 子卯 |
| 丑 Chǒu – 未 Wèi | Ox – Goat | 丑戌未 |
| 丑 Chǒu – 戌 Xū | Ox – Dog | 丑戌未 |
| 寅 Yín – 巳 Sì | Tiger – Snake | 寅巳申 |
| 寅 Yín – 申 Shēn | Tiger – Monkey | 寅巳申 |
| 巳 Sì – 申 Shēn | Snake – Monkey | 寅巳申 |
| 未 Wèi – 戌 Xū | Goat – Dog | 丑戌未 |
The pairs fall into three groups: the 寅巳申 group of three, the 丑戌未 group of three, and the 子卯 pair. Within each group of three, any two members punish each other, so a chart holding all three shows three pairs at once. In practice we read a full group as a stronger theme than a single pair.
The three penalties and their traditional names
Classical texts give each group a name that describes its flavour. The names are useful shorthand, though they should not be read literally as a judgement on a person.
- 寅巳申: 无恩之刑 (wú ēn zhī xíng), “punishment of ingratitude”. Help given and not acknowledged, favours that turn into obligations, alliances that sour.
- 丑戌未: 恃势之刑 (shì shì zhī xíng), “punishment of bullying”. Leaning on position or strength, stubborn standoffs, pressure from people with leverage.
- 子卯: 无礼之刑 (wú lǐ zhī xíng), “punishment of incivility”. Lapses of courtesy and boundaries, friction in close or domestic relationships.
Some texts swap the first two names, giving “bullying” to 寅巳申 and “ingratitude” to 丑戌未. Schools differ, and the meaning in a chart comes from the elements and the pillars involved, not from the label.
Classical texts also list self-punishment (自刑 zìxíng): 辰, 午, 酉 and 亥 each meeting itself. This site’s calculator does not flag it, and schools differ on its weight.
Where punishments overlap with other relations
Four of the seven pairs carry a second relation as well, and the calculator reports both. This is the part most often misread.
| Pair | Relations reported |
|---|---|
| 寅巳 | Six Harm 六害; Punishment 刑 |
| 巳申 | Six Combination 六合; Punishment 刑 |
| 寅申 | Six Clash 六冲; Punishment 刑 |
| 丑戌 | Punishment 刑 |
| 戌未 | Punishment 刑 |
| 丑未 | Six Clash 六冲; Punishment 刑 |
| 子卯 | Punishment 刑 |
When a punishment rides on a clash (寅申, 丑未), the clash supplies the force and the punishment supplies the complication: movement or confrontation that also drags in obligation or pride. When it rides on a harm (寅巳), quiet friction gains an edge. The most interesting case is 巳申, a Six Combination (六合 liùhé) toward Water that is also a punishment. We read it as a bond that holds but chafes, a partnership or contract that ties two parties together on terms neither finds entirely comfortable.
The clash and harm lists are set out in full on the six clashes and six harms pages. The pure punishments, 丑戌, 戌未 and 子卯, carry no second relation and are read on their own terms.
How bazi punishments show in a chart
The engine’s own note for 刑 is the best summary we know: complication under stress, fine in calm seasons, sharp in hard ones. A punishment rarely creates trouble from nothing. It shapes how trouble unfolds when it comes.
In the natal chart
A punishment between two natal pillars is a standing theme. Which pillars are involved tells you where it lives: year and month point toward family and early environment, the day branch toward the spouse palace and close partnership. A punishment touching the day branch is one reason we look closely in saju compatibility and other two-chart readings.
In luck pillars and annual years
A luck pillar or year whose branch punishes a natal branch activates the theme for that period. Over a ten-year luck pillar it is a background texture. In a single year it is more pointed, and it tends to show in the areas the punished pillar governs.
The 2027 example
The 2027 year branch is 未, the Goat. It meets 丑 and 戌 by punishment, completing two sides of the 丑戌未 group. For the Ox, 丑未 is also a clash; for the Dog, 戌未 is a punishment alone. Charts with 丑 or 戌 in a prominent pillar will feel 2027 as a year of stubborn standoffs to manage patiently, not a year to fear. The details are on Tai Sui 2027, the Ox horoscope 2027 and the Dog horoscope 2027.
Reading punishments calmly
A punishment in your chart is not a sentence. Many well-functioning charts hold one, and the people who carry them often become good at exactly the thing the punishment complicates: negotiation, boundaries, managing obligations. The useful questions are which pillars are involved, whether the elements in those pillars are favourable to the Day Master, and when a luck pillar or year will bring the theme forward.
Find the punishments in your own chart: plot it free with the Ba Zi calculator, which flags 刑 pairs alongside the clashes, harms and combinations.