How to read daeun (10-year luck cycles) and the daeun number
Daeun are 10-year luck cycles that start from the month pillar and move one stem-branch pair per decade. The daeun number is the age when the first cycle begins. Direction (forward or backward) depends on gender and whether the year stem is yang or yin; the number comes from counting days between birth and the nearest solar term and dividing by 3 — 3 days equal one year, 1 day equals four months.
Step 1: forward or backward
Yang year stems are 甲 丙 戊 庚 壬; yin year stems are 乙 丁 己 辛 癸.
| Yang year | Yin year | |
|---|---|---|
| Male | Forward (to the next solar term) | Backward (to the previous solar term) |
| Female | Backward (to the previous solar term) | Forward (to the next solar term) |
Step 2: the daeun number
Going forward, count days from birth to the next solar-term start; going backward, from the previous solar-term start to birth. Divide by 3. The remainder is rounded or converted to months, depending on the school.
Example: forward, 20 days to the next term → 20 ÷ 3 = 6 remainder 2 → daeun number 6 (or 7). The first cycle begins around age 6–7 and each lasts 10 years.
Step 3: write the cycles
Forward cycles continue from the month pillar; backward cycles go in reverse. If the month pillar is 丙寅: forward gives 丁卯, 戊辰, 己巳…; backward gives 乙丑, 甲子, 癸亥…
Why apps disagree by one year
Rounding the remainder, counting solar terms by day versus by minute, and showing international versus traditional Korean age can shift the daeun number by one. Longitude and DST corrections to the birth time matter too.
A simple reading order
- Find the current cycle and the age it began.
- Check the cycle's stem and branch as ten gods relative to the day stem.
- Look for combinations and clashes with the natal chart.
- Layer the yearly pillar on top.
- Note real events and compare them with the cycles as you study.
In Myeongsik Note
Myeongsik Note shows the daeun number and direction above the chart and lays out luck, yearly and monthly pillars side by side. Log events per person ("2024.5 changed jobs") and they appear next to the matching cycle. Age can be shown as international or traditional Korean age.
Note
Saju (Four Pillars) is traditional calendar culture. This guide explains how charts are calculated, for reference and study only. It does not predict or guarantee anything, and conventions differ between schools and calendars.
Log life events next to luck cycles
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