六合 Liù Hé — The Six Unions
Peaceful Combinations of the Earthly Branches

If the Heavenly Stems are the "face" of your BaZi chart, then the Earthly Branches (地支) are its hidden machinery. And nothing shapes the course of destiny as subtly as the combinations between branches. The gentlest, deepest, and most fateful of them are the Liù Hé (六合 (liù hé — "Six Unions")), the "Six Unions."

Unlike the loud Chōng clashes (沖) or the explosive Three Harmonies Sān Hé (三合 (sān hé — "Three Harmonies")), the Liù Hé are the "diplomatic marriages" of a chart. They work quietly: they do not destroy but join. Yet it is through them that weddings, contracts, parenthood, relocations, and the merging of capital come into life. And it is precisely their absence in a chart that often explains why a person "cannot find what is theirs."

1 What Liù Hé Is — Definition and History

Liù Hé is the six pairs of Earthly Branches that form a peaceful union with one another. The word hé (合) literally means "harmony, union, the sealing of an agreement." In the Chinese tradition, 合 is a pictogram of a lid on a bowl: two parts close together, forming a single whole.

The origin of Liù Hé is tied to the astronomy of the Han era (2nd century BCE). Ancient Chinese astrologers observed the movement of the Sun and the Moon along the ecliptic and noticed that in certain pairs of constellations the Sun and Moon meet "face to face." These twelve branch-houses were divided into six pairs of "meetings" — and so the Liù Hé system was born.

In the classic 三命通會 ("The Comprehensive Canon of the Three Fates," Ming era) it is said: "六合者, 日月之所會也" — "The Six Unions are the places where the Sun and the Moon meet." That is, the Liù Hé are astronomically calibrated points of harmony on the annual circle, not merely a speculative scheme.

2 The Complete List — All Six Pairs

All six Liù Hé unions and the transformed element of each pair:

Note that the pairs are not random. Each pair adds up to the "heavenly number 11" in the order of the branches. For example, Zi (1) + Chou (10) = 11, Yin (3) + Hai (8) = 11. This is the mathematical beauty of the system — the ancient masters believed that 11 was the number of "the perfect union."

3 The Mechanics of Interaction — How the Elements Shift

Here is where it gets most subtle. Many beginners think: "I have Zi and Chou — therefore both have turned into Earth." This is a mistake. The Joey Yap school and classical Ziping draw a clear distinction: transformation requires special conditions.

The Three Levels of Liù Hé Action

1. Binding (合住) — the most common case. Two branches "embrace" but do not transform. They "distract" each other. If one of them was your favorable element, it stops working actively — it is "busy" in the union.
2. Support (合化但不化) — the union exists, but the transformation is incomplete. The energy of the combined element is present "in the background."
3. Full transformation (合化) — the pair becomes a new element entirely. This is rare, and three conditions are required:
   • A "catalyst" must be present in the Heavenly Stems — a stem corresponding to the new element.
   • The birth season must support the new element.
   • There must be no Chōng or Xíng destroying the union.

What to Do if a Pair Is "Bound"?

If a branch that was useful to you (for example, your "wealth") turns out to be "bound" through Liù Hé to another branch, its usefulness decreases. This does not mean you will lose money. It means that the money is tied to a specific person or sphere. For instance, your income begins to depend on a partner, a spouse, a particular client.

4 Liù Hé in the Birth Chart — What It Means

Find the Liù Hé in your own chart — look at the four Earthly Branches (Year, Month, Day, Hour) and check whether any of them form pairs from the table above.

Interpretation by Position

• Year — Month. A union with parents, lineage, early youth. Often means a "family business," a strong bond with the family name, the support of ancestors.
• Year — Day. The past and the marriage intertwine. Often the partner comes "from within the family circle" or resembles a parent.
• Year — Hour. The ancestors influence the offspring. Often the children repeat the fate of a grandfather/grandmother.
• Month — Day. The most powerful position. Career and marriage merge. This is the "office romance," marriage to a colleague, the merging of business with marriage.
• Month — Hour. Work and children are intertwined. The career is favorable when there is a family. Many entrepreneurs have this bond.
• Day — Hour. A union with the spouse and the children. A harmonious family home, warm relationships.

A Special Case: Liù Hé with the Day Branch

If the Day Branch takes part in a Liù Hé, it is a sign of a strong marriage, a union, a deep partner attachment. In the classics this is called "hidden happiness." Such people do not divorce easily, even when there are problems.

5 Liù Hé in Da Yun — Activation in the Luck Pillar

Every 10 years in BaZi, a new luck pillar (大運 (dà yùn — "luck pillars"), Da Yun) arrives, bringing a new stem and branch into the chart. If this branch forms a Liù Hé with one of the branches in your natal chart, it is one of the most fateful moments of life.

What Happens upon Activation

• If the union is with the Day Branch — marriage, a serious relationship, the joining of a life with someone arrives.
• If the union is with the Month Branch — a business partner, a new career connection, the merging of companies arrives.
• If the union is with the Hour Branch — the birth of children, new projects, students.
• If the union is with the Year Branch — reconciliation with parents, an inheritance, an ancestral activation.

For example, a person with Chou (丑) in the Day of their chart encounters a Da Yun with Zi (子). Zi-Chou form a Liù Hé. Most likely, in that decade they will marry or meet an important partner.

6 Liù Hé in Liu Nian — Annual Activation

Every year has its own stem and branch (Liu Nian, 流年 (liú nián — "the flowing year")). In 2024 it was 甲辰 (Jia-Chen, Dragon). In 2025 — 乙巳 (Yi-Si, Snake). In 2026 — 丙午 (Bing-Wu, Horse).

If the annual branch forms a Liù Hé with one of the branches in your chart, that year becomes a "year of meeting and union." The specific event depends on which branch is activated.

Typical Events When a Year Activates a Liù Hé

• Meeting a future spouse.
• Signing a long-term contract.
• Reuniting with a long-lost person (a relative, a friend, a former partner).
• Merging companies, joining teams.
• Pregnancy and the birth of a child.
• Buying joint property.
• Returning home after a long absence.

For example, a woman with the Hai branch (亥) in her Day encounters the 2024 year of Chen-Dragon — Chen does not form a Liù Hé with her. Nor do 2025 (Si) or 2026 (Wu). But in 2029 (壬寅, Ren-Yin) — Yin-Hai forms a Liù Hé! This is her "year of marriage," with high probability.

7 Positive Effects — When Liù Hé Works for You

Liù Hé is a predominantly favorable combination. In the classics it was called "the blessed breath of heaven." Here is what it gives:

Liù Hé is especially valuable for people with a "weak" Day Master — the union gives them support. A strong Day Master is grateful too — Liù Hé softens excessive strength and channels it into a peaceful course.

8 Negative Effects — When Liù Hé Breaks the Balance

Despite its good name, Liù Hé can work against you. This happens in three cases:

1. "Binding a Favorable Branch"

If a branch that gives you strength or wealth turns out to be "bound" through Liù Hé, it works with a delay or depends on external factors. For example, your wealth is "bound" to your spouse — without them you do not earn at full strength.

2. Transforming into an Unfavorable Element

If the union transforms into an element that is your "drain" or "enemy," it is bad. For instance, a Day Master of Geng (庚, Yang Metal) with a Mao-Xu union transforms into Fire, which cuts Metal. This means that marriage or partnership weakens your position.

3. "Sweet Bonds" — the Loss of Freedom

In the modern Joey Yap school there is the concept of the "sweet captivity": Liù Hé can mean that a person is so tied to someone or something that they cannot develop on their own. For example, a marriage in which the spouses have "fused" so tightly that one does not function without the other. This is not always bad — but in moments that call for autonomy, it is painful.

9 Combinations with Other Relationships — What if There Is Both Chōng and Hé

In real charts, a "pure" Liù Hé is rare. More often it sits alongside Chōng, Xíng, or Sān Hé. This creates complex patterns.

Liù Hé + Chōng (合而不沖, 沖中有合)

If the same pair of branches simultaneously forms both a Chōng and a Liù Hé, it is a conflict of two forces. For example, the Wu branch (午) is in the chart, and Zi (子) arrives — this is a Chōng (Zi-Wu clash). But if in parallel there is Wei (未), which forms a Liù Hé with Wu, it "holds" Wu back from a full clash. In the classics this is called "hé delays chōng." Divorce does not occur, but there is a crisis in the relationship.

Liù Hé + Sān Hé (the Three Harmonies)

If a branch already participates in a Three Harmonies union (for example, Hai-Mao-Wei — Wood) and at the same time has a Liù Hé pair, it is "torn" between two groups. More often the Sān Hé wins (it is stronger). But the Liù Hé creates a "second obligation."

Liù Hé + Xíng (Punishment)

If the union is overlaid by the Xíng punishment, it is a "scandalous peace": on the surface all is well, but inside there are hidden grievances, resentments, things left unsaid. Often these are marriages where "everything looks fine to the neighbors," but inside there is coldness.

10 Practical Examples from Charts

Example 1. A woman born in 1985, Day Jia-Chen (甲辰), Hour Shen

In her chart, Chen (Day) and You-Rooster in the Da Yun of 2020–2030 form a Liù Hé Chen-You → Metal. In parallel, Shen-Zi-Chen (the Water Three Harmonies) is also activated. In 2024 (the year of Chen-Dragon) she married a man older than herself — Metal (the husband) was activated through marriage and simultaneously through a change of work. The marriage was confirmed by a double activation.

Example 2. A man born in 1978, Day Yi-Hai (乙亥), Day Master Yi (Yin Wood)

He has Hai in his Day and Yin in his Year. Yin-Hai Liù Hé → Wood. This means that his inner strength (the Day Master) and the foundation of his marriage (Hai) are one. Marriage strengthens him as a person. Indeed, he met his wife at 24, and together they built a company. The marriage has lasted 22 years.

Example 3. A woman born in 1991, Day Bing-Shen (丙申)

Shen in her Day. In the Da Yun of 2022–2032 Si arrived — Si-Shen Liù Hé → Water. For the Day Master Bing, Water is "career and husband." In 2024 (年柱 Jia-Chen) she received a promotion and at the same time fell in love with a colleague. The Liù Hé worked in both spheres at once. The classic "office romance" pattern, predicted by the chart.

Example 4. A Chart without Liù Hé

Sometimes charts appear in which Liù Hé is entirely absent. This is a "solitary destiny" — the person finds it hard to form lasting attachments. They meet people easily but bind themselves with obligations only with difficulty. These are often the destinies of solitary creators, explorers, monks. Neither bad nor good — a different path.

Example 5. An Overload of Liù Hé

The opposite also happens: a chart with three or four Liù Hé unions. Such a person is "tied to everyone." They find it hard to say "no" and are constantly under obligations. These are often the helpers, the diplomats, who carry relatives and friends on their backs to the point of burnout.

Conclusion

The Six Unions Liù Hé are the most "human" part of BaZi. They describe how we join with one another, how we find spouses and partners, how our life intertwines with other lives. Unlike the aggressive Chōng or the explosive Sān Hé, the Liù Hé work quietly — yet it is they that determine who will be beside you in 30 years.

By understanding your Liù Hé, you gain the key to your most important relationships. Knowing which branch activates when helps you not to miss the "years of meetings," not to let a fateful person slip by, and to build long bonds consciously.