How to use this App: For beginners, just input your birthday and birth time and then tap the "Crystal Ball" to get your natal Four-pillar chart. And then, tap the "Expand" button to unfold the hidden symbols. Chart Reading: In the Expanded Chart View, you could tap the "Interpret" button to open the interpretation view and read the meaning for each of the symbols. Progression and Transit: In the Expanded Chart View, if you would like to have some prediction reading, just tap "Now" or choose a decade to start with. Progression Chart: In the Progression Chart View, you could choose a decade and then select one of the ten years to see your full progression and transit chart. What is Progression: This term is the same as the one in western astrology(astrology for short). It is said that the concept came from Bible, "a day for a year"(Ezekiel 4:4-6.). There are several kinds of progressions, Primary progression, Solar Arc progression and Tertiary progression(Lunar Progression). The Primary progression applies the one day for a year principle, which means that the planets of the thirtieth day of your birth could be used to project what will happen at your 30. In Four-pillar chart, we use a month for a decade ratio to project your progressions. In Chinese calendar, a year is divided into 24 parts, 12 atmospheres and 12 festivals. And 12 festivals are the starting points of 12 months. Plus, charts are divided into Yang persons and Yin persons. Yang chart progresses clock-wisely and Yin chart progresses counter clock-wisely. This factor depends on the gender and birth year. So what is transit: Transit is simple. In astrology, you could choose a time and check the planets placements. Usually you will check a transit to natal chart comparison to predict what will happen or study what happened for a past transit. In Four-pillar, we use natal chart, progression and transit all together to make predictions. But it is not the purpose of this app because I never did any studies or statistics. You need to learn from your past or from other people to help you make predictions, just like any other astrology app does. About the Four-Pillar reading Practice: The art was derived from ancient astrology which is very familiar be today's western astrology. In Tang Dynasty, the chart was composed of 3 pillars but sometimes the masters had to work along with an astrological chart. In Song Dynasty, a numerology and an I-Ching master Xu Zi Ping invented the four-pillar chart and dropped the astrological chart completely. And this art had been thriving and being practised for nearly one thousand years in the ancient China. Some are still practising the Four-pillar or Bazi(eight character symbols) reading today. And Hong Kong is the place where the art is still thriving along with Fengshui. About this App: We saw that although there are many Four-pillar apps on the App Store. But we could not find one that is by any means translated into English or modernised. We started this project from scratch and we tried hard to look for a counter part of the symbols in English and in the western world. Later we translated or re-wroted some of the ancient interpretation text into English so that everyone can enjoy the art. And I employ as many astrology terms as possible so that you Google it if you are not familiar with the term. OPEN DATA LICENSE for MaxMind WorldCities and Postal Code Databases Copyright (c) 2008 MaxMind Inc. All Rights Reserved.
