TWELVE EARTHLY BRANCHES
Branch 8 of 12
- Yin Earth
- Goat
- Late Summer
- 13:00–15:00
- Zodiac animal
- Goat
- Month
- Minor Heat
- Hour
- 13:00–15:00
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Wei — What Summer Leaves in the Soil
What remains when summer has already produced its growth? Wei answers with warm Earth containing both residual Fire and a fine Wood root. As the eighth Earthly Branch, it closes summer's sequence: the emphasis shifts from expanding a canopy to holding what has ripened beneath it.
At a glance
- Element
- Yin Earth
- Zodiac animal
- Goat
- Hidden stems
- Yin Earth · Yin Fire · Yin Wood
- Month
- Minor Heat · 07/07–08/07
- Hour
- 13:00–15:00
- Direction
- South-southwest
- Seasonal frame
- Summer · 巳午未
- Three Harmony frame
- 亥 · 卯 · 未 → Wood
Ripeness
Wei's image is cultivated ground after sustained heat. Its association with completion concerns what growth leaves behind, rather than an endless capacity to give.
A living reserve
The hidden Yin Wood means this Earth is not an empty container. Alongside stored warmth, it holds a thread of vegetation; preservation and continued growth share the same space.
When holding becomes drying
Late-summer Earth is traditionally classed as dry. More Fire does not automatically improve it: warmth can mature something, while excessive dryness can make nourishment less available.
What is hidden inside
- Yin Earth50%Primary qi · Earth
- Yin Fire33%Middle qi · Fire
- Yin Wood17%Residual qi · Wood
Yin Earth leads, Yin Fire follows, and Yin Wood remains as residual qi. The diagram uses relative weights of 3:2:1, rounded to 50/33/17; these describe the displayed hidden-stem model, not a person's total elemental balance.
Where it falls in the year and in the day
- 寅
- 卯
- 辰
- 巳
- 午
- 未
- 申
- 酉
- 戌
- 亥
- 子
- 丑
- 子
- 丑
- 寅
- 卯
- 辰
- 巳
- 午
- 未
- 申
- 酉
- 戌
- 亥
Wei hour is 13:00–15:00. Its solar month begins at Minor Heat and ends at Beginning of Autumn, approximately July 7–August 7. Solar-term boundaries vary by year; the lunar sixth month is a traditional correspondence, not an interchangeable date range.
未 and the other eleven
Horse–Goat Six Harmony is assigned to Earth. Fire supporting Earth explains the elemental connection, but the pair's presence is not proof that transformation has occurred.
- 未 · 午Earth
未 in each of the four pillars
Year branch
As a year branch, Wei belongs to the chart's family and early-environment layer. Images of inherited land, accumulated provision or continuity are symbolic possibilities; a Goat birth year alone cannot establish a family's circumstances.
Month branch
The month position makes Wei's late-summer climate central. Whether its Earth supports or obstructs the Day Master depends on roots, moisture and the surrounding stems, not simply on how many Earth symbols appear.
Day branch — spouse palace
In the day position, Wei supplies three different hidden stems to the spouse palace. Their Ten God roles must be calculated from the Day Master before discussing relationship dynamics; the branch does not establish a partner's personality.
Hour branch
Wei in the hour position brings the idea of preserving a living reserve into the traditional later-life and legacy layer. It does not, by itself, predict children, property ownership or retirement wealth.
The five 未 day pillars
Each stem that can sit on this branch makes a different pillar. Open one for the full profile.
- Yin Wood GoatYin Wood has a matching root inside this Earth, but that root shares space with Fire. Rootedness and sufficient moisture are separate questions.
- Yin Fire GoatYin Fire finds its own hidden root while feeding the branch's main Earth. Support and output occur together.
- Yin Earth GoatYin Earth sits on its own main qi. This is direct rooting, whose usefulness still depends on the chart's existing Earth strength.
- Yin Metal GoatYin Metal receives Earth support here, yet the branch hides no Metal stem. Being produced by an element is not the same as taking root in it.
- Yin Water GoatYin Water sits above Earth containing no Water root. The surrounding chart determines whether Water can moisten this ground or is constrained by it.
A classical note
Wei means that things have come to completion and acquired flavour.
Records of the Grand Historian, Treatise on Pitch Pipes
The passage connects this seasonal name with ripening and flavour. It is an ancient account of the annual cycle, not evidence that every Goat-born person is gentle or that every Wei placement promises a harvest.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Wei Earth called a Wood storehouse?
Its own element is Earth; its storehouse role belongs to the Pig–Rabbit–Goat Wood frame, and it also contains residual Yin Wood. These are different classifications, so there is no contradiction.
Is Wei the same kind of Earth as Chou?
No. Wei is late-summer dry Earth containing Yin Earth, Yin Fire and Yin Wood. Chou is cold-season damp Earth containing Yin Earth, Yin Water and Yin Metal.
Does an Ox–Goat clash release wealth from storage?
Not automatically. Whether Wealth is involved requires the Day Master's Ten God mapping and the full chart. A storehouse label or a clash alone does not prove a financial event.
Is Wei month always the lunar sixth month?
BaZi month boundaries follow solar terms: Minor Heat to Beginning of Autumn. Lunar calendar months begin on new moons, so the two systems cannot be substituted near a boundary.
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