Chart Reading
Major & Annual Cycles — The Flow of Time
Major Cycles span ten years; Annual Cycles shift each year. When they overlap, life's turning points emerge.
Same person. One decade, everything falls into place.
Another decade, no matter how hard you try — nothing works.
That's the flow of luck: the Major Cycle (大運).
If your natal chart is the seed, the Major Cycle is the climate and the soil.
Even the best seed won't grow in a desert.
Once you know where your Major Cycle is right now,
you can see when to push forward and when to hold your ground.
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What Is the Major Cycle?
A shift in the flow of luck that changes every 10 years.
Made up of 2 characters: a Heavenly Stem (天干) and an Earthly Branch (地支).
The age when your first Major Cycle begins after birth:
Days from birthday to the next (or previous) solar term ÷ 3
Example: 12 days to the solar term → 12 ÷ 3 = first Major Cycle starts at age 4
Then 14, 24, 34… and so on.
Direction:
Male + born in a Yang year → forward sequence
Female + born in a Yang year → reverse sequence
(The opposite applies to Yin year births)
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Reading the Major Cycle — Useful God or Unfavorable God?
There's really just one core question when reading a Major Cycle:
Is this cycle's element my Useful God (用神) or my Unfavorable God (忌神)?
10 years of Useful God = golden era
→ The Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch of the cycle strengthen the Useful God
10 years of Unfavorable God = period of hardship
→ Unfavorable God arrives, or clashes and controls the Useful God
The transition between Major Cycles (roughly 1–2 years before and after) is a turning point in life.
Big decisions — career changes, marriage, moving — tend to cluster here.
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Annual Luck (歲運) — Specific Events Year by Year
If the Major Cycle is the backdrop of a decade,
Annual Luck (歲運) is the specific events and changes of each year.
Read in three layers:
Natal Chart (innate constitution)
↓
Major Cycle (10-year environment)
↓
Annual Luck (that year's events)
Major Cycle good + Annual Luck good → that year is very good
Major Cycle bad + Annual Luck good → temporary improvement, still difficult overall
Major Cycle good + Annual Luck bad → rough that year only, recovers quickly
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Wrap-up
Once you understand your Major Cycle and Annual Luck, you can see:
"Why did that thing happen back then?"
"Why is this period so hard right now?"
"When is the right time to make a move?"
The difference between someone who rides the flow of luck
and someone who fights against it shows up in the results.
Want to check your current Major Cycle and this year's Annual Luck? →
[링크]
🧵 (5/5)
"Daily Myeongli" Format
Standalone 1 — 2026 丙午 Year Annual Luck
2026 is the year of 丙午 (Byeongo).
丙 = Yang Fire (陽火), blazing like the sun
午 = the peak of 火, midsummer energy at full force
People with heavy 水 or 金 in their chart → watch for Fire energy clashes
People with heavy 木 or 火 in their chart → energy intensifies this year
Those whose Useful God is 火 → 2026 is your year of opportunity
If your day branch (日支) is 子 (Ja), the 子午 clash (沖) is in effect.
Pay attention to health and relationships with your spouse or partner.
Standalone 2 — How to Read a Major Cycle Transition
The 1–2 years before and after a Major Cycle changes
is a period when life gets shaken up.
Signs of this period:
Your existing environment starts to feel unstable
Unexpected changes show up
Decisions you've been putting off suddenly come to a head
Knowing the transition is coming makes it less scary.
"Ah — this is my Major Cycle changing." → Now you can prepare.
Standalone 3 — How to Read the Stem and Branch of a Major Cycle
A Major Cycle is made up of a Heavenly Stem + Earthly Branch.
Some classical astrologers divide it like this:
Heavenly Stem (5 years) → consciousness, psychology, and relationship shifts
Earthly Branch (5 years) → actual events, environment, and material changes
A good Heavenly Stem period opens your mind first.
A good Earthly Branch period is when real opportunities actually arrive.
Good Heavenly Stem but the Branch brings a clash →
5 years of wanting it in your heart, but reality won't cooperate.