How should the three directions and four positions be read? In a Zi Wei Dou Shu chart, first locate the home palace, opposite palace, and trine palaces

In common usage, the three directions and four positions are a relationship in which the home palace, the two trine palaces, and the opposite palace are referenced together. It is not simply looking at four directions on the page, nor is it randomly finding four adjacent palaces. First identifying the positions of the twelve earthly branches and the palace names is more reliable than memorizing "how many squares from the left of the screen."

The chart layout may be rotated or rearranged, and the names and relationships must still be confirmed according to the chart being used. A different appearance on screen does not necessarily mean the stars are placed differently; first distinguish the layout from the data, then discuss interpretation.

Common Life Palace reading references the Life Palace, Wealth Palace, Career Palace, and the opposite palace, the Travel Palace. This example makes it easy for beginners to check the scope of what is read together, but it does not mean the data of these four palaces can fully determine a life, nor that every star can be directly mapped to a certain event.

When the home palace changes, the related palaces also change according to their positions; the set of palace names for the Life Palace cannot be applied as-is to every question. If the twelve palaces are still unfamiliar, you can first read Classification of the Twelve Palaces, then do positioning practice.

Write the home palace and the other three reference palaces on paper, and check one by one whether the stars are really in that palace. Then record the current natal, major limit, or annual layer, to avoid mixing palace names and stars from different layers. Displaying more data does not mean every item should be interpreted at the same time.

For example, after switching the screen to the annual year, first look at how the tool marks the time palace and the original chart; do not just look at a familiar star and copy a line like "career will definitely be good." Distinguishing the source also makes your questions to others more specific.

Adding points for all the good names in the four palaces and deducting points for bad names, if no method is explained, is just another arbitrary score. Traditional reading also has different conditions and school differences; looking at a few more squares cannot be packaged as a verified precise model.

The purpose of reading a chart can be to understand a cultural language, but it cannot be used to judge another person's integrity, illness, or relationship outcomes. If a conclusion involves real-life choices, you should still directly ask the person concerned, check documents and real-world conditions, and not use the chart as a substitute for evidence.

For the four transformations markings, see Introduction to the Four Transformations; for palaces without a main star, see The Difference of Empty Palaces. This article was produced with AI assistance; the accompanying image only indicates structure; classical texts are listed as historical sources, and it does not mean their auspicious or inauspicious comments are suitable for direct application to modern life.