BAZI KNOWLEDGE BASE
Mourning Gate, Hanging Guest, Pi Ma and Pi Tou: meanings and lookup
Mourning Gate (Sang Men, 丧门) and Hanging Guest (Diao Ke, 吊客) form a pair located around a reference Year Branch (the lower symbol in the birth-year column). Mourning Cloth (Pi Ma, 披麻) and Disheveled Hair (Pi Tou, 披头) often appear nearby in marker lists, but do not inherit the pair’s formula. These historical mourning-related names are not a notice that you or a relative will die.
Mourning Gate and Hanging Guest: all twelve targets
The Sang Diao entry in Sanming Tonghui places Sang Men two branches ahead and Diao Ke two behind. Here forward and backward follow the twelve-branch sequence, with the reference itself counted as zero steps.
For a natal lookup, derive the targets from the birth Year Branch and identify any matching pillars. Both positions come from the same reference; they are not bereavement probabilities to add together.
| Birth Year Branch | Sang Men: +2 | Diao Ke: −2 |
|---|---|---|
| Zi | Yin | Xu |
| Chou | Mao | Hai |
| Yin | Chen | Zi |
| Mao | Si | Chou |
| Chen | Wu | Yin |
| Si | Wei | Mao |
| Wu | Shen | Chen |
| Wei | You | Si |
| Shen | Xu | Wu |
| You | Hai | Wei |
| Xu | Zi | Shen |
| Hai | Chou | You |
A Zi-year example: why separate the chart from a later year?
Use a symbolic illustration with Year Zi, Month Yin, Day Mao and Hour Wei. Sang Men’s target Yin appears at the month; Diao Ke’s target Xu is absent. That is a classification of the known branches.
If a later Xu year is compared with that birth reference, describe it as an annual branch reaching the Zi reference’s Diao Ke position. A calendrical system that starts again from the current annual ruler uses another reference. Neither should be silently rewritten as a natal match, and neither identifies a relative who will suffer harm.
Pi Ma: a mourning-attire name does not supply a formula
Pi Ma refers to traditional mourning attire. Chapter 99 of Fengshen Yanyi also preserves Mourning Cloth Star in its list of deities. That establishes cultural vocabulary, but supplies no BaZi rule specifying a Year or Day Branch (the lower symbol in the birth-day column) and target.
For Pi Ma in another report, look for its complete table: the reference, direction and natal or annual layer. This guide does not assemble unverified tables into a single answer. The name is not evidence that a relative will become ill, die or require a funeral.
Pi Tou: appearing beside Pi Ma does not make them identical
The same chapter also lists Disheveled Hair Star as a separate name. A literary list does not verify a modern twelve-branch table, and the literal phrase does not describe someone’s appearance, head health or mental state.
If two sites return different Pi Tou results, compare their sources and reference conditions rather than choosing the version that feels more personal. Clarify currently calculates none of Pi Tou, Pi Ma, Sang Men or Diao Ke. This guide clarifies their vocabulary and rules without issuing a verdict about a family.