六合 Liu He — the Six Unions
Peaceful Earthly Branch Combinations

If the Heavenly Stems are the "face" of your BaZi chart, the Earthly Branches (地支) are its hidden mechanics. And nothing shapes the course of destiny as subtly as the combinations between branches. The gentlest, deepest, and most fateful of them are the Liu He (六合 (liù hé — "six unions")), the "Six Unions."

Unlike the loud clashes of Chong (沖), or the explosive Triple Unions of San He (三合 (sān hé — "triple unions")), Liu He is a "diplomatic marriage" within the chart. It works quietly: it doesn't destroy, it joins. But it's precisely through these unions that weddings, contracts, parenthood, relocations, and mergers of capital enter a life. And their absence in a chart often explains why a person "can't find their footing."

1 What Liu He is — definition and history

Liu He is six pairs of Earthly Branches that form a peaceful union between each other. The word he (合) literally means "harmony, joining, entering into an agreement." In Chinese tradition, 合 is a pictograph of a lid on a bowl: two parts closing together, forming a whole.

The origin of Liu He is tied to Han-dynasty astronomy (2nd century BCE). Ancient Chinese astrologers observed the movement of the Sun and Moon along the ecliptic, and noticed that in certain pairs of constellation-houses, the Sun and Moon meet "face to face." These twelve branch-houses were split into six pairs of "meetings" — and this is how the Liu He system was born.

The classic text Sān Mìng Tōng Huì 三命通會 ("The Combined Canon of Three Fates," Ming dynasty) states: 「六合者，日月之所會也」 — "The Six Unions are the places where the Sun and Moon meet." So Liu He is an astronomically calibrated set of harmony points on the annual circle, not merely a speculative scheme.

2 The full list — all six pairs

All six Liu He unions and the transformed element of each pair:

Notice: the pairings are not random. Each pair sums to "the heavenly number 11" in branch order. For example, Zi (1) + Chou (10) = 11, Yin (3) + Hai (8) = 11. This is the system's mathematical elegance — the ancient masters believed 11 was the number of "perfect union."

3 The mechanics of interaction — how the elements change

This is where things get subtle. Many beginners think: "I have Zi and Chou, so both have turned into Earth." That's a mistake. The the classical Ziping school draw a sharp line: transformation requires special conditions.

Three levels of Liu He's effect

1. Binding (合住) — the most common case. Two branches "embrace," but don't transform. They "distract" each other. If one of them was your favorable element, it stops working actively — it's "occupied" in the union.
2. Support (合化但不化) — the union exists, but the transformation is incomplete. The energy of the combined element is present "in the background."
3. Full transformation (合化) — the pair fully becomes the new element. This is rare, and requires three conditions:
   • A "catalyst" — a stem matching the new element — must be present among the Heavenly Stems.
   • The birth season must support the new element.
   • There must be no Chong or Xing destroying the union.

What if a pair is "bound"?

If a branch that was useful to you (say, your "wealth") ends up "bound" through a Liu He to another branch, its usefulness decreases. That doesn't mean you'll lose money. It means the money becomes tied to a specific person or field. For example, your income starts depending on a partner, a spouse, a particular client.

4 Liu He in the birth chart — what it means

Find the Liu He in your own chart — look at the four Earthly Branches (year, month, day, hour) and check whether any of the pairs from the table above appear among them.

Decoding by position

• Year — Month. A union with parents, the family line, early youth. Often means a "family business," a strong bond with the family name, ancestral support.
• Year — Day. The past and the marriage intertwine. The partner often comes "from within the family circle," or resembles a parent.
• Year — Hour. Ancestors influence the offspring. Children often repeat a grandparent's fate.
• Month — Day. The most powerful position. Career and marriage merge. This is "the office romance," marrying a colleague, merging business with marriage.
• Month — Hour. Work and children are intertwined. Career is favorable when there's family. Many entrepreneurs have this link.
• Day — Hour. A union with the spouse and children. A harmonious family home, warm relationships.

A special case: Liu He on the Day Branch

If the Day branch takes part in a Liu He, it's a sign of a strong marriage, a union, a firm partner-attachment. In the classics, this is called "hidden happiness." People like this don't divorce easily, even when problems arise.

5 Liu He in the Luck Pillars — activation in a decade

Every 10 years in BaZi, a new Luck Pillar (大運 (dà yùn — "Luck Pillars")) arrives, bringing a new stem and branch into the chart. If that branch forms a Liu He with one of the branches in your natal chart, it's one of the most fateful moments of a lifetime.

What happens upon activation

• If the union is with the Day branch — marriage arrives, a serious relationship, joining your life with someone.
• If the union is with the Month branch — a business partner arrives, a new career connection, a company merger.
• If the union is with the Hour branch — the birth of children, new projects, students.
• If the union is with the Year branch — reconciliation with parents, an inheritance, an ancestral activation.

For example, someone with Chou (丑) in their Day pillar enters a Luck Pillar with Zi (子). Zi-Chou forms a Liu He. In all likelihood, they'll marry or meet an important partner during this decade.

6 Liu He in Liu Nian — annual activation

Every year has its own stem and branch (Liu Nian, 流年 (liú nián — "the current year")). 2024 was 甲辰 (Jia-Chen, Dragon). 2025 was 乙巳 (Yi-Si, Snake). 2026 is 丙午 (Bing-Wu, Horse).

If the year's branch forms a Liu He with one of the branches in your chart, that year becomes "a year of meeting and joining." The specific event depends on which branch is activated.

Typical events when Liu He is activated by the year

• Meeting a future spouse.
• Signing a long-term contract.
• Reuniting with a long-lost person (a relative, a friend, an ex-partner).
• Merging companies, combining teams.
• Pregnancy and the birth of a child.
• Buying property together.
• Returning home after a long absence.

For example, a woman with the branch Hai (亥) in her Day pillar enters 2024, the year of Chen-Dragon — Chen doesn't form a Liu He with her. Nor does 2025 (Si), nor 2026 (Wu). But in 2029 (壬寅, Ren-Yin), Yin-Hai forms a Liu He! That's likely her "year of marriage."

7 Positive effects — when Liu He works for you

Liu He is predominantly a favorable combination. The classics called it "heaven's blessed breath." What it gives you:

Liu He is especially valuable for people with a "weak" Day Master — the union gives them support. A strong Day Master also benefits — Liu He softens the excess strength and channels it peacefully.

8 Negative effects — when Liu He breaks the balance

Despite its good name, Liu He can work against you. This happens in three cases:

1. "Binding a favorable branch"

If a branch that gives you strength or wealth ends up "tied" through a Liu He, it works with a delay, or depends on outside factors. For example, your wealth is "tied" to your spouse — without them, you don't earn to your full potential.

2. Turning into an unfavorable element

If the union transforms into an element that's a "drain" or an "enemy" for you, that's bad. For example, a Geng (庚, Yang Metal) Day Master with a Mao-Xu union transforms into Fire, which melts Metal. That means the marriage or partnership weakens your position.

3. "Sweet bonds" — a loss of freedom

The modern classical Ziping school has a concept of "sweet captivity": Liu He can mean a person is so tied to someone or something that they can't develop independently. For example, a marriage where the spouses have "grown together" so tightly that one doesn't function without the other. This isn't always bad — but at moments when autonomy is needed, it's painful.

9 Combinations with other links — what if there's both Chong and He

Real charts rarely have a "pure" Liu He. More often, it sits alongside Chong, Xing, or San He. This creates complex patterns.

Liu He + Chong (合而不沖，沖中有合)

If the same pair of branches forms both a Chong and a Liu He at once, it's a conflict between two forces. For example, the branch Wu (午) is in the chart, and Zi (子) arrives — that's a Chong (Zi-Wu clash). But if there's also a Wei (未) in the chart, which forms a Liu He with Wu, it "holds" Wu back from a full clash. In the classics, this is called "He delays Chong." The divorce doesn't happen, but there's still a crisis in the relationship.

Liu He + San He (Triple Union)

If a branch is already part of a Triple Union (for example, Hai-Mao-Wei — Wood), and it also has a Liu He pair, it gets "torn" between the two groups. San He usually wins out (it's stronger). But Liu He creates a "second obligation."

Liu He + Xing (punishment)

If the union is overlaid with a Xing punishment, it's a "scandalous peace": outwardly everything is fine, but inside there are hidden grievances, resentments, things left unsaid. Often these are marriages that "look fine to the neighbors," but feel cold on the inside.

10 Practical examples from charts

Example 1. A woman born 1985, Day pillar Jia-Chen (甲辰), Hour Shen

In her chart, Chen (the Day) and You-Rooster in her 2020-2030 Luck Pillar form a Liu He, Chen-You → Metal. In parallel, Shen-Zi-Chen (a Water Triple Union) is also activated. In 2024 (the year of Chen-Dragon), she married an older man — Metal (the husband) activated through marriage and, simultaneously, a career change. The marriage was confirmed by a double activation.

Example 2. A man born 1978, Day pillar Yi-Hai (乙亥), Day Master Yi (Yin Wood)

He has Hai in his Day and Yin in his Year. Yin-Hai Liu He → Wood. This means his inner strength (Day Master) and the foundation of his marriage (Hai) are one and the same. The marriage strengthens him as a person. Indeed, he met his wife at 24, and together they built a company. The marriage has lasted 22 years.

Example 3. A woman born 1991, Day pillar Bing-Shen (丙申)

Shen is in her Day. In her 2022-2032 Luck Pillar, Si arrived — a Si-Shen Liu He → Water. Water, for a Bing Day Master, represents "career and husband." In 2024 (the annual pillar Jia-Chen), she was promoted and, at the same time, fell in love with a colleague. The Liu He activated in both areas at once. A classic "office romance" pattern, foretold by the chart.

Example 4. A chart with no Liu He

Sometimes you find charts where Liu He is entirely absent. This is a "solitary destiny" — the person finds it hard to form lasting attachments. They meet people easily, but struggle to commit. Often these are the fates of solitary creators, researchers, monastics. Not bad, not good — just a different path.

Example 5. An overload of Liu He

The opposite also happens: a chart with three or four Liu He unions. Someone like this is "tied to everyone." They struggle to say "no," constantly in obligations. Often these are the helpers, the diplomats, who carry relatives and friends on their shoulders until they burn out.

Conclusion

The Six Unions, Liu He, are the most "human" part of BaZi. They describe how we bond with one another, how we find spouses and partners, how our lives weave together with other lives. Unlike the aggressive Chong or the explosive San He, Liu He works quietly — but it's exactly what determines who will be beside you 30 years from now.

Understanding your Liu He gives you the key to your most important relationships. Knowing which branch activates when helps you not miss your "years of meeting," not let a fateful person slip by, and build lasting bonds consciously.