Bing Fire Day Master (丙, Yang Fire)

Quick answer: Bing (丙) is the third of the ten Heavenly Stems: Yang Fire. You have a Bing Fire Day Master if the stem of your day pillar is Bing. The Di Tian Sui pictures Bing as fierce fire that "scorns frost and slights snow", and the commentary calls it blazing fire (焚烈之火). That image is a way to remember the stem's nature, not a verdict on anyone's personality. How Bing is read depends on its season and on the rest of the chart.

Not sure of your Day Master? Find it from your birth date, or calculate your full chart.

The classical image: what the Di Tian Sui says

The Di Tian Sui (滴天髓) is traditionally attributed to Jing Tu of the Song dynasty, although its authorship is uncertain. It describes each stem in a short verse. This is its verse on Bing:

丙火猛烈，欺霜侮雪。能煆庚金，逢辛反怯。土眾成慈，水猖顯節。虎馬犬鄉，甲木若來，必當焚滅。

"Bing fire is fierce; it scorns frost and slights snow. It can forge Geng metal, yet before Xin it turns timid. Among much earth it grows kind; against raging water it shows its integrity. In the land of Tiger, Horse and Dog, if Jia wood arrives it is burned away."

— Di Tian Sui, "天干論", text as in the Di Tian Sui Chanwei (ctext.org). The Wikisource edition shortens the last line to 虎馬犬鄉，甲來焚滅. Translation: PillarChart editorial team.

Line by line:

• "Fierce… scorns frost" (猛烈，欺霜侮雪). Bing is the large, open form of Fire. The Wikisource note calls it "blazing fire" (焚烈之火). The Di Tian Sui also says elsewhere 「五陽皆陽丙為最」: among the five yang stems, Bing is the most yang.
• "Can forge Geng metal, yet before Xin turns timid." Fire controls Metal. The verse distinguishes yang metal (Geng), which Bing can forge, from yin metal (Xin), before which Bing "turns timid" — a classical pairing, not a personality claim.
• "Among much earth it grows kind; against raging water it shows its integrity." Earth is what Fire produces; water controls Fire. The verse sketches how Bing behaves when output is plentiful versus when power (water) is strong.
• "Tiger, Horse and Dog… Jia wood arrives." 寅 Yin, 午 Wu and 戌 Xu are the Fire frame branches. Jia wood feeds fire; the verse warns that in those fire places, added wood can over-stoke Bing.

Yin, yang and the Fire element

Bing and Ding are the two forms of Fire. The same yin–yang pairing used for Wood in Ziping Zhenquan (「甲乙者，木之陰陽也」) is the pattern for every element: Bing is yang fire, Ding is yin fire.

Read the partner page: Yin Fire (Ding).

Season and climate: why your birth month matters

The month branch tells you the season Bing was born into, and so how much support it starts with. In the seasonal scheme of the Sanming Tonghui, Fire is:

The table follows the Sanming Tonghui text, which places Earth's season in the sixth month. The other Earth months (辰, 戌, 丑) are treated in more than one way across schools. See Five Elements.

Climate adjustment in the Qiongtong Baojian

The Qiongtong Baojian (窮通寶鑑) reads every Day Master month by month, asking first whether the chart needs warming, cooling or moistening. Its section on Bing in a key season opens:

三春丙火，秉象至威，阳回大地，侮雪欺霜，耑用壬水为扶阳，名曰天和地润，既济功成。

"Bing fire in the three spring months holds a commanding image: yang returns to the earth, scorning snow and frost. The book takes Ren water as the special means to support that yang — calling it heaven and earth in harmony, a completed already-jiji." — Qiongtong Baojian, 三春丙火 (Wikisource). Translation: PillarChart editorial team. Climate / adjustment lines only; the book also contains fixed fortune pronouncements, which we do not reproduce.

For other parts of the year, the book's climate recommendations for Bing include the following (paraphrased):

• Summer: Yang is fierce. The book specialises in Ren water; if Hai's Ren is weak it looks to Shen's long-life water instead (paraphrased from 三夏丙火).
• Seventh month (申 Shen): The sun turns west and yang declines. The book still uses Ren water to mirror Bing's light, and may take Wu earth to restrain excess Ren (「仍用壬水，辅映光辉」).
• Tenth month (亥 Hai): The sun is out of season. The book weighs Jia, Wu and Geng as they appear: wood-strong charts favour Geng, water-strong charts favour Wu, fire-strong charts favour Ren (「木旺宜庚，水旺宜戊，火旺用壬」).

These describe what one classical method looks for, given the season. They are not predictions, and other methods may weigh the same chart differently. Where schools disagree on a rule, see How we calculate your chart.

Is your Bing Fire weak or strong?

Three questions decide it, in this order: season (the month branch), roots (Bing among the hidden stems, especially in 巳 Si or 寅 Yin), and support from other stems (more Fire, or Wood as resource). Our calculator scores this with a published point method. Here are two Bing charts it produced:

A strong Bing: Chicago, 26 June 1987, 10:00 (open)

Born with month branch Wu 午, when Fire is in a supportive season on our reading, with roots / companions visible in the pillars (丁卯 丙午 丙午 癸巳). Score: 74%, strong (7.4 of 10 points).

A weak Bing: Chicago, 29 December 1980, 10:00 (open)

Born with month branch Zi 子, when Fire is out of its best season on our reading, with limited support among the stems and hidden stems (庚申 戊子 丙子 癸巳). Score: 16%, weak (1.6 of 10 points).

For what weak and strong mean in general, see Weak Day Master and Strong Day Master. The hidden stems page explains the roots table behind those scores.

Favourable elements. Which element a Bing chart is said to "need" depends on its season, its strength and the reader's method, so there is no single answer for all Bing Day Masters. Our calculator doesn't output a favourable element.

How Bing interacts with the other nine stems

The Yuanhai Ziping names the Ten Gods using Jia as its example, then the same generating / controlling logic is shifted to any Day Master. So for a Bing Day Master:

Bing and Xin combine. Bing–Xin is one of the five standard stem combinations. Our calculator doesn't model combinations.

Bing and metal. The verse itself says Bing can forge Geng yet turns timid before Xin — a distinction between the two metal stems that schools discuss when reading power and wealth.

Ten Gods are labels relative to the Day Master, not personality verdicts. For the naming logic in general, see How we calculate your chart.

Common misconceptions about Bing Fire

• "Bing is my zodiac year element." Not necessarily. Day Master ≠ year stem. See What is my Day Master?.
• "Bing people are all loud / outgoing." The blazing-sun image describes the stem, not the person.
• "Water is always bad for Bing." Spring and summer sections of the Qiongtong Baojian take Ren water as the primary climate adjustment for Bing. Seasonal need is not a blanket ban.
• "Bing is the sun." A useful modern memory aid. The classical text says fierce / blazing fire; "sun" is a popular gloss, not a technical term in the verse.

How modern readers describe Bing Fire

Modern guides often associate Bing with openness, warmth and visibility, extending the sun / blazing-fire image. Some also mention impatience or scorched intensity. These are interpretations built on the classical image, not statements from the classical texts. You may recognise yourself in them or not. Neither result says anything about what will happen to you.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bing Fire yin or yang?

Yang. Bing is Yang Fire, and its yin partner is Ding.

What element is good for a Bing Fire Day Master?

It depends on the season and the chart's strength. There is no single answer. The Qiongtong Baojian recommendations above are one classical climate method; a strength-based reading would favour resource and companions for a weak Bing, and output, wealth and power for a strong one. Our calculator doesn't output a favourable element.

Which stem combines with Bing?

Xin (辛, Yin Metal). Bing–Xin is one of the five classical stem combinations.

Is a Bing Fire Day Master the same as being born in a Fire year?

No. A Fire year means the year stem is one of the two Fire stems. A Bing Day Master means the day stem is Bing. You can have either without the other.

How do I find out if my Day Master is Bing?

Use the Day Master calculator. You only need your birth date (and whether you were born between 23:00 and midnight). The full chart also shows whether your Bing is weak or strong.

Why do some sites call Bing "the sun"?

It is a modern memory aid for yang fire. The Di Tian Sui says Bing fire is fierce and blazing; it does not name the astronomical sun as a technical term.

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Next steps: Calculate your full chart to see your Bing's season, roots and strength score, or read about the hidden stems that give it roots.

Related

• What is my Day Master?: all ten stems

• Yin Fire (Ding) · Yin Metal (Xin — combines)

• Five Elements · Hidden stems

• Weak Day Master · Strong Day Master

• Classical sources · Methodology

• Example charts you can audit · Ten Gods · Learn where to start

Sources

• Di Tian Sui Chanwei (滴天髓闡微), "天干論", verse on Bing, Chinese Text Project: https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=126492
• Di Tian Sui (滴天髓), 輯要 edition with notes, Wikisource: https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/滴天髓
• Ziping Zhenquan Pingzhu (子平真詮評註), yin–yang pairing of stems, Chinese Text Project: https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=974137
• Yuanhai Ziping (淵海子平), Ten Gods naming logic, Wikisource: https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/淵海子平
• Sanming Tonghui (三命通會), 卷二, seasonal states, Wikisource: https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/三命通會/卷二
• Qiongtong Baojian (穷通宝鉴), Bing seasonal sections (三春丙火 and related), Wikisource: https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/穷通宝鉴
• Example charts: computed by our engine (bazi-lichun-jieqi-tst-v1); see How we calculate your chart

Translations: PillarChart editorial team.

BaZi is a traditional Chinese cultural practice. This page describes what classical texts and practitioners say; it is for reflection, education and entertainment, and is not medical, legal, financial or psychological advice. Different schools may read the same chart differently.

Last updated: 2026-10-07