Chinese Almanac Calendar

The Chinese almanac (黄历 or 通书) is a calendar that combines the lunar date, the stem-branch pillars of the year, month and day, the twenty-four solar terms and a traditional list of activities considered suitable (宜) or best avoided (忌) on each day. It has been printed annually for centuries and is still widely consulted for choosing dates.

This page shows a month calendar with the lunar date and day pillar for every day. Selecting a day opens its details: the 建除 day officer, the clash and the yi/ji lists generated from fixed tables. Solar terms are marked with their exact time in your time zone.

The day pillars are the same values used by the BaZi calculator, so the almanac doubles as a quick way to check the day pillar of any date.

1. Open the month you want; today is highlighted.
2. Scan the lunar dates and solar-term markers.
3. Select a day for details.
4. Read the day pillar, day officer and clash.
5. Read the suitable and avoid lists.
6. Use the arrows to move between months.

The day pillar comes from the sixty-day cycle; the day officer (建除十二神) depends on the relation between the day branch and the month branch. Officers such as 成 and 开 are traditionally considered good for starting things, while 破 and 闭 are not.

Each day clashes one branch, and almanacs often note the corresponding direction. People whose year or day branch is clashed traditionally take extra care.

Suitable and avoid lists are cultural guidance compiled from rules; different publishers vary. Treat them as tradition, not as forecasts.

• Days before 立春 belong to the previous stem-branch year even after the lunar New Year.
• Solar-term days show the exact moment the term begins.
• Dates far in the past or future are supported within the range of the astronomical library.
• Printing hides navigation and interactive controls,, so the board and its explanation print cleanly without the menus.
• If JavaScript is disabled, this explanatory text still loads; the interactive board needs JavaScript.

• Solar TermsThe twenty-four solar terms divide the sun's path into 15° steps.
• Sexagenary CyclePairing the ten stems with the twelve branches in order (yang with yang, yin with yin) gives sixty combinations, from 甲子 to 癸亥.
• Start of Spring (Li Chun)立春, when the sun reaches 315° ecliptic longitude around 4 February, begins the BaZi year and the 寅 month.
• Chinese New Year vs Li ChunChinese New Year follows the lunar calendar and falls between 21 January and 20 February; 立春 follows the sun.

The Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) uses one fixed rule set, named on this page, so the same input always gives the same result. Traditional methods often have several schools; mixing their rules inside one chart produces boards that no textbook would recognise, which is why only one complete preset is offered.

The engine is tested against worked examples from standard references, and every intermediate value is displayed. If your book shows something different, compare the intermediate values first — the difference is almost always a convention, such as the day boundary or how a leap month or solar-term transition is handled. Calendar data comes from an astronomical library that computes solar terms and lunar months to the minute, so differences of a day or more between sources usually point to a convention rather than an error in the underlying astronomy.

Whether you are new to the Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) or checking work from a class, the same routine helps you learn faster and avoid common errors:

1. Record the input exactly: date, time, place and, for divination, the question in one sentence.
2. Generate the board and save or print it before interpreting anything.
3. Identify the one or two fields that matter most for the question, using the steps above.
4. Write a short provisional reading and the reason for it.
5. Revisit the notes later and compare with what actually happened, adjusting your understanding of the symbols — not the board.

Treat the Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) as a structured way to think about a question, not as an instruction. Write down the question and the result, and return to them later; many practitioners keep a journal of casts to learn how the symbols behave over time. For decisions involving health, money or law, consult a qualified professional. The tool is free, needs no account, and does not store your question unless you choose to save it.

The fastest way to understand Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) is to look at real charts rather than memorise rules. Enter a birth date, time and city in the BaZi Calculator, then locate where Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) appears: in a visible stem, hidden inside a branch, in the current luck pillar or in this year's annual pillar. Note the position, because the year pillar is usually read as background and early life, the month pillar as environment and career setting, the day pillar as the self and close partner, and the hour pillar as later life and output.

• Compare two or three charts where Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) is prominent and two where it is absent; write down what differs in the overall balance.
• Check the month branch first: seasonal strength changes how much any factor matters.
• Use the hidden-stems and Ten Gods tables in the calculator output instead of guessing.
• Treat single factors as clues, never as verdicts; classical texts always weigh the whole chart.

Different schools describe Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) with slightly different emphasis. This site follows widely used conventions (solar-term months, true solar time optional, Zi hour setting configurable) and states them openly so you can compare results with a book or another calculator.

See the Chinese Almanac (Huang Li) FAQ, the glossary and the comparisons for how this method relates to BaZi and other systems.

BaZi is a traditional cultural system. This page explains how the symbols are defined and read; it does not make scientific claims or predictions about your health, money or relationships.