On the Temperament of Stem Pairings (Shi Gan Pei He Xing Qing)

Five Pairings, One Order of Generation

Combination is not decoration laid over the five elements; it is the mechanism by which they were generated in the first place. Shen lines the five stem-pairs up in the very order of mutual generation, beginning with earth, and for that he reaches back to the He Tu numbers. Then he turns from cosmology to consequence. Because stems pair, they can also be pulled away; an officer, a seal, a wealth star or a food god that another stem has combined off is no longer of use. The chapter ends on the six relations: the same movement that makes a wife or a husband available can make them unavailable.