Yi Wood Day Master (乙木)

Yi is yin Wood, pictured as grass, flowers and climbing vines. It does not tower like Jia; it adapts, winds around obstacles and finds its way to the sun.

Personality

Yi people are flexible, perceptive and socially graceful. They read situations well and know how to work with what is around them instead of forcing their way through.

Strengths

• Adaptable and resilient under pressure
• Good at relationships, diplomacy and timing
• Sensitive to beauty, detail and atmosphere

Things to watch

• May lean too much on others or on circumstances
• Can avoid open conflict until it is too late
• Too much damp and cold leaves Yi without vitality

What helps a Yi Wood chart

Yi likes the warmth of Bing and Ding fire and a moderate amount of water; with a strong 'tree' (Jia) nearby to climb, it stays steady through difficult seasons.

Classical imagery

乙木虽柔，刲羊解牛。藤萝系甲，可春可秋。

“Though Yi Wood is soft, it can cut through ox and goat. A vine that clings to the tree thrives in spring and in autumn alike.” Read: gentleness is not weakness, and the right support lets Yi do well in any season. — Di Tian Sui (滴天髓), “On the Heavenly Stems”; translation and gloss are our own.

A Day Master is only the starting point: two people with the same Day Master can read very differently depending on their birth month and the other seven characters in the chart.