Five Elements in Saju

The five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water) are the foundational categories of East Asian thought. Saju balance starts here.

Generation and overcoming

Sheng (generation): W→F→E→M→Wt→W. Ke (overcoming): W→E→Wt→F→M→W.

Mapping to stems and branches

Stems and branches each map onto one of the five elements; the eight characters yield an element distribution table.

When balance breaks

Three or more of one element, or none at all, is "biased" and needs compensation in incoming cycles.