Bazi chart construction is the fundamental skill of destiny analysis and the primary threshold for entering the world of the Ziping Method. The so-called "Eight Characters" refer to the four time units of a person's birth—year, month, day, and hour—with each unit represented by one Heavenly Stem and one Earthly Branch, totaling eight characters. These eight characters are divided into four groups, called the "Four Pillars": the Year Pillar, Month Pillar, Day Pillar, and Hour Pillar. The Four Pillars and Eight Characters are the innate code of a person's destiny.

The Year Pillar consists of the Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch of the birth year. It is important to note that the division of years in destiny analysis uses the Beginning of Spring (Li Chun) as the boundary, not the first day of the lunar calendar or January 1st of the Gregorian calendar. For example, if the Beginning of Spring in 2026 falls on February 3rd, a person born before that date still belongs to the Yi-Si year for their Year Pillar; only those born after that date belong to the Bing-Wu year. This rule originates from the 24 Solar Terms system, reflecting destiny analysis's respect for the rhythm of the sun's movement.

The Month Pillar consists of the Earthly Branch and Heavenly Stem of the birth month. The Earthly Branch of the Month Pillar is fixed: the first month is Yin, the second is Mao, the third is Chen, the fourth is Si, the fifth is Wu, the sixth is Wei, the seventh is Shen, the eighth is You, the ninth is Xu, the tenth is Hai, the eleventh is Zi, and the twelfth is Chou. Here, the "first month" begins with the Beginning of Spring, not the first month of the lunar calendar. The Heavenly Stem of the Month Pillar must be calculated based on the Year Stem according to the "Five Tiger Hiding Month" formula: "For Jia and Ji years, Bing begins; for Yi and Geng years, Wu is the head; for Bing and Xin years, seek Geng; for Ding and Ren years, Ren flows; for Wu and Gui years, where to begin? Above Jia-Yin is the place to pursue." This means that for years with Jia or Ji as the Year Stem, the first month's stem is Bing; for years with Yi or Geng, the first month's stem is Wu; and so on.

The Day Pillar consists of the Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch of the birth day. The calculation of the Day Pillar is the most complex, because there is no simple formula for direct calculation of the Sexagenary day cycle; one usually needs to consult a perpetual calendar or use specialized charting software. The Heavenly Stem of the Day Pillar is called the "Day Master" or "Day Stem" (Ri Zhu / Ri Yuan), representing the person themselves; it is the core of the entire Bazi analysis. The other seven characters all revolve around the Day Master—some generate it, some restrict it, some share its nature—forming a complex network of destiny relationships.

The Hour Pillar consists of the Earthly Branch and Heavenly Stem of the birth hour. A day is divided into twelve double-hour periods (Shi Chen), each corresponding to one Earthly Branch: Zi hour is 23:00 to 01:00, Chou hour is 01:00 to 03:00, and so forth. The Heavenly Stem of the Hour Pillar is calculated based on the Day Stem according to the "Five Rat Hiding Hour" formula: "Jia and Ji still add Jia; Yi and Geng, Bing begins; Bing and Xin, begin from Wu; Ding and Ren, Geng-Zi resides; Wu and Gui, where to begin? Ren-Zi is the true path." This means that for days with Jia or Ji as the Day Stem, the Zi hour is Jia-Zi; for days with Yi or Geng, the Zi hour is Bing-Zi; and so on.

After the Four Pillars are established, one must also calculate the "Major Luck" (Da Yun) and "Annual Luck" (Liu Nian). Major Luck represents ten-year phases of life fortune, calculated from the Month Pillar. For Yang-year males and Yin-year females, it is arranged in forward order; for Yin-year males and Yang-year females, it is arranged in reverse order. Annual Luck is simply the Stem and Branch of the current year.

Once the chart is constructed, a complete Bazi chart is presented. For example: Year Pillar Jia-Zi, Month Pillar Bing-Yin, Day Pillar Wu-Chen, Hour Pillar Geng-Wu. The destiny analyst first determines the Five Element nature of the Day Master (in this example, Wu Earth), then analyzes whether the other seven characters generate and support or restrict and drain the Day Master, whether they help or deplete it, and thereby judges the strength or weakness of the Day Master. This is the first and most important step in Bazi analysis, because subsequent steps—such as determining the Useful God, judging the chart pattern, and inferring auspiciousness or inauspiciousness—all build upon the foundation of the Day Master's strength.

Bazi chart construction may appear to be merely mechanical searching and arrangement, but it embodies the ancient Chinese pursuit of temporal precision and respect for cosmic rhythms. The determination of each Stem and Branch corresponds to a specific astronomical position; it is a snapshot of heaven-and-earth energy at that moment. Learning to construct a chart is learning to dialogue with the ancients, learning to observe time through their eyes.

八字排盘，是命理学的基本功，也是进入子平术世界的首要门槛。所谓"八字"，是指一个人出生时的年、月、日、时四个时间单位，每个单位用一个天干和一个地支表示，共八个字。这八个字又分为四组，称为"四柱"：年柱、月柱、日柱、时柱。四柱八字，就是一个人命运的先天密码。

年柱由出生年的天干和地支组成。需要注意的是，命理学中的年份划分以立春为界，而不是以农历正月初一或公历元旦为界。例如，2026年2月3日立春，在此之前出生的人，年柱仍属于乙巳年；在此之后出生的人，年柱才属于丙午年。这一规则源于二十四节气系统，体现了命理学对太阳运行节律的尊重。

月柱由出生月的地支和天干组成。月柱的地支是固定的：正月为寅，二月为卯，三月为辰，四月为巳，五月为午，六月为未，七月为申，八月为酉，九月为戌，十月为亥，十一月为子，十二月为丑。这里所说的正月，是以立春为起点，而不是农历一月。月柱的天干则需要根据年干来推算，遵循"五虎遁月"口诀：甲己之年丙作首，乙庚之岁戊为头，丙辛之岁寻庚起，丁壬壬位顺行流，戊癸之年何方发，甲寅之上好追求。意思是，甲年或己年的正月天干为丙，乙年或庚年的正月天干为戊，以此类推。

日柱由出生日的天干和地支组成。日柱的推算最为复杂，因为干支纪日没有简单的口诀可以直接计算，通常需要查阅万年历或使用专门的排盘软件。日柱中的天干，称为"日主"或"日元"，代表命主本人，是整个八字分析的核心。其余七个字都是围绕日主展开的，或生之、或克之、或同之，构成了复杂的命运关系网络。

时柱由出生时辰的地支和天干组成。一天分为十二个时辰，每个时辰对应一个地支：子时为23点至1点，丑时为1点至3点，以此类推。时柱的天干根据日干推算，遵循"五鼠遁时"口诀：甲己还加甲，乙庚丙作初，丙辛从戊起，丁壬庚子居，戊癸何方发，壬子是真途。意思是，甲日或己日的子时为甲子时，乙日或庚日的子时为丙子时，以此类推。

四柱排定之后，还需要排出"大运"和"流年"。大运是人生中每十年一个阶段的运势，根据月柱推算，阳年男命和阴年女命顺排，阴年男命和阳年女命逆排。流年则是每一年的干支，直接以当年的年柱为准。

排盘完成后，一个完整的八字命盘就呈现在眼前。例如：年柱甲子、月柱丙寅、日柱戊辰、时柱庚午。命理师首先要确定日主的五行属性（此例中日主为戊土），然后分析其余七个字对日主是生扶还是克泄，是帮助还是损耗，进而判断日主的强弱状态。这是八字分析的第一步，也是最重要的一步，因为后续的用神选取、格局判断、吉凶推断，都建立在日主强弱的基础之上。

八字排盘看似只是机械地查找和排列，但其中蕴含着古人对时间精密度的追求和对宇宙节律的尊重。每一个干支的确定，都对应着特定的天文位置，都是天地能量在那一刻的定格。学会排盘，就是学会与古人对话，学会用他们的眼睛观察时间。