How to compare the conditions of Returning to Lu and Mouse Noble across the two books

Similar pattern names and entry points do not establish identical qualifications, exclusions or redirections. We compare Mouse Noble and Returning to Lu passages by aligning the questions actually posed in two witnesses, rather than seeking one final universal definition.

Sanming tonghui uses the Qin Shen'an/Wenming witness catalogued as 1926, NLC42998, juan 6: 六乙鼠貴 at scan 131, printed page 10, continues into scan 132; 日祿歸時 begins lower on scan 132, printed page 11, continuing through scan 134, printed page 13. [1][2][5] Yuanhai's comparison is the 1634 witness, fascicle 2, juan 2: 六乙鼠貴格 at scan 27, lower right, and 歸祿格 at scan 29, lower left, both large-type lower-band main text. [3][4][6] Their numerical printed-leaf labels were not securely read in this check; scans and positions are given without invented page numbers.

Preserve the headings before comparing the shared entry

Sanming's Mouse Noble begins 陰木獨遇子時為六乙鼠貴之地, “Yin Wood encountering Zi hour alone is the domain of Six Yi Mouse Noble.” It then says 乙以子申為貴神，獨遇子者，用鼠不用猴也, “Yi takes Zi and Shen as Noble spirits; encountering Zi alone means using Mouse, not Monkey.” [1] This entry makes its own selection. Zi and Shen in another Noble table do not automatically make both eligible here.

Yuanhai's heading includes 格, “pattern,” and discusses Bing in Bing–Zi hour and gathered Noble. [3] The shared Yi/Zi entry permits comparison, but cannot replace the exclusions. Even a shared gathering term still needs its local qualification.

These are comparisons of inspected entries. Witness publication or catalogue dates do not alone establish which idea appeared first or which book corrected another. This is not a complete transmission history, and the 1926-catalogued witness is not a verified 1578 original.

List the Mouse Noble exclusions by level

Yuanhai's lower-band prose states 此格如月內有官星則不用之。又怕午字沖之, “This pattern is not used if Officer occurs within the month; Wu clashing it is also feared.” A separate 或曰, “another account says,” introduces Geng/Xin and Shen/You/Chou reducing the measure, with an extension to year ruler and major cycles. [3]

Not using the pattern, fearing Wu's clash, and the attributed reduction are different degrees of statement. Converting every reduction into complete exclusion, or expanding monthly Officer to all four pillars, changes the inspected text. Removing 或曰 also fabricates one uninterrupted voice.

Sanming instead states 若子字多，謂之聚貴，尤妙。年月中有午衝丑絆，則子不能邀祿. Our translation: “Many Zi characters are called gathered Noble and particularly valued. Wu clashing or Chou binding in year and month prevents Zi inviting Lu.” Its continuation says 六乙鼠貴在時，煞官衝破不相宜 and discusses exposed Shen/Geng, original versus cycle Wu and further branches. [1]

We do not copy Yuanhai's exact monthly-Officer exclusion into Sanming. Year/month clashes and binding, hour position and Officer–Sha damage retain their own entries. “Cannot invite Lu,” “unsuitable,” “not used” and “reduced measure” should not all become one score in a comparison table.

Returning to Lu's positive example belongs with its exclusion

Yuanhai's 歸祿格 gives 此格假令六甲日生人，得寅時，謂之歸祿, “For example, one of the six Jia days with Yin hour is called Returning to Lu.” After explaining Lu at Yin it adds 但四柱全不見官殺，見之則難歸矣, “But the four pillars contain no Officer or Killings; their appearance makes returning difficult.” [4]

Jia day and Yin hour supply the local positive example; absence of Officer/Killings supplies its qualification. Neither can be omitted. Nor can this particular entry's avoidance be imposed on every pattern in the book.

This is a day/hour fragment, not complete birth input. We do not supply year, month or Gregorian date to manufacture a calculated chart, or establish actual wealth or retirement from it.

Sanming also distinguishes impurity from redirection

Sanming's actual heading is 日祿歸時. Small-type Xiji pian quotation precedes separate large-type prose beginning 日主之祿歸於時位, “The day master's Lu returns to the hour position.” It lists preferences and avoidances, adding 雖可取用，亦不純粹, “Although usable, it is not pure.” [2] Usage, degree of purity and qualifications remain connected; one avoidance word cannot cancel every discussion in the entry.

Some day/hour examples explicitly say 不作歸祿格, “Do not discuss it as Returning to Lu.” The page then states 若月有官星，或日干透財官，作財官論, “If the month has Officer, or Wealth/Officer is exposed from the day stem, discuss it as Wealth–Officer.” [2] The text both declines a name and redirects to another discussion. Redirection differs from merely crossing out a result.

It gives Yi day/Ji–Mao hour, Bing day/Gui–Si hour and Xin day/Ding–You hour as hour Indirect Wealth, exposed Officer and hour Indirect Officer respectively. [2] The hour stem's relation therefore also enters the account, even when the branch concerns the day's Lu. These remain source fragments, not three completed effective birth charts.

Subsequent examples and verse cannot disappear

The continuation discusses particular day/hour/month/cycle combinations, while its ending retains fu, Yuanli fu and Xiji pian voices. [2] A fu line includes 月令財官，遇之吉助, regarding monthly Wealth–Officer as favorable assistance. It must stay in that quotation's local context, not be appended to Yuanhai's absence-of-Officer sentence as a fabricated reconciled quotation.

We do not infer that every Officer in the complete entry is favorable. Nor does its opening avoidance justify pretending later differentiated accounts do not exist. Compare the entry, qualification layer and quoted voice before deciding whether names resemble one another, operations differ or more collation is needed.

Record which kind of difference is present

Use heading, shared entry, excluded object and position, degree of negation or reduction, redirection and voice. Then “monthly” cannot silently become whole-chart, reduction cannot become nonuse, and Wealth–Officer discussion cannot become absence of any readable interpretation.

Differences need not first disappear for the entries to be studied. Marking the actual reach of each witness allows further version or method comparisons without presenting a modern synthesis as the two books' shared original sentence.

Our table, diagram and translations are original. Scope is the listed witness passages, not all editions of both books. We neither assess real-world predictive accuracy nor judge an actual person's office, wealth, family or health from a pattern label.

Sources and related reading

1. Qin Shen'an/Wenming Sanming tonghui, NLC42998, juan 6, 六乙鼠貴, scan 131, printed page 10, view entry and clash/binding; continuation scan 132, printed page 11, view continuation and voices. Punctuation is ours.

2. 日祿歸時 begins lower on scan 132, printed page 11, view preferences and redirection; scans 133–134, printed pages 12–13, continue particular accounts and verse, view the ending. Main text, small-type quotations and verse stay separate.

3. Yuanhai 1634 witness, fascicle 2, juan 2, scan 27, lower-right large-type 六乙鼠貴格. Numerical printed leaf not securely read here. View Mouse Noble

4. Same witness, scan 29, lower-left large-type 歸祿格. Entry and Officer/Killings qualification read together; numerical leaf not securely read. View Returning to Lu

5. NLC42998 catalogue: 1926, Qin Shen'an/Wenming; year not substituted for an independent imprint. View Sanming catalogue

6. Yuanhai fascicle-2 object and 1634 description. The two dates do not establish the full sequence of ideas. View Yuanhai object

Foundations: when a pattern is established and Ten Gods. Preceding: timing references. Continue with sampling adjacent day/hour entries.