ZERI
What is Zeri (Day Selection from the Chinese Almanac)?
Zeri (day selection using the Chinese almanac) is a fate-reading practice that consults the “Tung Shing” (also called the Chinese almanac), a traditional Chinese calendar compiling day-by-day auspicious and inauspicious notations, to select a day well suited to an intended action such as moving house, opening a business, or getting married. As a calendar indicating daily fortune, it remains a standard reference for choosing dates for weddings, funerals, and business ventures today.
Overview
- System
- Fate Reading (selects a day suited to an action from almanac data)
- Origin
- China
- What You Need
- The dates in question and the intended action (moving house, opening a business, getting married, etc.)
- Best For
- Timing
- Time Frame
- Near term, within 90 days
Origins & History
Zeri is a Chinese tradition of selecting a day suited to undertaking a given matter, based on “lichu,” the auspicious and inauspicious notations recorded in the calendar. The almanac compiling these notations is called the “Tung Shing” or “Chinese almanac,” and legend traces its origin to the ancient Yellow Emperor, though it is thought to have been organized into its present form in a later era.
The Tung Shing records guidance for farm work in addition to the daily fortune ratings, and it was once widely used as a practical handbook for farmers. Today it is more often used to choose dates for life milestones such as moving house, opening a business, or getting married, and it continues to be published as an active calendar in Chinese communities in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and mainland China.
How It Works
- 01Decide on the intended action (moving house, opening a business, getting married, etc.) and the candidate period of dates.
- 02Consult the Tung Shing to check the daily notations (auspicious or inauspicious ratings) for each date within the candidate period.
- 03Cross-reference these against the conditions for an auspicious day suited to the type of action intended.
- 04Choose a convenient date from among those that meet the conditions.
What It Reveals
Zeri is well suited to the specific task of choosing when to take action. At the same time, the categories and interpretations of the almanac notations differ in their details between schools and regions, and because it cannot read matters other than timing, such as personality or compatibility, it is commonly used together with other divination systems.
Related Methods
References
- Wikipedia: Tung Shing (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tung_Shing)