The Twenty-Four Solar Terms and Calendar Boundaries
The BaZi calendar tracks the sun's longitude in fifteen-degree steps, using the twelve alternating Jie solar terms (thirty degrees apart) to open each month and Li Chun to start the year.
Start with the foundational links below to see why a BaZi year switches at Li Chun (Beginning of Spring) in early February rather than on Lunar New Year, and how the twelve alternating Jie solar terms open each new month pillar. Because these markers originated in the agricultural rhythms of historical China, their poetic names often differ from the weather outside your window.
The full list below covers our overview essay and all twenty-four terms across the year, from Minor Cold to Winter Solstice. Use these guides to understand how 15-degree solar steps and 30-degree month boundaries shape your chart's month column, and borrow each fortnightly checkpoint as a calm prompt for noticing local seasons.
Where to Start
Twenty-Four Solar Terms: How BaZi Measures the Year in Fifteen-Degree Steps
Calling the traditional Chinese calendar purely lunar misses half the mechanism. Twenty-four solar markers divide the year into fortnightly chapters, setting the boundaries for every BaZi month and year.
02立春 · Beginning of Spring: When the Solar Year Turns
In early February, the traditional solar calendar declares spring even where the ground is frozen solid. Here is how Li Chun shapes a BaZi chart—and how to read a season that might not match your window.
03冬至 · Winter Solstice: The Turning Point in the Dark
Winter Solstice (冬至) marks a precise fifteen-degree step in the solar year, yet its name means very different things depending on your latitude, your December weather, and how you track time.
All Articles in This Guide
SeasonsTwenty-Four Solar Terms: How BaZi Measures the Year in Fifteen-Degree Steps
Calling the traditional Chinese calendar purely lunar misses half the mechanism. Twenty-four solar markers divide the year into fortnightly chapters, setting the boundaries for every BaZi month and year.
Seasons小寒 · Minor Cold: A January Boundary in the Solar Calendar
Falling in early January, Minor Cold (小寒) marks a fresh solar month in the BaZi calendar and offers a practical excuse to audit your pace after the New Year rush.
Seasons大寒 · Major Cold: The Final Chapter Before the BaZi Year Turns
Major Cold sits at the quiet threshold right before the solar calendar resets. Even if your local January feels mild or sunny, this final marker offers a clear question: what needs finishing before the next cycle begins?
Seasons立春 · Beginning of Spring: When the Solar Year Turns
In early February, the traditional solar calendar declares spring even where the ground is frozen solid. Here is how Li Chun shapes a BaZi chart—and how to read a season that might not match your window.
Seasons雨水 · Rain Water: A Mid-Month Marker in the Solar Year
Falling in mid-February, Rain Water (雨水) marks a fifteen-degree step in the solar calendar—not a global weather forecast, and not the start of a new BaZi month.
Seasons惊蛰 · Awakening of Insects: When Dormant Things Stir
Every March, the traditional solar calendar marks 惊蛰 (Awakening of Insects). Whether your street is thawing or heading into autumn, this fifteen-degree solar step offers a practical prompt: check on what has been resting.
Seasons春分 · Spring Equinox: The Midpoint of the Solar Month
Usually arriving in March, Spring Equinox (春分) marks a fifteen-degree step along the Sun’s annual path. Instead of prescribing your mood or weather, it offers a midpoint for observing how effort and recovery actually divide your day.
Seasons清明 · Clear and Bright: A Solar Boundary in Early April
Clear and Bright (清明) marks a fifteen-degree step along the Sun’s annual path, usually arriving in early April. In BaZi, it is not just a poetic weather report, but the exact astronomical switch for a new solar month.
Seasons谷雨 · Grain Rain: Late-April Attention and the Quiet Middle of a Month
Grain Rain (谷雨) arrives in April as one of the twenty-four solar terms. Instead of predicting your local weather, it offers a midpoint marker in the solar month and a prompt for steady, unhurried work.
Seasons立夏 · Beginning of Summer: When the Calendar Steps Ahead of the Weather
Usually arriving in early May, Beginning of Summer marks a fifteen-degree solar shift and a new BaZi month, even when the air outside your window still feels stubbornly like spring.
Seasons小满 · Grain Buds: A Marker for Progress Before Completion
Falling in May, Grain Buds (小满) is one of the twenty-four solar terms. Rather than waiting for a final harvest, this midpoint marker invites you to notice things that have taken shape without yet being finished.
Seasons芒种 · Grain in Ear: When the Calendar Asks What Needs Your Attention
Grain in Ear (芒种) usually arrives in June, marking another fifteen-degree step in the solar year. Even far from ancient wheat fields, this seasonal threshold offers a practical reason to sort through your unfinished work.
Seasons夏至 · Summer Solstice: Reading the Year at Its Peak
In the twenty-four solar terms, Summer Solstice (夏至) marks a solar crest, not a universal weather forecast. Here is how it sits inside the Chinese seasonal calendar and how to observe a turning point where you live.
Seasons小暑 · Minor Heat: Where the July Solar Month Begins
Minor Heat is not a weather forecast for your zip code. In the Chinese solar calendar, this July marker opens a new month pillar and invites a practical check on how you pace your days.
Seasons大暑 · Major Heat: A Midpoint in the Solar Month
Usually arriving in late July, Major Heat (大暑) marks a fifteen-degree step in the solar calendar—an astronomical checkpoint that invites you to observe your own climate and pare back what demands too much attention.
Seasons立秋 · Beginning of Autumn: When the Calendar Turns Before the Weather
August rarely feels like autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, and in the South it is still winter. Yet the solar marker 立秋 invites you to notice how transitions begin long before they look finished.
Seasons处暑 · End of Heat: A Solar Marker for Late August
Usually arriving in late August, 处暑 (End of Heat) marks a fifteen-degree step along the Sun’s annual path. Even when the afternoon thermometer disagrees, the calendar offers a practical question: where can you let a finished effort rest?
Seasons白露 · White Dew: A September Boundary in the Solar Calendar
Named for the first cool condensations of early autumn, White Dew (白露) does more than offer seasonal imagery. In BaZi, this fifteen-degree solar marker acts as a crisp calendrical line that shifts the month pillar.
Seasons秋分 · Autumn Equinox: A Mid-Season Pause to Sort What Stays
In the twenty-four solar terms, Autumn Equinox marks a precise fifteen-degree step in the solar year and offers a quiet prompt: look at your local world and decide what to keep.
Seasons寒露 · Cold Dew: When the Solar Calendar Turns Toward Late Autumn
Cold Dew marks a fifteen-degree step in October on the traditional Chinese solar calendar, offering a precise astronomical boundary for BaZi months and a quiet prompt to notice how your local season actually behaves.
Seasons霜降 · Frost’s Descent: A Late-October Marker for Protecting Essential Work
Frost’s Descent arrives in late October, even if your local forecast remains warm. Explore how this traditional solar term tracks the sun, fits into BaZi timing, and offers a practical cue for finishing unfinished work.
Seasons立冬 · Beginning of Winter: The November Solar Boundary
In the traditional Chinese solar calendar, winter arrives by astronomical geometry rather than the first frost. Here is how the 立冬 (Beginning of Winter) marker shifts the BaZi month and invites a quieter check-in with your surroundings.
Seasons小雪 · Minor Snow: A Late-November Checkpoint for What Can Wait
Usually arriving in late November, Minor Snow (小雪) marks a fifteen-degree step in the solar calendar. Even if your local forecast stays warm, this mid-month marker offers a practical prompt: notice what can wait.
Seasons大雪 · Major Snow: The Solar Term That Starts the Deep Winter Month
Major Snow (大雪) arrives in December, even if your local forecast shows rain or summer heat. See how this fifteen-degree solar marker shifts the month pillar in a BaZi chart and offers a crisp checkpoint for your own attention.
Seasons冬至 · Winter Solstice: The Turning Point in the Dark
Winter Solstice (冬至) marks a precise fifteen-degree step in the solar year, yet its name means very different things depending on your latitude, your December weather, and how you track time.
SeasonsWhen Does the 2027 Year of the Goat Begin? Two Calendar Answers
In the Hong Kong Observatory 2027 calendar, Li Chun falls on February 4 and Lunar New Year on February 6. BaZi shifts the year at the Li Chun instant, rather than a globally fixed midnight.
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