立秋 Beginning of Autumn: autumn solar term, August 7-9 立秋 · Lì Qiū

Classical attributes

• Solar position: longitude 135°
• Date range: August 7-9
• Season: autumn (early autumn)
• Type: 節 — Sectional term — month transition
• Month branch: 申 (Monkey)

Climatic register

First cool winds reach the air; the fire-element peak of summer relinquishes ground to the metal-element of autumn. Energy turns from outward expansion to inward gathering.

Hidden stems of the 申 month branch

The 申 earthly branch holds these heavenly stems internally — read in BaZi as the “hidden essence” of the month pillar:

• 庚 (Yang Metal, primary)
• 壬 (Yang Water, transitional)
• 戊 (Yang Earth, residual)

BaZi relevance

立秋 marks the transition into the 申 (Shen, Monkey) month pillar. The 申 month is the early-metal phase — yang metal taking hold, with the water that follows already beginning to surface. The decisive shift from summer to autumn registers strongly in BaZi charts cast around this period.

QMDJ (Qi Men Dun Jia) relevance

Yin dun 2 (illness completion) opens the yin-autumn sequence. The most-watched solar term for QMDJ practitioners noting medical / health-pattern shifts at the autumn turn. In the QMDJ system, 立秋 falls within the 陰遁 (yin dun, backward-rotating consolidation) half-year. The three thirds of this solar term map to 陰遁2局 (upper), 陰遁5局 (middle), and 陰遁8局 (lower) respectively. QMDJ consultations made during 立秋 carry the dun-period register stacked on top of the solar-term's seasonal energy.

For chart-aware QMDJ reading of a specific consultation made during 立秋, see the 18 Dun Periods reference for the relevant dun-period pages, or book a QMDJ forecasting consultation.

Observed register for 立秋 births

立秋 marks the pivotal shift from outward expansion to inward gathering — the year's most-watched energetic transition for many BaZi practitioners. Born around 立秋 often carries a register of decisive priority-setting, knowing what to keep and what to let go after summer's expansion.

Why generic Beginning of Autumn interpretation fails

The solar term is one structural layer of a BaZi chart, not the whole chart. The actual reading for someone born around 立秋 depends on the day pillar (the Day Master), the year and hour pillars, the chart's elemental balance, and the upcoming luck pillars. Generic per-solar-term descriptions can name the foundational seasonal register, but they cannot tell you what your specific chart says. Master Sean Chan’s BaZi consultation reads the full chart against your specific question.

• Identify whether your birth or your question's timing falls within 立秋 (August 7-9). For BaZi practice, this sectional term marks the month-pillar transition — births before vs. after the exact Beginning of Autumn timestamp have different month pillars.
• Read the 立秋 register against your full chart. The solar term contributes a foundational layer; the rest of the chart determines actionable guidance.
• Plot your chart via the free BaZi Calculator to see how 立秋 interacts with your day, year, and hour pillars.
• Book chart-aware reading via BaZi consultation for high-stakes questions. Generic per-term reference is no substitute for the consultation.