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What Do the 12 Palaces on a Tử Vi Chart Mean?

July 27, 2026 7 min read

Why 12 Palaces?

A Tử Vi chart maps life onto 12 palaces arranged in a circle. Each palace covers one specific area: the Life palace describes a person's nature, the Wealth palace covers money, the Spouse palace covers marriage. What a reader interprets is how the major stars sitting in a palace interact there, not any single star in isolation.

The 12 Palaces at a Glance

  • Life (Mệnh) and Body (Thân): the central axis: core nature, and which palace later life leans toward.
  • Parents, Siblings, Spouse, Children: the family and close-relationship group.
  • Career, Wealth, Property: the material and professional group.
  • Health, Friends, Travel, Fortune & Virtue: the body, social circle, mobility and inner life group.
Start with the Life palace to grasp the overall picture, then look up the palace matching your actual question: Wealth for money, Career for work decisions, instead of reading all 12 in sequence.

Why One Palace Is Never Read Alone

The 12 palaces connect through opposing and trine axes. A star's placement in one palace only makes full sense against the palaces it faces and trines, which is why a chart is read as one system, not 12 separate entries.

From Map to Choice

The 12 palaces describe a starting configuration, not a fixed verdict. Knowing your Wealth palace leans toward slow accumulation or fast swings does not predict rich or poor; it gives you a lens to manage money in a way that fits your own setup.

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