六十元辰
Sixty Yuan Chen 画像悬于慈航殿两壁。
又称六十甲子神、六十太岁神、六十元辰星宿神等。中国古代传统的计时方法是天干地支法,用天干甲、乙、丙、丁、戊、己、庚、辛、壬、癸与地支子、丑、寅、卯、辰、巳、午、未、申、酉、戌、亥,循环相配,由甲子起至癸亥止,周期六十,用此纪年,六十年为一周,称六十甲子。战国时,天文占星学家根据天象纪年法,即星岁纪年法,星指岁星,岁指太岁。西汉时又根据岁星值年,周而复始,六十年一周。古时人们习惯上只重视岁阴,即十二地支,故有“太岁”十二年一循环之说,太岁因而也有方位,以太岁所在为凶方,忌兴土木或迁移房屋等。《土风录》说:“术家以太岁为大将军,动土迁移者,必大避其方。”古代民间许多禁忌由此而产生。故太岁又称值年太岁,后又改为大将军。六十甲子神均有姓名,如甲子称金辩大将军,乙丑称陈材大将军等。凡本人的出生年在六十甲子的干支,叫本命年。若某人出生于丙寅年,即奉丙寅为本命年。本人的出生日在六十甲子的干支,叫本命日。如有人出生于“癸亥”年“壬申”日,即他的本命年为“癸亥”年,本命日为“壬申”日。道教沿袭此法,称岁星为值年岁神,认为值年岁神掌握着人间一年的吉凶祸福,特别是在本命年祭拜本命太岁能消灾避难。
Sixty paintings are hung on the walls within Ci Hang Temple to depict the images of the marshall responsible for each Yuan Chen .
In ancient China, they used a chronological method known as ten terrestrial stems (十天干) and twelve earthly branches (十二地支). The ten stems include Jia (甲), Yi (乙), Bing (丙), Ding (丁), Wu (戊), Ji (己), Geng (庚), Xin (辛), Ren (壬), Gui (癸); while twelve branches are Zi (子), Chou (丑), Yin (寅), Mao (卯), Chen (辰), Si (巳), Wu (午), Wei (未), Shen (申), You (酉), Xu (戌), Hai (亥). The cycle starts with the matching of one stem with one branch in a sequence. For example, the first in order is “Jia Zi” (甲子), the second is “Yi Chou” (乙丑), the third is “Bing Yin” (丙寅) and the last one will be “Kui Hai” (癸亥). In this order, there is a total of sixty unique pairs. In China, this order is named as “Sixty Jia Zi” (六十甲子). In the Zhan Guo Dynasty 战国时代 (453B.C. to 221 B.C.), astrologers had also used different star positions known as Xing Sui, together with “Sixty Jia Zi” in compiling the calendar. Xing is named Sui Xin (岁星) and Sui is named Tai Sui (太岁). It is believed that each Tai Sui represents a unique direction within a year, such as north, wouth, east, west. Therefore, one should respect the harmony of that direction; otherwise, it will bring bad luck. Tai Sui theories were well applied in military and everyday life in ancient china. Tai Sui have watch duties in a specific year that they belong to, they are deities being addressed as Marshalls. Each Tai Sui Marshall has his own name, for example, in the year “Jia Zi”, it is Marshall Jin Bian (金辩大将军); and in the year “Yi Chou”, it is Marshall Chen Cai Da (陈才大将军). When a person becomes sixty years old, he will come across the name of the year exactly the same as his birth year. Tai Sui Deity is responsible all the fortunes and misfortunes that happen in a year; and people worship their own corresponding Tai Sui for blessings.