Plain Sand Jade Measure: A Discernment of Fakes (by Jiang Pingjie, a great master of the Later Ming Dynasty)

地理多偽書，平尺者，偽之尤者也。或曰：是書也，以目視之儼然經也，子獨辨其偽何居。曰：惟世皆以為經也，餘用是不能無辨。今之術家守之為金科玉律，如蕭何之定漢法，苟出乎此，不得為地理之正道。術士非此不克行，主家非此不敢信，父以教其子，師以傳其弟，果能識此，即可以自號於人曰堪輿家，延之上座，操人身家禍福之柄而不讓，拜人酒食金帛之賜而無漸。

There are many fake works in geographical texts, and "Ping Sha Yu Chi Jing" is especially fake. Someone asked: This book appears to be a classic, yet you claim it is fake. Why do you say so? I replied: Precisely because everyone treats it as a classic, I cannot help but point out its falsehood. Now geomancers regard it as the ultimate authority, just as Xiao He established the legal code for the Han dynasty. Anything not derived from it is not considered the true path of geomancy. Without it, geomancers cannot practice their art; without it, clients dare not believe. Fathers use it to teach their sons, and teachers use it to pass on to their disciples. If one can memorize this book thoroughly, he can claim to be a geomancer, be invited to sit in the upper seat, take charge of people's fortune and misfortune without hesitation, and accept food, drink, money, and silk without shame.

是以當世江湖之客，寶此書為衣食之利器，譬農之來耜，工之斧斤，其於謀生之策，可操劵而得也，有朝開卷而成誦暮，挾南車以行術者矣，豈知其足以禍世，如是之酷哉。知其禍世而不辨，餘其無人心者哉。或曰：是書之來也遠矣，千又安知其為偽也。乃從而辨之曰：我亦辨之以理而已矣。

Therefore, the current practitioners of divination in the world regard this book as a tool for making a living, just like a farmer's plow or a craftsman's axe, relying on it for survival as surely as holding a contract. Some people open the book in the morning, memorize it, and by evening carry a compass out to practice their craft. They do not realize how harmful this book has become to people, how cruel its consequences are! Knowing its harm yet failing to discern it, am I not without a human heart? Someone may say: This book has been passed down for a long time; how can you know it is a forgery, and thus go about refuting it? I say: I merely use reason to refute it.

或曰：亦一理也，彼亦一理也，安知子之理是，而彼之理非與。曰：餘邀惠於先之賢哲，而授餘以黃石青鳥，楊公幕講之秘要，竊自謂於地理之道，得之真而見之確矣。故於古今以來，所謂地理之書無所不畢覽，凡書之合於秘要者為真，不合秘要者為偽，而此書不合之尤者也。

Some people say: You are talking about one set of principles, and he is talking about another set. How can we know which is right and which is wrong? I say: I have received the teachings from previous sages, including the Duke of Yellow Stone, Qingwu Zi, Yang Yunsong, and the lineage of Mu Jiaoshi. I believe I have truly inherited the essence of the art of geomancy and have seen the correct principles. Therefore, I have thoroughly studied all books that claim to be about geomancy throughout history. Those that conform to these secret teachings are genuine, while those that do not are false. This book, however, is the most inconsistent with these teachings.

既得先賢之秘要，又嘗近自三吳兩浙，遠之齊魯，豫章八閩之墟，縱觀近代名家墓宅，以及先世帝王聖賢陵墓古蹟，考其離合，正其是非，凡理之取驗者為真，無所取驗者為偽，而此書不驗之尤者也，故敢斷其偽也。蓋以黃石青烏楊公幕講斷之，以名家墓宅先世古蹟斷之，非餘敢以私見臆斷之也。

I have already obtained the secret teachings of the ancients, and I have personally visited many places, including the areas of Sanwu and Liangzhe nearby, and Qilu, Yuzhang, and Baimin far away, examining the tombs and residences of famous modern masters, as well as the tombs and sites of ancient emperors and sages. I have studied how these sites conform or diverge from the principles and methods. I have corrected the true from the false among them. Any doctrine that can be verified is true, and any that cannot be verified is false. This book, however, is the most difficult to verify, so I dare to conclude that it is a fake. I have used the teachings of the Duke of Yellow Stone, Qingwu Zi, Master Yang, and Mu Lecturer to judge it, and also used the tombs and ancient sites of famous families and sages to judge it. This is not my own private opinion, but a conclusion based on these references.

或曰：然則秉忠之譔，伯溫之注盅與。曰：此其所以為偽也。夫地理者，裁成天地之道，輔相天地之宜，以經邦定國，禍福斯民者也，三代以上明君哲相，無不知之。世道下衰，其說隱秘而寄之乎山澤之癯，逃名避世之士，智者得之，嘗以輔翼興王，扶持景運，而其說之至者，不敢顯然以告世也。

Someone asked: Then is it false that the book is said to be written by Liu Bingzhong and annotated by Liu Bowen? I said: This is exactly where its falsehood lies. The study of geography is based on the principles of heaven and earth, helping to harmonize with the natural order, and is used to govern the country and determine the fortune of the people; no wise ruler or virtuous minister of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties and earlier understood it. Later, as the world declined, this doctrine became secret and was passed down to reclusive scholars and those who avoided fame in mountains and marshes. Those with wisdom who possessed it used it to assist in establishing a great dynasty and supporting a prosperous era; but the most profound principles were never revealed to the world.

文成公之事太祖，其最著者矣，及其沒也，盡舉生平所用天文地理數學之書，進之內府，從無片言隻字存於家，而教其子孫，況肯著書立說，以傳當世耶。故凡世本之稱青田者，皆偽也。均之佐命之英，知青田則知秉忠矣。或曰：何是書之文辭井井乎若有可觀者也。曰：其辭近是，其理則非，蓋亦世之通人而不知地理者，以意為之而傳會其說，托之乎二公者也。餘特指其謬而一一辨之，將以救天下之溺於其說者。

Liu Ji, known as Master Wen Cheng, assisted the Ming Taizu and was one of the most famous among them. When he died, he handed over all the books on astronomy, geography, and mathematics he had used throughout his life to the imperial court, leaving nothing behind in his family to teach his descendants. Moreover, he did not write any books to be passed down in his time. Therefore, any printed edition bearing the title "Liu Bowen of Qingtian" is a forgery. Liu Bingzhong was also a brilliant talent who assisted in establishing the dynasty. Understanding the situation of Qingtian means also understanding that of Liu Bingzhong. Someone might ask: Then why is this book well-structured and coherent, seeming quite impressive? I say: Its wording may seem so, but its reasoning is wrong. It is likely written by a person who understands general matters but lacks knowledge of geography, who composed it according to his own ideas and then forced it into the names of these two officials. I specifically point out its errors and clarify them one by one, in order to rescue the world from being misled by such claims.

山龍之脈與平洋龍脈，皆因水而驗其脈之動靜，而皆不以水而限其脈之去來。今先言山龍。夫山，剛質也；水，柔質也。山之孔竅而水出焉，故兩山之間，必有一水；山窪下之處，即水流行之道。水隨山而行，非山隨水而行也。山之高者，脈所從起；山之卑者，脈所從止。山自高而卑，故水亦從之自高而卑，此一定之理也。

The dragon lines of mountains and the dragon lines of plains both use water to verify whether the dragon lines are active or still, but water cannot be used to limit the coming and going of the dragon lines. Let's first talk about mountain dragon lines. Mountains have a hard texture, while water has a soft texture; mountains have holes, and water flows out from there, so between two mountains there must be a stream of water. The low areas of the mountains are the channels through which water flows. It is the water that follows the mountain, not the mountain that follows the water. The high parts of the mountain are where the dragon line originates, and the low parts are where it terminates. As the mountain goes from high to low, so does the water flow from high to low—this is an unchanging principle.

往往大溪大澗之旁，小幹龍所憩焉；大江大河之側，大幹龍所休焉。蓋來山之眾支聚乎此，故來水之眾泒亦聚乎此也。然據水之順逆而論脈之行止，但可就其大概而言爾。若必謂水於此界，脈必於此斷；水向左流，脈必不向右行，則不可也。

Therefore, often by the sides of big streams and deep gullies, small dry dragons rest; by the banks of big rivers and major waterways, large dry dragons stop. Because many branches of the coming mountains gather here, so too do many branches of the flowing water converge here. However, using the direction of the water's flow to determine the movement and stopping of the dragon veins can only be considered roughly. If one insists that where the water stops, the dragon vein must also stop; if the water flows to the left, the dragon vein must not flow to the right—then such reasoning does not hold.

夫龍脈之起伏轉折，千變而不窮。有從小江小湖崩洪而過者矣；有從大江大河，越數百十里不知其蹤跡端倪而過者矣；有收本身元辰小水，逆行收數里而結者矣；有向大乾水逆奔數百里而結者矣。龍之真者，水愈斷而其過脈愈奇，勢愈逆而其骨力愈壯，豈一水之橫流，可遏之使斷，牽之使前乎。

The undulations and turns of the dragon pulse are countless and ever-changing, without end: some pass beneath small rivers and lakes with sudden floods, others cross large rivers and lakes over hundreds or even thousands of miles, leaving no trace or clue; some small streams gather their original energy and reverse for several miles to form a hill, while others face great rivers, reverse for hundreds of miles to form a hill. Real dragons are such that the more severe the water interruption, the more extraordinary their passage; the stronger the reverse trend, the more vigorous their strength. How could a single flowing river be able to block or guide them?

今《玉尺》云：順水直沖而逆回結穴，方知體段之真；若逆水直沖而合襟在後，斷是虛花之地。眾水趨歸東北，而坤申之氣施生；群流來向巽（震）辰，而乾亥之龍毓秀。甲卯成胎，不含酉辛之氣；午丁生意，豈乘坎癸之靈。據此而言，是天下必無逆水之龍也。豈其然哉。

Now the "Juchijing" says: Following the water straight down, then reversing back to form a knot, only then can the form be truly known; if the water flows against the current straight and converges behind the pit, it is definitely a barren and lifeless place. It also says: When all the waters tend toward the northeast, the qi from the坤 and申 directions can be generated; when all the streams flow toward the Xun and Chen directions, the dragon from the Qian and Hai directions can produce refined qi; when the direction of Ji and Mao forms the embryo, it does not contain the qi of You and Xin; when the direction of Wu and Ding has vitality, how can it receive the spirit of Kan and Gui? According to this, there must be no dragon flowing against the current in the world—can it really be like that?

或曰：子所言，山龍也；《玉尺》所言，平壤也。故其言曰：幹源曠野，鋪氈細認交襟；極隴平坡，月角詳看住結。山龍有脈可據，故有逆水之穴，平壤無脈可尋，只就流神之來去，認氣之行止，豈與山之過峽起伏，同年而語乎。子生平專分山水二龍以正告天下，何又執此論也。

Some people have objected saying: You are talking about mountain dragons, while the "Jucheng" discusses plains. Therefore, it says, "When the dry source is in the open field, one must carefully examine the meeting of water on a flat area spread out like a carpet; when the ridge ends on a flat slope, one must carefully observe how the water stops and settles at the moon's angle." Mountain dragons have ridges to rely on, so there aresite (q穴) with reverse water; plains have no ridges to follow, so one can only recognize the movement of qi by the flow of water, how can this be compared with the twists and turns of mountain ridges? You have spent your whole life separating mountain dragons and water dragons, warning the world, why are you sticking to this view here?

解之曰：平壤固純以流神辨氣，與山之脈峽不同，至以水之來去為氣之行止，則我不取。我以為酉辛水到，則甲卯之脈愈真；癸坎流來，則午丁之靈益顯。坤申生氣，眾水必無東北之趨；乾亥成龍，群流必無巽辰之向。由此而言，《玉尺》不但于山龍特行特結之妙茫然未知，且於平壤雌雄交媾之機大相背謬。

I explained that in flat land, although it is indeed entirely dependent on water flow to discern qi, it differs from the mountain ridges and gorges; however, taking the coming and going of water as the movement and stillness of qi is not acceptable to me. I believe that when water comes from the west-southwest direction (酉辛), the ridge from the east-northeast direction (甲卯) becomes more genuine; when water flows from the north-northwest direction (癸坎), the subtle qi from the south-southwest direction (午丁) becomes more apparent. If the direction of the坤申 is to gather qi, then all the waters certainly will not flow toward the northeast; if the direction of the乾亥 is to form a dragon, then all the streams certainly will not flow toward the巽辰. Therefore, the "Juyi" (玉尺) not only fails to understand the subtle and special formations of mountain dragons, but also greatly deviates from the key principles of the interaction between yin and yang in flat land.

至其統論三大幹龍，而以為北幹乃崑崙之丑艮出脈，而龍皆坤申；南幹乃崑崙之巽辰出脈，而龍皆乾亥；中條乃崑崙之寅甲、卯乙出脈，而龍皆庚酉辛。注者遂實其解曰：北幹無離巽艮震穴，中幹無震巽艮穴；建康只有南離、臨安只有坤兌、八閩只有坤申。固哉，《玉尺》之言也。

As for the general discussion of the three major dragon lines, it says that the northern dragon originates from the Chou Gen direction of Kunlun, so all the dragons belong to Kun Shen; the southern dragon originates from the Xun Chen direction of Kunlun, so all the dragons belong to Qian Hai; the central dragon originates from the Yin Jia and Mao Yi directions of Kunlun, so all the dragons belong to Geng You Xin. The annotators then made this into a fixed rule, saying: the northern dragon does not havesite in Li, Xun, Gen, or Zhen; the central dragon does not havesite in Zhen, Xun, or Gen; Jiankang (Nanjing) only hassite in Li in the south, Lin'an (Hangzhou) only has穴位 in Kun and Dui, and the eight Fujian provinces only have穴位 in Kun and Shen. These statements in the "Yuzhi" are truly narrow-minded.

夫舉天下之大勢，大抵自兌之震、自幹之巽、自坤之艮者，地勢之從高而下然也。至於龍之剝換轉變，豈拘一方。真脈性喜逆行，大地每多朝祖，若執此書順水直沖之說，遇上格大地，反以為不合理氣而棄之，而專取傾瀉奔流，蕩然無氣之地，誤以為真結而葬之，其詒害於人，烏有限量。餘故不得已，而叮嚀反覆以辨之也。

Looking at the overall situation of the entire world, the general trend is from the Trigram Dui (West) to Zhen (East), and from Qian (Northwest) to Xun (Southeast), and from Kun (Southwest) to Gen (Northeast). This is merely the natural result of the terrain sloping from high to low. As for the transformation of the dragon line, how could it be confined to a particular direction? The true dragon line tends to flow against the conventional direction, and the earth often turns back towards its origin. If one rigidly adheres to the idea of "following the water straight ahead" from this book, encountering superior landforms would mistakenly consider them as lacking proper energy and discard them; yet they would specifically choose places where the water flows forcefully and dissipates, mistakenly considering them as true convergences and then burying the tomb there. The harm caused by this approach to people has no limits. Therefore, I feel compelled to repeatedly explain and clarify this matter.

易曰：立天之道，曰陰與陽。惟此二氣，體無不具，用無不包，是二者不可偏廢，故曰孤陽不生，獨陰不長，是二者未嘗相離。故曰陽根於陰，陰根於陽。舍陽而言陰，非陰也；舍陰而言陽，非陽也。聖人作易，必扶陽抑陰者，何也。曰：道一而已，故曰幹分而為二，而名之曰坤。

The "Commentary on the Hexagrams" from the "Zhou Changes" says: Establishing the principle of Heaven is called yin and yang. These two energies are present in all things and encompass all uses. They cannot be neglected, so it is said, "solitary yang cannot thrive, solitary yin cannot grow," showing that they have never been separated. Therefore, it is also said: the root of yang is in yin, and the root of yin is in yang. To talk about yin without yang is not true yin; to talk about yang without yin is not true yang. Then why did the sage compose the "Zhou Changes" by supporting yang and restraining yin? Answer: Because the Dao is one. Therefore, when Qian is divided into two, the other half is named Kun.

以兩儀之對待者言，曰陰陽；以一元之渾然者言，惟陽而已。言陽，而陰在其中矣。就人事言，則陽為君子、陰為小人。內君子外小人為泰，內小人外君子為否。由此言之，陽與陰不可分也。苟其分之，則貴陽陰，如聖人之作易。何也，若貴陰賤陽，是背乎聖人作易之旨，而亂天地之正道也。

From the perspective of the dual opposition of the Two Principles, there is yin and yang; but from the perspective of the unity of one principle, there is only yang—saying yang is to include yin within it. In terms of human affairs, yang represents the gentleman and yin represents the petty person: when the gentleman is inside and the petty person is outside, it is the Hexagram of Tai; when the petty person is inside and the gentleman is outside, it is the Hexagram of Po. Thus, yang and yin are fundamentally inseparable. If they must be separated, then we should value yang as the sages did in composing the Book of Changes. Why? Because if we value yin and despise yang, we would be contradicting the purpose of the sages in composing the Book of Changes and disrupting the correct way of heaven and earth.

《玉尺》乃以艮巽震兌四卦為陰之旺相而貴之，以乾坤坎離為陽之孤虛而賤之。即以納甲，八干十二支：丙納於艮，辛納於巽，庚納於震而亥卯未從之，丁納於兌而己酉丑從之，十者皆謂之陰而貴；以甲納乾，以乙納坤，以癸納坎而子申辰從之，以壬納離而午寅戌從之，十者皆謂之陽而賤。

The Zhi Chi text regards the four trigrams Gen, Xun, Zhen, and Dui as the flourishing and strong of yin, thus treating them with respect and honor. It regards the four trigrams Qian, Kun, Kan, and Li as the isolated and deficient of yang, thus treating them with contempt. Then, according to the method of Najia, it assigns the eight stems and twelve branches: Bing is assigned to Gen, Xin is assigned to Xun, Geng is assigned to Zhen with Hai, Mao, and Wei following, Ding is assigned to Dui with Si, You, and Chou following—these ten are considered yin and honored; Ji is assigned to Qian, Yi is assigned to Kun, Gui is assigned to Kan with Zi, Shen, and Chen following, Ren is assigned to Li with Wu, Yin, and Xu following—these ten are considered yang and regarded as inferior.

於是當世之言地理者，不論地之真偽若何，凡見陰龍陰水陰向，則概謂之吉；而見陽龍陽水陽向，則概謂之凶，此乖謬之甚者也。夫吉凶之理莫著於易，易六十四卦各有其吉，各有其凶；八卦，六十四卦之父母也，豈有四卦純吉、四卦純凶之理。八干十二支亦然。吾謂論地，只論其是地非地，不當論其屬何卦體，屬何干支。若果龍真穴的，水神環抱，坐向得宜，雖陽亦吉也；若龍非真來，穴非真結，砂飛水背，坐向偏斜，雖陰亦凶也。

So nowadays, when people talk about geography, regardless of whether the land is actually good or not, whenever they see Yin dragon, Yin water, and Yin direction, they all say it is auspicious; whenever they see Yang dragon, Yang water, and Yang direction, they all say it is inauspicious. This is truly absurd. The principles of auspiciousness and inauspiciousness are explained more clearly in the Book of Changes than anywhere else: each of the sixty-four hexagrams has its own auspicious aspects and its own inauspicious aspects. The eight trigrams are the parents of the sixty-four hexagrams. How could there be four trigrams entirely auspicious and four entirely inauspicious? The eight directions and twelve branches are the same. I think when discussing land, one should only discuss whether it is a good land or not, not whether it belongs to a certain hexagram or a certain combination of heavenly stems and earthly branches. If the dragon is genuine, the site is properly formed, the water is embraced by the surrounding terrain, and the sitting and facing direction is appropriate, even if it belongs to Yang, it is still auspicious. If the dragon is not genuine, the site is not properly formed, the terrain is scattered and the water flows away, and the sitting and facing direction is incorrect, even if it belongs to Yin, it is still inauspicious.

又拘所謂三吉六秀，而以為出於天星，考之天官家言，紫微垣在中國之壬亥方，而太微垣在丙午方，天市垣在寅艮方。且周天二十八宿分佈十二宮，皆能為福，皆為災。地之二十四干支上應列宿，亦猶是也。何以在此為吉，在彼為凶，此與天星之理全乎不合。至謂乾坤老亢、辰戌為魁罡、丑未為暗金煞，然種種悖理。

They are again stuck to the so-called "three auspicious and six excellent" [terms], saying that they come from the heavenly stars. But if we examine the theory of the Heavenly Officials, the Purple Micro Enclosure corresponds to the Renhai direction in China, the Taiwei Enclosure corresponds to the Bingwu direction, and the Tianshi Enclosure corresponds to the Yin Gen direction. Moreover, the twenty-eight mansions of the sky are distributed among the twelve palaces, and each mansion can bring both blessings and calamities. The twenty-four heavenly stems and earthly branches on the ground correspond to the mansions in the same way. So why is it that some places are considered auspicious and others inauspicious? This does not align with the principles of the heavenly stars at all. As for the statements that Qian and Kun are old and excessive, Chen Xu are the commanding stars, Chou Wei are the hidden metal evils, and so on, all these sayings contradict reason.

夫乾坤為諸卦之父母，六子皆其所產，何得為凶。老嫩之辨在於龍，龍之出身嫩也，即乾坤亦嫩也；龍之出身老，即巽辛兌丁亦老也。斗之戴匡為天魁，斗柄所指為天罡，此樞幹四時，斟酌元氣，造化之大柄也。理數家以為天罡所指，眾煞潛形，何吉如之，而反以為凶耶。五行皆天地之經緯，何獨忌四金。庚酉辛，金之最堅剛者也，既不害其為吉，而獨忌四隅之暗金，甚無謂矣。諸如此類，管郭楊賴從無明文，不知妄作，流毒天下，始作俑者其無後乎。我不禁臨文而三嘆也。

Heaven and Earth are the parents of all the hexagrams, and the six children hexagrams are all born from them. How can they be considered凶? The difference between old and young lies in the dragon itself: if the dragon is young, even Heaven and Earth are young; if the dragon is old, even Wind and Thunder, Metal and Water are old. The star called Tiankui is the one worn by the Big Dipper, and the direction pointed to by the handle of the Big Dipper is called Tian Gang. This is the hub that controls the four seasons and regulates the vital energy, the great authority of creation and transformation. The school of reasoning and numbers also says that wherever Tian Gang points, all evil forces must hide their forms. What could be more auspicious than this? How can it be regarded as凶? The Five Phases are the meridians and parallels of heaven and earth. Why is there a special taboo on the four metals? Geng, You, and Xin are the strongest and most firm among the metals. Since they are not obstructive to being auspicious, why is there a taboo on the four corners, so-called dark metals? It is really unreasonable. Such statements have never been clearly mentioned by Guan Lu, Guo Pu, Yang Yunsong, or Lai Wenjun. They are the result of pretending to understand but making up things, spreading harm throughout the world. The first person to start this is likely to be doomed to extinction. As I write these words, I can't help but sigh repeatedly.

盈天地間只有八卦。先天之位，曰乾坤定位，山澤通氣，風雷相薄，水火不相射。八卦總之陰而已，山陽澤陰、雷陽風陰、火陽水陰，皆兩儀對待之象。對待之中，化機出焉。所謂玄牝之門，是為天地根，一陰一陽之謂道。八卦者，天地之體；五行者，天地之用。當其為體之時，未可以用言也。

The only thing filling the universe is the Eight Trigrams. The original arrangement of the trigrams is: Heaven and Earth determine the upper and lower positions, mountains and marshes communicate their energies, wind and thunder interact with each other, and water and fire do not despise each other. In summary, the Eight Trigrams are nothing more than yin and yang: mountains belong to yang, marshes to yin, thunder to yang, wind to yin, fire to yang, and water to yin. All are images of the two principles in opposition. It is precisely in this opposition that the function of generation and nurturing arises. What is said as "the gate of the deep and the female, is the root of heaven and earth," and "a yin and a yang is called the Dao," refers to this. The Eight Trigrams are the essence of heaven and earth, while the Five Phases are their functions; when they are in the stage of "essence," they cannot be explained by "function."

故坎雖為水，此先天之水，不可以有形之水言也；離雖為火，此先天之火，不可以有形之火言也。故艮為山而不可以土言也，兌為澤而不可以金言也，震巽為風雷而可以木言也。若論後天方位八卦，而以坎位北而為水、以離位南而為火、以震位東而為木、以兌位西而為金，似矣。四隅皆土也，又何以巽木乾金不隨四季，而隨春秋耶。此八卦五行之一謬也。

Therefore, although Kan is associated with water, it refers to the primordial water, which cannot be explained by tangible water; similarly, Li, although associated with fire, refers to the primordial fire, which cannot be explained by tangible fire. The same applies to Gen, which is mountain, but cannot be explained by the Five Phases' earth; Dui, which is marsh, cannot be explained by the Five Phases' metal; and Zhen and Xun, which are wind and thunder, cannot be explained by the Five Phases' wood. If we refer to the Later Heaven compass directions, saying Kan is in the north as water, Li in the south as fire, Zhen in the east as wood, and Dui in the west as metal, this makes sense. However, the four intermediate directions should all belong to earth. Why does Xun specifically belong to wood and Qian specifically to metal, not following the four seasons (Chen, Xu, Chou, Wei), but instead following spring and autumn? This is the first major error in matching the Eight Trigrams with the Five Phases.

及論二十四龍則又造為三合之說，復附會之以雙山，更屬支離牽強而全無憑據。夫既以東南西北為四正五行，則巳丙丁皆從離以為火、亥壬癸皆從坎而為水、寅甲乙皆從震而為木、申庚辛皆從兌而為金，辰戌丑未皆從四隅以為土，猶之可也。

When discussing the twenty-four dragons, the concept of "Triple Harmony" is introduced, and then "Double Mountains" are brought in, making the explanation even more fragmented and baseless. Since the directions of the four cardinal points have already been used to determine the Five Phases, then巳 (Si), 丙 (Bing), and 丁 (Ding) all follow Li (Fire) and are considered fire; 亥 (Hai), 壬 (Ren), and 癸 (Gui) all follow Kan (Water) and are considered water; 寅 (Yin), 甲 (Jia), and 乙 (Yi) all follow Zhen (Thunder) and are considered wood; 申 (Shen), 庚 (Geng), and 辛 (Xin) all follow Dui (Lake) and are considered metal; and 辰 (Chen), 戌 (Xu), 丑 (Chou), and 未 (Wei) all follow the four corners and are considered earth—this explanation is at least somewhat plausible.

今又以子合申辰而為水，並其鄰之坤壬乙亦化為水；以午合寅戌而為火，並其鄰之艮丙辛亦化為火；以卯合亥未而為木，並其鄰之干甲丁亦化為木；以酉合已丑而為金，並其鄰之巽庚癸亦化為金。論八卦則卦爻錯亂，論四令則方位顛倒，此三合雙山之再謬也。所謂多岐亡羊，朝令夕改，自相矛盾，不持悖於理義，亦不通於辭說者矣。

Now they take Zi and Shen, Chen to form a water pattern, and even transform the adjacent trigrams Kun, Ren, and Yi into water; they take Wu and Yin, Xu to form a fire pattern, and even transform the adjacent trigrams Gen, Bing, and Xin into fire; they take Mao and Hai, Wei to form a wood pattern, and even transform the adjacent trigrams Qian, Jia, and Ding into wood; they take You and Si, Chou to form a metal pattern, and even transform the adjacent trigrams Xun, Geng, and Gui into metal. In this way, when discussing the eight trigrams, the trigrams and their lines become disordered, and when discussing the four seasons, the directions become inverted—this is the second error of the Triple Harmony and dual mountains. Truly, there are so many wrong paths that even the sheep get lost; the orders change from morning to night, contradicting themselves; not only do they violate the principles, but the statements themselves are incoherent.

又以龍脈之左旋右旋，而分五行之陰陽，曰亥龍自甲卯乙、丑艮寅、壬子癸方來者為陽木龍；亥龍自未坤申、庚酉辛、戌乾方來者為陰木龍。其餘無不皆然，謬之謬者也。

They also distinguish the yin and yang of the Five Phases according to whether the dragon line is left or right turning, saying: if the亥 dragon comes from the directions of Jia卯 Yi, Chou艮寅, or Ren子癸, it is a yang wood dragon; if it comes from the directions of Wei坤申, Geng酉辛, or Xu乾, it is a yin wood dragon. The rest of the dragons are similarly categorized in this way—this is truly a mistake on top of another mistake.

又以龍之所屬而起長生、沐浴、冠帶、臨官、帝旺、衰、病、死、墓、絕、胎、養；又以龍順逆之陰陽分起長生，曰陽木在甲，長生在亥，旺於卯、墓於未；陰木屬乙，長生在午、旺於寅、墓於戌。其餘無不皆然，舉世若狂以為定理，真可哀痛矣。夫五行者，陰陽二氣之精華，散於萬象，周流六虛，盈天地之內，無處不有五行之氣，無物不具。

They also determine the twelve palaces of growth, bathing, capping, officialdom, prosperity, decline, illness, death, burial, extinction, fetal stage, and nourishment according to the five phases associated with each dragon. They further distinguish the growth of each palace based on the direction and yin-yang of the dragon. For example, yang wood is associated with Jia, with its growth in Hai, prosperity in Mao, and burial in Wei. Yin wood is associated with Yi, with its growth in Wu, prosperity in Yin, and burial in Xu. All other elements follow the same pattern. The world has gone mad, treating this as an unchangeable principle, which is truly pitiful and sorrowful. In reality, the five phases are the essence of yin and yang, spread throughout all phenomena, circulating throughout the heavens and the earth, filling the entire universe. There is no place without the qi of the five phases, and no object that does not possess the five phases. (The text ends here.)