Where water ends and earth begins
At 22.5 degrees the Kan trigram ends and Gen begins: water gives way to earth, and Chou is the first mountain on the earth side. As a sitting, Chou suits a back that is heavy and flat-topped, the earth shape. Stand behind the stone and look up: a broad shoulder settling down to the site is the right kind of Chou back. As a water mouth, Chou matters to sites that face south-west and lose their water at the north-east. Stand on the site and sight to where the water passes out of view: if that gap is on Chou, it should be narrow and crossed by a spur or a stand of trees, not wide open.
Tianchu, the kitchen, and what it checks
Tianchu is Heaven's Kitchen, a star of the Purple Palace. Its sense is food, supply, stores and farmland. It is a common star, and the way our school uses a common star is plain: it confirms the ground and never argues with it. On Chou we look for the things a kitchen needs. Is the front open and level enough to hold water, like a field? Do the hills on the water side close the mouth so that what comes in stays? A peak standing on Chou counts when it is squat, flat-topped and whole, the earth form. A cramped, stony front or a broken peak on Chou is still cramped and broken, whatever the star is called.
What this means on the ground
For a house, stand inside the front door, back to the door, and read outwards; for a grave, stand behind the stone and sight along its face. Keep the luopan level, keep it away from the gate, the car and your phone, and take three readings. A facing of 210 means sitting on Chou. Inside the mountain, 27 to 33 degrees is the centre. From 22.5 to 25 you are against the Gui line, with water and Kan on the other side. From 35 to 37.5 you are against Gen, still earth, but under Tianshi, a noble star. Keep two degrees clear of both lines when the stone is set.
Common mistakes
The first mistake is borrowing. Gen is one of the four noble mountains, so people stretch its name over Chou and call a Chou sitting noble. It is not; Chou has its own star and its own rules. The second is 2027. In the Ding Wei year the Sui Po falls on Chou, and owners worry about digging on the Chou side. That is a question of timing, not of the land. The mountain has not changed; the date is settled separately with the calendar and the Bazi. The third is measuring with a phone set to true north. With a large declination a reading of 30 lands on Gui or Gen and the judgement follows the wrong page.
Questions people ask
What direction is Chou on a feng shui compass?
Chou is 30 degrees magnetic, north by north-east, from 22.5 to 37.5 degrees. It is the Ox, an earth mountain of the Gen trigram, between Gui and Gen. A stone on Chou faces Wei.
Is Chou a bad direction in 2027?
In 2027 the Sui Po falls on Chou, which is a reason to be careful about the timing of works on that side. It says nothing about whether the land itself is good.
What is the Tianchu star on Chou?
Tianchu, Heaven's Kitchen, is the common star on Chou. Its sense is food and supply. Our school checks whether the open, water-holding front it suggests is actually there.
Planning works on the Chou side, or a stone that sits on Chou? Ask Master Zhang for a site reading and a date before the ground is opened.