The corner trigram of wind
The corner trigrams sit between the cardinal points, and Xun is the southeast one. In the Book of Changes Xun is wind, wood and the eldest daughter. On the ground the trade looks to this corner for the writing-brush peak: a single clean hill, narrow at the top, standing upright on Xun before or beside the site.
As a seat, Xun gives the Xun and Qian axis, the back on 135 and the face on 315, one of the four corner axes checked first on any old grave. As an incoming dragon it is a ridge that arrives from the southeast and turns to settle, and the master walks the turn.
Great One, a noble star on a noble corner
Taiyi, Great One, is the star of the most honoured place: learning, writing, clean standing. It is one of the four noble stars, and Xun is also one of the six elegant mountains.
Here the Tianxing reading carries real weight. When a sound dragon enters from Xun, a sound peak stands on it, or clear water comes from it, the star and the form say the same thing, and the Cui Guan Pian rates such a match highly. The weight runs one way only. A noble star over a broken hill does not repair the hill; it only shows the gap between sky and ground.
What this means on the ground
Stand inside the door with your back to it, or behind the stone along its face, luopan level, three readings, no steel. Xun runs from 127.5 to 142.5. Then look up, because here the shape matters as much as the number. A peak on Xun earns its name only if it is upright, whole and in proportion to the site; a split hill on 135 is a split hill.
Inside the mountain, 135 is the clean seat. Toward 128 the stone leans on Chen, which is earth, a lean a master corrects; toward 142 it leans on Si, still Xun, a mild lean. Readings within two degrees of either line are turned back in before cutting.
Common mistakes
The commonest comes from a book: Xun is the scholar's corner, so buy a house with the door on 135, with no hill, peak or dragon near it. The star ranks a direction, not a site. The second is the true north reading, which in many overseas cities puts a Xun door on Chen or Si.
The third is measuring from the middle of the lot instead of at the door or the stone, which on a diagonal lot swings the figure a full mountain. The fourth is ignoring the Qian end of the axis. A Xun seat looks to Qian, and what stands on Qian is half of the reading.
Questions people ask
What direction is Xun on a feng shui compass?
Xun is the southeast, 127.5 to 142.5 degrees on the luopan with 135 at the centre. It is one of the four corner trigrams. Chen lies on its north side and Si on its south.
Why is Xun called a noble direction?
Because its star on the Tianxing luopan is Great One, one of the four noble stars, and Xun is also one of the six elegant mountains. The rank describes the direction. Whether a site deserves it depends on the dragon, peaks and water actually there.
What does sitting Xun facing Qian mean?
The back of the stone or house is on 135 degrees and the front looks to 315, the northwest. A master reads both ends: the hill behind on Xun and what stands in front on Qian.
If a peak stands on Xun near your site, a site reading with Master Zhang will tell you whether the form matches the star.