Da Liu Ren

Da Liu Ren (Chinese: 大六壬 pinyin: dàliùrén) is a form of Chinese calendrical astrology dating from (at least) the later Warring States period.

Along with the divination methods Qi Men Dun Jia 奇门遁甲 and Taiyi 太乙—collectively known as the "Three Styles" (San shi 三式)—Da Liu Ren is considered in China to be one of the highest forms of Chinese metaphysics.

It is called Da Liu Ren because in the Sexegenary cycle there are Six Rens each with a different branch:

In the words of a contemporary Chinese master of Da Liu Ren, the six Ren indicate an entire movement of the sexegenary cycle, during which an event – object may appear, rise to maturity and then decline and disappear. Thus the six Ren indicate the life cycle of phenomena. There is a homonym in the Chinese language which carries the meaning of pregnancy, and so the six Ren also carry this meaning, that of the term of the birth of a phenomenon, its maturity and its passing, all within the period of a sexegenary cycle.