Archetype
A recurring symbolic pattern used to organize reflection. On this site, an archetype is a lens rather than a permanent identity or diagnosis.
Plain-language reference
Energy Archetype Glossary
Clear definitions for Five Phases, BaZi, true solar time, and the terms used by this site. Traditional concepts are identified as traditional; quiz terms are identified as our own editorial language.
BaZi / Four Pillars
A traditional Chinese system that organizes birth year, month, day, and hour into eight characters. Interpretations vary by school and should not be presented as scientific prediction.
Chinese Solar Terms
Twenty-four seasonal markers based on the Sun’s apparent position along the ecliptic. They are used in traditional calendars and some Four Pillars calculations.
Day Master
In many BaZi traditions, the Heavenly Stem associated with the day pillar. Practitioners often use it as one reference point among several, not a complete personality label.
Dominant Pattern
The highest-scoring tendency in the Energy Archetype questionnaire. It describes the answers selected in that session, not an objective measurement of personality.
Earthly Branches
A traditional twelve-part cycle used in Chinese calendrical systems. The branches are associated with time periods, seasons, and symbolic correspondences.
Equation of Time
The difference between apparent solar time and mean solar time caused by Earth’s orbital eccentricity and axial tilt.
Five Elements / Wu Xing
Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. Wu Xing is often translated as Five Elements, although Five Phases or Five Movements better conveys its emphasis on changing relationships.
Heavenly Stems
A traditional ten-part cycle combining five phases with yin and yang qualities. It is used with the Earthly Branches in Chinese calendrical systems.
Supporting Archetype
The second-highest questionnaire pattern. It can help explain how a person modifies or balances their primary result.
True Solar Time
Time based on the actual apparent position of the Sun at a location. A calculation may account for longitude, time-zone meridian, daylight-saving rules, and the equation of time.
Yin and Yang
A relational concept describing complementary tendencies such as receptive and active, inward and outward, or cooling and warming. It is not a simple good-versus-bad division.