Sword Metal
Definition
Sword-Point Metal is one of the Sixty Jiazi Na Yin classifications, corresponding to the Ren Shen and Gui You pillars. Sword-Point Metal symbolizes the sharp edge of a treasured sword—extremely hard and keen, capable of cutting through iron as if it were mud. Per the Yuanhai Ziping and Sanming Tonghui, Sword-Point Metal must be refined by Furnace Fire to become a useful instrument, and it is harmed by flooding Great Sea Water that dulls its edge. Its nature is rigid and prone to breaking—'harsh and unyielding, heavy in authority but lacking in harmony'—and requires refinement and control by Fire to manifest its usefulness. Na Yin itself is a Five Elements model; classical texts do not assign personality or profession to it.
How to Find
Individuals whose birth year pillar is Ren Shen or Gui You share the Na Yin Sword-Point Metal. Ren Shen (Yang stem, Yang branch) and Gui You (Yin stem, Yin branch) reflect the Yin-Yang of the stem-branch combination itself; Na Yin has no independent Yin-Yang attribute.
Attributes
Combinations
Sword-Point Metal Meets Fire
Per the Yuanhai Ziping and Sanming Tonghui, Sword-Point Metal must be refined by Furnace Fire to become a useful instrument; with proper control, its edge is usable. Excessive fire makes the metal brittle; insufficient fire leaves it dull.
Sword-Point Metal Meets Wood
Metal overcomes Wood—the Metal is employed and the Wood is restrained. Specific fortune depends on the relative strength of Metal, the rigidity of Wood, and the overall chart configuration.
Sword-Point Metal Meets Water
Per the Sanming Tonghui: 'Encountering Great Sea Water, the metal sinks to the depths and its edge is concealed'—indicating difficulty in manifesting talent and suppressed ambition. Only Wu/Ji Earth to control the Water, or Bing/Ding Fire to refine the Metal, can restore its fortune.
Examples
A person born in the Ren Shen year has the Na Yin Sword-Point Metal; the chart's fortune must be assessed through the Day Master, Month Branch, structure, and Useful God—Na Yin serves only as imagery reference.