How to Write 癸 (guǐ) — Meaning “the 10th Heavenly Stem”

Imagine the top part 癶 as two footprints stepping forward, and the bottom part 夭 as a person with arms stretched out celebrating number 10. Since 癸 is the last Heavenly Stem, picture someone taking a big step to reach the tenth position.

Write the top radical 癶 first: left dot, right dot, left-falling stroke, then right-falling stroke (like an upside-down V). Then add the bottom part 夭: a short horizontal stroke, a vertical stroke through it, then left-falling and right-falling strokes. A common mistake is confusing the bottom with 矢 (arrow) — remember it has no extra horizontal strokes.

癸卯 (guǐ mǎo) marks the 40th year in the 60-year sexagenary cycle, used in traditional Chinese calendars (e.g., 2023 was the 癸卯 year). 天干 (tiān gān) refers to the ten Heavenly Stems including 癸, while 癸水 (guǐ shuǐ) means Gui water in Five Elements theory or menstruation in Traditional Chinese Medicine.

癸 is not commonly used in daily speech; it appears mainly in traditional calendar systems, astrology, and feng shui. Culturally, it is one of the ten Heavenly Stems, often paired with the twelve Earthly Branches to name years, months, and directions in Chinese cosmology.

Common words containing 癸 include: 癸卯 (guǐ mǎo) — Gui-Mao (the 40th year of the sexagenary cycle); 天干 (tiān gān) — Heavenly Stems (part of the Chinese calendar system); 癸水 (guǐ shuǐ) — Gui water (in the Five Elements); menstruation in TCM.