How elemental timing and Ten Gods aligned to bring Sanae Takaichi to premiership.
It was only after two failed attempts that, on Tuesday, Sanae Takaichi finally achieved her long-held ambition — becoming Japan’s first female Prime Minister. Her political rise offers a fascinating reflection of her BaZi (Four Pillars of Destiny), where timing, elements, and effort converge to shape destiny.
BaZi structure — the essentials
Sanae Takaichi is a Ji 己 Earth Day Master born in the month of Mao 卯 (Wood). In her chart, Wood functions as her Direct Officer and 7-Killings (官殺) — the Ten Gods that govern authority, status and recognition. For elected leaders, favorable Direct Officer and 7-Killings are critical; Takaichi's chart shows exactly that when timing aligns.
Elemental dynamics & key interpretations
Her chart also contains strong Metal, which represents people-luck and social support. Metal frequently clashes with Wood, generating tension:
- Metal = people / peer pressure / support network
- Wood = authority / officer / ambition (Direct Officer & 7-Killings)
- Water = Useful Ten God (喜用神) in her chart — it empowers Wood and enables communication and timing
In short: she succeeds when Wood dominates and is supported by Water; Metal can both help (people luck) and oppose (clash) depending on the year.
Chronology: the path to premiership
2021 — First attempt (lost)
2021 辛丑 (Xin Chou): Metal was strong, which suppressed Wood (her Officer star). This elemental pressure explains why she lost to Fumio Kishida despite contesting.
2022–2024 — Building influence
During Fumio Kishida's premiership (2021–2024) she served as Minister of State for Economic Security and strengthened her political base.
- 2022 壬寅 (Ren Yin) — strong Wood year; had a leadership contest fallen here, her chances would have been higher.
- 2023 癸卯 (Gui Mao) — even stronger Wood influence; good for status and recognition.
- 2024 甲辰 (Jia Chen) — Second attempt (lost) — strong Earth producing Metal once more; this again worked against Wood and limited premiership chances despite early voting success. Takaichi made her second run for the party leadership in 2024, where she came in first in the first round but narrowly lost in a runoff to Shigeru Ishiba.
2025 — Victory and premiership
2025 乙巳 (Yi Si): Yi (乙) Wood — presenting as 7-Killings — appeared strongly. This was a decisive year when Wood (authority) gained the upper hand with necessary support. In 2025 she ran again, placed first in both rounds of party voting, defeated Shinjirō Koizumi, and was confirmed by parliament as Japan’s first female Prime Minister.
2026–2027 — Potential Watchful years
The near future brings stronger Fire influence. Fire may complicate the balance between Metal and Wood and create periods of heightened scrutiny and political challenge. She will need to rely on her Water-Wood dynamic and careful relationship management to maintain stability.
Conclusion
Sanae Takaichi’s rise demonstrates classic BaZi timing: persistence + favorable Luck Pillars + elemental alignment (Wood empowered by Water). Her earlier losses were not anomalies but the result of unfavourable years where Metal and Earth suppressed her Officer star. Her success in 2025 is the natural culmination of a chart whose authority stars finally received the right support.