Approved for 30 Category 1 CEUs by the California Acupuncture Board

Foundations of Polestar Astrology
Practical Applications of Zi Wei Dou Shu 2025 start date TBD

In this course, students will develop a foundational understanding of the principles and methodology of Zi Wei Dou Shu astrology, a Chinese system of fate calculation that has been in use since the Ming Dynasty.  By learning how to perform calculations to construct a natal birth chart and Four Pillars assessment we will explore how fate, in combination with capacity, correlates with the patterns of qi we experience in life.

We will focus on building the ground for understanding the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, and the Twelve Great Stars and Four Spirits. This foundational knowledge will allow students to interpret the complex interrelationships between an individual’s personal characteristics and the cyclical patterns of qi that we experience.  The study of Zi Wei Dou Shu can provide a means to understand and transform our relationship with our circumstances.

What's included?

  • 10 Sundays of
    3 Hour Live Webinars
  • Weekly PDF Handouts
  • Case Studies
  • 30 hour CEU certificate
  • Class recordings available for 1 year

Understand Fate, Freedom, and Capacity

See how these different factors can inform skillful activity and adaptation through different phases of life

Discuss with others

Analyze and discuss Polestar principles and charts with a group of committed peers
Patrick Jones - Course author

Rachael Henrichsen

MTCM,  LAc, Dipl. OM NCCAOM, Lopön
Rachael Henrichsen lives in Santa Cruz, CA while nurturing her private practice, Red Gate Integrative Medicine.  She holds a Masters degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine, a spiritual degree (equivalent to a M.A.) as a Lopön (teacher) of the Tibetan Bön, and a certification to teach Tibetan Buddhist Meditation from the Buddhist Studies Institute where she manages the Meditation Instructor Training Program. She is an associate professor at the Golden Gate School of Feng Shui and qigong teacher and holistic chef at the Yogic Medicine Institute.  Internationally, she teaches from experience from over 25 years of continued study with teachers of Tantric Buddhist, Bön, Chan, Daoist, and Zen traditional practices that include history, meditation, ritual, astrology, medicine, chado (the Way of Tea), and divination. In 2008, she began studying with the late Liu Ming, the founder of Da Yuan Circle and completed the Zi Wei Dou Shu apprenticeship program.
Created with