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Harami and stars: two different containment stories
The small body is inside the large body, but its wick sticks out. Which rule did it break?
Separate harami from inside bars and define a three-candle star without silently changing its gap rule.
Harami compares two bodies. A star sequence uses three candles and the position of the last close. Neither is an automatic turning point.
In our bullish harami example, a long bearish body is followed by a smaller bullish body inside it. Bearish harami reverses that context and colour sequence. The body-inside rule does not require the second candle's full high–low range to be inside; that would be an additional inside-bar condition.
A classical morning-star candidate follows a decline: a long bearish body, a small middle body below the first body, then a bullish body closing above the first body's midpoint. Under our strict version, the middle body gaps down and the third body starts above the middle body.
An evening star mirrors this after a rise: a long bullish body, a small middle body above it, then a bearish close below the first body's midpoint, with the corresponding strict body gaps. Wait for the third close; the middle candle alone is not a completed star.
Continuous trading can lack these session gaps. If testing a gapless adaptation, name it and write its different criteria instead of calling it the strict pattern. Keep context, a failure condition and cost-aware paper risk separate. A completed sequence may still fail to reverse.
Let’s work through it
- Identify whether the rule compares two bodies or a three-candle sequence.
- Measure containment or the first-body midpoint, then check the stated gaps.
- Record the prior context and a subsequent failure/no-trade case.
Let’s use numbers · hypothetical example
Separate harami example: A has O=110, H=112, L=99, C=100; B has O=103, H=113, L=102, C=106. B's 103–106 body lies inside 100–110, but high 113 exceeds 112: body containment without an inside bar. In the morning-star diagram, bodies run 110→100, 98→99 and 100→107. The first midpoint is (110+100)/2=105; the final 107 close is above it.
Easy mistakes to watch for
- Confusing a harami body with a fully inside high–low bar.
- Calling the middle candle a completed morning or evening star.
- Dropping the gap requirement only after finding a convenient chart.
Keep in mind
Names and strictness vary across educators. A gapless adaptation must be evaluated separately; three candles are not three independent proofs.
Your turn
Keep the morning-star diagram's other values but set the third close to 104. Does it still meet the midpoint rule? Explain why a harami wick above 112 does not alone break our body rule.
A quick check before we move on
What does B's high 113 mean in the harami example?
- The body rule can hold while the extra inside-bar condition fails
- Harami requires every wick to be inside, so the body cannot qualify
- The market must rise to 113 again
Check answer
The body rule can hold while the extra inside-bar condition fails Body 103–106 fits inside 100–110. High 113 is outside the first high 112, so full-range containment fails while the stated body condition remains true.
Sources and further reading
- www.binance.com/en/square/post/492082
- help.ctrader.com/knowledge-base/chart-types/candlesticks-chart/
- www.cmegroup.com/education/courses/trading-and-analysis/technical-analysis
Content reviewed: 29 October 2026
Educational material with hypothetical examples. Trading can cause substantial losses. A course, pattern, stop order or past result cannot guarantee a profit or limit every loss. Practise in simulation and check current rules and product terms in your jurisdiction.
