The Chinese zodiac is a traditional classification system based on the lunar calendar, in which each year in a twelve-year cycle is assigned an animal and its purported traits. The zodiac, which originated in China, is still popular in many East Asian and Southeast Asian countries, including Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Nepal, Bhutan, and Thailand.
The use of the generic term “zodiac” to describe this system reflects several superficial similarities to the Western zodiac: both have twelve-part time cycles, each labels at least the majority of those parts with animal names, and each is widely associated with a culture of attributing a person’s personality or life events to the supposed influence of the person’s particular relationship to the cycle.
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What is the foundation of Chinese astrology?
The zodiac is based on a sixty-year cycle, with each animal representing a different year. The Chinese zodiac animals are arranged according to the lunar calendar.
Is the Chinese zodiac based on the constellations?
There are the same number of signs in both systems: 12. Ox/Bull and Goat/Ram are two that appear to be comparable on the surface.
- Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig are the Chinese zodiac signs.
- Ram, Bull, Twins, Crab, Lion, Virgin, Scales, Scorpion, Centaur, Sea-Goat, Water Bearer, and Fish are the Western signs.
The year 2020 is the year of the Rat, the year 2021 is the year of the Ox, and the year 2022 is the year of the Tiger.
Origins of the Signs
The 12 signs in Chinese astrology are based on a legend that all creatures on Earth were summoned to compete in a race while God was building a calendar. The first 12 people to cross the finish line were given Chinese zodiac signs.
This is in contrast to Western astrology, which bases the 12 signs on the positions of constellations in relation to the earth. According to Greek mythology, the constellations were given names.
Is the Chinese horoscope correct?
You might not know that Chinese astrology has been around for almost 5,000 years if you’ve just read about your Chinese zodiac sign on mass-produced place mats at Chinese restaurants. It’s a significant part of traditional Chinese culture, influencing perspectives on how to connect with the world in the best possible way, Chinese traditional medicine, and Feng Shui, the Chinese art of design. You might also be shocked to learn that your Chinese Zodiac sign is considered more accurate than your astrological zodiac sign by some astrologers, for a variety of reasons.
On the surface, Chinese and Western astrology appear to be very similar. According to the Feng Shui Institute, the Chinese zodiacSheng Xiaoincludes 12 primary signs, also known as terrestrial branches, each of which is symbolized by an animalRat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig, similar to western astrology. Your Chinese zodiac sign is based on your year of birth on the Chinese calendar, rather than your month of birth, and forecasts everything from your personality to how well you get along with others, according to Travel China.
The Chinese zodiac incorporates five earthy elements that interact to form a cycle of ups and downs for each sign, as well as your birth date, month, and time, making it far more complicated than Western astrology. Your Chinese horoscope, unlike Western astrology, is not set in stone, according to the website Your Chinese Astrology. Rather, it is up to you to apply the information to improve your future luck. Continue reading to learn more about your Chinese zodiac sign and how it may be even more accurate than your astrological zodiac sign:
What is the basis for a zodiac sign?
Early astronomers witnessed the Sun passing through the Zodiac signs in a year’s time, spending roughly a month in each. As a result, they determined that each constellation covers 30 degrees of the ecliptic.
However, due to a phenomenon known as precession, the positions of the constellations we see now have changed.
The zero point of the Zodiac used to designate the beginning day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. The vernal equinox happens when the ecliptic and celestial equator collide, according to astronomers.
The zero point existed in Aries around 600 BCE, and it was known as the “first point of Aries.” (See Figure 1). The constellation Aries covered the first 30 degrees of the ecliptic; Taurus covered the next 30 degrees; Gemini covered the next 60 degrees; and so on for all twelve constellations of the Zodiac.
The Earth wobbles around its axis in a 25,800-year cycle, which ancient astrologers were unaware of. The gravitational attraction of the Moon on Earth’s equatorial bulge causes this wobble, known as precession.
This wobble has led the junction point between the celestial equator and the ecliptic to migrate west along the ecliptic by 36 degrees, or nearly one-tenth of the way around, over the past two and a half millennia. This indicates that, in relation to the stars beyond, the signs have moved one-tenthor almost a month around the sky to the west.
For example, persons born between March 21 and April 19 are considered Aries. During much of that time, the Sun was no longer in the constellation of Aries. The Sun is actually in the constellation of Pisces from March 11 to April 18! (See Illustration 2) See also Figure 3, which depicts the equinox precession from 600 BCE to 2600 CE.
The dates when the Sun is truly within the astronomical constellations of the Zodiac, as defined by contemporary constellation borders and corrected for precession, are listed in the table below (these dates can vary a day from year to year).
When precession is taken into consideration, your zodiac sign will most likely be different. And if you were born between November 29 and December 17, your zodiac sign is one you’ve never heard of before: Ophiuchus! After Scorpius, the eliptic crosses across the constellation of Ophiuchus.
Visit the Birthday Sky program to view what the sky looked like on your birthday and to learn more about your “true zodiac sign.”
Constellations Image Gallery
The Chinese zodiac is a fiction, right?
According to legend, the Chinese zodiac’s twelve animals were chosen through a race. The purpose of this race is to provide a time measurement for the participants. There could only be twelve winners, and the animals had to cross a fast-flowing river and reach the finish line on the coast in order to win.
What’s the difference between Chinese astrology and Chinese zodiac?
Unlike Western zodiac signs, which are determined by the month of birth, Chinese zodiac signs are determined by the year of birth. The Chinese zodiac (also known as shengxiao) is a 12-year cycle in which an animal and its traits represent each year. Learn how to establish your Chinese zodiac sign, which can help you make feng shui decisions, put your personality traits into context, and more.
What factors go into determining the Chinese zodiac elements?
Feng shui aims to balance the five elements in a room in order to produce positive energy and life harmony. Many beginners focus on feng shui first because it is a simple concept and easy to study.
Conclusion
The Chinese philosophy’s Five Elements Theory identifies and describes the interactions and linkages between things. Wood, fire, earth, water, and metal are the five elements. Your date of birth determines your Chinese zodiac and element.
The Elements Theory can be applied to all aspects of life, including how to form personal connections, decorate your home, and preserve physical and emotional well-being. Take a look at the descriptions we’ve supplied for each element to see how it works.
Is my Chinese astrological sign yin or yang?
Because it takes the fewest years (least common multiple) to travel from Yang Wood Rat to its next iteration, which always starts with Yang Wood Rat and finishes with Yin Water Pig, this combination forms the 60-year cycle. Because the 12th zodiac animal cycle is divisible by two, each zodiac sign can only appear as yin or yang: the Dragon is always yang, the Snake is always yin, and so on. In 1984, the current cycle began (as shown in “Table of the sixty-year calendar” below).
An easy rule to remember when traversing the lunisolar calendar is that years that finish in an even number are yang, and years that end in an odd number are yin. The following is how the cycle works:
- It’s Yang Metal if the year ends in zero.
- It’s Yin Metal if the year ends with 1.
- It is Yang Water if the year ends in a two.
- It’s Yin Water if the year finishes in three.
- It is Yang Wood if the year finishes with the number four.
- It’s Yin Wood if the year finishes in a 5.
- It is Yang Fire if the year ends in 6.
- It’s Yin Fire if the year finishes in 7.
- It is Yang Earth if the year ends in the number eight.
- It is Yin Earth if the year finishes with 9.
The switch-over date is the Chinese New Year, not January 1 as in the Gregorian calendar, because the (traditional) Chinese zodiac follows the (lunisolar) Chinese calendar. As a result, someone born in January or early February may have the previous year’s sign. If a person was born in January 1970, for example, his or her element would still be Yin Earth, rather than Yang Metal. Similarly, despite the fact that 1990 was designated as the Year of the Horse, anyone born between January 1 and January 26, 1990 was actually born in the Year of the Snake (the previous year’s sign), as the Year of the Horse did not begin until January 27, 1990. As a result, if a person was born in January or early February, many online sign calculators (and Chinese restaurant place mats) may give them the wrong sign.
Along with many other ceremonies, Chinese New Year marks the beginning of a new zodiac.
Is the Chinese zodiac used in Japan?
Around the fourth century, the Chinese zodiac calendar was adopted to Japan. Each year is symbolized by one of twelve animal signs, with 2022 being the Year of the Tiger. In Japanese, this system is known as “eto” or “junishi.” Continue reading to learn more about the eto in Japan.