Complete Guide to Chinese Horoscopes

Introduction

Western astrology practices divination through the observation of the movements of planets. This has been a part of the popular culture in the west since the beginning of time; when men first glanced upwards to the evening sky at the vast constellation of stars. Likewise, the 12 symbolic animal signs (the Chinese zodiac animals) that represent the year of a person’s birth are very much a part of the Chinese culture as well as in other Asian countries. Where Western astrology can predict personality traits, career paths, marriage and the attainment of wealth from planetary shifts, Eastern people can also make a wide range of accurate predictions using animal signs.

Fundamentally speaking, the animal signs of the east have a close association with Western astrology. For instance, the Rat corresponds to Aquarius. The Ox corresponds to Capricorn. The Tiger corresponds to Sagittarius. The Rabbit corresponds to Scorpio. The parameters that are used to process an individual’s personal animal sign is a bit more complex than the parameters used in Western astrology, because the animal signs also take into consideration the hour, the day, the month, and the year of one’s birth.

The success of each person depends on their own unique path in life and, in addition to great differences in personalities, there are a diversity of environments to consider. However, those who enjoy success seem to have similar traits that are associated with the animal signs, and also share a combination of mental acumen, initiative, respect for others, their role in society and harmonious relationship with the environment.

The twelve animals signs are inspired by eleven animals of the earth, the Rat, the Ox, the Tiger, the Rabbit, the Snake, the Horse, the Sheep, the Monkey, the Rooster, the Dog and the Pig and the Dragon, the only ancient mystical being. As extremely important elements in folk culture, these twelve animals are well known among all Chinese people. Though their exact origins cannot be confirmed, they have been passed on from generation to generation due to their popularity, convenience and amusement. They are precious heritages of practical values left by people in ancient times.

The common belief is that a person’s personality and luck are more or less associated with the habits, appearance, and movements of a particular animal sign, because sheng (生) means birth and xiao (肖) means similarity. Shengxiao, i.e. animal signs symbolize similarity between a person and a certain animal. Linking human wisdom, strength, courage, health, and charm with certain animals demonstrates a strong awareness of the influence of nature in the cycle of life that has contributed to a civilization’s longevity for thousands of years.

There are various myths and legends about the origin of the twelve animal signs. The most popular legend tale is of the Yellow Emperor, who wanted twelve different kinds of animals to be on duty in Heaven at all times. He devised a competition where the Rat, the Ox, the Tiger, and the other nine animals emerged as victors. One myth attributes the origin of the twelve animal signs to a primitive society that worshipped individual animal totems belonging to specific clans. Lastly, astronomy has always been a big influence; the twenty-eight constellations in the sky corresponds to twelve periods of time. Each constellation is named after an animal. A particular commonly seen animal on duty in each period of time was then chosen to represent a certain year.

Since the time of Emperor Shun, China has been applying annals marked by a combination of the ten symbols of Heavenly Stems with the twelve symbols of Earthly Branches. The ten symbols of Heavenly Stems refer to Jia (甲), Yi (乙), Bing (丙), Ding (丁), Wu (戊), Ji (己), Geng (庚), Xin (辛), Ren (壬), and Gui (癸). The twelve symbols of Earthly Branches refer to Zi (子), Chou (丑), Yin (寅), Mao (卯), Chen (辰), Si (巳), Wu (午), Wei (未), Shen (申), You (酉), Xu (戌), and Hai (亥). There are sixty groups that are set analogically in order with a combination of the ten symbols of Heavenly Stems with the twelve symbols of Earthly Branches, such as Jia with Zi (甲子), Yi with Chou (乙 丑), and Bing with Yin (丙 寅). These sixty groups are coupled with the year and there is a repeat once every sixty years. If coupled with the month, there is a repeat once every sixty months (five years). If coupled with the day, there is a repeat once every sixty days. If coupled with the hour, there is a repeat once every sixty periods of time (i.e. a period of time stands for two hours). Such repeating goes on all the time. The year, the month, the day, and the hour are respectively marked by annals of Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches. People in ancient times also used the twelve animals to match the twelve symbols of Earthly Branches. Zi stands for the Rat and Chou stands for the Ox, etc., with the rest of them matched analogically.

The earliest written record about the twelve animal signs can be seen in the Book of Song (Shi Jing), the first poetry collection in the world. At what instance was the twelve animal signs mentioned? According to historical data, such mention took place in the Han Dynasty (206 BC–220), based on On Balance—Materials, a noted work by Wang Chong in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220). As it goes: "Yin stands for the Wood and the animal concerned is the Tiger. Xu stands for the Earth and the animal concerned is the Dog … Wu stands for the Horse. Zi stands for the Rat. You stands for the Rooster. Mao stands for the Rabbit … Hai stands for the Pig. Wei stands for the Sheep. Chou stands for the Ox … Si stands for the Snake. Shen stands for the Monkey."

The above-mentioned quotation only includes 11 kinds of animals, with the absence of the Dragon. However, with "The Wu Kingdom lies in Chen positioned at the Dragon" written in the Spring and Autumn of Wu Yue by Zhao Ye in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Chen Dragon came into being, thus bringing about the twelve animal signs as we know it today.

The twelve animal signs were widely used in the Northern and Southern Dynasties (420–598). A letter from Yu Wenhu’s mother to him that was recorded in History of Northern Dynasty—Biography of Yu Wenhu reads: Two of your brothers were born at Wuchuan Town. According to the twelve animal signs, the elder one belongs to the Rat, the younger one belongs to the Rabbit, and you belong to the Snake.

As apparent from the above, at that time, the twelve animal signs were commonly used by people to record the year of a person’s birth.

However, as seen from over 1,000 bamboo slips with writing excavated from the No. 11 Qin Tomb at Shuihudi, Yunmeng in Hubei Province in 1975, Sunrise—The Robber clearly records the practice of divination of the robber’s appearance based on the twelve animal signs. The emergence of this proves that the twelve animal signs were used even in the Spring-Autumn and Warring States periods (770–221 BC) in China. The No. 11 Qin Tomb, as investigated and proved through research, was built in the 30th year of Emperor Qin’s reign in 217 BC. With some slight differences, the arrangement of the animal names, Heavenly Stems, and Earthly Branches are generally similar to that of the twelve animal signs that became popular later. The divination process and the logical application are also similar to those of the twelve animals signs. Therefore, it can be deduced that the twelve animal signs matching Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches appearing on the bamboo slips excavated at Shuihudi were the initial patterns of the twelve animal signs later.

The popularity of the twelve animal signs, which reveals the wisdom of people in ancient China, derives a lot from traditional Chinese culture with a significant impact on its cultural foundation. This is not only a vivid way of recording, but also an appealing aspect of folk culture that has been handed down through a period of over 2,000 years, forming the basic characteristics of each animal. For instance, a person born in a Rat year is bright and wealthy, a person born in an Ox year is diligent and down-to-earth, a person born in a Tiger year is robust and fierce, a person born in a Rabbit year is quiet and agile, a person born in a Dragon year is extraordinary and attractive, a person born in a Snake year is romantic and mysterious, a person born in a Horse year is uninhibited, a person born in a Sheep year is mild and elegant, a person born in a Monkey year is smart and lively, a person born in a Rooster year is spirited and lucky, a person born in a Dog year is faithful and fierce, and finally, a person born in a Pig year is honest, lazy, and happy. They influence and enrich the daily life of people.

The twelve animal signs representing the year of a person’s birth figures significantly in The Book of Changes (Yi Jing), Five Elements, yin and yang, Eight Diagrams, Heavenly Stems, and Earthly Branches. This book provides an insight into the common trends in one’s life, personality, profession, love and marriage, and luck of wealth.

What Is My Animal Sign?

The twelve animal signs are different from the signs of Western astrology. The signs of the Western astrology is defined by the month, while the twelve animal signs are determined by the year. However, the year is marked by two kinds of calendars in China, i.e. the solar calendar that is used universally in the world, such as 2015, and the lunar calendar, which is a form of recording unique to China. The lunar calendar is represented by twelve animal signs, such as 2015 as the year of the Sheep. Those born in this year belong to the Sheep.

Particular attention should be paid that a day before and after February 4 (solar calendar) is the starting day of the animal sign, because the day before and after February 4 is the Beginning of Spring in the 24 seasonal periods of the Chinese lunar calendar. The beginning of the animal sign is decided by the Beginning of Spring according to the Chinese lunar calendar. For instance, the starting time for a baby born in 2015 as a Sheep is neither the zero hour of January 1, 2015 (solar calendar), nor the zero hour of the first day of the first lunar month of 2015 (i.e. February 19, 2015 according to the solar calendar), but 11:58 AM of February 4, 2015 according to the solar calendar (i.e. the 16th day of the 12th lunar month of 2014 according to lunar calendar), because this is the time for the Beginning of Spring of 2015.

The overall fortunes for each animal sign are decided by the day of birth and related month according to the lunar calendar. For reference, please convert the day of birth of solar calendar into the day of birth of lunar calendar. The lunar calendar is usually about one month later than the time of the solar calendar. For an accurate date, two methods can be used for conversion; one is to consult the permanent calendar, and the other is to calculate based on the following formula. Such calculation may occasionally have a slight difference, but will not influence results in most cases.

Assume: The year of the solar calendar − 1977 (or 1901) = 4Q + R

The result: The date of the lunar calendar = 14Q + 10.6 (R + 1) + the serial number of the date within the year − 29.5n (Note: Q, R and n are all natural numbers, R < 4)

For instance: What is the date of the lunar calendar in comparison with May 7, 1994 of the solar calendar?

1994 − 1977 = 17 = 4 × 4 + 1

Therefore: Q = 4, R = 1

The date of the lunar calendar in comparison with May 7, 1994 of the solar calendar should be as follows:

14 × 4 + 10.6 (1 + 1) + (31 + 28 + 31 + 30 + 7) − 29.5n = 204.2 − 29.5n

Then 204.2 divided by 29.5 equals 6 as the quotient. 6 is the value of n and the remainder is 27.2. 27 is the 27th day of the lunar calendar. Taking into account that the lunar calendar is about one month later than the solar calendar, it should be the 27th day of the third lunar month.

In the process of calculating the serial number of the date of birth (solar calendar) in a year, there are 31 days in January, March, May, July, August, October, and December, and 30 days in April, June, September, and November, and 28 days in February (29 days in the leap year). Then how do you determine the number of days in February? Is it 28 days or 29 days? If the number of the year can be divided by 4, then there will be 29 days in February in this year. If it cannot be divided by 4, then there will be 28 days in this year. For instance, in February 2000, 2000 ÷ 4 = 500. Therefore, there were 29 days in February 2000; in February 2001, 2001 ÷ 4 = 500 + 1. Therefore, there were 28 days in February 2001.

A day was divided into twelve periods of time in ancient China and each period of time amounted to two hours. For convenience, hours will be directly used as indication in the following part.

The Compatibility

The supportive and destructive relationship among the twelve animal signs is shown by the relationship between the superior and the subordinate, the cooperative relationship in business and work as well as in marriage. For instance, if a Rat person wants to seek more business or a better job, which animal sign is supposed to be suitable to help him? According to the Chinese twelve animal signs, he should align with the Dragon, the Monkey, or the Ox, thus enjoying career growth.

Compared with the Western astrological signs, compatibility based on the twelve animal signs is more beneficial in marriage. For instance, if a man’s animal sign is the Rat, then a woman of the Dragon, or the Monkey, or the Ox is more suitable as his spouse, because the matching of these symbols can bring heart-to-heart harmony, wealth, easy access to success, and happiness all their life.

For thousands of years, there has been the determination of marriage based on the related animal signs among the common folks in China. In the past, both sides must provide the fortune-teller with their dates of birth including the hour, the day, the month, and the year (commonly called Eight Characters), to figure out if their animal signs were suitable for marriage. This was important. It would be suitable if they were in a mutually supportive relationship.

The compatibility of the twelve animal signs chiefly references the concepts of Three Harmony and Six Harmony. Three Harmony and Six Harmony are marked by combination of the power of the several kinds of elements in the Five Elements (i.e. Metal,