Читать книгу The Element Encyclopedia of Birthdays - Theresa Cheung - Страница 14

Chinese astrology is similar to Western astrology in that it helps its followers understand themselves and others better. It also consists of 12 signs and each of these signs offers profound insight into personality traits. And just as in Western astrology your horoscope consists of more than your sun sign, that’s also the case with Chinese astrology. Each sign has an element, a balance of yin and yang and divisions to consider.

However, the similarities end there. The names of the 12 signs in Western astrology derive from constellations, whereas the names of the 12 signs in Chinese astrology derive from animals. The Chinese believe that the animal sign you are born under impacts your personality and destiny, as expressed in the saying, “This animal hides in your heart.” According to ancient myth, the Jade Emperor (some variations say it was the Buddha) called all the animals to take part in a race. But only 12 animals came, so these 12 were given the honor of having a year named after them according to their finishing place in the race, with the rat coming in first and the wild boar or pig last.

Perhaps the biggest difference between the two systems is that Chinese astrology determines your zodiac sign by year of birth, while Western astrology determines it by day and month of birth. Also, the Western zodiac year begins at the spring equinox. In the East each Chinese sign is determined by the lunar calendar and begins at Chinese New Year, which is the second new moon after the winter solstice.

So, given these differences, is it possible to find correspondences between Chinese astrology and the Western signs? The answer is yes, because the 12 Chinese signs that make up the 12-year cycle known as Sheng Xiao (“birth likeness”) actually correspond to the 12-year cycle of the planet Jupiter in Western astrology. It is therefore possible to match each Chinese sign to a Western counterpart. I have taken this East-meets-West astrology correspondence into account when creating each birthday profile.

In the Heed Your Signs section of this book, you will notice that each sun-sign description also includes its Chinese astrology counterpart description. For example, if you are an Aries, your Chinese sign correspondence is the Dragon. You will therefore have a natural affinity with the symbolic qualities of that mythical animal.

In addition to your Chinese astrology sun-sign match, you are also encouraged to read the relevant section for the animal that corresponds with your year of birth (see tables below). That animal may well be associated with a different sun sign to your own. For example, if you are a Taurus born in 1996, you should read your corresponding Chinese astrology sign, which is the Snake, but you should also read the section about the Rat, as you will have an affinity with both Snake and Rat characteristics and can discover much of value about yourself from reading both.