Divination Class
Kusuriyuri waited at the front of the class, kneeling as was his wont. On the desks were several charts to aid the students in their completion of today's assignment. He was curious to see what the students would think of the lesson, of their conclusions of this ancient system of divination. As the class was filled, he stood, waiting until he had the attention of the class before he began.
Horoscopes are a method of divination that rely on knowing the time and place of a person’s birth. Eastern astrology is based on the lunar calendar and the motion of the Year Star through the sky. The Year Star, called Jupiter in the west, completes its cycle through the sky every twelve cycle of seasons.
Long before they were named, there were ten heavenly stems and twelve earthly branches that combined to create a cycle of sixty years, or five courses of the year star though the heavens.
The heavenly stems are the elements, the dynamic energies of creation, in their Yin and Yang forms. Yin can be understood as the movement of shadows over the land, and yang as the movement of light. Neither is static, nor can one be present without the other, one transforming into the other. The same can be said of the elements. Each element transforms into others: Fire turns wood into air, water turns fire into earth, and so forth. Each of the five elements has a yin and yang form, leading to the ten heavenly stems.
The earthly branches divide the path of the Year Star into twelve, as the course of the seasons do, as well as the year into twelve months. These are combined with the heavenly stem, which move in a ten year cycle, to give a further understanding of the individual. The full cycle repeats every sixty years. To remember the course of the branches, it became needful to name them.
The Jade Emperor decided to have a feast and sent invitations out to the animal spirits. Mouse was charged with delivering all the invitations to those invited. Not being fond of Cat and wishing to make his way back, Mouse rode on the back of Ox until they were just outside the Jade Palace. He jumped off and ran ahead, becoming the first to arrive at the feast. The other animals followed; Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Wild Boar. Just after the gates closed, Cat arrived, only to be left out. There were only twelve seats at the feast. Since then, Cat has declared his undying anger and hatred toward Mouse.
Each of these animals define the characteristics of those born within the year, month, day and hour they are born under. The year gives the public self, that which people will see and perceive the person to be. The month is that which motivates a person, the day is the person’s basic personality and the hour is who they would be in private. There are a possibility of 8,640 combinations, counting the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches in each possible configuration.
As the first Branch, Mouse, or Rat, holds an important role. Those who are born under its influence are forthright, disciplined, charismatic, perhaps even manipulative or mendacious. Mouse is always Yang. Its fixed element is Water, which speaks to its natural traits. It is the strongest Water sign.
Ox follows, also a Water sign, however it is always Yin. It is also ruled by Earth which stabilizes many of the Water traits. Those born under its influence are methodical, dependable, ambitious in a conventional way, though they may be stubborn and rigid.
Tiger comes next, the strongest of the Wood signs, always Yang. Those born under its influence tend toward passion and recklessness, unpredictable and generous.
Rabbit follows Tiger, Yin Wood as its fixed element. Those born under its influence tend toward compassion, gentleness of spirit, though they can be moody or opportunistic.
Dragon is the second sign with two elements ruling it. It is Yang Wood, though weakest of the wood signs as well as Yang Earth. Earth speaks to the discipline and pride of Dragon while Wood speaks of its ambition and ability to be dynamic. Dragon, however, can be arrogant, militant, and brash.
Next comes Snake, Yin Fire. Snakes are thoughtful, often spiritual, sensualists, creative, though they may tend to isolate themselves or communicate poorly with others.
Horse is Yang Fire, the strongest of the Fire signs. Those under its influence are humanitarian, popular, flexible, though they may be gullible or stubborn.
Ram is ruled by Yin Fire, the weakest of the Fire signs, and Yin Earth. Those born under its influence tend to be quite, seeking righteousness, are nurturing, though they may be pessimistic or overly passive.
Next is Rooster, Yang Metal. Rosters are meticulous, conservative, decisive, though they may be over zealous and abrasive.
Dog is both Yin Metal and Yin Earth, being the weakest of the Metal signs. Dogs are honest, intelligent, loyal, though they may be cold, judgmental and worriers.
Wild Boar, or Pig, is the final sign. It is Yang Water. Those born under its sign are peaceful, trusting, sincere, though they may be naïve, over-reliant and fatalistic.
These animals are divided into trines. The first trine, consisting of Rat, Dragon, and Monkey, are power seekers, often doing best in positions of leadership, though such leadership can cause corruption, especially when they are frustrated. The second trine, Ox, Snake, and Rooster, are hardworking and have high moral standards. This, however, can lead to self-righteousness. The third trine is the Tiger, Horse, and Dog. These are communicators, lovers, though independently minded, though they will listen to someone they love. The fourth trine is Rabbit, Ram, and Wild Boar. These three are seekers of beauty and the refined. They are sensitive and can be insecure or manipulative to have their needs met.
When the four pillars are known, the inner and outer animals, it allows a better grasp on the nature of the person. When a person’s four pillars are balanced between all four trines then that person is well balanced, though this does not occur for everyone.
Please calculate your four pillars. When you have finished, please discuss the accuracy or lack thereof of your chart.
((References:
http://chineseastrology.com/?page=3000yearalmanac (for characters not born in the last century. Basically take the animal and element and find a matching year in the current century for the following link)
http://chinesefortunecalendar.com/LE.htm (Ignore the "you" "mother" "job" etc and use the above given interpretations. I haven't found these interpretations elsewhere, but this is a good way to find the four pillars since the day is the hardest to calculate)
http://chinesezodiac.com
http://iloveindia.com/astrology/chinese-astrology/history.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_zodiac
And, for those interested, the mun is a Fire Dragon, Wood Ox, Wood Ox, Metal Monkey
Also, please feel free to get Kusu's attention if you want it by putting that in the title of the comment.))
Horoscopes are a method of divination that rely on knowing the time and place of a person’s birth. Eastern astrology is based on the lunar calendar and the motion of the Year Star through the sky. The Year Star, called Jupiter in the west, completes its cycle through the sky every twelve cycle of seasons.
Long before they were named, there were ten heavenly stems and twelve earthly branches that combined to create a cycle of sixty years, or five courses of the year star though the heavens.
The heavenly stems are the elements, the dynamic energies of creation, in their Yin and Yang forms. Yin can be understood as the movement of shadows over the land, and yang as the movement of light. Neither is static, nor can one be present without the other, one transforming into the other. The same can be said of the elements. Each element transforms into others: Fire turns wood into air, water turns fire into earth, and so forth. Each of the five elements has a yin and yang form, leading to the ten heavenly stems.
The earthly branches divide the path of the Year Star into twelve, as the course of the seasons do, as well as the year into twelve months. These are combined with the heavenly stem, which move in a ten year cycle, to give a further understanding of the individual. The full cycle repeats every sixty years. To remember the course of the branches, it became needful to name them.
The Jade Emperor decided to have a feast and sent invitations out to the animal spirits. Mouse was charged with delivering all the invitations to those invited. Not being fond of Cat and wishing to make his way back, Mouse rode on the back of Ox until they were just outside the Jade Palace. He jumped off and ran ahead, becoming the first to arrive at the feast. The other animals followed; Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Wild Boar. Just after the gates closed, Cat arrived, only to be left out. There were only twelve seats at the feast. Since then, Cat has declared his undying anger and hatred toward Mouse.
Each of these animals define the characteristics of those born within the year, month, day and hour they are born under. The year gives the public self, that which people will see and perceive the person to be. The month is that which motivates a person, the day is the person’s basic personality and the hour is who they would be in private. There are a possibility of 8,640 combinations, counting the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches in each possible configuration.
As the first Branch, Mouse, or Rat, holds an important role. Those who are born under its influence are forthright, disciplined, charismatic, perhaps even manipulative or mendacious. Mouse is always Yang. Its fixed element is Water, which speaks to its natural traits. It is the strongest Water sign.
Ox follows, also a Water sign, however it is always Yin. It is also ruled by Earth which stabilizes many of the Water traits. Those born under its influence are methodical, dependable, ambitious in a conventional way, though they may be stubborn and rigid.
Tiger comes next, the strongest of the Wood signs, always Yang. Those born under its influence tend toward passion and recklessness, unpredictable and generous.
Rabbit follows Tiger, Yin Wood as its fixed element. Those born under its influence tend toward compassion, gentleness of spirit, though they can be moody or opportunistic.
Dragon is the second sign with two elements ruling it. It is Yang Wood, though weakest of the wood signs as well as Yang Earth. Earth speaks to the discipline and pride of Dragon while Wood speaks of its ambition and ability to be dynamic. Dragon, however, can be arrogant, militant, and brash.
Next comes Snake, Yin Fire. Snakes are thoughtful, often spiritual, sensualists, creative, though they may tend to isolate themselves or communicate poorly with others.
Horse is Yang Fire, the strongest of the Fire signs. Those under its influence are humanitarian, popular, flexible, though they may be gullible or stubborn.
Ram is ruled by Yin Fire, the weakest of the Fire signs, and Yin Earth. Those born under its influence tend to be quite, seeking righteousness, are nurturing, though they may be pessimistic or overly passive.
Next is Rooster, Yang Metal. Rosters are meticulous, conservative, decisive, though they may be over zealous and abrasive.
Dog is both Yin Metal and Yin Earth, being the weakest of the Metal signs. Dogs are honest, intelligent, loyal, though they may be cold, judgmental and worriers.
Wild Boar, or Pig, is the final sign. It is Yang Water. Those born under its sign are peaceful, trusting, sincere, though they may be naïve, over-reliant and fatalistic.
These animals are divided into trines. The first trine, consisting of Rat, Dragon, and Monkey, are power seekers, often doing best in positions of leadership, though such leadership can cause corruption, especially when they are frustrated. The second trine, Ox, Snake, and Rooster, are hardworking and have high moral standards. This, however, can lead to self-righteousness. The third trine is the Tiger, Horse, and Dog. These are communicators, lovers, though independently minded, though they will listen to someone they love. The fourth trine is Rabbit, Ram, and Wild Boar. These three are seekers of beauty and the refined. They are sensitive and can be insecure or manipulative to have their needs met.
When the four pillars are known, the inner and outer animals, it allows a better grasp on the nature of the person. When a person’s four pillars are balanced between all four trines then that person is well balanced, though this does not occur for everyone.
Please calculate your four pillars. When you have finished, please discuss the accuracy or lack thereof of your chart.
((References:
http://chineseastrology.com/?page=3000yearalmanac (for characters not born in the last century. Basically take the animal and element and find a matching year in the current century for the following link)
http://chinesefortunecalendar.com/LE.htm (Ignore the "you" "mother" "job" etc and use the above given interpretations. I haven't found these interpretations elsewhere, but this is a good way to find the four pillars since the day is the hardest to calculate)
http://chinesezodiac.com
http://iloveindia.com/astrology/chinese-astrology/history.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_zodiac
And, for those interested, the mun is a Fire Dragon, Wood Ox, Wood Ox, Metal Monkey
Also, please feel free to get Kusu's attention if you want it by putting that in the title of the comment.))