Bill Moore's Chinese Zodiac
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HAPPY NEW YEAR
IN THE YEAR OF THE SHEEP
4701!



WHAT IS THE CHINESE YING-YANG?
The Chinese Ying-Yang (Ying=female; Yang=male) is the great duality of traditional Chinese social life and philosophy. The major dualities are:
Ying=female; Yang=male.
Ying=AM; Yang=PM.
Ying=leisure; Yang=work.
Ying=common people; Yang=elite.
Ying=negative; Yang=positive.
Ying=shadow; Yang=brightness.
Ying=behind; Yang=in-front-of.
  • IS MALE-CHAUVINISM BUILT INTO TRADITIONAL CHINESE CONCEPTS?
    If you doubt it, see above.
  • WHAT IS THE BABYLONIAN ZODIAC?
    The Babylonian (Mesopotamian, Iraqi) Zodiac is a system of twelve concepts, which divide the annual calendar, and which prophesy the future. Concepts in the Babylonian Zodiac are currently named after Greek gods, but probably have a much earlier heritage in ancient history and thought. The Babylonian number system was based upon twelve (duodecimal), in contrast to the familiar Western ten-based (decimal) numbering system. It has been alleged by some that hexadactyly, a condition of six fingers per hand and a relatively common congenital anomaly today, was the norm rather than the exception in ancient Babylon. Alas, no population of ancient Babylonian skeletons remain from which to test this theory. It has been alleged by others that the Babylonians recognized the superior properties of twelve-based over ten-based numbers, that is, divisibility by two, three, four, and six).
  • WHAT ARE THE DATES OF THE BABYLONIAN ZODIAC?
          1. Aries; Ram; Widder; March 21-April 20.
          2. Taurus; Bull; Stier; April 21-May 20.
          3. Gemini; Twins; Zwilling; May 21-June 21.
          4. Cancer; Crab; Krebs; June 22-July 22.
          5. Leo; Lion; Loewe; July 23-August 23.
          6. Virgo; Girl; Jungfrau; August 24-September 23.
          7. Libra; Balance; Waage; September 24-October 23.
          8. Scorpio; Scorpion; Skorpion; October 24-November 21.
          9. Sagittarius; Archer; Schuetze; November 22-December 21.
          10. Capricorn; Goathorn; Steinbock; December 22-January 19.
          11. Aquarius; Water-bearer; Wassermann; January 20-February 18.
          12. Pisces; Fish; Fisch; February 19-March 20.
  • WHAT IS THE CHINESE ZODIAC?
    The Chinese Zodiac, like the Babylonian Zodiac, is a system of twelve concepts, which govern social life. Concepts in the Chinese Zodiac govern the entire Chinese writing system, which originated over six thousand years ago, and has been in continuous use up to the present day.
  • WHAT ARE THE CREATURES OF THE CHINESE ZODIAC?
          1. rat; nezumi ネズミ
          2. cow; ushi ウシ 丑
          3. tiger; tora トラ
          4. rabbit; usagi ウサギ
          5. dragon; tatsu タツ
          6. snake; mi
          7. horse; uma ウマ
          8. sheep; hitsuji ヒツジ
          9. monkey; saru サル
          10. bird; tori トリ
          11. dog; inu イヌ
          12. boar; inoshishi イノシシ
  • WHAT ARE THE YEARS OF THE CHINESE ZODIAC?
          1. rat; 1960; 1972; 1984; 1996; 2008.
          2. cow; 1961; 1973; 1985; 1997; 2009.
          3. tiger; 1962; 1974; 1986; 1998; 2010.
          4. rabbit; 1963; 1975; 1987; 1999; 2011.
          5. dragon; 1964; 1976; 1988; 2000; 2012.
          6. snake; 1965; 1977; 1989; 2001; 2013.
          7. horse; 1966; 1978; 1990; 2002; 2014.
          8. sheep; 1967; 1979; 1991; 2003; 2015.
          9. monkey; 1968; 1980; 1992; 2004; 2016.
          10. bird; 1969; 1981; 1993; 2005; 2017.
          11. dog; 1970; 1982; 1994; 2006; 2018.
          12. boar; 1971; 1983; 1995; 2007; 2019.
  • WHAT ARE THE EARLIER YEARS OF THE CHINESE ZODIAC?
          1. rat; 1900; 1912; 1924; 1936; 1948.
          2. cow; 1901; 1913; 1925; 1937; 1949.
          3. tiger; 1902; 1914; 1926; 1938; 1950.
          4. rabbit; 1903; 1915; 1927; 1939; 1951.
          5. dragon; 1904; 1916; 1928; 1940; 1952.
          6. snake; 1905; 1917; 1929; 1941; 1953.
          7. horse; 1906; 1918; 1930; 1942; 1954.
          8. sheep; 1907; 1919; 1931; 1943; 1955.
          9. monkey; 1908; 1920; 1932; 1944; 1956.
          10. bird; 1909; 1921; 1933; 1945; 1957.
          11. dog; 1910; 1922; 1934; 1946; 1958.
          12. boar; 1911; 1923; 1935; 1947; 1959.
  • HOW DOES ONE CALCULATE THE CHINESE TRADITIONAL YEAR?
    Add 2698 to the Christian year (A.D. or C.E.). For example, 2002 + 2698 = 4700. The traditional Chinese new year occurs at variable dates, usually in February, since traditional Chinese years are based upon the lunar calendar.
  • WHAT ARE THE HOURS OF THE CHINESE ZODIAC?
          1. rat; 11 PM - 1 AM. Beginning of life. Child. Only the RAT is active at this hour.
          2. cow; 1-3 AM. Farmer checks the COW's rope, to keep it from pulling loose, if the cow is frightened by the tiger.
          3. tiger; 3-5 AM. TIGER is the first animal prowling for prey. People who rise this early have a growling mood.
          4. rabbit; 5-7 AM. At sunrise, farmers rush to market with their vegetables, as fast as the RABBIT.
          5. dragon; 7-9 AM. The daily market appears, then disappears, like the DRAGON.
          6. snake; 9-11 AM. Farmers return from market. At home, their profits go into a money-pot that is guarded by a SNAKE.
          7. horse; 11 AM - 1 PM. People gather for the noon meal, while the farmer's HORSE gets a rest.
          8. sheep; 1-3 PM. Government bureaucrats stop work and gather like SHEEP for the afternoon meal.
          9. monkey; 3-5 PM. After food and wine, the government bureaucrats tell jokes and MONKEY around.
          10. bird; 5-7 PM. As the glowing sun sets in the western sky, government bureaucrats go home, just like the BIRD flying back to its nest.
          11. dog; 7-9 PM. Once everyone is home, a guard DOG is set loose in the housing compound, to protect the houses.
          12. boar; 9-11 PM. Time for conceiving babies. Men behave like a wild BOAR.
  • REFERENCES.
          1. De Roo, James R. 2001 Kanji. Structure Analysis. Association Method. Fully Cross Referenced. Fast Visual Index. 1980: Bonjinsha, Tokyo.
       Bonjinsha Distribution Center. JAC Building.
       5-5-35 Konan, Minato-ku, TOKYO 108 JAPAN.
       011=Tel Intl Access; 81=Japan; 3=Tokyo.
       Voice: 011-81-3-472-2240.
       Fax: 011-81-3-472-2129.
          2. Japan Travel Bureau, Inc. Illustrated Japanese Characters. 1991: Japan: Japan Travel Bureau, Inc.
          3. Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes. 1940: New York: Meridian, published by the Penguin Group.
          For information, address Little, Brown & Company, 34 Beacon Street, Boston MA 02106.
          Edith Hamilton was born in 1867 in Dresden, Germany, and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She earned B.A. and M.A. degrees from Bryn Mawr, and began a career as a world-renowned scholar, teacher, and writer. In 1957, King Paul of Greece awarded her the Golden Cross of the Order of Benefaction, and made her an honorary citizen of Athens. Edith Hamilton died in 1963.
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    Last Updated by G. William Moore, MD, PhD, February 1, 2003.