San Francisco State University International Week 2005 OUTLINE The Chinese Zodiac: Personalities, Compatibility, and Divination Chris Wen-Chao Li* Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, San Francisco State University 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, California 94132-4163, U.S.A. 1. Popular literature: 12 animals of the zodiac Personality traits 2. Esoteric literature: Compatibility theory New Year traditions Auspicious dates 3. Historical origins Early Chinese texts Non-Chinese traditions * Tel.: 001 415 338 1034; E-mail: wenchao@sfsu.edu 12 ANIMALS (plus sequence) PERSONALITIES Your own year of birth Year of birth of 1-2 close friends or family members Lunar vs solar calendar 1. Rat (mouse; hamster; guinea pig; squirrel etc) 2. Ox (cow; buffalo; bison; bull) Jan.31,1900 to Feb.19,1901 Feb.18,1912 to Feb.06,1913 Feb.05,1924 to Jan.24,1925 Jan.24,1936 to Feb.10,1937 Feb.10,1948 to Feb.14,1949 Jan.28,1960 to Feb.14,1961 Jan.16,1972 to Feb.02,1973 Feb.02,1984 to Feb.19,1985 Very observant of people & surroundings Energetic and socially active Opportunistic; after immediate profit Superficial pursuit of wealth and status Feb.19,1901 to Feb.07,1902 Feb.06,1913 to Jan.25,1914 Jan.25,1925 to Feb.12,1926 Feb.11,1937 to Jan.30,1938 Jan.29,1949 to Feb.16,1950 Feb.15,1961 to Feb.04,1962 Feb.03,1973 to Jan.22,1974 Feb.20,1985 to Feb.08,1986 Patient and hardworking; serious Doesn t rush; one step at a time Down to earth; family man Slow and stubborn Lacking in humor or romantic 1
3. Tiger 4. Rabbit (hare) Feb.08,1902 to Jan.28,1903 Jan.26,1914 to Feb.13,1915 Feb.13,1926 to Feb.01,1927 Jan.31,1938 to Feb.18,1939 Feb.17,1950 to Feb.05,1951 Feb.05,1962 to Jan.24,1963 Jan.23,1974 to Feb.10,1975 Jan.09,1986 to Jan.28,1987 Strong sense of justice Fearless; not easily intimidated Proud; big ego; strong sense of dignity Likes to order people around Lazy but impulsive Jan.29,1903 to Feb.15,1904 Feb.14,1915 to Feb.16,1916 Feb.02,1927 to Jan.22,1928 Feb.19,1939 to Feb.07,1940 Feb.06,1951 to Jan.26,1952 Jan.25,1963 to Feb.12,1964 Feb.11,1975 to Jan.30,1976 Jan.29,1987 to Feb.16,1988 Gentle, elegant, polite admired by all Good with details; careful; cautious Wants to get along with everyone Sometimes reads too much into things Tendency to get jealous 5. Dragon 6. Snake (serpent) Feb.16,1904 to Feb.03,1905 Feb.03,1916 to Jan.22,1917 Jan.23,1928 to Feb.09,1929 Feb.08,1940 to Jan.26,1941 Jan.27,1952 to Feb.13,1953 Feb.13,1964 to Feb.01,1965 Jan.31,1976 to Feb.17,1977 Feb.17,1988 to Feb.05,1989 Born to succeed; symbol of success Grand ideals, great sense of honor The ultimate perfectionist Self-indulgent; doesn t listen to people Feb.04,1905 to Jan.24,1906 Jan.23,1917 to Feb.10,1918 Feb.10,1929 to Jan.29,1930 Jan.27,1941 to Feb.14,1942 Feb.14,1953 to Feb.02,1954 Feb.02,1965 to Jan.20,1966 Feb.18,1977 to Feb.06,1978 Feb.06,1989 to Jan.26,1990 Smart and intelligent Pursuer of fame and fortune Attractive because people find your intelligence mysterious Down side: intelligence can be viewed as cunning or sly 7. Horse (mare; stallion; pony) 8. Sheep (lamb; ram; goat) Jan.25,1906 to Feb.12,1907 Feb.11,1918 to Jan.31,1919 Jan.30,1930 to Feb.16,1931 Jan.15,1942 to Feb.04 1943 Feb.03,1954 to Jan.23,1955 Jan.21,1966 to Feb.08,1967 Feb.07,1978 to Jan.27,1979 Jan.27,1990 to Feb.14,1991 Energetic and vibrant personality Highly motivated and efficient worker Values freedom and independence Generous with money Can be impatient; gives up easily Feb.13,1907 to Feb.01,1908 Feb.01,1919 to Feb.19,1920 Feb.17,1931 to Feb.05,1932 Jan.05,1943 to Jan.24,1944 Jan.24,1955 to Feb.11,1956 Feb.09,1967 to Jan.28,1968 Jan.28,1979 to Feb.15,1980 Feb.15,1991 to Feb.03,1992 Gentle and peace-loving Patient and attention to detail Has artistic and spiritual gifts Tendency to be pessimistic Not good at dealing with pressure 2
9. Monkey (ape) 10. Chicken (rooster; cock; hen; fowl) Feb.02,1908 to Jan.21,1909 Feb.20,1920 to Feb.07,1921 Feb.06,1932 to Jan.25,1933 Jan.25,1944 to Feb.12,1945 Feb.12,1956 to Jan.30,1957 Jan.30,1968 to Feb.16,1969 Feb.16,1980 to Feb.04,1981 Feb.04,1992 to Jan.22,1993 Clever, good at solving problems Good talker, good sense of humor Shine at social functions; popular Tend to say what s on your mind Not very disciplined; flaky; unreliable Jan.22,1909 to Feb.09,1910 Feb.08,1921 to Jan.27,1922 Jan.26,1933 to Feb.13,1934 Feb.13,1945 to Feb.01,1946 Jan.31,1957 to Feb.17,1958 Feb.17,1969 to Feb.05,1970 Feb.05,1981 to Jan.24,1982 Jan.23,1993 to Feb.09,1994 Does things by the book, by the rules Highly efficient worker Pushes other people to work as hard As a result, can be unpopular in groups Can be pompous; likes to show off 11. Dog 12. Pig (boar; hog) Feb.10,1910 to Jan.29,1911 Jan.28,1922 to Feb.13,1923 Feb.14,1934 to Feb.03,1935 Feb.02,1946 to Jan.21,1947 Feb.18,1958 to Feb.07,1959 Feb.06,1970 to Jan.26,1971 Jan.25,1982 to Feb.12,1983 Feb.10,1994 to Jan.30,1995 Extremely faithful and reliable But only to those they like or respect Tends to get emotional; hot-tempered Likes to nag Sometimes antisocial Jan.30,1911 to Feb.17,1912 Feb.16,1923 to Feb.04,1924 Feb.04,1935 to Jan.23,1936 Jan.22,1947 to Feb.09,1948 Feb.08,1959 to Jan.27,1960 Jan.27,1971 to Jan.15,1972 Feb.13,1983 to Feb.01,1984 Jan.31,1995 to Feb.18,1996 Optimistic personality; loved by all Efficient worker; always finishes job Great at handling finances Not very flexible; stubborn Too nice; easily taken advantage of COMPATIBILITY THEORY COMPATIBLE: 6 latitudinals Compatible signs 六合 (the six latitudinal pairs) 三合 (triangular relations) Incompatible signs 相穿 (the six longitudinal pairs) 相沖相刑 (the perpendiculars and diagonals) 3
COMPATIBLE: triangular (1) COMPATIBLE: triangular (2) COMPATIBLE: triangular (3) COMPATIBLE: triangular (4) INCOMPATIBLE: longitudinals INCOMPATIBLE: longitudinals 羊鼠一旦休 白馬怕青牛 蛇虎如刀措 龍兔淚交流 金雞鬥玉犬 豬猴不到頭 Goat and rat will have a spat White horse fears the big blue ox Snake and tiger--blades in a grinder Dragon and hare will bathe in tears Jade dog battles the golden hen Monkey and hog will be at odds 4
INCOMPATIBLE: perpendiculars (1) INCOMPATIBLE: perpendiculars (2) INCOMPATIBLE: perpendiculars (3) REVIEW Compatible signs 六合 (the six latitudinal pairs) 三合 (triangular relations) Incompatible signs 相穿 (the six longitudinal pairs) 相刑相刻 (the perpendiculars and diagonals) NEW YEAR TRADITIONS EXAMPLE: 2006 (year of the dog) 犯太歲 At odds with the Year God (longitudinal pair) 犯太歲 (chicken) At odds with the Year God (longitudinal pair) 沖太歲 Directly opposite the Year God (diagonally opposite) 安太歲 Honor the Year God 沖太歲 (dragon) Directly opposite the Year God (diagonally opposite) 安太歲 Honor the Year God 坐太歲 Sitting aside the Year God (same sign) 坐太歲 (dog) Sitting aside the Year God (same sign) 5
CHARM: Acquire a charm for honoring the Year God from a Chinese temple. WHERE: ALTAR: Post the charm beneath the altar, or stick it on the wall at a height level with that of your other Buddhist deities KITCHEN: You can also choose to place the charm in the kitchen area and worship the Year God together with the Kitchen God WHEN: 1st choice: Perform ritual on Chinese New Years Day, or 2nd choice: Before the 15th day of the first lunar month, or 3rd choice: On the first or fifteenth day of any lunar month, or 4th choice: Select any auspicious date from Chinese almanac. FOOD (1): As offerings, prepare 9 vegetarian dishes 3 plates of fruit 3 cups of tea 3 bowls of red and white dough balls in soup 1 portion of cooked vermicelli In addition, prepare 7 unused cups 1 teapot full of tea. INVITATION: The next step can be performed in your yard or on your balcony, or if you choose, inside of your house but with all of the windows open. Hold three sticks of lit incense in your hands, and in your mind invite the Year God to come to your home to avert evil and offer protection for family and property. After you make this wish, place the incense sticks on your door, on your window, or in the incense burner on your altar. POST-RITUAL: After the ritual is completed, the food that was prepared for the Year God can be shared with friends and family. When eating, consider this food to be especially auspicious. 6
ALMANAC (top) SEEING OFF: The 24th day of the twelfth lunar month is the day to see the Year God off. When seeing him off, remove the Year God charm and burn it in fire. As you do this, visualize that the Year God is returning to his palace in heaven. Make sure that the offerings you present when seeing the Year God off are different from the food you offered when inviting him to your home. (Source: Yun Lin Temple 2006 Calendar/Agenda [Thomas Lin Yun; Crystal Chu; translation by Wen-Chao Li]) ALMANAC (bottom) ORIGINS: Early texts ORIGINS: Similar traditions ORIGINS: Variant traditions 7
FURTHER READING: Zodiac FURTHER READING: Almanacs ENGLISH Carus, Paul. 1974. Chinese Astrology. LaSalle, IL: Open Court Publishing Company. Sun, Ruth Q. 1974. The Asian Animal Zodiac. Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle. Walters, Derek. 2005. The Complete Guide to Chinese Astrology: The Most Comprehensive Study of the Subject Ever Published in the English Language. London: Watkins Publishing. CHINESE 郭沫若 1931 釋干支 見 甲股文字研究 上海 : 大東書局 馬盛家 1994 雲林禪機 : 實用篇 台北 : 華視文化 趙伯陶 2000 十二生肖面面觀 濟南 : 齊魯書社 ENGLISH Palmer, Martin (with Mak Hin Chung, Kwok Man Ho and Angela Smith). 1986. T'ung Shu, the Ancient Chinese Almanac. Boston : Shambhala. Quelch, Gary. 2000. T ung Shu Almanac 2001. Slough, UK: Foulsham. Smith, Richard Joseph. 1992. Chinese Almanacs. Hong Kong/New York: Oxford University Press. Sung, Rocky. 2002. Rocky Sung s Guide to Chinese Astrology and Feng Shui 2003. London: Thorsons Publishers. Sung, Edgar. 2000. Practical Use of the Chinese Almanac: A Guide. San Francisco: MJE Publishing. Sung, Edgar. 2005. Classic Chinese Almanac 2006: Year of the Fire Dog. San Francisco: MJE Publishing. Windridge, Charles. 1999. Tong Sing: The "Know Everything Book": Based on the Ancient Chinese Almanac. New York: Three Rivers Press. CHINESE 蔡策 2000 揭開黃曆的秘密 台北 : 古老文化 郭泰 2000 怎樣看懂黃曆 台北 : 遠流出版事業股份有限公司 劉還月 2000 台灣黃曆完全解密 台北 : 常民文化 San Francisco State University International Week 2005 THANK YOU Chris Wen-Chao Li* Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, San Francisco State University 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, California 94132-4163, U.S.A. * Tel.: 001 415 338 1034; E-mail: wenchao@sfsu.edu 8