What is the zodiac?

China's zodiac animals are made up of eleven natural animals, namely, rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs, pigs and legendary dragons. Used to record the year, the order is mouse, ugly cow, silver tiger, hairy rabbit, dragon, snake, afternoon horse, sheep, monkey, chicken and sheep. It is widely used in many countries and nationalities.

Source history

introduce

The use of 12 zodiac dates began in China at least in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. A letter written by Yuwen Hu's mother is recorded in the Biography of Northern History Yuwen Hu, which says: "Your brother was born in Wuchuan Town. The first one is a mouse, the second one is a rabbit, and you are a snake." Explain the folk usage of 12 zodiac at that time. However, what is the origin of the 12 zodiac? According to Chinese ancient books, in the Central Plains of ancient China, the "chronology of branches and branches" was originally used, that is, 10 heavenly stems symbols A, B, C, D, E, Kyrgyzstan, G, Xin, Ren, Guihe 12 earthly branches symbols Zi, Ugly, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, and Mao. In the northwest of China, a few nomadic people use animals to record the years. It is recorded in the Book of the Tang Dynasty: "Tuoba Sinian takes twelve things as the standard. If the year is cloudy, it is called the year of the tiger. " In addition, the History of the Song Dynasty, The Biography of Tubo, also records that when the Tubo leaders narrate, they take events as a chronology. The so-called "twelve old things belong to the day, the year of the rabbit and the year of the horse." Later, in the communication between the Central Plains and ethnic minorities, the two ways of dating contacted each other, forming the present 12 zodiac. As Zhao Yi pointed out in the Qing Dynasty's Jade Cong Kao, "At the beginning of the custom of covering the north, there was no ugliness on the 12th, but when rats, cows, tigers and rabbits were separated in age, they were spread in China and their ears were not wasted." This explanation about the origin of 12 zodiac has been recognized by many people.

In addition, the story about the origin of 12 is as follows: Hong Xun's Miscellanies of Yanggu says that the odd-numbered earthly branches of 12 are also equipped with odd-numbered fingers or hooves of animals. If the child is in the first place, the matching mouse is 5 fingers, and if the ground branch is even, the name is even, such as cow, ugly and so on. Ye Shijie explained the origin of Cao Zhong 12 Zodiac as follows: the painter matched 12 with 12, and each Xiao had its own shortcomings, such as toothless mice, toothless cows, toothless tigers, toothless rabbits, toothless dragons, legless snakes, gutless horses, eyeless sheep and legless monkeys. "

There are other kinds of sayings. For example, the Yellow Emperor chose 12 animals to be on duty in the sky on time ... Through the competition, he selected 12 animals such as mice, cows and tigers. 12 the zodiac originated from the totem worship of some clans in primitive society; 12 Zodiac may have been introduced by Tianzhu; Or 28 stars are distributed in a week or so, and the value is 12 hours. Each star is named after an animal. Choose a common animal on duty every hour as an agent for a certain year, and so on.

Although people can't determine the exact origin of the 12 zodiac, it has been used to this day because of its popularity, convenience and interest, and has become a valuable legacy with practical value left by the ancients.

Myths and legends

There is a myth about the origin of the zodiac: the Jade Emperor wanted to choose 12 animals as representatives, and then he sent a fairy to tell the animals about it, and set a time to come to the Tiangong to run for office in the year of Taizu. The earlier he comes, the higher the line will be, and the last one will not. At that time, cats and mice were still good friends. The cat loves to sleep, but he also wants to be chosen, so he asks the mouse to call him. But the mouse forgot as soon as it turned its head. The mouse went to the old cow and said that he got up early and ran fast, so the cow could take him. The old cow agreed at that time. The dragon has no horns and the chicken has horns. The dragon told the chicken that the chicken was already very beautiful and didn't need horns, so he let the chicken lend it to him. The chicken was very happy when he heard the flattery of the dragon, so he lent his horn to the dragon and told him to pay back the money on time after the election. Long readily agreed. In the year of Mao Mao, Uzuki, when the cat was still sleeping, many animals rushed to the Heavenly Palace. The mouse sits on the cow's back. After reaching heaven, the mouse jumped up. The Jade Emperor said that the mice arrived first, which made them the first. Old steak is second; The tiger also arrived late, ranking third; The rabbit also arrived, ranking fourth; The dragon came late, but he was very big. The Jade Emperor saw him at a glance. Seeing that he was so beautiful, he ranked fifth. He also said that his son ranked sixth, but Long was disappointed because his son didn't come today. At this time, the snake behind came running and said, "He is my michel platini, and I rank sixth!" " I'm sixth! "Snakes rank sixth; Horses and sheep have arrived, too. They asked me to ask you: Brother Ma first, Brother Yang first, and they pushed them around. Seeing that they were so polite, the Jade Emperor let them rank seventh and eighth. The monkey was in his thirties, but he jumped ahead with the clouds in the sky because he could jump, ranking ninth; Then chickens, dogs and pigs were also selected. The cat didn't wake up until the end of the game, and the mouse was chased all over the world as soon as he got home. After the game, the dragon came to the seaside and saw that he had horns much more beautiful than before, so he didn't plan to return the chicken. In order to avoid the chicken, he disappeared from the world. The chicken was very angry, so he got up early every morning and shouted at the sea: Give it back quickly! Give it back! The hen shouted, give him back quickly! Give him back to me! The chicken also crows: Come back! And!

history

With regard to the origin of the zodiac, historical records show that China began to use the "chronology of branches and leaves" which combines the ten heavenly stems with the twelve earthly branches from the Shun Di era. The method of zoological chronology originated from nomadic people in the west and north of ancient China.

The Book of the Tang Dynasty records: "The Year of the Tiger is bounded by twelve events. If the year is cloudy, it is called the year of the tiger. " Zhao Yi, a famous textual research scholar in the Qing Dynasty, made a textual research in Yu Yu Congkao: "In the early days, the custom of benefiting the north was childless, ugly, yin and hairy, but when rats, cows, tigers and rabbits were divided into years, by the end of the Han Dynasty, it was said that (Khan) money lived in Wuyuan, mixed with Qi people, and spread in China, so it was not abandoned. The zodiac was first seen in the world's first collection of poems, The Book of Songs. " "The Book of Songs Xiaoya Che Gong Pian" says: "At noon on an auspicious day, my horse is short.

Zodiac tiger

See also Book of Rites, Monthly Order and Winter Order: "Unearthed cows send air conditioners. "When did the zodiac theory come into being? There is a historical cloud: it should be formed in the Han Dynasty at the latest. Its basis is the cloud in Wang Chong's On the Balance of Things in the Eastern Han Dynasty: "Yin, wood, its birds, tigers. Hey, Tuye, its birds and dogs are also. " Another cloud said, "Good afternoon, Ma Ye. Son, mouse also. Unitary, chicken also. ..... Shen, Qitian also. "* * * put forward eleven zodiac names. In addition, in the Spring and Autumn Annals of Wu Yue written by Zhao Ye in the Eastern Han Dynasty, "Wu Zaichen is a dragon. "Just added' Chen Long', and completed the zodiac. It can be seen that the twelve zodiac signs were formed in the Eastern Han Dynasty. As for the use of the Chinese zodiac, it appeared at least in the Southern and Northern Dynasties.

The Biography of Northern History Yuwen Hu records a letter written to him by Yuwen Hu's mother, which reads: "Your brother was born in Wuchuan Town, the eldest is a mouse, the second is a rabbit, and you are a snake." It can be seen that the Chinese zodiac was widely used by the people at that time to record the date of birth. However, in the mid-1970s, from 1975 to 12, thousands of bamboo slips were found in the cultural relics unearthed from Qin TombNo. 1 1 in Yunmeng, Hubei Province. Among them, Sunrise Thief clearly records the characters used to predict the appearance characteristics of thieves in the zodiac. The appearance of this miracle proves that the Chinese zodiac has been used in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Because Qin Tomb No.11 was built in the thirty years of the first emperor, that is, 2 17 BC. Some people say that long before Qin Shihuang proclaimed himself emperor, our ancestors used the zodiac to record the year, and especially pointed out that "it began in summer and spread in Shang and Zhou Dynasties." However, how to quote it remains to be further explored by historians and cultural relics scholars. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties in ancient China, not only the zodiac chronology was used, but also twelve zodiac poems written by Shen Jiong appeared: The Case of Rat Dust and The Twilight of Cattle and Sheep. Tigers roared in the empty valley, and rabbits opened their windows. The dragon shadow is far green, and the snake willow lingers near. Ma Lanfang is far away and breeds sheep in spring. The monkey chestnut shames the fragrant fruit, and the chicken anvil attracts the clear bosom. The dog is outside, and the pig's window is leisurely. This poem embeds the names of the animals of the 12 Zodiac in the first letter in order, highlighting the natural characteristics of each animal and playing the role of finishing touch.

The zodiac poems written by Hu Yan, a great scholar in the Ming Dynasty, are not only embedded in the names of the zodiac in turn, but also have a code name for each name, which is quite interesting. There is a poem that says, a mouse doesn't drink the river, and a cow and a girl can't see each other for many years. The rabbit grows longer in the middle of the month. Dragons with beads often don't sleep, and drawing snakes is very tiring. Has the old horse ever had horns, and the sheep angered the princes? Don't laugh at the Chu people's crown bathing monkeys, but wish the chickens were empty nests. Wuyang slaughtered dogs in Langzhong, and Ping Jin let Gou Haidong's head go. The first sentence "Zokor" is the water rat. The "cowgirl" in the second sentence is the legend of the folk cowherd and weaver girl. The five "jackals" are a kind of dragons, and there is a treasure under the chin, so they are called jackals. In the eight sentences, "lick the sheep" is a ram, and "touch the fan" is a corner touching the fence. "Wuyang" eleven sentences, refers to the emperor gaozu Liu Bang named Fan Kuai Wuyang Hou. He used to kill dogs for a living in Pei County, Jiangsu Province. The last sentence refers to the Prime Minister Gong of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, who once spared pigs in the East China Sea. The origin and legend of the zodiac According to the literature, there were twelve earthly branches in the era of the Yellow Emperor, which were related to the twelve constellations such as Aries, Taurus, Gemini and Cancer. The earliest twelve earthly branches and twelve constellations represented twelve different months and festivals every year. Ten characters, such as A, B, C and D, were invented in the Shang Dynasty. Later, people who studied numerology called it heavenly stem, which was used in combination with earthly branches, such as Jia Zi and E Yuan, to calculate the year, month, day and time. According to legend, it is a masterpiece of Dong Fangshuo in Han Dynasty that twelve kinds of animals are used instead of twelve earthly branches to represent the twelve-month season. In Lun Heng written by Wang Chong in the Eastern Han Dynasty, there is a clear record in Yan Dou. He mentioned the names of twelve animals. According to the zodiac, the year also began in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Zhao Yi's Textual Research on Yu Yu in Qing Dynasty also pointed out this historical fact. As for why twelve animals are chosen as symbols, it may be related to totems at the earliest. In ancient times, all tribes would choose a special fear or love.

Zodiac dragon

Animals use their patterns as symbols of this tribe.

Yang Gu Man Quan written by Hong Xun in the Song Dynasty and Seven Manuscripts written by Lang Ying in the Ming Dynasty all explain this. In addition, the Buddhist scripture "Dajijing" records the story of the 12 zodiac animals marching in turn, but there are lions without tigers. Therefore, some people think that the Chinese zodiac was introduced to China from ancient India, and the replacement of lions by tigers may be related to the fact that lions are not produced in the Central Plains. Some people think that the zodiac first appeared in writing. A day and night is twenty-four hours. Ancient astronomers divided a day and night into twelve hours. At the same time, when they watch the celestial phenomena, they determine the zodiac according to the living habits and activities of twelve animals. From 11: 00 pm to 1: 00 am the next day, it is the time for mice to move in the dead of night, and they are called "mice". From/kloc-0 to 3 am, it's ugly. Cattle are used to eating grass at night, and farmers often get up late at night to feed them, so they are called "ugly cows". From three to five in the morning, it belongs to Yin Shi. At this time, tigers lying during the day and walking at night are the fiercest. The ancients often heard tigers roaring at this time, so they were called "silver tigers". From five to seven in the morning, it's Shi Mao. At dawn, rabbits leave their nests and like to eat grass with morning dew, so they are called "hairy rabbits". Seven to nine in the morning is the time of day. It's usually foggy at this time. It is said that Longxi is flying in the clouds, which is worth the rising sun, so it is called "Chen Long". It's the fourth time from 9 am to 1 1. The fog cleared, the sun was shining, and the snake came out of the hole to feed and pretended to be a "snake". From eleven o'clock to one o'clock at noon, it is noon. In ancient times, wild horses were not tamed by humans. At noon, they run around screaming, so they are called "afternoon horses". 1: 00 to 3: 00 in the afternoon is inappropriate. Some places call it "sheep out of the slope", which means it is a good time to herd sheep, so it is called "Weiyang". From 3 pm to 5 pm, it is the application time. When the sun goes down in the west, the monkey likes to crow, so it is called "Shen Monkey". From five o'clock to seven o'clock in the afternoon, it is unitary time. When the sun goes down, the chicken spins in front of the nest, so it is called "unitary chicken". From 7 pm to 9 pm, it is a time of sadness. After a hard day's work, I bolted the door and got ready to have a rest. The dog crouched in front of the door to guard. He barks and yells at every movement, so he is called "dog". From 9: 00 pm to 1 1, it is Shihai. You can hear the sound of the pig arch in the dead of night, so it is called "sea pig". In this way, the time of day is arranged by animals: mice, ugly cows, silver tigers, rabbits, Chen Long, uncles, afternoon horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and porcupines. Later, people used this method to determine the year, and the zodiac appeared. There is a similar saying that twelve animals deserve twelve hours. It is said that heaven and earth were formed at the beginning of life without gaps, so gas can't escape and matter can't be used. When bitten by a mouse, the gas escapes and the substance can be used. Rats have the power to open celestial bodies, and they belong to rats when they are young. The mouse opens the gap between heaven and earth, the cow comes out to farm, and the clown belongs to the cow. Legend has it that people are born in Yin, and the word "Yin" means awe. In ancient times, people were most afraid of tigers, so Yin was a tiger. Shi Mao has entered the early morning, but the sun has not yet come out. It is the moon that illuminates the earth, and the only animal in the moon palace is the "Jade Rabbit", so Shi Mao is a rabbit. Legend has it that when the dragon rains, this time naturally belongs to the dragon. Snakes are good at hiding their whereabouts with grass. It is said that when they were young, they didn't swim on the road where people walked, so they didn't hurt people, so they belonged to snakes. At noon, the yang reaches the limit, and the yin is just about to produce, so the horse can't run without land. It belongs to the yin beast, so it belongs to the horse at noon. Legend has it that sheep eat untimely grass, which does not affect the regeneration of grass. If it is untimely, it will be returned to sheep. Shen means "stretch". Monkeys are best at stretching, bending and crawling, so Shen is a monkey. When the chicken begins to return to its nest, it belongs to the chicken at this time. When it is getting dark, the dog begins to "work" and look after the home. At this point, it belongs to the dog. At night, everything is silent and the world is chaotic, and pigs, like the chaos of heaven and earth, know nothing but "eat", so Shihai naturally belongs to pigs.

Zodiac horse

Fayuan Zhu Lin quoted the origin of the 12 zodiac animals in Dajijing as saying: "Outside Jambu-Di^pa, there are 12 animals in Fanghai, which are bodhisattvas. When human nature was born, when the Bodhisattva lived in the cave, it belonged to this beast to protect the interests, so Han went with him on the 12 th. " Another cloud said, "The reason for its distribution is quite detailed in" Random Records of Grain Ears ". According to it, zi, yin, Chen, noon, Shen and Xu are all yang, so rats, tigers, dragons, monkeys and dogs are all five fingers, while horses have only one hoof; Ugly, stubble, taboo, ambiguous, unitary, and the sea belong to yin, so cows, sheep, chickens, and pigs that belong to even numbers have four claws, rabbits have two claws, and snakes have two tongues. " According to this, twelve animals are arranged in odd-even order according to their toes: cattle have four toes, which are even; Strangely, the tiger has five toes; Rabbit has four toes, even number; Dragon five toe, very strange; Snakes have no toes, only two tongues, which is an even number; Strangely, a horse has only one toe (a hoof); Sheep have four toes, even number; It is strange that monkeys have five toes; Chicken has four toes, even; Strangely, dogs have five toes; Pigs have four toes, even number; Among the twelve animals, only the mouse is the most special. Its front foot has four toes, which is even. Surprisingly, there are five toes on the back foot.

Characteristics and Disadvantages of China Zodiac

Rat: attraction, social skills, influence, intelligence, frugality, charm, tension, power desire, wordiness, cunning, greed, intervention.

Cattle: integrity, innovation, purposefulness, diligence, stability, good words, stubbornness, indifference, prejudice, dullness and revenge.

Tiger: Enthusiasm, good luck, courage, charity, charm, authority, impulsiveness, boasting, irritability, indulgence, disobedience and drifting with the flow.

Rabbit: wit, caution, skill, longevity, virtue, ambition, secret, amateur, too formal, melancholy, dazzling and complicated.

Dragon: strength, enthusiasm, success, courage, health, passion, rigidity, confusion, distrust, boasting and dissatisfaction.

Snakes: intuition, wisdom, attraction, vigilance, caution, sympathy, cover-up, greed, luxury, arrogance, laziness and narcissism.

Ma: Persuasiveness, fashion, autonomy, sensitivity, popularity, achievement, selfishness, haste, arrogance, impatience, resistance and conceit.

Sheep: invention, whimsy, sensitivity, courtesy, perseverance, taste, attachment, pessimism, lack of foresight, unreality, dullness and anxiety.

Monkeys: improvisation, leadership, wit, intelligence, stability, loyalty, cunning, self-confidence, trickery, stupidity, rap and speculation.

Chicken: flexible, conservative, enthusiastic, beautiful, frank, humorous, arrogant, boastful, idolatrous and dissolute.

Dogs: persistent, responsible, brave, intelligent, respectable, moral, uneasy, sarcastic, critical, bad, social, self-righteous and smooth.

Pig: Cautious, cheerful, brave, educated, sincere, honest, credulous, materialistic, angry, hesitant and stupid.

Other constellations

In China, a multi-ethnic country, the zodiac is not a patent of the Han nationality, and many ethnic minorities use the zodiac calendar. First of all, let's take a look at the comparison table of zodiac signs of various ethnic groups.

Zodiac of all ethnic groups

Yi nationality in western Guangxi

Zodiac: dragon, phoenix, horse, ant, human, chicken, dog, pig, sparrow, cow, tiger and snake.

Ailaoshan Yi nationality

Twelve kinds of animals: tiger, rabbit, pangolin, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, chicken, dog, pig, mouse and cow.

Yi people in Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou

Twelve kinds of animals: rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and pigs.

Hainan Li nationality

Twelve kinds of animals: chickens, dogs, pigs, rats, cows, insects, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses, sheep and monkeys.

Yunnan Dai nationality

Twelve kinds of animals: rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, snakes, snakes, horses, goats, monkeys, chickens, dogs and elephants.

Guangxi Zhuang nationality

Twelve kinds of animals: rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and pigs.

the Mongol nationality

Twelve kinds of animals: tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, chicken, dog, pig, mouse and cow.

Xinjiang Uygur nationality

Twelve kinds of animals: rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, fish, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and pigs.

Kyrgyz

Twelve kinds of animals: rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, fish, snakes, horses, sheep, foxes, chickens, dogs and pigs.

As can be seen from the above table, many ethnic minorities in China, such as Mongolian, Zhuang and some Yi people, are influenced by the Han nationality, which is basically the same as that of the Han nationality. However, some ethnic groups have undergone some variations while accepting the China Zodiac culture. In the Zodiac series, Yi compatriots in Ailao Mountain occupy the dragon position with pangolins. In Xinjiang Kirgiz Zodiac, fish On Behalf Oflong and fox are used instead of monkeys. Compatriots of Li nationality in Hainan mark the date with the zodiac, starting with the chicken and ending with the monkey. Dai people living in Xishuangbanna use yellow cattle instead of yellow cattle and goats instead of sheep. The sea is not a pig, but an elephant. From the above changes, it can be seen that when choosing zodiac animals, due to different living environments and different species, all ethnic groups choose the closest animal as the zodiac animal, which brings certain differences to the zodiac culture. In addition to the variation in the selection of animals in the zodiac, ethnic minorities have also formed their own different methods of marking the year, month and day, and there have also been many folk customs related to the zodiac.

(1) Liangshan Yi zodiac

Yi people use the zodiac calendar, also called the zodiac calendar. The ancient epic Le Aoteyi and Yi people have legends about the origin of the zodiac. Zw (see Wang Changfu's Liangshan Yi People's Custom (Zw)) The Yi people living in Liangshan, Sichuan are marked by rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and pigs. The name of each animal has a period of one year, * * * 12 years. There is a convenient formula for calculating age: "One round of thirteen, two rounds of twenty-five, three rounds of thirty-seven, four rounds of forty-nine, five rounds of sixty-one, six rounds of seventy-three ..." and so on. The calendar of Liangshan Yi people also adopts the twelve zodiac signs, namely, rat month, ox month, tiger month, rabbit month, dragon month, snake month, horse month, sheep month, monkey month, chicken month, dog month and pig month. Every month, there are 30 days in the big month and 29 days in the small month. The big moon and the small moon are determined according to whether the moon was 15 or 16 last month. Xiaoyue 15 circle is 29 days, and Dayue 16 circle is 30 days. However, the first month used in different places is different. In some places, horse month is the first month, in some places, sheep month is the first month, and in some places, monkey month is the first month. The method of marking the date also adopts the Chinese zodiac, and the twelfth day is a round, which is not limited by the year and month (including leap month) and can be pushed back indefinitely and never terminated.

Yi people's zodiac calendar has also been applied to folk witchcraft. Liangshan Yi people believe that people are closely related to the five elements of wood, fire, earth, iron and water, and people can only live in harmony with them, which is a natural destiny. Man's destiny lies in the harmony among ten fates formed by the combination of the five elements with men and women, namely, Mugong, Mu Mu, Huogong, Tugong, Tiemu, Shuigong and Jellyfish. In addition, ten kinds of destinies are matched with twelve genera to form a "chronology", and the 60-year chronology is used to count people's destinies.

The Chinese zodiac of the Yi people is also used for marriage. When choosing a spouse and getting engaged, the Yi people attach great importance to the conditions such as nationality and rank. In addition, it is also important whether the birthdays of men and women coincide. The folk formula is: "Rabbits, pigs and sheep follow, cows, snakes and chickens follow, dogs are sloppy, and monkeys, dragons and rats are in harmony." Everything that conforms to the above formula is consistent, but it is not very strict. People who belong to tigers are most afraid of people who belong to chickens and sheep, fearing that "tigers eat chickens and eat sheep."

(2) wearing a zodiac sign

According to Mr. Zhang, the timing method of the Han nationality was gradually introduced into the Dai area in the Han Dynasty, and it has been used ever since (see Zhang Zhu's Dai Culture, published by Jilin Education Press 1986). ) is still an important part of the Dai calendar. The method is the same as the lunar calendar, that is, the ten-day trunk and the twelve earthly branches cooperate with each other to get sixty jiazi, and sixty numbers are used to mark the year and day, while the twelve earthly branches are used to mark the month separately. Shortly after the trunk branches were introduced into the Dai area, the Chinese zodiac of the Han nationality was introduced. The China Zodiac in Dai areas is slightly different. Dehong area is exactly the same as the Han nationality, but Xishuangbanna renamed the pig as the elephant and the dragon as the snake or jiaozi, which is slightly different. The twelve zodiac signs used by Dai people are rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, snake, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, chicken, dog and elephant.

In Xishuangbanna and other places, the zodiac signs are matched with earthly branches to record not only the year, but also the month and day. For example, in the Dai calendar, "bone" is the year, "blood" is the month, and "skin" is the day. 〕 ZW 〕, ugly year ox bone, cloudy year tiger bone; April rabbit blood, June snake blood, July horse blood; Monkey skin, chicken skin and so on. It can be seen that after being absorbed into the Dai calendar, the zodiac is more widely used in the Han calendar than in the lunar calendar.

(3) Tibetan Zodiac

Traditionally, the chronology of the Tibetan zodiac was brought by Songzan Gambu, who married Princess Wencheng in the Tang Dynasty, in the 7th century. The Tibetan zodiac is 60 years old, and it is called "Deng Hui" in Tibetan, which means wooden mouse. The Tibetan 60-year-old starts from the year of the wooden mouse, which is equivalent to the year of Jiazi of the Han nationality. The Tibetan zodiac is characterized by the combination of yin and yang and the five elements of Xiao and beast, so it is called the Year of the Rabbit with Yin Fire, the Year of the Monkey with Yang Soil and the Year of the Monkey with Yang Gold.

There is a corresponding relationship between the chronology of the zodiac in Tibetan calendar and the five elements of Yin and Yang: A and B are wood, Ding is fire, Wuji is earth, Geng Xin is gold, and Gui Ren is water. In each of the above five pairs, the former is Yang and the latter is Yin. Although heavenly stems and earthly branches is not clearly marked in Tibetan calendar, it implies the order of branches. In addition, men and women are used instead of yin and yang in the Tibetan calendar. For example, the year of Yin Taurus is also called the year of female Taurus, and the year of Yang Shuihu is also called the year of male Shuihu.

(4) Naxi Zodiac

Naxi nationality is a minority living in Yunnan province and a branch of the ancient Qiang nationality. Naxi people also use the zodiac to mark the day, which has a unique method and orientation. They divide the twelve months of the year into a big month and a small month, and each month has 30 days. The first day of each month is the Year of the Monkey, and the order of monkeys, chickens, dogs, pigs, rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses and sheep is the 29th day of each month. Entering bimonthly, the first day of bimonthly is separated by ox day, which is designated as Tiger Day.

(5) Zodiac in other countries

Vietnamese people have twelve zodiac signs, which are basically the same as those in China. Just use "cat" instead of "rabbit".

Burmese people have only eight zodiac signs, arranged in the name of the planet from Monday to Sunday. People born on Monday belong to the sun, those born on Tuesday belong to Mars, those born on Wednesday morning belong to Mercury, and those born in the afternoon belong to Gongxing, so there will be eight zodiac signs on Sunday.

Indians have twelve zodiac signs, two of which are different from China: one is a lion instead of a tiger, and the other is a canary instead of a chicken.

Egyptians have twelve zodiac signs, namely: ox, sheep, monkey, donkey, crab, snake, dog, cat, crocodile, flamingo, lion and eagle.

The Greeks have twelve zodiac signs, which are basically the same as the Egyptians, except that the Greeks have "rats" but not "cats", while the Egyptians have "cats" but not "rats".

Mexicans have twelve zodiac signs, including tigers, rabbits, dragons, monkeys, dogs, pigs and six other animals unique to Mexico.

Europeans and European countries have basically the same zodiac signs, and most of them are planetesimals. For example, in France, Aquarius, Pisces, Capricorn, Taurus, Aries, Cancer, Gemini, Lion, Virgo, Scorpio, Sagittarius and so on. The twelve zodiac signs are called the twelve constellations.