Five Tigers - 5 Elements Tigers 壬寅，甲寅，丙寅，戊寅，庚寅

Five Tigers - 5 Elements Tigers 壬寅，甲寅，丙寅，戊寅，庚寅

The popularity of the annual Zodiac sign predictions reaches its height during the Chinese Lunar New Year period. They are simplified readings to cater to the masses as the whole population is grouped into twelve Zodiac signs; which means that hundreds of millions share the same reading per sign. Too general to be precise, and so it is infotainment. In modern days, the annual Zodiac sign readings serve a largely commercial purpose as many capitalist business entities use the predictions as marketing and promotional events for news and publicity. Temples and religious organisations use them as annual fund raisers. Historically these readings were done by scholars working at temple fairs as a side income while waiting to take the Imperial Examinations in the ancient cities of China. 

The annual Zodiac signs predictions are simplified to twelve, which is already quite lengthy to write and talk about. To bridge the gap to the actual 60 Jia Zi pairs of the sexagenary cycle, it is good to learn about the additional Five Elements. 

Simply put, take 12 (Zodiac signs) multiply by 5 (elements) and you get 60 pairs.

For example, the year of 2022 is not just the year of the Tiger, but the year of the Water Tiger. The next year of the Tiger in 2034 will be the year of the Wood Tiger, in 2046 will be the year of the Fire Tiger, in 2058 the year of the Earth Tiger and in 2070 the year of the Metal Tiger. It loops back to Water Tiger again in 2082, and so on and so forth. 

In the illustration above designed by myself,  I use shapes and colours to help you see the elements:

Water drop shape = Water element

Tall rectangle shape = Wood element

Triangle shape = Fire element

Square shape = Earth element

Circle shape = Metal element

For colours, yellow, green and red are easy to apply to design but Water's black and Metal's white are replaced with blue and grey so that they don't disappear into white and black screen backgrounds on the computer and mobile devices, and on paper.  

Also, the 地支 / Di Zi for Tiger is 寅, pronounced yín, second sound intonation and not the same as 阴 yīn, first sound, light or rising intonation.  

And so, baby steps, learn a little more than just your annual Zodiac sign. The actual Ba Zi birth chart readings are based on the Five Elements Theory, and personalised to the day and hour of birth. So before you start lamenting about how the past year was bad for you because you have self read an annual horoscope booklet based only on your annual sign, please get yourself a Ba Zi birth reading. Sometimes it is just your own mind making the classic "cognitive bias" used by marketers. (Google search "marketing bias" or "cognitive bias" to read up about it).

Four Tigers - 18 February 2022

During the Chinese Lunar New Year festivities period, web sites, news agencies and social media are filled with articles on the luck of the 12 zodiac signs according to the year of birth. There is a ready readership/viewership keen to know what the lunar new year is like, and what it holds for them. 

The 12 signs of the zodiac in Chinese metaphysics studies are called Di Zi 地支. The 12 Chinese characters used are 子丑寅卯辰巳午未申酉戌亥, and assigned the 12 animal names 鼠牛虎兔龙蛇马羊猴鸡狗猪. They are then rotated in the above sequence on an annual basis. 

子丑寅卯辰巳午未申酉戌亥

Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu, Hai

鼠牛虎兔龙蛇马羊猴鸡狗猪

Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig

In the Chinese luni-solar calendar, these 12 Di Zi's are also used to denote the 12 months, 365 days and the 12 si-chen (2 hour block) in a day. And so, on any given day and time, there are actually up to 4 Di Zi (zodiac animals) in the year, month, day and si-chen (2 hour). 

While the annual zodiac sign readings are based on the year only, a Ba Zi birth chart considers all "4 Pillars" of the year, month, day and si-chen, with the emphasis moved to the day. The Day Master translated term in English is from Chinese terms 本命，命主，日元，or 元神 , and is referring to the Tian Gan and not the Di Zi, like in the year zodiac readings. The methodology used in the analysis is based on the 5 Elements Theory.  

18 February 2022.

This date has caught the attention of many who practice Ba Zi birth chart analysis and Date Selections for important event. 

There are 4 "Tigers" as all 4 Di Zi's for year, month, day and si-chen are 寅 Yín. At the same time, all 4 Tian Gans are 壬，Rèn. 

In the illustration above I have also included the "10 Spirits" - that are derived by comparing the relationship between the Day Master and the other elements in the chart. The "10 Spirits" are heavily used in Ba Zi birth chart appointments to help clients see the influences and nuances of the Ba Zi birth chart. This is very different from the annual zodiac infotainment analysis that uses the Zodiac animal sign's nature to describe, for example Monkeys are mischevious, Tigers are ferocious, Dragons are majestic, Rabbits are gentle, etc etc. 

The Day Master sign is Ren or Yang Water and you have to apply Yang Water features to person born on this date according to their sex, Male or Female. In general, the wiser and more experienced Ba Zi Masters tend to avoid big sweeping statements; everything has a reference, and depends on the application to circumstances. Each Ba Zi birth chart reading has to be detailed and tailored to each different client. It is not a "one size fits all" type of infotainment reading. 

Have you got your Ba Zi birth chart yet? 

 

15 February 2022 Yuan Xiao Jie - 15th day of the Chinese Lunar New Year Spring Festival

From preparations for the Chinese Lunar New Year, to the final 15th day of the festival celebrations, at least 3 to 4 weeks of a Chinese person's calendar is dedicated to this festive event. Although the public holidays declared is only 2 days here in Singapore, there are many other customs and traditional practices that take place before and during this festival. It is an important event in the Chinese calendar. 

The meaning of the word 元宵 comes from 元 as in the first (month) and 宵(night). The timing of this event moves to the evening as it is the 15th day of the first lunar month, and that means it is a full moon night. And being practical and appropriate for the night time darkness, lanterns are used to light up the night. In English, this day is also called the Lantern Festival. One of the traditional games is finding answers to riddles attached to the many lanterns. 

This is our very own Chinese "Full Moon Party". 

It also marks the end of the festivities for the Lunar New Year. 

12 Sexagenary Pairs (Tian Gan and Di Zi) of the 12 months of the year of Ren Yin Water Tiger 2022

(one month of the year of Ren Yin goes into January 2023)

Besides assigning a pair of the 60 Sexagenary Pairs (Jia Zi) to the year, a pair is also assigned to every month of the solar part of the Chinese luni-solar calendar. 

For example, in the year of Ren Yin 2022, all 12 solar months are assigned a Tian Gan Di Zi 天干地支 pair, beginning with Ren Yin 壬寅 (coincidentally the same as for the year this year) for the month beginning with Li Chun (Spring Begins). The following month starting with the solar term Jing Ze (Awakening of Insects) is assigned Gui Mao 癸卯, and so forth, as illustrated in the graphics above drawn up by myself. 

The same 60 pairs of Tian Gan Di Zi are rotated also for the day and for the hour, resulting in 4 Pillars of Year, Month, Day and hour. This is why Ba Zi is also called 4 Pillars. 

As you can tell by now, in a Ba Zi chart, there are actually 4 possibilities for the 12 Di Zi (used for the annual zodiac signs). There is a possibility of up to 4 different zodiac signs appearing in the year, month, day and hour pillars. The annual zodiac signs luck articles that you can read around the Chinese Lunar New Year festive period is based on the concept of Tai Sui (the year) and the related stars. A Ba Zi chart reading is different in that all 4 pillars are included in the analysis, and the technique is heavily based on the 5 Elements Theory, with the reference point shifted to the Day Master element instead of the Year. 

If you like to book your Ba Zi birth chart reading now, it is priced at $150 per hour. It includes strengths and weakness analysis, versus the 10-year trigger influence pillar and the annual year pillar trigger influence. 

壬寅年二十四节气 24 Solar Terms of 2022, Year of Water Tiger / Ren Yin

(C) 2022 Chua Chee Hiang

Here is a chart graphic drawn up by me on the laptop that contains the 24 Solar Terms time and date for the year of Ren Yin Water Tiger 2022. 

You can see that the solar part of the Chinese luni-solar calendar has similar month timing to the Gregorian international calendar, but the start and end dates and times per month differ by 4 to 8 days. Also, note that the month changeover timings are not at 00:00 hours. 

The Chinese 24 Solar Terms were inscribed in 2016 (11.COM) on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

Link: https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/the-twenty-four-solar-terms-knowledge-in-china-of-time-and-practices-developed-through-observation-of-the-suns-annual-motion-00647

Li Chun 2022 - "Spring Begins" 立春 Solar Term for the Year of Ren Yin 壬寅

Did you know that the Chinese calendar system is made up of 2 parts; a lunar calendar and a solar calendar? It is called a luni-solar calendar. 

Many are familiar with the lunar calendar part of the Chinese luni-solar calendar that tracks the shape of the moon in the night sky, with special days for Chinese festivals and events on the 1st and 15th day of the lunar month. Traditionally the older generation of Chinese people celebrate their Chinese lunar birthdays.

The solar calendar part of the Chinese luni-solar calendar corresponds to the orbit of planet earth around the sun, and is systematically divided into 24 parts, called Solar Terms. The first of the Solar Terms is Spring Begins or Li Chun and it falls on 4 February 2022. Although the lunar new year of the Tiger had already started on the 1st of February, the start of the Water Tiger year in the solar calendar part of the luni-solar calender is actually on 4 February 2022. 

For the Ba Zi birth chart, we use the solar calendar part of the Chinese luni-solar calendar, with Spring Begins or Li Chun as the changeover for the year. 

Happy Chinese Lunar New Year 1 Feb 2022

Wish all readers a happy Chinese Lunar New Year 2022

龙腾虎跃

Dragon Soar Tiger Leap

五福临门

5 Good Fortunes arrive at your door

万事如意

May all go according to your wishes

虎年大吉

Big auspicious Tiger year

好运连连

Good luck non stop