Doshas and their Remedies

What is called Dosha ?
  
Our ( Human birth )lives are controlled and governed by supernatural powers. Stars play a vital role in shaping a life.

Meaning of doshas in Vedic astrology is the condition that has flaws, errors, un-favourable or not good situations. The word doshas is taken from the Sanskrit language. Doshas occur because of the un-favourable position of the planets in the twelve houses of your birth chart.

Now to identify the position of the planets your date and time of birth is essential. Based on these information the birth chart is prepared which can tell the position of planet when you were born.

Vedic astrology describes about the sins done by us in previous birth or this birth. These sins will cause problems like health problems, Marriage problems, Child problems etc..

Wealth, prosperity and health are all achieved by either pleasing supernatural powers or invoking their blessings. If we have blessings, our life becomes a joy to live. In many cases, our life becomes a basket of miseries and we face many problems. Problems come due to doshas and we must remove those doshas through the remedies of occult science and astrology. If doshas are removed timely and properly, your life becomes a journey of joy.

Maximum percentage of doshas are caused by the planet mars. It is responsible for about 100% of the available doshas. Apart from this there are other planets like Sun, Saturn and Rahu that lead to doshas in vedic astrology. Saturn is responsible for 75% of the doshas, Sun for 50% and Rahu for 25% of the vedic astrology doshas.

If the malefic planets like Saturn, Rahu, and Mars etc are positioned in certain specific houses then they affect your good part of the horoscope which ultimately creates Vedic astrological doshas.

Human Birth

What it is ?

This is a question, which, unfortunately, is most often never asked, never answered, and seldom understood. In fact, this question has now become a deadly defensive in the discourse of rationalists targeting astrology and astrologers. The question of what actually constitutes birth has always perplexed the common person.

Does ‘birth’ mean the time when the head of the child is first seen? Or ‘birth’ takes places when the child is fully out from her mother’s womb? Or is it that ‘birth’ takes place when the umbilical chord is severed? This question of what actually constitutes ‘birth’ has long remained answered in our ancient Indian scriptures, epics and astrological texts of high repute. Only recently, medical science has accepted the fact, after sufficient research proved that ‘still-born’ babies are not technically ‘born’, that ‘birth’ happens when the child cries out after taking in the first breath.

The process of birth in humans normally begins at the end of the gestation period with the release of several hormones that stimulate the mother's uterus to contract. Contractions signal the first stage of labor. In order for the fetus to leave the uterus and enter the birth canal (comprised of the cervix and vagina), it must pass all the way through the cervix, the opening of the uterus.

During the first stage of labor, which can last 12 hours or more, the contractions of the uterus move the fetus toward the cervix, causing the cervix to dilate (widen). With dilation, the cervix opens to accommodate the passage of the baby's head. The amniotic sac also usually ruptures, releasing amniotic fluid that streams out of the vagina. (The amniotic sac is a membrane filled with fluid in which the fetus floats while developing in the uterus.)

During the second stage of labor, lasting anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours, the mother uses her abdominal muscles to help push the fetus through and out of the birth canal. In a normal delivery, the baby's head appears first (called crowning) and the rest of the body follows. The umbilical cord that connects the fetus to the placenta is tied and cut. The place on the baby's abdomen where the umbilical cord is attached is the navel, or belly button. The baby is now separated from the mother and must breathe air through its own lungs.

In the third stage of labor, usually lasting from a few minutes to a half hour, contractions cause the placenta and fetal membranes to separate from the wall of the uterus and be expelled from the vagina. The placenta and fetal membranes together are called the afterbirth.
 
Way back in 1901, Dr.William Benham in the United States wrote in his book ‘The Laws of Scientific Hand-Reading’ that life begins after a child takes in her first breath and cries out.We must not forget that Dr. Benham was trained in medicine.
 
Unfortunately, common person is not aware about the true event that constitutes birth. Even in American states, where the husband is allowed to remain present in the labor room of his wife/partner to witness child-birth, the recorded birth time may still be faulty for the simple reason that the husband-father does not know when the ‘birth’ took place.
 
The situation is worst in countries like India, where we depend on third parties like doctors or nurses to “kindly note down the time of ‘birth’ for family reasons.”
 
Thus, there is absolutely no guarantee that the so-called ‘accurate’ birth time given by clients to their astrologers can safely be relied upon.
 
As a result, it is increasingly becoming an imperative to the astrologers to rectify the given birth time before they embark upon their astrological diagnosis and prognosis. However, there are numerous techniques of birth time rectification, which are not only cumbersome in their approach and procedure, but also lack consistency in results. In the following sections, I would elaborate a rectification technique that I personally found to generate high degree of accuracy in predicting.
 
I would also elaborate on a novel mean to ascertain whether this ‘rectified’ (new) birth time shows any connection with the origin of the native.

Birth Time Rectification

In order to read and predict a horoscope, the astrologer must, erect the chart first. That requires an exact time of birth (preferably accurate to within a few minutes), the place of birth (city and country) and the birth date (date, month, year).

However, even though the native or her relative seldom misinforms the date of birth and the place of birth to the astrologer, the accuracy of the reported birth time has long been a major area of concern for the scientific minded astrologers.

Many people don’t have a clue about their actual time of birth because birth times are not always given much importance in the Western world. Eastern cultures tend to place much more importance on accurate birth times, since the practice of using astrologers is traditionally part of their culture. So often one of the first things an astrologer will ask a client is what is the source of the birth time? Is it taken from a birth certificate or other hospital records? Does the time come from your mother’s memory (or the testimony of another close relative that was present at the birth)? Was the time rectified (worked out retrospectively) by another astrologer or diviner? Since astrology is the science of time, accurate birth times are important if the reading itself is to be accurate.

This data will allow the astrologer to cast an accurate map of the planetary patterns that were current when you were born. From there, the astrologer will be able to interpret the meaning of the various patterns, placements and conditions of the planets, what they mean, and how they affect you.

In situations where the birth time is either unknown or only approximate, rectification will be necessary. This involves taking known events and dates from the client’s past and working forward to come up with a time of birth. This can be time consuming and the astrologer may need to charge a bit extra for the time and effort involved.

The accuracy of any astrological prediction is fundamentally dependent and strongly based upon three major inputs:
a) Accurate birth details of the native,
b) Sound knowledge and experience of the astrologer about the science of astrology and
c) The correct casting of the horoscope.

Of these three critical inputs, the correct casting of the horoscope is an essential sine qua non for which the accuracy of the birth details is of utmost importance.
 
This is because, as students of astrology, we are amply aware that wrong birth time would invariably lead to a wrong degree rising on the East as the Lagna (Ascendant) with wrong planetary degrees at birth. The problem is augmented more so due to the wrong longitude of Moon at birth (emanating from a wrong birth time) resulting in a wrong balance of Dasha at birth and the subsequent periods.

Since all the prediction is based on the cascades of Vimsottari Dasha periods of the nine planets, wrong time of birth will lead to prognostications of dubious quality for no fault of the astrologer or the science of astrology.

Therefore, what we require is an effective technique of birth time rectification, which would be robust in its application and yield consistent results. However, a mere rectification through a robust logic is not enough.

The rectified birth time should show immediately and clearly that the new (rectified) birth time is reflective of the native’s birth origin and life events. In this article, we will discuss a modern and well researched approach of rectifying birth time based on the principles of Krishnamurthy Paddhati (K.P.).
 
In addition to this, I would provide a novel means to ascertain whether this ‘rectified’ birth time truly reflects the origin of the native.

K.P.System of Astrology

The deviation from Vedic concept begins when equal houses are not considered and instead the Placidus system of house division has been adopted where each cusp ie. the begining of a house has some unique measure in degrees - minutes unlike the Vedic concept where the cusp starts at 0 and ends at 30 degrees.

The Cusp of the House is considered to be a very important factor over the life time. The span of a house could be less than 30 degrees and hence the Sign associated with the Cusp will be limited to the span of the house and at times a sign may be completely missing or 2 houses may have the same signs. The House or the Cusp Lords will be as per the signs calculated by the Placidus system. This is one of the deviation from the Vedic concept.

We thus have a total of 27 divisions in 360 degrees each segment being 13d-20m. This is only a rough measure. Imagine that you have some length of a stick which you would like to use as a measuring tool. You may sub-divide this stick by any means into finite sections, may be equal or unequal depending on your end use. The time when you decide to use this as a tool you discover that some objects are falling between the markings, you then realise the need to sub-divide to come to a finer measure.

This conclusion was also arrived at by the propounder of KP System and he sub-divided the span of each star into smaller portions called as a Sub-division or a Sub. This Sub when further divided into finer sections is called as a Sub-Sub which will be refered to as SSL, The next will be SS4 followed by SS5, SS6.

We are all aware that a measuring tool would also need some Units of measure then its sub-units followed by a sub-sub part of it. The unit of measure adopted by KP is the Vimshottari Mahadasha Paddhati again an accepted Vedic concept based on the 7 Planets and 2 Nodes, each planet being allocated a fixed number of years. The span of each Star is divided into 9 parts in accordance with Vimshottari Mahadasha Paddhati as the primary Sub division, again he has sub-divided each primary Sub division or 1/9th part into 9 parts which are called as Sub-Sub. This is a very important contributing factor for the accuracy of predictions as the resolution or the least count has now increased.

A transiting planet is a variable, next is the Sign-Lord followed by Star-Lord. This transiting planet will now occupy one of the 9 Sub-parts in the Star, this sub-part is ruled by one of the 9 planets hence the term Sub-Lord was introduced followed by the Sub-Sub-Lord. The planet transiting a house is now a source of an event, Star-Lord, Sub-Lord, Sub-Sub-Lord and the Sign-Lord will decide the course of events indicated by the House.

This is only a preliminary explanation for one planet whereas there are other such 8 entities which will contribute and offer variations to the event as projected by the house. We have earlier discussed that the Placidus system of house division results in each cusp having some unique measure in degrees - minutes.

These 12 Cusp's are given the same consideration as given to the planets explained in the above paragraph. Thus each Cusp has a Star-Lord, Sub-Lord and the Cusp-Lord which is the Sign-Lord himself. These stay fixed throughout the lifetime in a Natal Chart. Refinement to Vedic Astrology as you must have now realised is due to the introduction of additional variables for the Cusps & Planets.

The nature / type of event for each house depends on the Lords of star, sub & sign on the cusp.

Planet is a source of event having a star, sub & sign lords. A sub-sub is considered at times to improve the precision.

The relationship between all the above variables and the additional parameters which are partly derived from the Vedic concept and partly from the Western concepts are called as the Rules of KP or Krishnamurti Paddhati itself.

KP has recommended the use of Ayanamsa which varies for each year. This Ayanamsa is closer to Chitrapaksh. Chitrapaksh or Lahiri Ayanamsa differs with KP Ayanamsa by 6M. The yearly rate of change assumed in KP is 50.2388475 Seconds.

Every planet in its Dasha, Bhukti and the house it occupies does not give results for occupied house but gives results according to the house where the Star-Lord is placed. Planet 'A' offers the result of the house occupied by the Lord of Star 'B', wherein this planet 'A' is deposited. Results being Good or Bad is decided by the Lord of Dasha and Bhukti being placed in the Sub portion of which Planet.

Rahu - Ketu ie Moons North Node ( MNN ) - South Node ( MSN ) the shadow planets are very important and they do not have a specific Sign assigned to them. The Signs associated with the Planets are not important as the Nakshatra Swami ( Star-Lord ) is more important. Any planet when it is placed in a Nakshatra has more power than the Lord of Nakshatra.

In a natal horoscope if any planet is Retrograde then it does no harm and is to be considered as in normal motion. In Prashna Kundali a retrograde planet gives results only in direct motion, retrograde planet is considered powerless.

KP assumes that no Planet is Good or Bad by itself. In KP all Western Style Aspects ( Graha -Yog ) are accepted along with all Indian Style Drishti-Yog.

Working Rules of KP System For each Planet consider in which Star it is placed. The Star-Lord of this planet own's a house or houses and will indicate the event matters of those houses owned by the Star-Lord.

The Planet will occupy a Sub portion, the Sub-Lord of the Planet also own's a house or houses. The nature of house decides if the event indicated by the Star-Lord is good or Bad. Planet considered to be a Benefic by Lordship offers the results signified by it, through the Planet deposited in its Stars. Planet is the source, star-lord shows the nature of results and Sub-Lord decides whether the event is favourable or not.

Nadi Astrology

Among the various characteristics of man, one is "his obsession for probing things unknown. From ancient times, man is obsessed and eager for seeking more and more knowledge. He has succeeded too. It is an unending quest.

India's contribution to this search of the unknown is very important. India has a tradition that has always kept alive its link with the unknown. India is not just a nation, a country, or a piece of land. India is much more than that - something symbolic, poetic, and talent-invisible! The reason is that India is the only country in the world, which has concentrated on and devoted its entire talent and intelligence in the search of the truth. For thousands of years millions of people have been making efforts towards that single objective. For that, they shunned riches, adopted poverty, risked ill-health etc. But they never gave up their search for the truth. The divine, blissful vibrations of all those sages are always present in the atmosphere here. They include saints, mahatmas, Rishis, Munis, Gurus, Scholars, great poets, painters, and talented intellectuals who were the medium of Divinity. They have obliged mankind by opening up various avenues to divine knowledge. But to grasp that divine knowledge, it is necessary that one attain a certain high standard of moral behavior, asceticism and knowledge.

Of the many aspirations that humans have, one is to peep into one's future. A number of sages (Rishis-munis) have dwelt on that in a number of ways. One of its outcomes is the science of Naadi Astrology.

Needless to say that these Rishis and munis were experts in the science of Yoga, which describes the different states of one's being. If we grasp them, some light can be thrown on how the Yogis get or may be getting the knowledge of ascertaining and recording the future of every human being. That is just a small part of that vast store of cosmic knowledge.

Can you believe that someone in India is storing records of your entire life cycle ie. Your past, present and future, hard to believe but Yes, this is called Naadi Astrology. Nadi is an ancient astrology, which has been composed by great Maharishis (sages) of India in the past using their spiritual powers. The sages recorded these predictions for every individual for the betterment of humanity and to safeguard dharma (righteousness). These sages predicted the characteristics, family history, as well as the careers of innumerable individuals contain in several thousand volumes, each containing around a hundred predictions.

These Naadi prediction recordings, being the repository of wisdom of the Great Saint was one of the well preserved books for thousands of years by the many generations of rulers, until an auction during the British rule, when it finally became the proud possession of an influential family of Valluvar community at Tamilnadu.

The Rishis (sages), who dictated those Naadi's, were gifted with such a remarkable foresight that they accurately foretold the entire future of all mankind. Many scholars in different parts of India have in their safekeeping several Granthas. Initially, Naadi Astrology predictions was thought to be just writing on Astrology, but soon it became evident that the scriptures contained some unique predictions of specific natives, who will come seeking them, at a particular stage of their lifetime, as foretold by the Great Saint in these predictions.

Nadi Jothidam is the name of an ‘exact science’ by which all details about a person can be told by consulting palm-leaf inscriptions attributed to Agastya Muni, a very famous ancient sage from the South. There is, supposedly, one palm-leaf inscription for every human on this earth, past present and future! Taking into account population explosion, the whole place should be chock full of palm leaves, but miraculously this is not so. This could mean two things- either the ancients had the foresight to know as to who would visit the place and hence only the bio-data of those visitors would be available,or the leaves are preserved in some format wherein terabytes of data could be compressed and stored. The prints would be taken after the candidate arrives on the spot!

Either way it goes to show the remarkable wisdom of our ancients! Anyway, after one arrives at the place their thumb impression is taken along with their date of birth. Then, the palm leaf pertaining to the individual is searched for. This is the source of the name Nadi- search. There are a number of write-ups praising its accuracy and there are blogs testifying to the same. There have been numerous accounts stating that the practitioners of Nadi have an accurate method of telling all about the past, present and future of any individual. All they need for identifying the right leaf is the thumb-print of the person and the date of birth.

On obtaining the aspirant thumb impression, it is handed over by the Naadi reader at the library, as it the scientific fact the whirls and loops of every individual is unique and it is next to impossible to be replicated. The thumb lines are classified into 108 types. The writings in palm leaf bundles are indexed & classified in the library according to thumb impressions to facilitate easy searching of the bundles. For each thumb impression there are likely to be around 5 to 6 bundles; each such bundle in turn containing 50 to 100 leaves. One particular leaf might be that of the individual, but the process of finding out that specific leaf is laborious and time consuming. The reader has to read out one statement from the first leaf and it confirms to the individual, he will read out the second statement to verify its veracity. If this statement does not hold true for the individual, the reader passes on the next leaf, discarding the previous one. It will therefore will be evident that the reader will have to go on searching leaf after leaf, bundle after bundle to trace out the one leaf in which all the particulars concerning the individual correctly appear. To expedite this process, the aspirant seeker has to extend his full cooperation and support because this process may take weeks or months.

These results in the tracing out of not only the index leaf but also the first leaf of the individual also called General Kandam. The General Kandam will furnish brief predictions corresponding to the 12 houses of the individual's birth chart. It detailed predictions of any particular aspect of one's life are required; they can be listened from the remaining 11 leaves of that individual's Horoscope.

For the predictions to come true, Rishi Agasthiyar or Siva Vakiya Maha Rishi insists that the individual be free of any previous birth sins. He therefore suggests and specifies the performance of certain Parihars remedial procedures to wipe off the maximum extent any such balance of sins. If these remedies are performed with full involvement and without any deviation, he assures the happening of the events predicted by him. These remedial procedures are to be found in separate chapters called Shanthi & Dheeksha.

The taken in locating the right index and subsequently the predictions, can sometimes span across month. After few attempts, searching these index volumes if the native does not find his or her index page it may be concluded that either the index is lost or he/she is destined to find it at later stage.

Indian or Vedic astrology

Jyotisha from India is the most time-tested and oldest system of astrology in the world. The Sanskrit word "Jyotisha" (ja-yo-teesh) means "science of light." In Western countries, it is called Vedic astrology, which refers to Indian or Hindu astrology. The origin of Jyotisha is from the Vedas, the scriptures of Hindus. Jyotisha is the science of understanding the subtle influences that come to us from the greater universe.

Vedic astrology reflects the understanding and experience of ancient spiritual teachers regarding the facts of life. Hindu philosophers, sages, went into great intricacies to explain God. They explain that world is evolving under the benevolent influence of a Divine Being. The Supreme Intelligence takes care of every individual and puts him under those circumstances which are best suited for his growth. This gives faith and confidence to the individual. Vedic astrology believes in the spiritual nature of man, and guides him in realizing his true self. It helps him realize that each soul is learning his lessons, which he can only learn under those circumstances. Thus, he comes to know that astrological prediction comes true because the soul is guided by Higher Beings, planets whose Judgment is never err.

Now, you may wonder how these planets and stars can influence events on Earth. Obviously the Sun is the basis of all life. According to the Vedas, it also projects a force of intelligence and spirituality. The Moon is important to all creatures and governs the fertility cycles of animals. In the Vedic system Moon rules the emotional nature. It is well known that the planets with their large magnetic fields and gravitational interaction with the Earth, affect it physically. It is not illogical either that they might have subtler influences.

Without the Law of Karma to explain the pattern of our lives, starting from birth, astrology makes little sense. Philosophically, Vedic astrology reflects the law of Karma, which includes both the aspect of fate and that of free will. Fate in Karma means that our present condition is the result of our past actions from previous lives. The outer events of our present life are ruled by past Karma and can be difficult to change. Free will in Karma means that we shape our future by our present actions.

Vedic astrology does not leave us helpless before the onslaughts of fate. It provides ways of dealing with our Karma. Vedic astrology holds that spiritual practices, like Yoga, prayer and meditation neutralize the effects of a bad astrological chart. Vedic astrology helps us to realize our true self, and helps us to know the divinity of the soul. It provides a clarification of your Karma. Vedic astrology alleviates what is perhaps the greatest fear for human beings uncertainty and anxiety about the future. It helps us navigate confidently through the confusing waves of Karma, aware of our outer destiny and our inner timeless self as well.

Vedic astrology uses the sidereal (according to the stars) positions of planets against the backdrop of the relatively fixed stars, as astronomers do. Vedic astrology calculates as the stars appear in the night sky. This is the most important difference between Vedic and tropical Western astrology. Tropical Western astrologers based their zodiac on the Equinox instead.

The arithmetic difference between planetary positions calculated sidereally and tropically is a value for what is called the procession of the equinoxes, or the Ayanaunsh. Today, this difference is 24 degrees. This 24 degrees causes the entire astrological chart to move back about 24 degrees from the Western to the Vedic chart. The positions of most planets go back to the previous sign. This naturally results in a very different chart. It can be confusing for those used to their Western chart, especially with the Sun sign, which is a likely to change in Vedic system.

Vedic and Western astrology share a common heritage of 12 zodiac signs (Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces), and seven planets (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn), which they describe in a similar manner. There being 12 Zodiac Signs and 12 Houses is an accepted and undisputed assumption all over the World.

In the Vedic context 27 Stars or Nakshatra's or Constellations are also being considered to be assigned in association with the 12 Signs and Houses. There are numerous methods of dividing 360 degrees into 12 parts or houses to which the 12 Signs & 27 Stars are assigned. Each Star thus gets 13d-20m out of the 360 degrees. In any house or Sign a part of the Star spills over into the next house or Sign as per the calculations involved.

In simple terms each house is allocated 2-1/4 stars. Thus when a Planet is said to be placed in a house it shall be placed in one of the Stars as per its current location in degrees. This is still a part of the Vedic concept. The variable factor in Vedic concept was only the Planet visiting a House and moving into the 3 Stars allocated to the house. The House or Sign Lord and the 3 Star-Lords were fixed due to equal house concepts.
 
Vedic astrology also uses the Moon's North and South calculated nodes prominently. They are called Rahu and Ketu. The outer planets Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are not part of classical Vedic astrology. But Vedic and Western astrology differ in several ways. The Vedic system is more complicated, with many different types of charts and calculations to consider.

In Jyotisha, the positions of the planets and other significant points are calculated with respect to a person's, or event's, birth data. Based on this information your Vedic astrologer calculates about 100 charts and tables. It is the job of the Vedic astrologer to study them simultaneously and derive useful information based on the rules of interpretation created by ancient sages.

Both systems use the same twelve houses and interpret them similarly (though with variations). The Vedic system makes the cusp the same beginning of the house, while Western astrology makes the cusp the middle of the house. This causes half the planetary positions in the Vedic chart to move forward to the next house relative to the Western chart.

Vedic astrology uses an 27-fold division of the zodiac called Nakshatra (constellations). Personality traits are read more through the birth star (Nakshatra of the Moon) than by the Sun sign. Nakshatra positions of planets are examined in the birth chart as well. The use of Nakshatra is very important in Vedic astrology, much more than with zodiac signs.

Vedic astrology uses a system of planetary periods called Dasha, Major Period of various planets. Most important is Vimshottari Dasha, a 120-year-long cycle of planetary positions based upon the birth Nakshatra, stars. With the help of this Dasha, Major Period system a Vedic astrologer can predict future events very accurately. However, Western astrology does not have the Dasha system, with predictive capabilities as Vedic astrology does.

There are five main uses of Vedic astrology:
1. Kama - family and relationship issues like marriage compatibility, timing of children and domestic happiness; 
2. Artha - help with finances, business and investments; 
3. Dharma - determination of career and vocation; 
4. Moksha - guidance in the spiritual life and cosmic and self-knowledge; and 
5. Arogya - physical and mental health.

In simple words, Kundli or horoscope is an astrological chart used by astrology practitioners to gain insight into the personality and life of an individual. Kundli of a person shows the exact position of various planetary bodies at the time of his/her birth. Astrologers consider janam kundali as a very important document which helps them understand and explain the various events in the life of an individual.

The term kundli is hindi and is used by north Indian people and in south India 'Jathakam' is the term which refers to horoscope.

Chinese Astrology

The Chinese zodiac is a mathematical cycle of 12 animals. Each animal represents one year. Chinese Zodiac signs are subdivided into inner animals -- representing months of the year, and secret animals -- representing each hour of the day. This enables the 12 basic animal signs to be interpreted in 8,640 possible combinations! 

The well-trodden (no pun intended) story of the Chinese zodiac is cute, but a bit trite. The tale usually begins with the Jade Emperor, or Buddha, depending on the teller, who summoned all the animals of the universe for a race, or a banquet, depending on the teller. The 12 animals of the zodiac all headed to the palace. The order that they came in determined the order of the zodiac. 

The Shengxiao, called the Chinese Zodiac colloquially, is a traditional Chinese system that relates the birth year of a person to an animal and its characteristics. The word 'Sheng' means 'year of birth' and the word 'Xiao' means 'resemblance'. Based on the lunar calendar, this system is a twelve-year cycle as opposed to the monthly cycle of western zodiac signs, although both have a twelve-part time cycle. This twelve-year cycle is a sub-cycle of the larger 60-year cycle, which is formed by the amalgamation of each one of these twelve earthly branches with ten heavenly stems.

The animals in the Chinese zodiac are believed to be created in order to count years. The time division in ancient China (during 200 A.D.) was mostly related to the number twelve: one ji = 12 years, one year has 12 months, and one day has 12 time periods called shi chen. Each of these time divisions is also named in the same manner as the twelve years.

People are associated with the animal for the year that they are born. The 12 animals in order are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. Zodiac animals can also represent hours of the day and directions. Although it is called the Chinese zodiac, this system is also used in several other countries in Asia such as Korea, Japan, and Vietnam.

The twelve animal zodiacs are the base of Chinese astrology. Here we have listed each zodiac and its unique characteristics. The birth year correspondence for the people born in January, or February should be double checked as the Chinese new year changes each year, usually falling between the end of January and the start of February. So, for example, if your birthday falls on January 13, 1900, and the Chinese new year that year is on January 29, your zodiac is Pig and not Rat, even though the table shows the people born in 1900 to be "Rat" people.

The foundation of Chinese Astrology is from Yin Yang and Five Elements, which are Metal, Water, Wood, Fire and Earth. All Chinese Horoscope signs, Rat, Cow, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Chicken, Dog and Pig, 12 Chinese Zodiac signs can be converted into Five Elements. Our free Chinese Five Element Astrology site provides you the advice on Baby Gender Prediction, Baby Lucky Names, Dating and Marriage Match, Lucky House and Bedroom Selections, and your Lucky Years using the combinations of Five Elements. We hope you can find the Chinese Astrology secrets of you and your family's members and wish your family live luckier, wealthier, healthier, happier and longer.

Actual History of the Zodiac

The actual history behind the Chinese zodiac is a much less fantastical and much harder to find. It’s known from pottery artifacts that the animals of the zodiac were popular in the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), but they were also seen much earlier from artifacts from the Warring States Period (475-221 B.C.), a period of disunity in ancient Chinese history, as differing factions fought for control.

It’s been written that the animals of the zodiac were brought to China via the Silk Road, the same central Asian trade route that brought the Buddhist belief from India to China. But some scholars argue that the belief predates Buddhism and has origins in early Chinese astronomy that used the planet Jupiter as a constant, as its orbit around the earth took place every 12 years. Still others have argued that the use of animals in astrology began with nomadic tribes in ancient China who developed a calendar based on the animals they used to hunt and gather.

The scholar Christopher Cullen as written that beyond satisfying the spiritual needs of an agrarian society, the use of astronomy and astrology was also an imperative of the emperor, who had the responsibility for ensuring harmony of everything under heaven. To rule well and with prestige, one needed to be accurate in astronomical matters, Cullen wrote. Perhaps that is why the Chinese calendar, including the zodiac, became so entrenched in Chinese culture. In fact, reforming the calendar system was viewed as appropriate if political change was eminent.

Personality

Chinese people believe that each zodiac animal has a personality, and people born in the same year may have similar personalities.[1] During the journey, however, the animals got involved in everything from high jinx to heroism. For example the rat, who won the race, only did so through guile and trickery: it jumped onto the back of the ox and won by a nose. The snake, apparently also a little sneaky, hid on the hoof of a horse in order to cross a river. When they got to the other side, it scared the horse and beat it in the contest. The dragon however, proved to be honorable and altruistic. By all accounts the dragon would have won the race as it could fly, but it had stopped to help villagers caught in a flooding river cross safely, or it stopped to assist the rabbit in crossing the river, or it stopped to help create rain for a drought-ridden farmland, depending on the teller.

Rat or Mouse
years: (1984, 1996, 2008, 2020 add 12 years for each subsequent year)
Honest, freedom, hard working, charming. Can be selfish, ruthless, controlling, scheming.

Ox
years: 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021
Smart, calm, patient, inspiring, modest. Can be stubborn, narrow-minded, demanding, rigid.

Tiger or Lion
years: 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022
Aggressive, rebellious, strong, daring, generous. Can be restless, clumsy, hot-temper, impatient.

Rabbit or Hare
years: 1987, 1999, 2011
Kind, sensitive, elegant, artistic, cautious. Can be moody, shy, lazy, opportunistic.

Dragon
years: 1988, 2000, 2012
Strong, proud, direct, eccentric, show off. Can be arrogant, violent, brash, controlling.

Snake
years: 1989, 2001, 2013
Wise, graceful, calm, mystic, shrewd. Can be a loner, bad communicator, possessive, distrustful.

Horse
years: 1990, 2002, 2014
Cheerful, popular, talkative, witty, earthly. Can be fickle, rude, gullible, stubborn.

Goat or sheep
years: 1991, 2003, 2015
Righteous, honest, shy, artistic, understanding. Can be moody, a worrier, a complainer, and or too soft.

Monkey
years: 1992, 2004, 2016
Witty, curious, flexible, sociable, smart. Can be vain, clumsy, trickster, snobbish.

Rooster
years: 1993, 2005, 2017
Neat, organized, alert, scientific, responsible. Can be critical, egotistical, rough, opinionated.

Dog or puppy
years: 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018
Honest, smart, loyal, sense of justice, affectionate. Can be lazy, cold, stubborn, quarrelsome.

Pig
years: 1995, 2007, 2019
Simple, hard working, strong, peace-loving, trusting. Can be naive, gullible, materialistic, clingy.
 
The Hours
 
In the old days, China and Japan used a 12 hour system to tell the time of day and night (unlike the 24 hour system used today). The 12 hour system divides the day of 24 hours into 12 hours, each of which has a sign of the zodiac:

11:00 PM to 1:00 AM is the hour of the Rat.
1:00 AM to 3:00 AM is the hour of the Ox.
3:00 AM to 5:00 AM is the hour of the Tiger.
5:00 AM to 7:00 AM is the hour of the Rabbit.
7:00 AM to 9:00 AM is the hour of the Dragon.
9:00 AM to 11:00 AM is the hour of the Snake.
11:00 AM to 1:00 PM is the hour of the Horse.
1:00 PM to 3:00 PM is the hour of the Goat.
3:00 PM to 5:00 PM is the hour of the Monkey.
5:00 PM to 7:00 PM is the hour of the Rooster.
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM is the hour of the Dog.
9:00 PM to 11:00 PM is the hour of the Pig.
 
Directions
 
The Chinese and Japanese would call the different directions (North, Northeast, Northwest, East, South, Southeast, Southwest, West), based on the names of the zodiac animals.

1. Rat (Water, North)
2. Ox (Earth, North-Northeast)
3. Tiger (Wood, East-Northeast)
4. Rabbit (Wood, East)
5. Dragon (Earth, East-Southeast)
6. Snake (Fire, South-Southeast)
7. Horse (Fire, South)
8. Goat (Earth, South-Southwest)
9. Monkey (Metal, West-Southwest)
10. Rooster (Metal, West)
11. Dog (Earth, West-Northwest)
12. Pig (Water, North-Northwest)

Zodiac Fits With Confucianism

The belief that everyone and every animal has a role to play in society translates well with Confucian beliefs in a hierarchical society. Just as Confucian beliefs persist in Asia today alongside more modern social views, so does the use of the zodiac.

It’s been written by Paul Yip, Joseph Lee, and Y.B. Cheung that births in Hong Kong regularly increased, bucking declining trends, to coincide with the birth of a child in a dragon year. Temporary fertility rate increases were seen in the dragon years of 1988 and 2000, they wrote. This is a relatively modern phenomenon as the same increase wasn’t seen in 1976, another dragon year.

The Chinese zodiac also serves the practical purpose of figuring out a person’s age without having to ask directly and risk offending someone.