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Chinese Zodiac

HAPPY YEAR OF THE RAT! (February 7, 2008 through January 25, 2009)

The Chinese lunar calendar is the longest chronological calendar in history, dating from 2637 B.C. when the first cycle of the zodiac was introduced.  One complete cycle takes sixty years and is made up of five simple cycles of twelve years each.  The 78th cycle started in February 1984 and will end in February 2044.  Twelve animals were assigned to each of the twelve years when, according to legend, the Lord Buddha summoned all the animals to come to him before he departed from Earth.  Only twelve animals came to bid him farewell.  As a reward, he named a year after each one in the order that it arrived.  First came the Rat, then the Ox, the Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.  Thus, we have the twelve animal signs of today.  The Chinese believe that the animal ruling the year in which you were born exercises a profound influence on your life.  "This is the animal that hides in your heart."

THE LUNAR YEAR

The lunar year is divided into twelve months of twenty-nine days.  Every two-and-a-half years, an intercalary month is added to adjust the calendar.  The addition of this month every third year produces the Lunar Leap Year.  For easy reference, the beginning of each lunar month is the date of the New Moon marked on the Western calendar.

THE FIVE ELEMENTS

During the complete sixty-year cycle, each of the animal signs is combined with the five main elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water.  The element component of your lunar sign is believed to exercise an influence of its own on your life.

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