Chinese astrology is believed to have been passed down from the Sumerian and Babylonian cultures to the Chinese almost 5000 years ago. Chinese astrology can be used to map our internal landscape, i.e., our personal chemistry to see how we react in our own environment over any given period of time. We will look in particular at how Chinese Astrology evolved, to what is widely believed to be the most accurate form of horoscope in the world.

Chinese astrology was originally known as Five House or Five Planet Chinese astrology and based on the five major planets in our Solar system, namely Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars. Later the Sun and Moon were added to make seven "stars" and provided the foundation for what is known as the Twenty Eight Lunar Mansions.

This method provided an extremely accurate horoscope for society as a whole, but was unsuitable for individuals, so two new Chinese astrology systems were developed; one based on the Solar calendar called Ba Zi or Four Pillars of Destiny, the other based on the Lunar calendar; Zi Wei Dou Shu.

The Four Pillars of Destiny Chinese astrology
Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches are partnered to form pillars. Multiplying the five elements with the twelve earthly branches produces a cycle of sixty pillars, known as the Sexagesimal cycle. In about 104 BC this Sexagesimal cycle was also used to count the months and Xu Zi Ping (Song Dynasty 960-1279 AD), counted the days and hours to produce an extremely accurate Chinese horoscope for individuals. Hence the Four Pillars of Destiny were born.

Four Pillars of Destiny Chinese astrology charts have a Heavenly Stem and an Earthly Branch for the year, month, day and hour you were born. Xu Zi Ping found by using the day pillar as the focal point of the chart, he could produce much more accurate horoscopes. This information allows a Feng Shui consultant to understand your personal energy and compare it with the energy of your home or business and by using subtle cures they can create an ambience that is perfect for you, your family or staff.

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This Chinese astrology chart is for Galileo born 15/2/1564. As you can see, he has a huge amount of fire in his chart which must have inspired his discoveries. Why not see how this compares to your Chinese astrology chart with a free Chinese horoscope or order a professional Chinese astrology reading below.

Zi Wei Dou Shu Chinese astrology

Our next Chinese astrology system  is Zi Wei Dou Shu astrology or "Purple Emperor" and is based on the Lunar calendar. It has twelve palaces representing different aspects of life and up to 144 stars. Our Zi Wei Dou Shu page shows John Lennon's Chinese astrology chart.