Is the zodiac calculated by the lunar calendar or the solar calendar?

China's zodiac signs belong to our country, of course, according to the lunar calendar.

The zodiac is also called the zodiac. In China's calendar, there are twelve kinds of animals on duty in turn, so in our China year, rats, cows, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and pigs are used in the calendar.

The zodiac began in the sixth century BC, and was originally applied to a set of earthly numbers, and later became the year number of the year. However, in the Zodiac, why does the mouse that everyone shouts and beats take the lead? There is a folklore here: the Jade Emperor called all the animals of the Zodiac to hold a ranking meeting, and the eight immortals, such as pigs, rats, cows, horses and sheep, crossed the ocean and showed their magical powers. Everyone hurried to the meeting together. Niu Ge is simple and honest, and the result of leaving early takes the lead. Originally, the champion belonged to him, but at the critical moment, the clever mouse quietly jumped on the cow's back and stood on the cow's head. As a result, Niu Ge had to give way to Brother Mouse, ranking second. Of course, this is just a legend. In recent years, another more reasonable and credible statement has become popular. As we all know, animals have odd and even toes. Whether biped or quadruped, the number of toes is consistent, or the left and right are consistent, but rats are the exception. It has four toes on its front foot and five toes on its back foot. Therefore, when arranging the zodiac, they are arranged according to odd and even toes. Because mouse feet are odd and even, they cannot be arranged. Next, cows with four toes are even, five-toed tiger feet, odd, four-toed free feet, even, five-toed dragon feet, odd, and snakes. Because there are no toes, they are actually even, one-toed horse feet, odd, four-toed sheep feet, even, five-toed monkey feet, odd, four-toed chicken feet, even and dog feet. This idea of dividing by the odd-even number of toes finally got justice for Brother Mouse, washed away the injustice of "occupying a seat" for many years, and made the mouse hold its head high and show its elegant demeanor again in the new year.

Another chapter of this story tells why cats and mice become enemies. At that time, cats and mice were good friends. Before going to the mass meeting, they slept together and agreed that whoever woke up first would wake up. I'm afraid that the mouse will get up early the next day and go to the meeting quietly, ignoring the cat. By the time the cat woke up and rushed to Congress, the Buddha had allocated the number for twelve years. Since then, the cat and the mouse have formed a deep hatred.

Of course, legends belong to legends. The zodiac originated from the ancient people who matched twelve kinds of animals with twelve earthly branches, namely, rats, ugly cows, silver tigers, hairy rabbits, dragons, snakes, afternoon horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and porcupines. Dating animals can be traced back to the period of the Yellow Emperor. For example, "The Origin of Everything" says: "The Yellow Emperor made ugly for twelve days, named after the moon, belonging to twelve beasts." 1997, archaeologists excavated a batch of bamboo slips with the Book of Heaven in the Qin TombNo. Yunmeng Shuihudi 1 1, which recorded the content that Qin first chose auspicious days or auspicious days for action, including the details of the twelve zodiac signs, but it was somewhat different from today's zodiac signs.

According to the inscription of Tao Zhai Juan Si Xin Mang Jia Liang, Mr. Guo Moruo thinks that the zodiac first appeared in the Eastern Han Dynasty, but it was not created by Wang Chong or the Eastern Han Dynasty. Wang Chong's On the Balance of Things: "Yin, wood, its birds and tigers; Hey, Tuye, its birds and dogs are also; Fourth, fire is also, and its birds and snakes are also. " "Speaking Poison": "Chen Weilong turned into a snake", and "Four Taboos" notes: "The bird and mouse of the son are the beasts and rabbits of the mother", which shows that the zodiac has become popular at the end of the Warring States Period. "Tang Shu": "Tuoba Sinian, with twelve things as the standard. If the year is cloudy, it is called the year of the tiger. " Yu Yu Congkao by Zhao Yi in Qing Dynasty: "At the beginning of the custom of covering the north, it doesn't matter whether the ugly son is ugly or not, but it spread to China every year, and it didn't waste its ears."

When it comes to the origin of the zodiac, we should start with heavenly stems and earthly branches and Twenty-eight Nights. As early as 6,000 years ago, the ancients in China discovered that the sun and the moon meet twelve times a year, and each time they meet in a different place. Therefore, the ancients divided the orbit of the sun into twelve equal parts, namely the zodiac, representing the twelve months of the year, and combined the two words "Zi Ugly Yin Mao" and "Zi Ugly Yin Mao" for chronology. This is the origin of "heavenly stems and earthly branches". Heavenly stems and earthly branches was used in many places in ancient times, and people used the combination of heavenly stems and earthly branches to calculate the year. Because the least common multiple of the ten-day stem and the twelve earthly branches is 60, heavenly stems and earthly branches counts the year every 60 years, which is called 60 flowers. Earthly branches were also used by the ancients to calculate orientation. The child is due north, the base is due east, the afternoon is due south, and the unitary is due west. When the virtual sun mouse moves to the north, that is, the offspring, the other 1 1 stars are the ugly bull Taurus, the shadowy tail fire tiger, the nest house rabbit, the morning Kang Jinlong, the four winged fire snakes, the afternoon sun horse, the absent ghost golden sheep and the tapir. Here, let's talk about the naming methods of 28 hotels. The names of 28 hotels are all composed of three words. The first word is the name of the hostel, the second word is the five elements that name the sun, the moon and each phase, and the last word is the symbol of animals. Now, let's look back. When the imaginary sun mouse ran to its offspring, the symbolic animal of twelve nights was in the direction of twelve branches. We will find that they happen to be twelve animals in the zodiac. Coupled with the location of their earthly branches, there are what we often call "ugly cows, rats, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, afternoon horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs and pigs"

Why do the zodiac need twelve? "Zhou Li Chun Guan von Shi Xiang" contains: "Ten palms are two years old, ten palms are February, ten palms are two days old, ten palms are two days old, ten palms are two days old, and ten palms are twenty-eight stars. Their narrative is distinguished to meet the heaven." The division of time is progressive, with twelve years, twelve months a year and twelve o'clock a day. "Mandarin Yu Jin Si" contains: "The Yellow Emperor has twenty-five sons, and fourteen sons have surnames, which are twelve surnames." Even the sons of heaven's wives and concubines have the saying of "twelve women", "The Book of the Later Han Dynasty Xun Shuang Biography": "Therefore, the sons of heaven marry twelve women, and the number of days is also; There is an equal difference below the princes, and things have fallen. "

In recent years, the creation epic Dark Biography of the Han nationality has been discovered in Shennongjia area. There is a story about the origin of Ganzhi: "At the beginning of the world, Huang Xuan rode chaos beast and met Nuwa. There are two meat buns beside Nu Wa. There are ten men in the big one and twelve women in the small one. Huang Xuan said: "This is a heavenly revolution to support God to govern Gankun." So, they were named respectively, and the husband and wife were matched, which became yin and yang. Men are collectively called heavenly stems and women are earthly branches. "This creation myth story tells the story of Ganzhi, the mysterious god, the god of Nuwa, and the story of Ganzhi Yin and Yang Kun, dating back to the" life experience "of Ganzhi a long time ago. The birth of the zodiac has an astronomical background. In primitive times, our ancestors experienced a cycle of alternating cold and summer. Hong Hao's Biography at the End of Song Dynasty in Song Dynasty said: "Jurchen is very small, just after the new moon, and the person doesn't know the date. When asked, they will say, "How many times have I seen grass?" Grass is green year after year. "It is also recorded in Meng Gong's Record of Monks and Tartars in the Song Dynasty:" When a grass is one year old, someone asks its age and says how many grasses it is. "Later, some astronomical observers found that the moon's profit and loss cycle can be used to measure the length of years, and found that all twelve full moons are one year old. This discovery is one of the most accurate achievements of the early calendar, and "Twelve" is regarded as the "number of days" to convey God's will. Heavenly stems and earthly branches, the sun and the moon are opposite, and heaven and earth are opposite. This is the "Twelve".

A mouse and an ugly cow ... a dog and a pig. There are many animals in the world. Why did the ancients choose these twelve animals as their zodiac signs?

Yang Guang Miscellaneous Notes in Qing Dynasty quoted redundant remarks in Matsushita Pavilion: "Why is Zi a mouse?" Yue: Born in the child, it will not open until it dies. Rats eat insects. Therefore, in night is still young, positive mice have to wait, so children belong to mice. The ground is ugly, and the cow opens the ground, so ugliness belongs to the cow. If born in yin, if born, kill. Murderer, tiger, Yin people, fear. If you are awesome, you are a tiger, then Yin is a tiger. Offender, sunrise. In vitro, it contains the essence of Taiyin Jade Rabbit, so it is a rabbit. The morning of divination in March is when the dragon rains, so the morning belongs to the dragon. The last person, divination in April, was lush and the snake was in its place. Also, when a snake is not on the road, it is a snake. At noon, the sun is born, and the sun is born. Horses are healthy, never leave the ground, and belong to the shade, so they belong to horses in the afternoon. Sheep are not sheep, because they grow by biting untimely grass. When applying, the ape crowed in the sunset, and his arms were stretched out. By analogy, chaos runs rampant, so the application belongs to monkeys. This person, when the moon comes out, is the body of the moon, and water is the essence of the sun golden rooster, so it belongs to the chicken. In the nucleus, pigs know nothing but food, so the sea is a pig.

In other words, the selection and arrangement of the zodiac is determined according to the daily activity time of animals. Since the Han Dynasty, China used the twelve earthly branches to record the twelve hours of a day, each hour is equivalent to two hours, and it is midnight from eleven o'clock in the evening to one o'clock in the morning, when rats are most active. From 0: 00 to 3: 00 in the morning/kloc-,it's ugly, and the cow is ruminating. It is Yin Shi from 3: 00 to 5: 00. At this time, tigers are foraging everywhere, which is the fiercest. 5: 00 to 7: 00 is the crime time. At this time, the sun has not yet risen and the moon is still hanging in the sky. At this time, Yutu is busy taking medicine. 7: 00 am to 9: 00 am is the morning, which is a good time for the dragon to rain. From 9: 00 to 1 1, the snake became active. From eleven o'clock in the morning to one o'clock in the afternoon, the sun is shining, and at noon, it is the time to be unconstrained. In the afternoon 1 until 3 o'clock, it is late. At this time, sheep will grow stronger if they eat grass. From 3 pm to 5 pm, it is the Olympic Games. At this time, the monkey became active. It's one yuan from five to seven. When night falls, chickens begin to return to their nests. From 7: 00 pm to 9: 00 pm, the dog began to watch the night. From 9 pm to 1 1, it is Shihai. At this time, all was silent and the pig was snoring.

Heavenly stems and earthly branches's method is very convenient and practical. Why use the zodiac to match it? What's the point of "ugly cow"?

Some historians believe that the reason for marking time with the zodiac is that ancient people were very awed by animals and had a totem complex for lively or fierce animals in nature. For example, the Mongolian, Uygur, Tibetan and other ethnic minorities in China have their own animal laws to record the year. In the long historical process, this totem complex is associated with heavenly stems and earthly branches and is used to record time.

Today, although we are still using this method, we still can't accurately decipher the mystery of the zodiac.

Twenty-four solar terms originated in the Yellow River Basin. As early as the Spring and Autumn Period, four solar terms were set, namely, mid-spring, mid-summer, mid-autumn and mid-winter. After continuous improvement and perfection, by the Qin and Han Dynasties, the 24 solar terms had been completely established. In BC 104, the taichu calendar written by Deng Ping officially set 24 solar terms in the calendar, and defined the astronomical position of the 24 solar terms.

The time when the sun runs along the longitude of the Yellow River from zero 15 degrees is called "a solar term". It runs 360 degrees every year, and * * * experiences 24 solar terms, twice a month. Among them, the first solar term of each month is "solar term", that is, beginning of spring, Jingzhe, Qingming, Changxia, Mangzhong, Xiaoshu, beginning of autumn, Bailu, Hanlu, beginning of winter, Heavy Snow, Xiaohan, etc. 12 solar terms; The second solar term of each month is "Zhongqi", that is, there are 12 solar terms such as rain, vernal equinox, Grain Rain, Xiaoman, summer solstice, great heat, intense heat, autumnal equinox, first frost, light snow, winter solstice and great cold. "Solar term" and "neutral qi" appear alternately, each lasting 15 days. Now people have called "solar terms" and "neutral gas" solar terms.

Twenty-four solar terms reflect the apparent movement of the sun in one year, so the dates of solar terms are basically fixed in the current Gregorian calendar, with the first half of the year being 6 days and 2 1, and the second half being 8 days and 23 days, with a difference of 1 ~ 2 days.

In order to facilitate memory, people compiled 24 solar terms songs:

Twenty-four solar term song

The spring rain shakes the spring and the valley days, and the summer is full of mountains and summers.

Autumn dew, autumn frost, little snow in winter and cold in winter.

Seven-character poem of twenty-four solar terms

The earth goes around the sun, and it takes a year to complete a circle.

A year is divided into December, and the 24 solar terms are closely linked.

According to the Gregorian calendar, these two gases will not change every month.

The first half of the year is Saturday and Monday, and the second half is every eight days and every Wednesday.

These are festivals, and the difference is only one or two days.

There are 24 verses in succession, and the following formula is kept in mind:

A slight cold in January was followed by a severe cold, and it rained in the spring of February;

The vernal equinox is in March and Qingming Grain Rain is in April.

Long summer and full summer in May, full summer solstice in June;

July is hot and slightly hot, and August is long summer, beginning of autumn;

In September, the Millennium meets the autumnal equinox, and the first frost and cold dew are all in October;

There is a light snow in 1 1 month in beginning of winter, and a heavy snow in winter solstice to welcome the New Year.

Grasp the season and busy production, sow and harvest in time to ensure a bumper harvest.

With the spread of China calendar, the 24 solar terms have spread to many parts of the world.

Beginning of spring: beginning of spring is standing, and beginning of spring is beginning of spring.

Rain: It began to rain and gradually increased.

Sting: Sting means hiding. Sting refers to the sudden movement of spring thunder, which awakens the hibernating animals in the soil.

Equinox: Equinox means equal share. The vernal equinox means that day and night are equally divided.

Qingming: sunny and lush.

Grain Rain: Rain makes a hundred valleys. With sufficient and timely rainfall, cereal crops can thrive.

Long summer: the beginning of summer.

Xiaoman: Summer crops such as wheat are full of seeds.

Miscanthus species: Miscanthus crops such as wheat are mature.

Summer solstice: The hot summer is coming.

Summer heat: Summer heat means heat. Slight summer heat refers to when the climate begins to get hot.

Big institutions: the hottest time of the year.

Beginning of autumn: The beginning of autumn.

Summer heat: place means stop and hide. Summer is the end of hot summer.

White dew: The weather turns cold and the dew condenses into white.

Autumnal equinox: divided equally between day and night.

Cold dew: Dew is cold and will freeze.

First frost: it's getting colder and colder, frosty.

Beginning of winter: The beginning of winter.

Xiaoxue: It's starting to snow.

Heavy snow: the snowfall is increasing, and there may be snow on the ground.

Solstice of winter: the cold winter is coming.

Slight cold: The climate began to get cold.

Great cold: the coldest time of the year.