Animals, Cycles & Date Boundaries

Chinese Zodiac: Signs, Years & Elements

Learn how the twelve animals relate to years, elements, stems and branches, compatibility traditions, and Lunar New Year boundaries.

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Illustrated wheel of the twelve Chinese zodiac animals
FengShuiZen field notes · context, practice, and living tradition

Explore by topic

Find your way into the subject

  • Zodiac foundations
  • Birth years
  • Date boundaries
  • Twelve animals
  • Stems & branches
  • Elements
  • Compatibility
  • Chinese vs Western zodiac

A grounded approach

Practice with context

01

Name the context

Separate documented history, living custom, modern interpretation, and our own reflective exercises.

02

Translate with care

Use natural English while keeping Chinese terms and their cultural setting visible.

03

Keep claims proportionate

Present symbolic or traditional frameworks as such, and describe measurable conditions separately.

Selected reading

Begin with these guides

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