| Have you ever wondered about... |
Jyuni-E (Asian Zodiac)? |
Part 1 of 4
Picture Source Information: http://www.siamese-dream.com/greeting_cards/chinese_zodiac_all.html
Source information: http://www.anycities.com/user1/chineseastrology/zodiac.html
Source Information: We Japanese, by Frederic de Garis, and Atsuharu Sakai,
Books I, II, and III combined, 2002, Kegan Paul Limited, England.
By Emy Murakawa
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The Asian Zodiac, Jyuni-E (12 branches – e standing for eda) has a twelve-year cycle, each year represented by an animal. The rat is the first of the cycle because legend has it that the rat was the first to arrive to hear the final words of Buddha. In Japan, children memorize the cycle like a rhyme: ne-ushi-tora, u-tatsu-mi, uma-hitsuji-saru, tori-inu-i. Ne stands for nezumi or rat. Ushi stands for ushi or ox. Tora stands for tora or tiger. U stands for usagi or rabbit. Tatsu stands for tatsu or dragon. Mi stands for hebi or snake (just accept it – don’t know how mi becomes hebi!). Uma stands for uma or horse. Hitsuji stands for hitsuji or ram/sheep. Saru stands for saru or monkey. Tori stands for tori or cock. Inu stands for inu or dog. I stands for inoshishi or boar. Interestingly, these same signs are applied to the even hours of the day (with the rat starting at midnight and the horse being at noon moving clock-wise on a 24 hour clock.) If you delve into it further, compass points are also used (with rat being north and horse being south moving clock-wise), as well as the five elements (wood fire, earth, metal, and water). There are volumes written about these finer details, and we leave it to you if you are interested in exploring this further. |
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| Did you know that in Japan, a baby is considered to be 1 as soon as born? Even if the baby is born on December 31, come January 1, that baby will be regarded as being two! This has caused some confusion here in the states because in Japan, kanreki is celebrated at 61, while here it is celebrated on the 60th birthday. Kanreki is an auspicious year because one full cycle of the ten calendar signs and of the twelve zodiacal signs is completed, and both men and women enter a new cycle, like a second childhood. The celebrant puts on a red cap and invites family and friends to celebrate with him or her. At 70, Koki, the “rarely reached age” is celebrated. At 77, Kinoji, the year of “gladness” is celebrated by wearing a red chanchanko (a type of vest usually worn over a kimono), and at 88, Bei-ju, the “rice year” is celebrated by wearing all red! | |||||||||||||
