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Astrology has existed in Chinese society for more than 1500 years. Indian monks introduced astrology to Chinese in the Sui Dynasty (581-618, around the time of the birth of Islam). In the 1990s, Western astrology began to seep into Chinese people’s daily lives via the internet. Now, many Asians tend to adhere more to the Western teachings of astrology than their own, preferring its greater complexity and support through arts and literature, feeling their astrology is more abstract and hard to understand.
There’s a variety of energy analysis approaches in the Chinese healing arts. Feng shui extends into the physical environment, as well as astrology, which looks at the movement of heavenly bodies in relation to birthdates and times. The study of Chinese astrology is called the Four Pillars, also known as BaZi. Many feng shui practitioners study and apply Four Pillars analysis to inform their feng shui adjustments because the modalities are symbiotic.
The Four Pillars are made up of the 12 zodiac animals (also known as the Twelve Earthly Branches) with the five elements (also known as the Ten Heavenly Stems). Together they create the Cycle of Sixty, which covers all the possible combinations of the 12 zodiac animals and the five elements. In Asia, this system is said to reveal your fate or destiny, show you times in your life where you may have more or less support, and indicate your strengths and weaknesses.