What do the four great beasts of China refer to?

The four great beasts in China are Qinglong, Baihu, Suzaku and Xuanwu, which represent the four directions of east, west, north and south respectively, because we often say left Qinglong and right Baihu. In fact, this is also based on direction. Moreover, the four great beasts also represent four kinds of fire and water in Jin Mu's five elements.

However, these four animals are actually distinguished according to the appearance of the stars in the sky, especially Qinglong, which appears in spring. In spring, the stars in the sky look like dragons, so this is just to show that Qinglong is a symbol of life growth.

Xuanwu represents water, because in fairy tales, the image of Xuanwu is a combination of tortoise and snake, and both animals like water, so Xuanwu becomes a symbol of water. Some people calculate that the north belongs to water, so Xuanwu is also called "North Xuanwu".

Suzaku is a red bird in the description of fairy tales, so Suzaku represents fire, and summer is the hottest season, so Suzaku also represents summer. Since the north belongs to water and the south belongs to fire, Suzaku is the beast of the south.

The image symbolized by the ancient tiger was inspired by the white tiger. It is recorded in fairy tales that the white tiger represents war, so if someone fights badly, it will be called "the reincarnation of the white tiger".

Now there is only one autumn left, so the white tiger is an autumn beast. I think it's mainly because autumn is a suitable climate and a harvest season, so there is plenty of food and grass at this time, and the ancient war will also choose autumn.