Traditional Significance of Chinese Zodiac

According to the Chinese belief in the concept of yin and yang, the twelve animals are divided into yin and yang, and the yin and yang of the animals are ranked according to the parity of the animal's toes.

The number of toes of the animal's front and back is generally the same, and the rat alone is the front foot four, back foot five, odd and even the same body, things are rare, of course, in the first place, followed by the cow, four toes (even); tiger, five toes (odd); rabbit, four toes (even); dragon, five toes (even); snake, no toes (the same even); horse, a toe (odd); goat, four toes (even); monkeys, five toes (odd); chicken, four toes (even); Dog, five toes (odd); pig, four toes (even). Holding this view is the Song Hong Xun, the Ming dynasty scholar Lang Ying on the basis of its categorization, in his "seven repair class draft - twelve zodiac signs" proposed that "the Earth's branches in the next", so don't yin and yang when to look at the number of toes. Mouse is four paws in front, even number for Yin, back foot five paws, odd number for Yang. The first half of the first half of last night's yin, the second half of today's yang, just use the rat to symbolize the son. Cow, sheep, pig's hooves, chicken four paws, plus rabbit lack of lips and four paws, snake tongue points, six of them should be even, Yin, accounting for the six branches of the earth. Tiger five-clawed, monkey, dog also five-clawed, horse hooves round and not divided, six are odd, belonging to the Yang, together with the Yang rat, accounting for the other six branches of the earth. Lang Ying's categorization method is borrowed from Hong Xun's classification method, and the two are similar.

The above three explanations are from different perspectives to explain the arrangement of the Chinese zodiac, folk legends about the arrangement of the animals of the Chinese zodiac are very rich in stories, and the circulation of these legends on the one hand enriches the content of the Chinese zodiac, and on the other hand, promotes the inheritance and development of the culture of the Chinese zodiac. The purpose of dividing the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac into two categories of yin and yang, and incorporating them into the concept of the five elements of Chinese beliefs is to link the phases of the genus with the rituals of life, and to correspond yin and yang, the five elements and the Chinese zodiac, so as to explain other related cultural phenomena of life.