Twenty-eight mansions
The Twenty-eight Mansions (Chinese: 二十八宿; pinyin: Èr Shí Bā Xiù), hsiu, xiu[1] or sieu[2] are part of the Chinese constellations system. They can be considered as the equivalent to the zodiacal constellations in the Western astronomy, though the Twenty-eight Mansions reflect the movement of the Moon in a lunar month rather than the Sun in a solar year. Another similar system, called Nakshatra, is used in traditional Indian astronomy.
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[edit] Overview
Ancient Chinese astronomers divided the sky ecliptic into four regions, collectively known as the Four Symbols, each assigned a mysterious animal. They are Azure Dragon (青龍) on the east, Black Tortoise (玄武) on the north, White Tiger (白虎) on the west, and Vermilion Bird (朱雀) on the south. Each region contains seven mansions, making a total of 28 mansions. The mansions or xiù are latitudes the Moon crosses during its monthly journey around Earth and serve as a way to track the Moon's progress.
[edit] List of mansions
The names and determinative stars of the mansions are:[3][4]
| Four Symbols (四象) |
Mansion (宿) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Name (pinyin) | Translation | Determinative star | |
| Azure Dragon of the East (東方青龍) Spring |
1 | 角 (Jiăo) | Horn | α Vir |
| 2 | 亢 (Kàng) | Neck | κ Vir | |
| 3 | 氐 (Dĭ) | Root | α Lib | |
| 4 | 房 (Fáng) | Room | π Sco | |
| 5 | 心 (Xīn) | Heart | σ Sco | |
| 6 | 尾 (Wěi) | Tail | μ Sco | |
| 7 | 箕 (Jī) | Winnowing Basket | γ Sgr | |
| Black Tortoise of the North (北方玄武) Winter |
8 | 斗 (Dǒu) | (Southern) Dipper | φ Sgr |
| 9 | 牛 (Niú) | Ox | β Cap | |
| 10 | 女 (Nǚ) | Girl | ε Aqr | |
| 11 | 虛 (Xū) | Emptiness | β Aqr | |
| 12 | 危 (Wēi) | Rooftop | α Aqr | |
| 13 | 室 (Shì) | Encampment | α Peg | |
| 14 | 壁 (Bì) | Wall | γ Peg | |
| White Tiger of the West (西方白虎) Fall |
15 | 奎 (Kuí) | Legs | η And |
| 16 | 婁 (Lóu) | Bond | β Ari | |
| 17 | 胃 (Wèi) | Stomach | 35 Ari | |
| 18 | 昴 (Mǎo) | Hairy Head | 17 Tau | |
| 19 | 畢 (Bì) | Net | ε Tau | |
| 20 | 觜 (Zī) | Turtle Beak | λ Ori | |
| 21 | 參 (Shēn) | Three Stars | ζ Ori | |
| Vermilion Bird of the South (南方朱雀) Summer |
22 | 井 (Jǐng) | Well | μ Gem |
| 23 | 鬼 (Guǐ) | Ghost | θ Cnc | |
| 24 | 柳 (Liǔ) | Willow | δ Hya | |
| 25 | 星 (Xīng) | Star | α Hya | |
| 26 | 張 (Zhāng) | Extended Net | υ¹ Hya | |
| 27 | 翼 (Yì) | Wings | α Crt | |
| 28 | 軫 (Zhěn) | Chariot | γ Crv | |
[edit] References
- ^ Gary D. Thompson chapter 11-24
- ^ Richard Hinckley Allen in Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning
- ^ "The Chinese Sky". International Dunhuang Project. http://idp.bl.uk/education/astronomy/sky.html. Retrieved 2011-06-25.
- ^ Sun, Xiaochun (1997). Helaine Selin. ed. Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. Kluwer Academic Publishers. pp. 517. ISBN 0-7923-4066-3 (HB). http://books.google.com/books?id=raKRY3KQspsC&pg=PA517. Retrieved 2011-06-25.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- By Gary D. Thompson:
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