Chinese Folk Tales: The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac
Preface: The twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac, also known as the phases of the genus, are the twelve animals…
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The twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac, also known as the phases of the genus, are the twelve animals in China that match the twelve earthly branches with the year of a person’s birth, including the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. The origin of the Chinese zodiac is related to animal worship. As a long-standing folk cultural symbol, the Chinese Zodiac has left a large number of poems, spring couplets, paintings, calligraphy and folk craft works depicting the image and symbolism of the Chinese Zodiac through the ages.
The twelve zodiac signs are the figurative representatives of the twelve earthly branches, i.e., Zi (Rat), U (Ox), Yin (Tiger), Mao (Rabbit), Chen (Dragon), Si (Snake), Wu (Horse), Wei (Sheep), Shen (Monkey), You (Chicken), Xu (Dog), and Hai (Pig), which are gradually blended into the concept of folk beliefs of inter-relationships with each other as history develops and reflected in the concepts of marriage, life and yearly fortunes, etc. Each of these zodiac signs has a wealth of legends and has become a system of conceptual interpretation, which has become a system of interpretation. Each zodiac sign has a rich legend, and in this way it forms a conceptual interpretation system and becomes a figurative philosophy in folk culture, such as the phases of the zodiac in marriage, prayers at temples, and the year of the birth of a child. In modern times, more people use the Chinese zodiac as a mascot for the Spring Festival and as a symbol for entertainment and cultural activities.
In addition to China, many countries in the world have folk cultures related to the Chinese zodiac. In the East Asian Cultural Circle, Korea and Japan have the same Chinese Zodiac as China, Vietnam has a cat instead of a rabbit, India has a lion but not a tiger, and the rest are the same as China. Cambodia and Thailand are the same as China, but with the ox and snake at the head respectively. Myanmar is the eight zodiac signs.
Preface: The twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac, also known as the phases of the genus, are the twelve animals…