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The Burmese zodiac ( my, ဇာတာ ရာသီခွင် ) is the traditional Burmese system of
astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...
and
astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...
. While it is still an important component of the
Burmese calendar The Burmese calendar ( my, မြန်မာသက္ကရာဇ်, , or , ; Burmese Era (BE) or Myanmar Era (ME)) is a lunisolar calendar in which the months are based on lunar months and years are based on sidereal years. The calendar is ...
, today, the zodiac is closely identified with Burmese astrology, called ''Bedin'' (). Largely derived from
Hindu astronomy Astronomy has long history in Indian subcontinent stretching from pre-historic to modern times. Some of the earliest roots of Indian astronomy can be dated to the period of Indus Valley civilisation or earlier. Astronomy later developed as a dis ...
and
Vedic astrology Jyotisha or Jyotishya (from Sanskrit ', from ' “light, heavenly body" and ''ish'' - from Isvara or God) is the traditional Hindu system of astrology, also known as Hindu astrology, Indian astrology and more recently Vedic astrology. It is one ...
, the Burmese zodiac consists of not only the same 12 signs of the Western zodiac but also 27
lunar mansion Often called lunar mansion, a lunar station or lunar house is a segment of the ecliptic through which the Moon passes in its orbit around the Earth. The concept was used by several ancient cultures as part of their calendrical system. Stations in ...
s of the month and eight weekday signs.


Structure


Seasons

The Burmese zodiac, like the
Western zodiac Western astrology is the system of astrology most popular in Western countries. Western astrology is historically based on Ptolemy's ''Tetrabiblos'' (2nd century CE), which in turn was a continuation of Hellenistic and ultimately Babylonian tra ...
, is divided into 12 signs called ''yathi'' ( ). The Burmese signs are identical to Indian and Western signs as they were derived from Indian and ultimately Western zodiac. Each ''yathi'' is divided into 30 degrees ( ); each degree into 60 minutes ( ); and each minute into 60 seconds ( ).Irwin 1909: 7–8


Lunar mansions

The zodiac month consists of 27 days, approximating the mean
sidereal month In lunar calendars, a lunar month is the time between two successive syzygies of the same type: new moons or full moons. The precise definition varies, especially for the beginning of the month. Variations In Shona, Middle Eastern, and Euro ...
of 27.321661 days. Thus each zodiac day, called ''nekkhat'' ( ), represents a
lunar mansion Often called lunar mansion, a lunar station or lunar house is a segment of the ecliptic through which the Moon passes in its orbit around the Earth. The concept was used by several ancient cultures as part of their calendrical system. Stations in ...
, or a segment of the
ecliptic The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of the Earth around the Sun. From the perspective of an observer on Earth, the Sun's movement around the celestial sphere over the course of a year traces out a path along the ecliptic again ...
along which the moon revolves around the earth. Though the names are Burmese adaptations of Sanskrit names, the Burmese system is not the same as the modern Indian system. The Burmese system uses unequal spaces for each segment (from 5° to 26°), and the first segment, Athawani, begins at 350° longitude. The modern Indian system uses equal segments of 13° 20' (360° divided by 27), and the first segment, Asvini, begins at 0°.Irwin 1909: 10–11 (The zodiac also recognizes a lost 28th constellation, called ''Abizi'' (; Sanskrit: ''Abhijit''), which apparently made one revolution among these stars in 27 to 28 days.Luce 1970: 333) The ''nekkhats'' are usually used to calculate the ''zata'' (horoscope) of a person or an event. Many historical dates were represented with the ''nekkhat'' position, not with the more common calendrical date.See the ''
Zatadawbon Yazawin ''Zatadawbon Yazawin'' ( my, ဇာတာတော်ပုံ ရာဇဝင်, ; also spelled ''Zatatawpon''; ) is the earliest extant chronicle of Burma. The chronicle mainly covers the regnal dates of kings as well as horoscopes of select ...
'' chronicle (Zata 1960) to see how ''nekkhats'' are used to represent kings' birthdays and important events.


Weekdays

The Burmese zodiac employs eight signs in a seven-day week, with each sign representing its own day, cardinal direction, planet (celestial body) and animal;Certain letters of the Burmese alphabet are assigned to these 7 days, and names starting with the respective letter are given to children born on the respective day. it is known as the "Mahabote zodiac". The zodiacs, with slight variations, are also found in Sri Lanka and Thailand.The History and Doctrine of Budhism: Popularly Illustrated: with Notices of the Kappooism, Or Demon Worship, and of the Bali, Or Planetary Incantations, of Ceylon
/ref> While the eight signs are the most prevalent in modern Burmese zodiac, the zodiac officially also recognizes a ninth sign called
Ketu KETU (1120 AM) is a radio station licensed to serve Catoosa, Oklahoma. The station is owned by Antonio Perez, through licensee Radio Las Americas Arkansas, LLC. The station was licensed originally to Atoka, Oklahoma, and operated for many years ...
( ), which rules over all of the signs. The same sign also appears in Sri Lanka and Thailand under the same name. Ketu's sign is a mythical Animal of Five Beauties called
pyinsarupa Pyinsarupa ( my, ပဉ္စရူပ, , also spelt pyinsa rupa; pi, pañcarūpa, ), also known as phaya luang ( th, พญาลวง), is a chimeric animal made of an elephant, bullock, horse, white carp (ငါးကြင်း) and ''to ...
( ) with the antlers of a deer, the tusks and the trunk of an elephant, the mane of a lion, the body of a
naga Naga or NAGA may refer to: Mythology * Nāga, a serpentine deity or race in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions * Naga Kingdom, in the epic ''Mahabharata'' * Phaya Naga, mythical creatures believed to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong Riv ...
serpent, and the tail of a fish. Moreover, Rahu and Ketu, while borrowed from Hindu astrology, are different from their original versions. Hindu astrology considers Rahu and Ketu to be the ascending and descending
lunar node A lunar node is either of the two orbital nodes of the Moon, that is, the two points at which the orbit of the Moon intersects the ecliptic. The ''ascending'' (or ''north'') node is where the Moon moves into the northern ecliptic hemisphere, w ...
s but Burmese astrology considers them distinct planets.Htin Aung 1959: 11–13 At any rate, the inclusion of Ketu is not due to astronomical necessity but rather cultural. (J.C. Eade points out that "there is no astronomical necessity" for Ketu, whose orbit can be derived from the value of Rahu, and suggests that Ketu was "superfluous to the system, and perhaps even as an entity that owes its origin to a mistake".Eade 1989: 18–19
Htin Aung Htin Aung ( my, ထင်အောင် ; also Maung Htin Aung; 18 May 1909 – 10 May 1978) was a writer and scholar of Burmese culture and history. Educated at Oxford and Cambridge, Htin Aung wrote several books on Burmese history and culture ...
says the use of Rahu and Ketu in Burmese zodiac and astrology is for cultural, not necessarily astronomical, value, noting that the nine signs neatly fit the Nine Gods of Burmese animist tradition and indeed are an essential part of the "Ceremony of the Nine Gods" usually held when there is sickness in the house.) The signs can be represented in a nine-square diagram. The exact arrangement is used to place the planetary figurines in the "Ceremony of the Nine Gods", with Ketu in the center, right behind a statue of the Buddha. All the planetary figures face the Buddha (as the animist practice has been absorbed into Burmese Buddhism). The Sunday, Tuesday, Saturday and Rahu planets are considered to be Malefics, or planets with an evil influence while the Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday planets are considered Benefics, or planets with benign influence. Ketu is considered to be the most powerful and a Benefic but as the chief planet, it cannot be grouped with any other planet. However, modern Burmese astrology rarely uses Ketu, and tends to use only the other eight planets.Htin Aung 1959: 15


See also

* Burmese calendar#Cycle *
Burmese culture The culture of Myanmar (also known as Burma) ( my, မြန်မာ့ယဉ်ကျေးမှု) has been heavily influenced by Buddhism. Burmese culture has also been influenced by its neighbours. In more recent times, British colonial ...


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * {{Astrology-footer Astrology by tradition
Zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the Sun path, apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. ...