A Look into the Three Main Astrological Systems

Astrology is considered to be a pseudoscience that claims to make divine connections between the extra torrential world and human affairs. It is the belief in symbols, planets, and numbers, having distinct meanings of their own. Astrology has a wide array of elements ranging from houses, horoscopes, zodiacs, planets, elements, etc. Astrology has its roots in calendrical systems and dates back to the 2nd millennium BCE. It was earlier used to predict celestial cycles and seasonal shifts attaching itself with the divine and aiming to make connections. There have been many cultural implementations of astrological events and few like the Chinese, Hindi, and Maya- developed elaborate and vast systems for predicting events and terrestrial happenings. This article aims to give an outlook on these three systems. 

Chinese Astrology

The entire system of Chinese astrology is developed on the traditional astrological system. During the Han dynasty, a specific type of astrology came to flourish. The Chinese Astrological system has its roots from there. The Chinese Zodiac system is one of the oldest known astrological systems dealing with the realm of horoscopes. The system consists of twelve specific animals that represent a year each. The twelve animals that make up the Chinese zodiac are the Tiger, Dragon, Rat, Horse, Sheep, Ox, Monkey, Dog, Pig, Rooster, Snake, and Rabbit. In addition to this, the Chinese zodiac consists of five different elements as well. These elements are namely fire, earth, water, wood, and metal. The Chinese Astrological system has its methods of prediction. According to Chinese Astrology, the destiny and the path of life of a person can be determined by the positions of the different planets along with the sun and the moon, at the time of the individual’s birth. The Chinese had a belief that the year in which a person is born has a lot to say about the person’s personality, attitude, potential, and outlook on life. The twelve animals associated with specific years are also symbols of representation of an individual’s personality.

Vedic or Hindu Astrology

The Hindu system of astrology is probably the most well known throughout the world due to its diversity and traditionality. The Hindu Astrological system goes by many names. It ranges from Jyotisha to Vedic to Indian to Hindu Astrology. The Vedic Astrological science is a very old and ancient science developed in the Vedic Ages. It is divided into three main branches. These branches are Indian Astronomy, Predictive astrology, and Mundane astrology. Indian astrology contains various relations with planets, stars, and constellations that determine the life of an individual. It is here where the concept of Kundali Matching is born – where the Janam kundalis of two individuals who are to be married, are studied to predict compatibility levels. Vedic Astrology garnered increasing importance after it gave us the position of the Moon and the Nakshatras. In these Nakshatras, the Nirayana or the sidereal zodiac is a fictional belt – 360 degrees in size- and is also divided into twelve equal parts, just like the tropical zodiac signs. The difference between Vedic astrology and Western Astrology is that Vedic astrology uses the fixed zodiac as opposed to the moving zodiac in the realm of Western astronomical sciences. Thus, there may be a chance for your zodiac symbols to differ if seen in terms of Vedic Astrology.

Mayan Astrology

The Mayan Astrology is modern-day astrology and has its base in thinking forward and thinking in depth. The entire concept of Mayan Astrology is based on the Mayan calendar. The Mayan calendar goes by the name of Tzolkin. This Tzolkin is based on the intangible energy that exists between the cosmos and the evolution of creation. The Mayan Calendar has a 260-day year period with twenty-day signs, also known as solar tribes, and thirteen Galactic numbers. In ancient times, people of the Mayan dynasty believed a lot in the energy of the universe. They shared a common belief that to be peaceful, happy, and attain harmony in life, one must align oneself with the universal energy. The twenty different signs talked about represents specific days in the Mayan calendar. This allows individuals across the globe to share the same day glyph even if they are born on different months, years, and days.