Written By Sallie Tsui Sien
Use the Almanac below daily to help you in selecting the most auspicious days and times for activities and events such as weddings, renovations, travelling, opening a business and even a good day for mending your tools.
A Chinese almanac (Chinese calendar) or ‘Tung Sing’ is based on the lunar cycle, providing a guideline that either promotes or advises against certain tasks being undertaken on certain days depending on the combination of the Heavenly Stem and the Earthly Branch. Virtually every home in Asia will have one of these and refer to it daily, it tells you when to do and not to do certain jobs or events. Sallie will be translating the almanac each month so check back monthly for updates.
The ten Heavenly Stems are the five elements of water, wood, fire, earth and metal. The Twelve Earthly Branches are the twelve animals of Chinese astrology: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. The stem and branches express each other in a 60-year cycle in terms of the five elements in their yin and yang states.
In former times, once the many characteristics of a building site had been considered, auspicious dates had to be chosen carefully for the actual building tasks in order to ensure harmony.
The almanac is published annually and mainly consists of:
- An update on the annual energies of the Nine Palaces of a property and the three annual afflictions according to the Xuan Kong system of Feng Shui.
- A ‘Huang Li’ or imperial calendar states recommended days to proceed with or avoid certain tasks or projects during the year. There is a section dedicated to recommended days for ‘spring cleaning’ before Chinese New Year.
- Favourable or unfavourable days according to an individual Year’s Pillar of the Four Pillars ‘Ba Zi’.
An example would be if you were planning to open a new business this month October 2003 you would choose either 12-24-26 or 30th of October. Or if you were travelling, you would pick either 1st-3rd-5th or 14th of October. The Almanac is taken very seriously and used daily by all the staff of the Feng Shui Store.
Check back each month for updates on the Almanac, it is very rare to have an English translation.
Please feel free to print out and use daily, check back www.fengshuiweb.co.uk each month for updates or join our free newsletter
Let’s take it one step further. It can work to a person’s advantage if the hour is also in harmony with the person’s year earthly branch. I must stress that this is only a general way of making the best of the situation with the limited information that is provided here. A more complete and precise analysis of a person’s best timing requires a much more in-depth interpretation of the individual’s “Bà Zi” (Four Pillars).
So let’s say, if you are born in the year of a Dog, and you want to start a new business, you would choose the good days to open a business from this almanac, you may want the door opening ceremony conducted or sign contract on the hours that are compatible to you and they are the hours of (5am – 7am), (11am – 1pm) and (3am – 5am). Now, even if it is not a good day, at least try to use the good hours for important things. Below is a table that offers the corresponding compatibility of the twelve earthly branches. If you do not know your Chinese animal use the chart below, it is also worth double-checking.
| Animal | – | Best times of day (Compatible branches hours) |
| Rat |  | 11pm-12: 59am ** 1:00-2:59am ** 7:00-8:59am ** 3:00-4:59pm |
| Ox |  | 1:00-2:59am ** 11pm-12: 59am ** 9:00-10:59am ** 5:00-6:59pm |
| Tiger |  | 3:00-4:59am ** 11am-12: 59pm ** 7:00-8:59pm ** 9:00-10:59pm |
| Rabbit |  | 5:00-6:59am ** 1:00-2:59pm ** 7:00-8:59pm ** 9:00-10:59pm |
| Dragon |  | 7:00-8:59am ** 11pm-12: 59am ** 3:00-4:59pm ** 5:00-6:59pm |
| Snake |  | 1:00-2:59am ** 3:00-4:59am ** 5:00-6:59am ** 9:00-10:59am |
| Horse |  | 3:00-4:59am ** 11:am-12: 59pm ** 1:00-2:59pm ** 7:00-8:59pm |
| Goat/Sheep |  | 5:00-6:59am ** 11am-12: 59pm ** 1:00-2:59pm ** 9:00-10:59pm |
| Monkey |  | 11pm-12: 59am ** 7:00-8:59am ** 9:00-10:59am ** 3:00-4:59pm |
| Rooster |  | 1:00-2:59am ** 7:00-8:59am ** 9:00-10:59am ** 5:00-6:59pm |
| Dog |  | 3:00-4:59am ** 5:00-6:59am ** 11am-12: 59pm ** 7:00-8:59pm |
| Pig |  | 3:00-4:59am ** 5:00-6:59am ** 1:00-2:59pm ** 9:00-10:59pm |
© Feng Shui Store 01296 399100
Monkey 20 February 6 February 1932 – 25 January 1933 25 January 1944 – 12 February 1945 12 February 1956 – 30 January 1957 30 January 1968 – 16 February 1969 16 February 1980 – 4 February 1981 4 February 1992 – 22 January 1993 22 January 2004 – 8 February 2005
| Rooster 8 February 26 January 1933 – 13 February 1934 13 February 1945 – 1 February 1946 31 January 1957 – 17 February 1958 17 January 1969 – 5 February 1970 5 February 1981 – 24 January 1982 23 January 1993 – 9 February 1994 9 February 2005 – 28 January 2006
| Dog 28 January 14 February 1934 – 3 February 1935 2 February 1946 – 21 January 1947 18 February 1958 – 7 February 1959 6 February 1970 – 26 January 1971 25 January 1982 – 12 February 1983 10 February 1994 – 30 January 1995 29 January 2006 – 17 February 2007
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Pig 16 February 4 February 1935 – 23 January 1936 22 January 1947 – 9 February 1948 8 February 1959 – 27 January 1960 27 January 1971 – 15 February 1972 13 February 1983 – 1 February 1984 31 January 1995 – 18 February 1996 18 February 2007 – 6 February 2008
| Rat 5 February 24 January 1936 – 10 February 1937 10 February 1948 – 28 January 1949 28 January 1960 – 14 February 1961 16 February 1972 – 2 February 1973 2 February 1984 – 19 February 1985 19 February 1996 – 6 February 1997 7 February 2008 – 25 January 2009
| Ox 25 January 11 February 1937 – 30 January 1938 29 January 1949 – 16 February 1950 15 February 1961 – 4 February 1962 3 February 1973 – 22 January 1974 20 February 1985 – 8 February 1986 7 February 1997 – 27 January 1998 26 January 2009 – 13 February 2010
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Tiger 13 February 31 January 1938 – 18 February 1939 17 February 1950 – 5 February 1951 5 February 1962 – 24 January 1963 23 January 1974 – 10 February 1975 9 February 1986 – 28 January 1987 28 January 1998 – 15 February 1999 14 February 2010 – 2 February 2011
| Rabbit 2 February 19 February 1939 – 7 February 1940 6 February 1951 – 26 January 1952 25 January 1963 – 12 February 1964 11 February 1975 – 30 January 1976 29 January 1987 – 16 February 1988 16 February 1999 – 4 February 2000 3 February 2011 – 22 January 2012
| Dragon 23 January 8 February 1940 – 26 January 1941 27 January 1952 – 13 February 1953 13 February 1964 – 1 February 1965 31 January 1976 – 17 February 1977 17 February 1988 – 5 February 1989 5 February 2000 – 23 January 2001 23 January 2012 – 9 February 2013
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Snake 10 February 27 January 1941 – 14 February 1942 14 February 1953 – 2 February 1954 2 February 1965 – 20 January 1966 18 February 1977 – 6 February 1978 6 February 1989 – 26 January 1990 24 January 2001 – 11 February 2002 10 February 2013 – 30 January 2014 | Horse 30 January 15 February 1942 – 4 February 1943 3 February 1954 – 23 January 1955 21 January 1966 – 8 February 1967 7 February 1978 – 27 January 1979 27 January 1990 – 14 February 1991 12 February 2002 – 31 January 2003
| Goat 17 February 5 February 1943 – 24 January 1944 24 January 1955 – 11 February 1956 9 February 1967 – 29 January 1968 28 January 1979 – 15 February 1980 15 February 1991 – 3 February 1992 1 February 2003 – 21 January 2004
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