China's Lunar Calendar 2015 03-18

Click here for the introduction to the Round and Square series "Calendars and Almanacs"  

⇦⇦⇦⇦⇦ From right to left: ⇦⇦⇦⇦⇦
3/19.................................................................................................................3/11

This is one in a never-ending series—following the movements of the calendar—in Round and Square perpetuity. It is today's date in the Chinese lunar calendar, along with basic translation and minimal interpretation. Unless you have been studying lunar calendars (and Chinese culture) for many years, you will likely find yourself asking "what does that mean?" I would caution that "it" doesn't "mean" any one thing. There are clusters of meaning, and they require patience, reflection, careful reading, and, well, a little bit of ethnographic fieldwork. The best place to start is the introduction to "Calendars and Almanacs" on this blog. I teach a semester-long course on this topic and, trust me, it takes a little bit of time to get used to the lunar calendar. Some of the material is readily accessible; some of it is impenetrable, even after many years.

As time goes on, I will link all of the sections to lengthy background essays. This will take a while. In the meantime, take a look, read the introduction, and think about all of the questions that emerge from even a quick look at the calendar.

Section One

Solar Calendar Date
(top to bottom; right to left
十
八

三期星

Third Month, Eighteenth Day

Astral Period Three
Wednesday, March 18

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Section Two
Beneficent Stars 

(top to bottom, right to left)

福驛歲
德馬馬
Generational Horse
Postal Horse
Fortunate Virtue

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Section Three
Auspicious Hours
(top to bottom, right to left) 
申辰子
吉吉吉
酉己丑

凶吉凶

戌午寅
吉中中
亥未卯
凶凶吉

23:00-01:00 Auspicious
01:00-03:00 Inauspicious
03:00-05:00 In-Between
05:00-07:00 Auspicious

07:00-09:00 Auspicious
9:00-11:00 Auspicious
11:00-13:00 In-Between
13:00-15:00 Inauspicious

15:00-17:00 Auspicious
17:00-19:00 Inauspicious
19:00-21:00 Auspicious
21:00-23:00 Inauspicious

The hours above are for Hong Kong. It is up to you if you want to recalibrate or to assume that the cyclicality of the calendar "covers" the rest of the world. This is a greater interpretive challenge than you might think.
                             —————————————————

Section Four 
Activities to Avoid  
(top-to-bottom; right to left) 

忌
動遠詞
土行訟
Lawsuits and Litigation
Distant Journeys
Moving Soil

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Section Five 
Cosmological Information 

廿
八
癸
巳
水

軫
滿

Twenty-Eighth Day (First Lunar Month)

Cyclical day: guisi (30/60)

Phase (element): Water

Constellation: Running Board (28/28)

"Day Personality" Cycle: Fullness (3/12)

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Section Six
Appropriate Activities
and Miscellaneous Information
(top-to-bottom; right to left)

宜

安合祭
牀賬祀
作開祈
灶市福
安立會
門約友
結交裁
綱易衣
符土
朱五重
雀虛復

————

Appropriate Activities

Venerating Ancestors
Inquiring-into Fortune
Meeting Friends
Cutting-out Clothing
Making Posters
Opening Markets
Making Appointments
Trade and Commerce
Positioning Beds
Stove Work
Positioning Beds
Binding Nets

Earth Charm

Baleful Astral Influences

Doubled Return
Five Voids
Vermilion Bird

Section Seven

Inauspicious Stars 
白 山
White, Mountain

————

Section Eight

Miscellaneous

占
牀 房

Divination
Bed, Edifice