The three traditions

   The three main traditions of the western astrology, India and China, share the same fundamental concept of a twelve zodiac signs Capricorn repeating two cycles of the year, they divided into four basic types. You can compare the twelve signs of every tradition and, despite the differences, you may notice some similarity in their characteristics.

  Western and Indian traditions agree on the subdivision of the signs based on the elements of fire, earth, air and water, although the Indian elements are generally known by their Sanskrit names: shingles (fire), Prithivi (earth), Vayu ( air) and jala (water). The Chinese tradition simply uses numbers to name the four groups of signs, called "trills" (ie, three signs in each group). Chinese tradition also uses elements to describe the twelve signs, but uses a different system, which is five elements: wood, fire, earth, metal and water. This system does not correspond directly with the use of traditional elements of Western and Indian, so it is important not to confuse them.

  You can compare and relate the signs of the three traditions because each twelve signs associates to a different month of the solar year, and they coincide in some form in all three traditions. Western and Indian Signs differ by about a month due to different ways of measuring the zodiac, which is reflected in the divergence over time starting from a common origin. The Chinese characters are based on the Chinese agricultural calendar solar periods and does not match the other two traditions, differing with each one for about two weeks. The Chinese calendar is different from the better known sixty-year cycle in which each year is associated with a zodiac sign and element.

Astro         Element                Zodiac signs                        Dates                        
Mars               Fire                       Aries                             March 21 - April 20               
Venus            Earth                     Taurus                           April 21 - May 20                  
Mercury         Air                          Gemini                         May 21 - June 20                   
Moon             Water                     Cancer                        June 21 - July 22,                 
Sun                Fire                         Leo                              July 23 - August 22                 
Mercury         Earth                      Virgo                            August 23 - September 22       
Venus            Air                          Libra                            September 23 - October 22         
Pluto              Water                     Scorpion                     October 23 - November 21           
Jupiter           Fire                         Sagittarius                  November 22 - December 21      
Saturn           Earth                       Capricorn                   December 22 - January 19             
Uranus          Air                            Aquarius                    January 20 - February 19                  

Neptune        Water                       Pisces                       February 20 - March 20     

By Caroline Nuñez