China's Lunar-Solar Calendar 2024 04-26

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

⇦⇦⇦⇦⇦ From right to left: ⇦⇦⇦⇦
4/29............................................................................................................................................................4/21

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-solar (or "luni-solar" calendar; I call it the "lunar" calendar in order to distinguish it from the kinds of calendars most Westerners use. It has a basic translation and minimal interpretation. 

As for interpreting the translation, unless you have been studying 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 (almost any "it" you will see). 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. And do not assume that people from China understand the traditional calendar particularly well, either. I have encountered confusion and furrowed brows for countless items in the calendar. It can seem "remote," in other words, from the world we live in these days, and yet it is printed anew every single year.

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. You will likely find that several of the translations seem quite "fanciful" in English. I am simply trying to convey that they also sound fairly fanciful in Chinese.

                                           Section One

                                     Solar Calendar Date

                                    (top to bottom, right to left)

廿

六

五期星

Fourth Month, Twenty-Sixth Day

Friday, April 26

————

 Section Two
Beneficent Stars 

(top to bottom, right to left)

月三歲

恩合支

Generational Branch

Three Linkages

Lunar Kindness

————

Section Three
Auspicious Hours
(top to bottom, right to left) 
申辰甲

吉吉凶

酉巳乙

中吉吉

戌午寅

凶吉凶

亥未卯

中吉中

23:00-1:00 Inauspicious

 01:00-03:00 Auspicious

 03:00-05:00 Inauspicious

 05:00-07:00 In-Between

07:00-09:00 Auspicious

  09:00-11:00 Auspicious

11:00-13:00 Auspicious

13:00-15:00 Auspicious

15:00-17:00 Auspicious

17:00-19:00 In-Between

19:00-21:00 Inauspicious

21:00-23:00 In-Between

————

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

忌

安結經

牀網絡

Energy Pathways

Binding Nets

Positioning Beds

Section Five 
Cosmological Information

十

八

庚

申

木

鬼

定

Eighteenth Day (Third Lunar Month)

Cyclical Day: gengshen (57/60)

Phase (element): Wood

"Constellation Personality: Ghost (23/28)

"Day Personality" Cycle: Decide (5/12)

————

Section Six

Appropriate Activities

and Miscellaneous Information

(top to bottom; left to right)

宜

移納祭

柩畜祀

成修沐

服齋浴

除建掃

服醮舍

安漆安

葬棺門

Appropriate Activities

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Venerating Ancestors

Bubbling and Bathing

Seizing and Capturing

Positioning Gates

Livestock Payments

Reparative Sacrifice

Establishing  Sacrifice

Lacquering Coffins

Moving Biers

Completing Clothing

Discarding Clothing

Positioning Graves

Debt Not

Baleful Asterisms

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Dark Metal

Prostrate Severance

Lunar Repression

Section Seven
Inauspicious Stars
(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English, however, "fits" directly below each character)

白

White

————

Section Eight

Miscellaneous Items

(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English,

however, "fits" intuitively in the configuration of characters)

碓

爐 磨

Pestle

Furnace, Mortar

China's Lunar-Solar Calendar 2024 04-25

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

⇦⇦⇦⇦⇦ From right to left: ⇦⇦⇦⇦
4/29............................................................................................................................................................4/21

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-solar (or "luni-solar" calendar; I call it the "lunar" calendar in order to distinguish it from the kinds of calendars most Westerners use. It has a basic translation and minimal interpretation. 

As for interpreting the translation, unless you have been studying 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 (almost any "it" you will see). 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. And do not assume that people from China understand the traditional calendar particularly well, either. I have encountered confusion and furrowed brows for countless items in the calendar. It can seem "remote," in other words, from the world we live in these days, and yet it is printed anew every single year.

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. You will likely find that several of the translations seem quite "fanciful" in English. I am simply trying to convey that they also sound fairly fanciful in Chinese.

                                               Section One

                                         Solar Calendar Date

                                        (top to bottom, right to left)

廿

五

四期星

Fourth Month, Twenty-Fifth Day

Thursday, April 25

————

 Section Two
Beneficent Stars 

(top to bottom, right to left)

合歲

日德

Generational Exemplarity

Linked Days

————

Section Three
Auspicious Hours
(top to bottom, right to left) 
申辰甲

吉中中

酉巳乙

中吉凶

戌午寅

凶吉吉

亥未卯

凶吉吉

23:00-1:00 In-Between

 01:00-03:00 Inauspicious

 03:00-05:00 Auspicious

 05:00-07:00 Auspicious

07:00-09:00 In-Between

  09:00-11:00 Auspicious

11:00-13:00 Auspicious

13:00-15:00 Auspicious

15:00-17:00 Auspicious

17:00-19:00 In-Between

19:00-21:00 Inauspicious

21:00-23:00 Inauspicious

————

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

忌

行除

喪服

Discarding Clothing

Mourning Visits

Section Five 
Cosmological Information

十

七

己

未

火

井

平

Seventeenth Day (Third Lunar Month)

Cyclical Day: jiwei (56/60)

Phase (element): Fire

"Constellation Personality: Well (22/28)

"Day Personality" Cycle: Level (4/12)

————

Section Six

Appropriate Activities

and Miscellaneous Information

(top to bottom; left to right)

宜

田

獵

平

道

飾

垣

————

鳴

鳩

拂

其

羽

重朱

喪雀

Appropriate Activities

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Field Venery (Goin' Huntin')

Leveling Roadways

Adorning Embankments

Pigeons Flap Their Wings

(the seventeenth of seventy-two five-day solar micro-periods on the agricultural calendar)

Baleful Asterisms

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Vermilion Bird

Doubled Mourning

Section Seven
Inauspicious Stars
(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English, however, "fits" directly below each character)

白 州

White, Landmass

————

Section Eight

Miscellaneous Items

(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English,

however, "fits" intuitively in the configuration of characters)

占

厠 門

Divination

Toilet, Gate

China's Lunar-Solar Calendar 2024 04-24

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

⇦⇦⇦⇦⇦ From right to left: ⇦⇦⇦⇦
4/29............................................................................................................................................................4/21

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-solar (or "luni-solar" calendar; I call it the "lunar" calendar in order to distinguish it from the kinds of calendars most Westerners use. It has a basic translation and minimal interpretation. 

As for interpreting the translation, unless you have been studying 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 (almost any "it" you will see). 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. And do not assume that people from China understand the traditional calendar particularly well, either. I have encountered confusion and furrowed brows for countless items in the calendar. It can seem "remote," in other words, from the world we live in these days, and yet it is printed anew every single year.

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. You will likely find that several of the translations seem quite "fanciful" in English. I am simply trying to convey that they also sound fairly fanciful in Chinese.

                                               Section One

                                         Solar Calendar Date

                                        (top to bottom, right to left)

廿

四

三期星

Fourth Month, Twenty-Fourth Day

Wednesday, April 24

————

 Section Two
Beneficent Stars 

(top to bottom, right to left)

十時

靈德

Timely Exemplarity

Ten Spirits

————

Section Three
Auspicious Hours
(top to bottom, right to left) 
申辰甲

吉中凶

酉巳乙

吉吉中

戌午寅

凶中凶

亥未卯

中吉吉

23:00-1:00 Inauspicious

 01:00-03:00 In-Between

 03:00-05:00 Inauspicious

 05:00-07:00 Auspicious

07:00-09:00 In-Between

  09:00-11:00 Auspicious

11:00-13:00 In-Between

13:00-15:00 Auspicious

15:00-17:00 Auspicious

17:00-19:00 Auspicious

19:00-21:00 Inauspicious

21:00-23:00 In-Between

————

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

忌

置買

渠田

Purchasing Land

Setting-up Industry

Section Five 
Cosmological Information

十

六

戊

午

火

參

滿

Sixteenth Day (Third Lunar Month)

Cyclical Day: wuwu (55/60)

Phase (element): Fire

"Constellation Personality: Gathering (21/28)

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

————

Section Six

Appropriate Activities

and Miscellaneous Information

(top to bottom; left to right)

宜

開祭

市祀

交會

易友

結出

網行

安理

牀髮

短

星

下復

兀喪

Appropriate Activities

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Venerating Ancestors

Meeting Friends

Going Out (and about)

Patterning Hair (Haircuts and Styling)

Opening Markets

Trade and Commerce

Binding Nets

Positioning Beds

Short Star

Baleful Asterisms

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Return Mourning

Lower Amputee

Section Seven
Inauspicious Stars
(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English, however, "fits" directly below each character)

丫 水

Bifurcation, Water

————

Section Eight

Miscellaneous Items

(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English,

however, "fits" intuitively in the configuration of characters)

房

碓 牀

Edifice

Pestle, Bed

China's Lunar-Solar Calendar 2024 04-23

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

⇦⇦⇦⇦⇦ From right to left: ⇦⇦⇦⇦
4/29............................................................................................................................................................4/21

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-solar (or "luni-solar" calendar; I call it the "lunar" calendar in order to distinguish it from the kinds of calendars most Westerners use. It has a basic translation and minimal interpretation. 

As for interpreting the translation, unless you have been studying 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 (almost any "it" you will see). 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. And do not assume that people from China understand the traditional calendar particularly well, either. I have encountered confusion and furrowed brows for countless items in the calendar. It can seem "remote," in other words, from the world we live in these days, and yet it is printed anew every single year.

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. You will likely find that several of the translations seem quite "fanciful" in English. I am simply trying to convey that they also sound fairly fanciful in Chinese.

                                       Section One

                                 Solar Calendar Date

                                (top to bottom, right to left)

廿

三

二期星

Fourth Month, Twenty-Third Day

Tuesday, April 23

————

 Section Two
Beneficent Stars 

(top to bottom, right to left)

陰五德天

德富合月

Heavenly Lunarity

Exemplary Linkage

Five Abundances

Yin Exemplarity

————

Section Three
Auspicious Hours
(top to bottom, right to left) 
申辰甲

中中中

酉巳乙

吉吉吉

戌午寅

凶吉中

亥未卯

凶吉凶

23:00-1:00 In-Between

 01:00-03:00 Auspicious

 03:00-05:00 In-Between

 05:00-07:00 Inauspicious

07:00-09:00 In-Between

  09:00-11:00 Auspicious

11:00-13:00 Auspicious

13:00-15:00 Auspicious

15:00-17:00 In-Between

17:00-19:00 Auspicious

19:00-21:00 Inauspicious

21:00-23:00 Inauspicious

————

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

忌

成除遠理

服靈行髮

Patterning Hair (Haircuts and Styling)

Distant Journeys

Exorcising Spirits

Completing Clothing

Section Five 
Cosmological Information

十

五

丁

巳

土

觜

除

Fifteenth Day (Third Lunar Month)

Cyclical Day: dingsi (54/60)

Phase (element): Earth

"Constellation Personality: Beak of the Turtle (20/28)

"Day Personality" Cycle: Discard (2/12)

————

Section Six

Appropriate Activities

and Miscellaneous Information

(top to bottom; left to right)

宜

上開納祭

樑市采祀

修交嫁祈

倉易娶福

栽修裁會

種造衣友

納動移訂

畜土徙婚

日重

楊劫五火

將煞虛星

Appropriate Activities

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Venerating Ancestors

Inquiring-into Fortune

Meeting Friends

Marriage Engagements

Grain Payments

Marriage Alliances

Cutting-out Clothing (Sewing and Tailoring)

Moving Residences

Opening Markets

Trade and Commerce

Repairing and Constructing

Moving Soil

Raising Beams

Repairing Granaries

Planting and Cultivating

Livestock Payments

Doubled Days

Baleful Asterisms

(top down, starting on the right; two characters each)

Fire Star

Five Voids

Plundered Balefulness

Poplar General

Section Seven
Inauspicious Stars
(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English, however, "fits" directly below each character)

丫 人

Bifurcation, Person

————

Section Eight

Miscellaneous Items

(the Chinese is read from right to left; the English,

however, "fits" intuitively in the configuration of characters)

牀 庫 倉

Bed, Storehouse, Granary