Zodiac ranking 1, folk story theory
Xuanyuan Huangdi wanted to choose twelve kinds of animals as court guards, and the cat asked the mouse to sign up. As a result, the mouse forgot, and since then, the cat has been seeking revenge when it sees the mouse. Originally, the cow pushed first, and the mouse sneaked up the cow's back and took the lead. Not convinced, the tiger and dragon were named as mountain gods and sea gods, ranking behind cattle. The rabbit refused to accept it and wanted to race the dragon. The rabbit ran in front of the dragon. The dog was so angry that he didn't want to bite the rabbit that he was finally punished. Snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys and chickens also went through some contests, and finally pigs came to occupy the last position.
This legend also explains why there are no cats in the zodiac. In fact, there were no cats in ancient China, and the zodiac was formed when domestic cats were introduced to China. This legend, which is similar to children's stories, is far from a scientific explanation of the problem.
2. Animal habit theory
In Qing Dynasty, Liu Xianyan quoted Li Changqing from Miscellaneous Notes of Yang Guang Matsushita Pavilion.
Why do children belong to mice? Yue: Born in the child, it will not open until it dies. Rats eat insects. Therefore, in night is still young, positive mice have to wait, so children belong to mice. The ground is ugly, and the cow opens the ground, so ugliness belongs to the cow. If born in yin, if born, kill. Murderer, tiger, Yin people, fear. If you are awesome, you are a tiger, then Yin is a tiger. At the end of the day, the sun rises. In vitro, it contains the essence of Taiyin Jade Rabbit, so it is a rabbit. The morning of divination in March is when the dragon rains, so the morning belongs to the dragon. The last person, divination in April, was lush and the snake was in its place. Also, when a snake is not on the road, it is a snake. At noon, the sun is born, and the sun is born. Horses are healthy, never leave the ground, and belong to the shade, so they belong to horses in the afternoon. The reason why a sheep is not a sheep is that it has sprouted after eating untimely grass. When applying, the ape cries at sunset, and the arm is also applied. By analogy, chaos runs rampant, so the application belongs to monkeys. Unitary, the moon comes out, the moon is the body, containing the essence of the sun golden rooster, so it belongs to the chicken. When it is night, the dog is night, so it is a dog. When the sea and the world are chaotic, if all fruits are centered on business and pigs know nothing but food, then they are pigs.
This theory explains the attachment relationship between earthly branches and Xiao beasts from the perspective of twelve o'clock day and night. There are congenital defects in holding this theory. The Zodiac and the Zodiac were originally used to mark the day and year, and the marking time is the result of expanding the scope of use. Some explanations seem too far-fetched
3. Yin-Yang and Five Elements Theory
In Ming Dynasty, Ye pointed out in "Caomuzi" that twelve kinds of animals were arranged because of physical defects.
There are twelve Xiao's and twelve Chen's, and each Xiao has its own shortcomings, such as rats without teeth, cows without teeth, tigers without spleen, rabbits without lips, dragons without ears, snakes without feet, horses without intestines, sheep without gods, monkeys without hips, chickens without kidneys, dogs without intestines, pigs without tendons, and people without shortcomings. ?
However, Lang Ying, a scholar in Ming Dynasty, refuted in seven revisions of the manuscript. Ordinary things are more than twelve incomplete people? ? He proposed? Underground branch is next? Don't look at the number of toes A mouse has four paws on its front foot, with even numbers of yin, five paws on its back foot and odd numbers of yang. The first half of the child is the shadow of the night before, and the second half is the sun of the day, just using the mouse to symbolize the child. The four claws of cattle, sheep, pig's trotters and chickens, plus the four claws of rabbits lacking lips and the tongue of snakes, should all be even, belonging to Yin, accounting for six. Tigers have five claws, dragon five has five claws, and monkeys and dogs have five claws. Horseshoe is round but not divided, all of them are odd numbers, belonging to Yang, plus rats belonging to Yang, accounting for six branches.
It is not Lang Ying's original creation that the theory of Yin and Yang explains the arrangement of the zodiac. Hong Zao, a scholar in the Song Dynasty, had a similar view in Niangu Miscellanies. Lang Ying also combined animal temperament with the theory of Yin and Yang, and concretized the reasons for sorting:
If the child is a cathode, it is to hide gloom and match with the mouse; Rats hide their tracks. Afternoon is the anode, showing vitality. Match horses; This horse runs very fast. Ugliness is yin, condescending, and matching with cattle; Cows give birth to calves. Not for yang, but for courtesy, with sheep; Sheep have kneeling breasts. Yin is three yang, yang wins violence, and the tiger matches it; Tigers are violent. Shen is three yin, yin wins, and monkeys match it; Geye. The sun is born in the east, and there is a chicken in the west. The moon is born in the west and doesn't need the east. This means yin and yang, so it is the private door of the sun and the moon. Today, the rabbit licked its male hair and got pregnant. When the chickens walked together, they couldn't see. Both of them felt it, but they didn't pay. Therefore, You Mao is a sony pictures animation. Tatsumi rises and moves in the sun. Dragons thrive, followed by snakes, so dragons and snakes are in harmony. Dragon snake, a constantly changing thing. When the sea is silent, dogs stay up all night and pigs are calm, so dogs and pigs match. Dogs and pigs are also things to keep. ?