Chinese Astrology Signs & Compatibility

In Hindu philosophy and medicine, the human body is thought to contain seven major energy centers, or ‘chakras’. Each chakra is located at a major branching point of the human nervous system, starting at the base of the spinal column to the top of the head. Chakra is a Sanskrit word which literally means ‘wheel’ or ‘circle’. The energy centers themselves are often pictured as turning or active within the human body. Good health depends on keeping all seven chakras activated and in good balance with each other. The seven locations of the chakras are 1) at the very base of the spine (the Muladhara chakra), 2) at the level of the reproductive parts (the Svadhisthana chakra), 3) at the level of the navel (the Manipura chakra), 4) at the level of the heart (the Anhata chakra), 5) at the level of the throat (the Vishuddha chakra), 6) at the level of the eyebrow or forehead (the Ajna chakra), and 7) at the crown of the head (the Sahasrara chakra). Each of these seven chakras governs specific human qualities, energies, and abilities. One of the main purposes of the practice of yoga (which in the West is often mistakenly done purely as a form of physical exercise) is to bring all seven chakras into good alignment and balance. In future posts I’ll go over each of them briefly, listing the qualities associated with them and the problems that come from blockage or over-activity.

In Western medicine and astrology, most of the focus is on physical matter, the body, and the mind or personality. In the East however, the human body is understood to comprised of certain energy pathways and centers. The energy that flows through the human body in Chinese medicine and philosophy is called ‘qi’ (sometimes spelled ‘chi’). Qi flows through the living human body, but is also present in the earth and in all life and all matter. The art of Feng Shui concerns itself with placing objects so as to maximize the flow of qi, which is understood to be the vital energy that is the basic stuff of life itself. Matter, in this way of looking at things, is a container for qi, or life energy. Traditional Chinese medicine often treats illness as a blockage or problem with the flow of the qi energy. This is the idea behind acupuncture, for example; a Chinese medical practice in which needles are inserted into certain pressure points to redirect, stimulate, or lessen the flow of qi through the human body. The philosophy of yin and yang (which has been discussed earlier in this blog) also applies to the flow of qi through the universe and through persons. This notion that human beings are actually a sort of concentrated ‘energy flow’ is present in most Eastern cultures. The Indian system of seven energy centers called ‘chakras’ is somewhat more familiar to Westerners, many of whom have learned bout it through the now popular practice of yoga.

The original meaning of the Chinese word ‘yin’ was ’shady, secret, dark, mysterious, or cold’ and was associated with the feminine side of nature, all which is thought to have both masculine and feminine qualities. What is less understood however is that yin does not refer to specific qualities or substances so much as it does to the feminine side of an ongoing cycle of opposites. So everything ‘yin’ (shady, secret, dark, mysterious, or cold) has some proportion of ‘yang’ within it (illuminated, active, agressive, evident, bright, and warm), and the two are dynamically related in a cycle of constant change from one to the other.

Everything in nature and philosophy can be identified as either yin or yang. Earth is the ultimate yin nature; Heaven is the ultimate yang nature. In Chinese philosophy Taoism is yin; Confucianism is yang. According to the Chinese philosophy of the Tao, yin and yang do not just flow into and contain each other: in doing so, yin and yang actually become each other. So yin is always in some state of becoming yang, and yang is always in some state of becoming yin. This way of thinking can be difficult for Westerners, who tend to focus more on matter and objects, and less on the subtleties and dynamism of change.