The Big Dipper is composed of seven stars: Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji, Tianquan, Yuheng, Kaiyang and Yaoguang.
These seven stars resemble the shape of an ancient bucket used to ladle wine, hence the name Big Dipper. Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji, and Tianquan form the body of the fight, which was called "Kui" in ancient times; Yuheng, Kaiyang, and Yaoguang form the handle of the fight, which was called "Lao" in ancient times. The Big Dipper is the maker of the order of heaven and earth. Spring birth, summer growth, autumn harvest, and winter storage all come with the direction of the Big Dipper.
The Big Dipper appears in different directions in the sky in different seasons and at different times of the night, so the ancients determined the season based on the direction in which the handle pointed at dusk: when the handle points to the east, it means spring; When the bucket handle points to the south, the world is summer; when the bucket handle points to the west, the world is autumn; when the bucket handle points to the north, the world is winter.
The alternation of seasons is closely related to the "yellow-red angle". The yellow-red angle is the fundamental reason for the changes in the four seasons and the distinction between the five zones on the earth. It affects the natural geographical phenomena that are closely related to it. Ancient people could guide agricultural production to the right time according to the direction of the Big Dipper in the night sky.
Introduction to the calendar of the Big Dipper:
1. Dou Jian?
The Big Dipper indicates December. "Huainanzi Tianwen Xun" says: " The four dimensions of the emperor's movement are determined by fighting. The moon moves for one hour and returns to its place. The first month refers to Yin and the twelfth month refers to Chou. It turns one year old and ends again. "The "Dou" here refers to the Big Dipper. bucket handle. In ancient times, the movement of the Big Dipper was used to calculate monthly orders, and the star pointed by the handle of the Dipper was called "Dou Jian." It is also the "month construction" in the calendar.
"Hanshu·Lülizhi 1": "The beginning of the day is the festival, and the twelfth chen is the day when the battle is built, and the next step is known based on its construction." In "Hanshu·Lüli" It is very clear in "Zhi": "Chen refers to the meeting of the sun and the moon." This shows that Chen refers to the construction of the moon. The "(month) Jian refers to" mentioned here refers to the Beidou, which is called Dou Jian. For example, the annotation of "Historical Records·Almanac" says: "The twelfth month is built according to the point of Doubiao."
"Five Elements of Justice·Qi Zheng" quotes "Shang Shu Wei" as saying: "The Beidou resides in the sky, above Kunlun, and moves to the point, following the twenty-four Qi, at the twelve o'clock, in the twelve months... ...States and states are divided into different years, and everyone must govern them. ""Book of Rites·Yue Ling": "The month of Meng Chun," Zheng notes: "Meng, Chang Ye. They meet and divide, and they are built in the four seasons. This is when the sun and the moon meet in Suzi, and it is the time when Dou Jian Yin is born. Dou, the Big Dipper, rotates along the sky, with the first month and the first celestial being, the 30th degree of the celestial being and the 42nd of the 96th degree. The first month is Yin, the second month is Mao, the third month is Jianyin, and the fourth month is Si. The month is Jian Wu, the sixth month is Jian Wei, the seventh month is Jian Shen, the eighth month is You, the ninth month is Xu, the tenth month is Hai, the eleventh month is Zi, and the twelfth month is Chouye.”
When the Big Dipper appears at first dusk, the handle pointing to Yin is the first month, the handle pointing to Mao is February, the handle pointing to Chen is March, the handle to Si is April, the handle to noon is May, and the handle to Wei is May. It's June, and the bucket handle refers to July. When the bucket handle points to You, it is August, when the bucket handle points to Xu, it is September, when the bucket handle points to Hai, it is October, and when the bucket handle points to Zi, it is November. The bucket handle refers to the ugly month of December. ?
2. Fixed age
China’s astrology culture has a long history and is profound. The ancients began to explore the mysteries of the universe very early, and thus deduced a complete and profound set of concepts. Star culture. The Big Dipper is an important star in the northern hemisphere (China is located in the northern hemisphere). The Big Dipper rotates cyclically. When the stars move, the natural rhythm of the corresponding areas in the northern hemisphere also gradually changes. Therefore, it became the basis for ancient people to judge seasonal changes.
The twenty-four solar terms were originally formulated based on the rotation directions of the handles of the Big Dipper. The Big Dipper rotates cyclically. This star shift is closely related to the seasonal changes. The rotation of the Big Dipper corresponds to one day, one month, and one year when observed on the earth. The North Celestial Pole is divided into 12 spatial locations including Zi, Chou, Yin, and Mao. The Big Dipper rotates around it, and its monthly, daily, and daily The celestial phenomena that appear at this time are like the regular shifts of the hour, minute, and second hands of a clock.
The cyclical changes of the sun on a daily and annual basis and the moon on a daily and monthly basis also play a role in the clock calendar.
The ancients abstracted the ten heavenly stems and twelve earthly branches to record the calendar by analyzing the regularity and cycles of the movements of the sun, moon, time, and the Big Dipper. The Big Dipper travels through the twelve houses by year and day, and the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter in a year are consistent with the movements of morning, noon, dusk, and night in a day.
That is, it is built with Dougang, which travels to Yin, Mao, and Chen palaces in spring, Si, Wu, and Wei palaces in summer, Shen, You, and Xu palaces in autumn, and Hai, Zi, and Chou palaces in winter; On one day, go to the Yin, Mao, and Chen palaces in the morning, the Si, Wu, and Wei palaces at noon, the Shen, You, and Xu palaces at dusk, and the Hai, Zi, and Chou palaces at night. According to the comparison, the day of the spring festival rises in the east, the summer festival day is midday, the autumn festival day sets, and the winter festival day turns backward.
In this way, the movements of the Big Dipper reflect the changes in climate throughout the year and temperature during the day, as well as the cycles of cold, warmth, dryness, and humidity, and can also reveal the geographical location.
The above content refers to Baidu Encyclopedia - Big Dipper