Derek Walters
Softcover, 411 pp
Price: $AUD24.95
Published by Simon & Schuster Australia Lower Ground Floor 14-16 Suakin Street (PO Box 33) PYMBLE NSW 2073 AUSTRALIA
ISBN: 1842930257
Chinese Astrology is obviously a highly specialized book that would suit readers that are looking to supplement an educational activity or course. In order to get an understanding of this oriental system of using astrology, Walters goes into a comprehensive look at the history and evolutionary development of it. This is certainly not for the faint-hearted but is essential for a good understanding of the underpinning of this system.
Derek Walters is Europe's foremost authority on Chinese astrology (even though he lives in Morecombe, Lancashire), respected not only for his thorough academic knowledge of the subject, but also as an actual practitioner of Chinese divination.
Through reading this book I found out about some of the interesting differences between Chinese and Western astrology. Western astrology uses the movement of planetary bodies moving along the ecliptic; in Chinese astrology the lunar zodiac is of prime importance. In the lunar zodiac system, the sky is divided into twenty-eight segments, each one representing a day of the moon's path through the sky. This topic is covered in detail in Chapter 4 and includes both a traditional and modern explanation/interpretation for each segment.
Another interesting piece of information I found while reading Chinese Astrology is that this system uses the whole sky, not just the area along the ecliptic, in reading signs and omens in the sky. This fact alone gives you a glimpse of the complexity of Chinese Astrology.
This book is a great addition to the astrology addict's personal library and covers more than just Chinese astrology. As can be seen from the chapter listing below the history and development of this system of divination is comprehensively covered, as well as Feng Shui.
The contents are dividing into the following chapters:
1. Introducing Chinese Astrology 2. Pentology 3. The Chinese Calendar 4. The Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions 5. Early Chinese Astronomical Tests 6. The Astrological Treatise of Sau Ma Chíen 7. Divination Plates and Feng Shui 8. Chinese Horoscopes from the Eighth to the Twentieth Centuries
At the back of the book you will find appendices - tables, bibliography, bibliographical appendix and an index. This is helpful if you want to go to source material yourself or research a particular topic further. The Appendices are particularly bulky and include: The Hundred K'o; Date of the 24 Chí for the Years 1900-2000; The 24 Qi; Stem and Branch Combinations; Conversion Table - Western Zodiac to Equalatorial Hsiu; Table to Calculate the Mid-Heaven House; Conversion Table of Chinese Phonetics; plus many more.
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