Astrology is often related to predictions; but it is more than that, in fact, it is a science of planets through which one can gain knowledge about himself and the environment he or she lives in. Well, astrology is divided into many streams and Chinese astrology is one of the most significant as well as followed science. One can define Chinese astrology as divination of the future from the Chinese calendar, which is based on astronomy, and ancient Chinese philosophy. In particular, it is based on the age-old sexagenary cycle of sixty years that have been documented since the time of the Shang Dynasty till date.

This basic cycle has been constructed from two cycles, such as the 10 heavenly stems, i.e. the five elements in their yin and yang forms and the 12 earthly branches, or the 12-year cycle of animals referred to as the Chinese zodiac. The Chinese animal zodiac operates on a cycle of the moon in a month and hours of the day. This zodiac refers to a pure calendrical cycle. In this there are equivalent constellations like those of the occidental zodiac. In ancient times there were astrologers who watched the sky for heavenly symbols and then would predict the future. The predictions ware done on many things like the state, but this was a quite different practice of divination from the popular present-day methods.