Takeo Mori and Dragan Milenkovic collaborated on this little book, published by Tengu Books in 1993. Secrets of Japanese Astrology: The Science of Kigaku gives a brief overview of the historical connection between Chinese and Japanese culture, which paved the way for Chinese Astrology to become part of Japanese Astrology.
At just under 100 pages, we get a taste of how to determine personal compatibility and basic character analysis when combining the Chinese Zodiac signs with the “Nine Star Ki” stars.
In all astrological systems, we know that the more specific we get with birth data, the more accurate it can be. For Western astrology, pop culture emphasizes the monthly zodiac signs (Aries, Taurus, Gemini, etc), but if you use the services of a professional astrologer, they will factor in a lot more than just your “Sun” sign. Your whole chart factors in year, month, day, and hour of birth, along with place of birth being essential as well.
In Nine Star Ki, the fundamentals came from ancient Chinese metaphysics and then the Japanese ran with it centuries later, to develop it much further. This book does not get into any depth, but it is a modest introduction to one slice of Nine Star Ki, focused on compatibility. In Nine Star Ki, each person has a signature Year Star based on year of birth and there are nine stars. In Feng Shui, we use the Nine Stars in both similar and different ways.
The authors give a description of the personality traits, strengths and weaknesses for each star. In a section on compatibility for marriage partners or even business partners, they introduce the readers to Five Element Theory. After memorizing the relationships between the Five Elements, it becomes easy to know immediately if you are in a productive, giving relationship with another person or if there is more of a controlling, dominating relationship. This is quite insightful and similar notions are brought forth in the Eight Mansion School of Feng Shui, Flying Star School and Ba Zi (Chinese Astrology). The authors even claim that if the dynamic between certain family members is not good, that Japanese parents would plan the timing of another child in order to create more family harmony.
Next comes a description of the twelve Chinese/Japanese zodiac signs, which are based on year of birth. This is stand-alone information, which can be found elsewhere in Chinese Astrology books, but then we get into a unique feature of the book when the authors combine the zodiac signs with the nine stars. For example, we get a different reading for a person born in the Year of the Rat if they are born in a 1 Water, 4 Wood, or 7 Metal year. Likewise, a person born in the Year of the Ox, they may be a 3 Wood, 6 Metal or 9 Fire Ox.
This is not the same as the classical Chinese Astrology system where we combine Five Elements with Twelve Zodiac Signs. 5 x 12 = 60 and this is why the grand cycle in Chinese Astrology lasts for 60 years before it repeats. To be clear, a “Fire Ox” in Chinese astrology is not the same system as this Japanese pairing where the person is an Ox and also happens to be an overlapping 9 Fire Star (from Nine Star Ki.) For example, 1973 is an Ox year. It is also a 9 Fire Star year (in Nine Star Ki as well as the Annual year star in Feng Shui). In Chinese Ba Zi astrology, 1973 is a Yang Water Ox year. One must be careful when overlapping different domains.
I don’t know if this pairing of a Nine Ki Star with a Chinese zodiac sign is an ancient system or a relatively later development, but this angle distinguishes the book from other Chinese Astrology books as well as from other Nine Star Ki books.
They also provide nifty Table Charts for the Elements as they relate to seasons and the 12 Chinese zodiac signs are also assigned to the double hours spanning a 24-hour day. This can be useful information when trying to plan and schedule activities in optimal timing.
The book concludes with a very old Chinese system called the Emperor’s Seasons. Based on the season of birth, each sign is related to a body area and a life interpretation. For example, a person born in the year of the Dragon in the summer has a different synopsis from a Dragon person born in the winter.
There is also a moment in the Appendix where “Fortunes of Houses” is discussed in terms of directions and classic Form School, but the phrase “feng shui” is never mentioned. Recommendations are given regarding rooms and directions, but the theory behind these proclamations is not made obvious. They note that if a southwest sector is missing, it can hurt the mother (Feng Shui Eight Trigram theory), but they also note that if the Southeast sector is missing, the occupants may have problems with documents (a non-traditional twist taken from Nine Star Ki because Nine Star Ki is not directly transferable to Feng Shui environments.)
Throughout this section, the authors imply that Japanese builders and architects historically paid close attention to how the person’s home should accommodate and accentuate natural features of the land it’s built on. This includes certain rooms in certain directions, taking advantage of the Sun’s rising and setting pattern. Some of the proclamations I agree with and come straight out of Feng Shui Eight Trigram Theory, such as the house with a diminished northwest may undermine the father in the house. Other generalizations I disagree with, such as the admonition to not have water features inside the house. False!
I see Secrets of Japanese Astrology as not essential reading for Feng Shui, Chinese Astrology or Nine Star Ki students or practitioners. But it will be interesting to those who like to cross-reference different astrological systems on a beginner’s level or delve into some complementary divinatory practices and beliefs from the science of Kigaku.
Author: Kartar Diamond
Company: Feng Shui Solutions ®
From the Book Review Blog Series
