In general, though not always, the
zodiac is divided into 27 or 28 segments relative to the
vernal equinox point or the
fixed stars – one for each day of the
lunar month. (A
sidereal month lasts about days.) The Moon's position is charted with respect to those fixed segments. Since the Moon's position at any given stage will vary according to Earth's position in
its own orbit, lunar stations are an effective system for keeping track of the passage of seasons. Various cultures have used sets of lunar stations
astrologically; for example, the
Jyotisha astrological
nakshatras of Hindu culture, the Arabic manzils (
manāzil al-qamar), the
Twenty-Eight Mansions of
Chinese astronomy, and the 36
decans of
Egyptian astronomy.
Western astrology does not use stations, but each
zodiac sign covers two or three. The Chinese system groups houses into four groups related to the seasons. The concept of lunar stations is thought to originate in
Babylonian astronomy. According to Galaal, the Somali peninsula itself was traditionally divided into seven distinct weather districts, each with regional variations in the names and interpretation of these stations.
Chinese 宿 xiù The
28 Lunar Mansions, or more precisely
lodgings () are the
Chinese and
East Asian form of the lunar stations. They can be considered as the equivalent to the Western
zodiac, although the 28 stations reflect the movement of the Moon through a
sidereal month rather than the Sun in a
tropical year; (cf.
Solar term). In their final form, they embodied the astral forms of the
Four Symbols: two real and two legendary animals important in traditional
Chinese culture, such as
feng shui.
Indian nakshatra The
nakshatras (or more precisely
nákṣatra, lit. "stars") are the
Indian form of lunar stations. They usually number 27 but sometimes 28 and their names are related to the most prominent constellations in each sector. In modern practice they start from a point on the ecliptic precisely opposite the star
Spica (Sanskrit:
Chitrā) and develop eastwards but the oldest traditional method was to use the Vernal Equinox point as the starting point of Ashvini Nakshatra. In classical
Hindu mythology, the creation of the nakshatras is attributed to
Daksha. The nakshatras were wives of
Chandra, the moon god. The nakshatras of traditional
Hindu astronomy are based on a list of 28 asterisms found in the
Atharvaveda (AVŚ 19.7) and also in the
Shatapatha Brahmana. The first astronomical text that lists them is the
Vedanga Jyotisha. The stations are important parts of
Indian astrology.
Arabic manzil In the traditional
Arabic astrological system, the new moon was seen to move through 28 distinct
manāzil (singular:
manzil "house") during the normal solar year, each
manzil lasting, therefore, for about 13 days. One or more
manazil were then grouped into a
nawaa (plural
anwaa) which were tied to a given weather pattern. In other words, the yearly pattern was divided in the following manner: A year was divided into
anwaa, each of which was made up of one more
manazil, which were associated with a dominant star or constellation. These stars and constellations were sometimes, but not always, connected in some way to constellations in the
Zodiac. Moreover, as the
anwaa repeat on a regular, solar cycle, they can be correlated to fixed points on the Gregorian calendar. The following table is a breakdown of the
anwaa and their position on the Gregorian calendar. : The dates above are approximate; notice that there are 2 days missing from a solar year in the table above. :} همرَاكيل
ﭐلْغَفْر لومَائِيل
ﭐلْزُّبَانَى سرهمَاكيل
ﭐلْإِكْلِيل \ ﭐلْإِكْلِيلُ ﭐلْجَبْهَة اهجمَائِيل
ﭐلْقَلْب عطرَائِيل
ﭐلْشَّوْلَة امواكيل
ﭐلْنَّعَائَم همرَائِيل
ﭐلْبَلْدَة عَزْرَائِيل سَعْدُ ﭐلْذَّابِح \ ﭐلْذَّابِح مِيكَائِيل سَعْدُ ﭐلْبُلْعَ \ ﭐلْبُلْعَ مهكَائِيل سَعْدُ ﭐلْسُّعُود \ ﭐلْسُّعُود
اهرَافِيل سَعْدُ ﭐلْأَخْبِيَّه \ ﭐلْأَخْبِيَّه عطكَائِيل فَرْغُ ﭐلْدَّلُو ﭐلْمُقْدِم \ ﭐلْمُقْدِم تورَائِيل فَرْغُ ﭐلْدَّلُو ﭐلْمُؤْخَر \ ﭐلْمُؤْخَر لوخَائِيل ﭐلْرَّشَاء \ بَطْنُ ﭐلْحُوت Also, the following letters has no alphabetical value in
numerology of the Abjad system known as
"Ilm ul-ʾAdad". Notes of the table above in accordance to strict traditional Arab Islamic astronomy and theology: (1) the Arabic alphabet resonates the alphabetical value in
numerology of the Abjad system known as "
Ilm ul-
ʾAdad". (2) the
ʿAmal (Islamic view of angels, equivalent to rank of the "Watcher" or "Guardian Angel") is the Angel that rules the corresponding Arabic alphabet (rhythm of the alphabet in
numerology of the Abjad system),
manazilu-l-qamar (lunar houses) and constellations (i.e. zodiac signs). Generally speaking, the four Archangels in Islam ace
Jibrāʼīl,
Mīkāʼīl,
ʼIsrāfīl and Malaku-l-Maut (
ʿAzrāʼīl). (3) the alphabetical orders follows the sequence of the original
abjadī order (أَبْجَدِي), used for
lettering, derives from the order of the
Phoenician alphabet, and is therefore similar to the order of other Phoenician-derived alphabets, such as the
Hebrew alphabet. In this order, letters are also used as numbers,
Abjad numerals, and possess the same alphanumeric code/
cipher as Hebrew
gematria and Greek
isopsephy. (4) those angel name with an "asterisk" needs source citation upon Arabic transliteration but the given is the closest pronunciation based upon uttering the consonants. A few of the numerical values are different in the alternative Abjad order. For four Persian letters these values are used: : ==See also==