What Is Tibetan Astrology? Reading Fate Through Element, Mewa and Parkha

The animal year paired with an element

The Tibetan calendar has its own set of twelve animal years — Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Bird, Dog, and Pig — closely mirroring the animals used in Japan and China.

These are combined with the Five Great Elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. Because the element changes every two years, the combination of animal and element repeats on a 60-year cycle — hence phrases like "Wood Tiger year" or "Fire Rabbit year."

Wood is a growing force governing expansion and development; Fire, a burning force governing passion and change; Earth, a supporting force governing stability and accumulation; Metal, a cutting force governing decisiveness and refinement; and Water, a circulating force governing intellect and adaptability.

What the Mewa is

The Mewa is a number from 1 to 9, each tied to a colour: 1, 6 and 8 are white; 2 is black; 3 is blue; 4 is green; 5 is yellow; and 7 and 9 are red. It draws on the same idea as the nine stars of the Chinese Luo Shu diagram, and is calculated with the same formula used for a Nine Star Ki Birth Star.

A white Mewa represents purity and a fresh start; a black Mewa, strength gained by overcoming obstacles; a blue Mewa, vitality and drive; a green Mewa, harmony and good relationships; a yellow Mewa, influence from standing at the centre; and a red Mewa, passion and honour.

The Parkha (trigram) is calculated differently by gender

The Parkha is Tibetan astrology's counterpart to the eight trigrams of the I Ching: Li (Fire), Kun (Earth), Da (Lake), Ken (Heaven), Kan (Water), Gon (Mountain), Shin (Thunder), and Son (Wind).

A distinctive feature of Tibetan astrology is that the Parkha formula itself differs by gender. For men, it's the remainder, divided by 8, of (100 minus the last two digits of the birth year) divided by 3; for women, the remainder, divided by 8, of (the last two digits of the birth year plus 4) divided by 3. This reflects an Eastern philosophical idea that the flow of yin and yang runs in opposite directions for men and women.

This site uses the male formula whenever "prefer not to say" is chosen for gender, and states this plainly in the full reading in the interest of transparency about how the number was derived.

How this site calculates it

The animal year is found on a 12-year cycle from 1924 as the base Rat year, and the element cycles through the Five Great Elements based on the animal-year index divided by two. The Mewa uses the same Start-of-Spring-corrected formula as a Nine Star Ki Birth Star, and the Parkha uses the gender-specific formulas above.

A given day's fortune is calculated by combining your animal-year compatibility with today's day-branch (weighing relationships such as the Three Harmonies, Six Combinations, and Clashes) with the relationship between your element and today's day-stem element. Your lucky colour comes from your Five Great Element, and your lucky item and direction from your Parkha.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Tibetan New Year?

Losar falls in February or March according to the lunisolar calendar, so people born in the first months of the year may belong to the previous animal-element year. This site's year boundary is described in the calculation section.

Why is the Parkha calculated differently for men and women?

The trigram is counted in one direction for men and the opposite direction for women, a rule rooted in yin-yang theory. Two people born in the same year can therefore have different trigrams.

What is Lungta?

The 'wind horse', a symbol of fortune seen on Tibetan prayer flags. In astrology it is one of the four aspects read for each person, representing luck and momentum.

Is Tibetan astrology connected to Tibetan medicine?

Yes. The two developed together, and the calendar is used to time treatments. This site's reading contains no medical judgement.

Is the Mewa the same as the Nine Star Ki star?

Both derive from the same 3x3 magic square, but the colour assignments and the year boundary differ, so the numbers do not always match.

Where can I see a Tibetan calendar?

Annual almanacs are published by institutions such as the Men-Tsee-Khang and are available through Tibetan bookshops and websites. This site does not provide detailed day-selection from the almanac.