Chinese astrology, like almost all other Chinese disciplines, reposes on four main pillars, which call for some succinct comments. These pillars are: the concept of Yang and Yin, the notion of the Five Elements, the patterns of all cosmic transformations, and finally the Chinese calendar.
 
 

"According to traditional teachings, there are two elements respectively that fit well together, while the other combinations are more difficult. Fire and air are considered to be masculine elements that are related to each other and harmonize well, as do the feminine elements of earth and water.
Popular astrological partnership predictions, usually follow this simple basic pattern. It’s obvious that we can get along well with the signs of the same element. After all, we are in our own element with them, which means we look at the world in the same way."

"What motivates people? What gets them out of bed in the morning? How do they go about getting what they want? Look to the position of Mars in the natal chart for answers."

"As you read this article, you are invited to imagine three different kinds of camp fire.

" Empedocles, a fifth century BCE Greek philosopher, originated the terms Fire, Earth, Air, and Water. He explained the nature of the universe as an interaction of two opposing principles called love and strife manipulating the four elements. He stated that these four elements were all equal, of the same age, that each rules its own province, and each posseses its own individual character. Different mixtures of these elements produced the different natures of things.

"As recently as a few thousand years ago, Western scientists considered the whole earth to be made of 4 elements: Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Even though science has taken a different turn, we can still use this ancient wisdom to make sense of the world."

Description of sign elementes and qualities: cardinal/fixed/mutable , fire/earth/air/water, active/receptive.

"Fire, Air, Earth, and Water, the four elements, sometimes called the Triplicities, play an important part in astrology. The term triplicities comes from the fact that there are three signs associated with each of the four elements.

"Astrology is mainly concerned with a narrow “belt” of space around the Sun’s apparent path across the sky. We call this belt the Zodiac and we divide it into twelve equal portions called Signs. Each sign is unique and has its own influence. They can, however, be grouped according to certain similarities. One way is by Element, or basic character. The other way to group signs is by Quality, or by how they tend to act. "