THE DAY OF THE RED SNAKE

In 1267, Kublai Khan also invited the renowned astronomer Jamal al-Din al-Bukhari from the Maragha Observatory of the Hulagu Ulus.1¹The Hulegu Ulus, or Ilkhanate (1256–1335)was a state formed by Chinggis Khan's grandson Hulegu, which occupied the lands of present-day Iran, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, and several other countriesIn 1271, Kublai established the Institute of Muslim Astronomy, and an observatory was built in the capital Khan BalgasiThe Mongolian name for the capital of the Yuan Empire, present-day Beijing. The city is also known as Khanbaliqfor the invited Muslim astronomers, where more than thirty scholars worked under the leadership of al-Bukhari.

In 1276, Kublai Khan commissioned engineer Guo Shoujing (1231–1316) to develop a new calendar. To accomplish this, Guo Shoujing reorganized the Khanbaliq Observatory. Using new instruments and previous observations, he determined the year length to be 365.2425 days (only 0.0003 days longer than modern measurements). This value matched the precision of the Gregorian calendar, which would not appear until 300 years later, in 1582, and was used in the Shoushi Li calendar, the work on which was completed in 1281. The Shoushi Li calendar was used for several centuries under the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

The third wave and final wave of Buddhist teachings occurred after the fall of the Yuan Empire in the mid-sixteenth century. Kublai Khan's descendant Altan Khan (1507–1582) invited the prominent Lama of that time, Sonam Gyatso, to Mongolia. Altan Khan presented the Lama with a golden seal inscribed with 'The Seal of Vajradhara—Dalai Lama. May there be victory!' Sonam Gyatso became the first person to be officially granted the title of Dalai Lama. 'Dalai' in Mongolian means 'ocean', and 'Dalai Lama' translates to 'Ocean of Wisdom', implying that his compassion and knowledge are comparable to the ocean. Dalai Lama Sonam Gyatso founded many monasteries in Mongolia and contributed to the spread of Buddhism throughout the country.

In Mongolia, the Mahayana (Great Vehicle) and Vajrayana (Preliminary Vehicle) branches of Buddhism are widely practiced. In both of these traditions, astrology is taken very seriously, and it is not hugely different from astronomy.

In the Tibetan-Mongolian Buddhist educational system, astronomy and astrology are considered one of the traditional sciences. The Buddhist educational system encompasses five major fields of knowledge, known as the 'Five Great Sciences' (in Mongolian, Ikh Tavan Ukhaan), and five auxiliary fields of knowledge, known as the 'Five Minor Sciences' (in Mongolian, Baga Tavan Ukhaan).

The five major sciences are linguistics (Mong. duun ukhaan), logic (Mong. uchir shaltgaany ukhaan), medicine and pharmacology (Mong. anagaakh/tejeekhüyn ukhaan), arts and crafts (Mong. urlakhuyn ukhaan), and self-knowledge, which includes Buddhist philosophy, psychology, and meditation (Mong. dotood ukhaan).

The five minor sciences include poetry (Mong. zokhist ayalguu), rhetoric (Mong. ilt ögüülеkh), versification (Mong. evsüülen nairuulakh), acting and dance (Mong. duurial büjig), and astronomy, astrology, and mathematics (Mong. odon zurkhai). It is worth noting that students studying medicine were required to study astrology, whereas astrologers were not obligated to study medicine.

In Judaism, many prominent authorities rejected astrology. In Christianity, astrology was banned by the Council of Laodicea (fourth century AD). In Islam, astrology was often equated with witchcraft and considered sinful, even with many famous astronomers and astrologers from the Muslim world, such as Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, Al-Biruni, and Ulugh Beg, being well-known in history.

In Buddhism and Hinduism, however, astrology is part of religious teachings, philosophy, and medicine. In AyurvedaiAn alternative form of medicine originating in Indiaand Tibetan medicine, astrology is used for diagnosis alongside other methods.

Astrology in Mongolian is called 'Zurkhai.' The word 'Zurkhai' comes from the verb 'zurakh', meaning 'to draw' or 'to trace'. This is because Lamas used to perform mathematical calculations with a sharp stick on special blackboards sprinkled with ash. A specific algorithm was used where each newly calculated number was written after erasing the previous one with ash. At the end of the calculation, only the final result remained on the board.

The Mongolian physician, philosopher, and thirtieth-generation descendant of Genghis Khan, Luvsandanzanjantsan, who lived in the seventeenth century (1639–1704), wrote such well-known works as 'The Essence of Astrology: A Light Clarifying What to Accept and What to Reject' ('Zurkhain Gol Avkh Orkhiig Todotgogch Gerel') and ‘The Guide to Shid Astrology’ ('Shidiin Zurkhain Garin Avlaga'). From the seventeenth century onwards, specialized colleges, called datsans, dedicated entirely to medicine—such as the 'Mamba Datsan'—and to astrology—such as the 'Zurkhain Datsan' (Astrological Datsan)—began to be established in monasteries.

The Mongolian historian and philosopher Sümbe Khambo Ishbaljir (1704–1788) adapted astrology and Tibetan medicine to Mongolian geographical latitudes and local plants, writing the treatise 'New Astrology of Perfect Virtue' ('Tögs Buyant Shine Zurkhai'). Later, in the eighteenth to twentieth centuries, many famous astrologers lived and wrote in Mongolia, such as Tsakhar Gewsh Luvsanchültëm (1740–1810), Mindjuurdorj (seventeenth century), Doyodbaldan (1860–1920), and many others.

Tibetan-Mongolian calendars and horoscopes are based on the teachings and sutra 'Kalachakra Tantra', which the Buddha taught 2,800 years ago in Andhra Pradesh, South India. From India, the teachings spread to Burma* [*modern-day Myanmar], the Malay Peninsula, and Indonesia, but by the fourteenth century, the Kalachakra teachings had been lost in these regions. Between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries, the teachings were transmitted from India to Tibet, and today, the lines of transmission exist within Buddhist schools such as Sakya, Kagyu, and Gelug. In Mongolia, the Gelug tradition—known in Mongolian as 'Sharyn Shashin' (Yellow Faith)—is widespread, and there are also followers of the Kagyu tradition, known in Mongolian as 'Ulaany Shashin' (Red Faith).

Kalachakra in Sanskrit means 'Wheel of Time', and in Mongolian, it is 'Tsagiin Khüree' (tsag—time, khüree—rotating circle). In Mongolia, it is also referred to as the 'Teaching of the Wheel of Time', as well as by its Tibetan name, 'Düinkhor'.

The leader of the Buddhist Sangha Bogd Gegeen IV (1775–1813) received the Kalachakra initiation from Lama Lhova Jalsrai in Lhasa in 1804. In 1806, he founded the Düinkhor Datsan (monastic college) in the capital of Mongolia, Ikh Khüree (Mong. Great Monastery, modern-day Ulaanbaatar), where the Kalachakra sutra was studied. Following this, the Teaching of the Wheel of Time began to spread in Mongolia, and Düinkhor Datsans started to be established in monasteries. In the nineteenth century, the Kalachakra teachings were transmitted to the Buryats of Siberia, and in the twentieth century, the Kalachakra teachings spread among the Kalmyks along the Volga River and in Tuva. In Buryatia, Kalmykia, and Tuva, departments dedicated to Düinkhor began to appear in monasteries.

According to this teaching, time is the measure of external changes in the world and the universe, as well as internal changes in the human body, which are both cyclical. External changes include cycles of the sun, moon, planets, seasons, lunar phases, et cetera, and the Kalachakra sutras contain complex mathematical formulas and algorithms for calculating these cycles. This constitutes the astronomical, astrological, and cosmological aspects of Kalachakra. Internal body cycles include life stages such as childhood, maturity, old age, menstrual cycles, sleep cycles, and breathing, and the Kalachakra literature contains descriptions of the human body and explanations and descriptions of the energy system using concepts such as 'chakras', 'channels', and 'drops'. These descriptions are also part of Tibetan medicine.

In Tibetan-Mongolian astronomy and astrology, external cycles encompass the movements of the sun, moon, five planets, lunar phases, the twenty-seven lunar constellations, and the sixty-year Jupiter cycle. The Tibetan-Mongolian calendar is lunisolar, meaning it uses lunar months and a solar year. This calendar measures the intervals of time between new moons. Twelve lunar months are shorter than a solar year, so occasionally, approximately once every three years, a leap month is added.

External and internal cycles are, of course, interconnected. People experience these cycles according to their karma, as a result of their thoughts, words, and deeds, performed both in this life and past reincarnations. Therefore, people have limited ability to directly influence their fate and existence within these cycles.

However, there is also a third cycle of time, known as the 'alternative Kalachakra'—a cycle that includes tantric initiation, two stages of practice, and the attainment of the state of a Buddha. This cycle is not only an alternative to the external and internal Kalachakra but also an antidote to their harmful influences. Through the meditative systems of the Kalachakra teachings, practitioners can transcend their dependent position on external and internal cycles and more effectively achieve their goals and help other beings attain enlightenment.

'Kalachakra' also refers to the deity—yidam, the text of the sutra (book) of Kalachakra, and the teaching and worldview system itself. Kalachakra is the patron deity, the yidam of astronomy and astrology, in this sense reminiscent of the ancient Greek muse of astrology, Urania. Mongolians often refer to Kalachakra as the God of the Wheel of Time (Tsagiin Khürdni Burkhan) or the God Düinkhor (Düinkhor Burkhan).

The initiation of Kalachakra and the two stages of practice constitute a complex of meditative practices of the highest class of tantra, with the ultimate goal of achieving enlightenment. The initiation progresses slowly, step by step, and includes parallels between the external and internal Kalachakra, as well as the use of intricate mandalas—models of the universe and the human body.

For someone who grew up outside this tradition, the idea of Kalachakra is almost incomprehensible. But even for true Buddhists, this practice is considered extraordinarily complex. The initiation of Kalachakra is performed by several teachers, including the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama's initiation is offered to a group of people at once. During the initiation, the teachings are explained to the listeners, a process that lasts more than seven days. Both very advanced students and ordinary people can participate in the initiation. It is believed that only advanced students can fully receive and master the teachings, but simply being present at the ceremony is considered a blessing that will ease a person's path to enlightenment in future incarnations.

Since 1954, the Dalai Lama has conducted dozens of Düinkhor initiations for many thousands of people in various countries around the world, including India, the United States, and Canada, as well as in European countries and Australia. He also conducted the Kalachakra initiation in Mongolia, in Ulaanbaatar, in 1991 and 1995.

Following the example of the Soviet Union and under its influence, the Mongolian People's Republic experienced the Great Repressions (Ikh Khelmegdüülelt) during the 1930s. Tens of thousands of people were persecuted, including aristocrats, former officials, Buddhist hierarchs, ordinary monks, wealthy herders, and leaders of the Communist Party—the Mongolian People's Party. Later, also under Soviet influence, Mongolia adopted the Cyrillic script.

Under pressure from the Comintern, over 700 monasteries in Mongolia were destroyed between 1937 and 1939, wiping out almost all in existence. During World War II, while liberating Inner Mongolia and northern China from the Japanese, Soviet troops also destroyed some monasteries in Inner Mongolia.iIn the north of present-day China As a result, only a few monasteries survived in Mongolia, most of which were converted into museums. From 1946 to 1990, only one functioning monastery remained in the entire country—Gandantegchinlen in Ulaanbaatar.

During the repressions of the 1930s, the Gandantegchinlen Monastery in the capital was closed, and the Kalachakra temple within it, like hundreds of other temples, was destroyed. The monastery was reopened in 1944, but the Düinkhor sutras were not read there again until 1961. After democratic reforms in 1993, the Düinkhor temple in Gandantegchinlen Monastery was rebuilt. In August 1995, during his visit to Mongolia, the fourteenth Dalai Lama consecrated the datsan and bestowed the Kalachakra initiation to more than 100,000 people, after which the reading of the sutras and the performance of Kalachakra rituals resumed. In the 2010s, several Düinkhor datsans were established in the capital and the provinces.iaimagsMonks in these datsans study and practice Kalachakra rituals to achieve the state of Buddha. 'For the benefit of all living beings and to help people', the astrologer monks produce astrological calendars.

However, even during the socialist period in Mongolia, a traditional Lunar calendar continued to be published as many Mongolians wouldn't be able to manage their agriculture without it. It was called the 'Herdsman's Calendar',iMalchnii tsag toony bichigand censorship viewed it as just an ordinary calendar. It provided herders with lunar months, season starts, phases of the moon, and sunrise and sunset times for the sun and moon. The calendar also noted days according to the twelve-year animal cycle, such as the day of the Black Tiger or Black Rabbit. These details were essential for herders in determining the day for migration, shearing sheep, castrating young animals, and slaughtering livestock in the fall. Herders still consulted with elders or, occasionally, with surviving monks who had become laymen. This calendar was pocket-sized, measuring 14x10 cm, for the convenience of nomadic herders. After 1990, calendars began to be published in Mongolia that additionally included other astrological parameters, such as the element of the day, the number of the lunar mansion star, and various cycles.

In the early 1990s, Mongolian astrology researcher L. Terbish began publishing an annual Mongolian astrology calendar called 'Mongol zurkhain tsag toony bichig' ('Records of Times and Numbers in Mongolian Astrology'). The calculations in this calendar are based on the tradition of the 'Astrology of Perfect Virtue' (Tögs buyant zurkhai). Starting around 2010, other astrologers also began producing yearly calendars that broadly resemble Terbish's calendar, using the same tradition for their calculations. However, Terbish's calendar remains the most popular among the public.

These calendars detail the twelve-day animal cycle for each day, lunar month days (phases of the moon), and other cycles, such as the twenty-eight-day lunar mansion cycle, the nine-day mark cycle, and the eight-day element cycle. For instance, 1 June 2024 is the twenty-fourth day of the first month of summer, the Month of the Yellow Snake, a day with two black marks, and the Day of the Red Monkey. Each cycle has specific applications, with tables provided to determine what activities are favorable or unfavorable on a given day.

In Tibetan-Mongolian astrology, personal horoscopes are also created, though this practice is not widely used today. The famous Finnish Mongolist G.J. Ramstedt, who lived in Mongolia in the early twentieth century, wrote in his memoirs that seeing his rapid progress in both spoken and literary Mongolian, Mongols speculated that he had been a Mongol in a previous life. Astrologers in Urga (now Ulaanbaatar) often inquired about his birth date and place to determine, through astrology, which Mongol’s soul had returned to Ramstedt’s body.

Annual calendars also note special days, such as the Day of the Beginning of Seasonal Breathing, the Day of Wheat Ripening, and the Day of Animals Awakening from Hibernation. For example, the Day of the Beginning of Winter Breathing or Spring Breathing occurs slightly before the actual start of the autumn, winter, spring, and summer months.

In modern Mongolia, people consult the calendar only for significant events, such as laying the foundation of a new house, weddings, and moving. In everyday life, Mongolians have long stopped paying attention to the calendar, although a hundred years ago, many wouldn’t even trim their nails or hair without choosing a suitable day for it. Today, many people consider astrology to be superstitious, with skepticism shared by educated and urbanized residents.

Despite this, Mongolians remain particularly cautious about activities that may disturb nature, the earth, trees, and water. For example, laying a house’s foundation, digging a ditch, or cutting down a tree are still considered sacred acts with significant implications of karma, and these are still done according to the calendar. Even skeptics, 'just in case', tend to check astrological indicators or listen to the words of a Lama.

Mongolians are also mindful of the twelve-year animal cycle concerning birth years. Many know which zodiac signs are compatible or incompatible with their own and try to form close and business relationships only with partners whose signs are compatible with theirs.

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