Zodiac Notes

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SoF mythology

Zodiac

The twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Hen, Dog, Pig. Okay, most people know that. In terms of marriage and coupling, each animal usually matches with those either three up or three down from it.
Now, something you probably *don't* know: these animals have official names that were used more often for time-keeping. Each day is split into 12 "hours", and each hour is named an animal. Also, each year of the Chinese calender is actually a combination of an animal and a special "numerical variable" character. This system cycles every 60 years. Fortune tellers in Ancient China usually asks for the "8 characters of your birthdate", which are these time-keeping characters.

Four Gods
The Four Gods most familiar to most anime-lovers would be Suzaku (red bird), Seiryuu (blue dragon), Genbu (Black turtle/snake), and Byakko (white tiger) of Fushigi Yuugi. Those, however, are actually symbols of four dominant directions in the sky, each including seven constellations (hence the shichi seishi in FY). However, in the Chinese melting pot, there is the reference to another four Gods. These are the four supreme animals, the most magical and the most lucky, if you will. They are deeply rooted into folk legend, instead of being introduced by Daoists to aid astrological calculations. Feng, Qi, Gui, Long; or Pheonix, Kirin (a one-antlered scaled stag), Turtle, and Dragon. Except for Kirin, who is replaced by Kuang Hu (Tiger), the four gods were removed wholly from Chinese Mythology.
Long (): Body of a serpent, scales of fish, mane and legs like a lion, antlers like deer, face like bison, long whiskers. Rules the sea, weaves through the clouds, controls water and rain. Long is a busy god, both ruling the underwater kingdom and also in charged of dispensing rain. Also represents the Chinese emperor.
The Long in SoF gave up his kingdom and opted to work closer to the Jade Emperor.
Feng (): 6 ft tall, hen-like head, long slender neck, golden. Think big colorful peacock with less tail feathers. Full name Feng Huang, King of the birds. Males are "Feng", females are "Huang". (You can see proof of that in SoF. Feng in male form is "Feng", in female form is "Huang". Gender-bender) They usually bring the most good luck.
Hu (): tiger. He doesn't need much explanation, right? Just think of the characteristics of a tiger: solitary, ferocious, shrewd...
Gui/Ao (): gui are turtles in general. The SoF character is Ao, which is merely a large turtle. The real ao is a quiet sort of guy, very helpful to the Heavenly Court. When the Feng Lai Xian Dao (demi-god retirement islands) started separating and floating apart, YuDi sent fifteen large Ao to carry them. When the sky fell apart, it was an Ao who offered its legs to support the sky. However Ao is also capable of raw power. Being a creature of the sea, he can command tidal waves and stir up tempest winds. In such cases, small sea creatures like shrimps and crabs are also subject to his mercy.
The Ao of SoF is slightly moderated. It's almost as if he switched roles with Long, as Long took up an office in the Heavenly Court while Ao sat down to govern the North Sea.

Bureaucracy

There is an obvious bureaucracy in SoF. We see Feng doing paper work and Zhong Go being required to report to higher authority, but we don't know what it is yet. Presumably it is mostly the Heavenly Court, which consists of Yu Di and a myriad of others. Most prominent of the military advisors may be General Li, who holds a pagoda upon his palm (He uses the pagoda to capture people). There is also Tai Bai Jin Xin (Venus, I think), a wise administrative advisor. Also residing in the Heavenly Court is Tai Shang Lao Jun, who is the immortal manisfestation of Lao Tsu. He has a large collection of pills and magical objects that is constantly being pilfered by curious or malicious spirits. Xi Wang Mu, or Wang Mu Niang Niang, rules over the Tian Mu Mountains to the northeast, but she spends most of her days in the Heavenly Courts. She also hosts a Peach Banquet every year, to which all the prominent figures attend. Ever since Journey to the West Yu Di has been portrayed as a humdrum emperor who enjoys sleeping and delegating authority.