sexagenary cycle

Originating in Northeast Asia, the sexagenary cycle is a system that describes the interaction of the energies of heaven and earth over time. The cycle is comprised of sixty pairings of the Ten Heavenly Stems with the Twelve Earthly Branches. These pairings have been applied to years, months, days, and hours to characterize the energy fluctuations within the current of time. Hence, the sexagenary cycle also serves as a system of tracking time. For example, the year 1901 is Sin-chuk, sin being a heavenly stem and chuk being an earthly branch.