命相

eight characters（生辰八字）［in four pairs, indicating the year, month, day and hour of a person's birth, each pair consisting of one Heavenly Stem and one Earthly Branch］ and anyone of the twelve animals（十二生肖）［representing the twelve Earthly Branches, used to symbolize the year in which a person is born］，in the light of which a fortune-teller professes to be able to predict a person's fate