Zata (Burmese Horoscopes)

Burmese astrology is an ancient practice in Burma as elsewhere in Southeast Asia and is based on the seven days of the week. It remains a very popular practice; people often consult with fortune tellers and astrologers for their future. Burmese parents

usually record carefully the exact moment at which a child is born and engage an astrologer or a Buddhist monk to create a horoscope (zata) for their child soon after birth. The zata is inscribed with a metal tool on both sides of a folded piece of palm leaf which has been sewn tightly together and treated to make a thick surface. The zata is incised on one side with astrological diagrams, calculations, and zodiacal signs. These are a complicated array of figures that depict the position of various planets at the time of birth and date; the day of the week is represented by numbers. The day and time of birth and the zata name — given by the astrologer — are neatly inscribed on the other side.

Zata are kept carefully in a secure place by the parents, sometimes in a special religious room, until the children are old enough to take care of them themselves. Parents take their children’s zatas to the fortune tellers or astrologers to find out about their children’s health, wealth, and personal future. The astrologers calculate and predict according to the time and circumstances of a person’s birth and then give detailed interpretations of their readings. People also consult with astrologers over matters such as marriage, illness or jobs. These zata are of the latter shorter-term variety and represent the months of Bruce's (March) and Sally's (November) births. They describe a declining economic trend in the recent past and predict that it will soon reverse itself.

Purchased by the Nelsons in May 1990 in Mandalay.

Palm leaf, twine, pigment; 12.5 x 24.5cm open, 5.25 x 24.5 closed.

Nelson South East Asia Collection © 2025