also: しちしょう
the Big Dipper; the Plough; the Plow
Archaic astronomical term for the Big Dipper asterism; modern Japanese normally uses 北斗七星 (ほくとしちせい).
See also: 北斗七星
People in the old days used the Big Dipper to find their direction.
「七星」は北斗七星の古い呼び名だ。
"七星" is an old name for the Big Dipper.
the Big Dipper; the Plough
Standard kanji spelling for the Big Dipper; reading しちせい is the most common.
Alternate reading; archaic and rarely used in modern Japanese.
From 七 (seven) + 星 (stars), referring to the seven bright stars of the Big Dipper. The reading しちせい is the standard Sino-Japanese reading; しちしょう is an older variant.