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You may see me in 7 if it's your time
Though you will probably see me in 6 all around town
Some say my predecessor can hold up the world
In the west I am a group of siblings in a cow
Though in the east, a furry skull house in an achromatic cat

What am I?

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  • $\begingroup$ Nice riddle, but one minor nit-pick: according to this Wiki page -- see 2nd para of "Punishment" -- it is the sky / Heavens that "my predecessor" holds up, not the world. $\endgroup$
    – TripeHound
    May 6, 2016 at 15:45
  • $\begingroup$ @TripeHound TIL, though I figure since its such a common misconception it would be more recognizable than the exact fact $\endgroup$
    – Gordon Allocman
    May 6, 2016 at 15:47
  • $\begingroup$ Horoscope is wrong. Again. $\endgroup$
    – Zerjack
    May 6, 2016 at 23:58

3 Answers 3

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All right, I decided to flesh this out into the full answer... You are:

The seven sisters of the Pleiades

You may see me in 7 if it's your time

In the Winter, with good eyesight, you may count all seven. This requires, of course, a clear night, as well as allowing your eyes to become accustomed to darker light to see the dimmest of the seven stars. Furthermore, in November, the stars remain visible from sunset to sunrise.

Though you will probably see me in 6 all around town

The Subaru logo is of the constellation Pleiades (Subaru is the Japanese word for Pleiades) but only has 6 stars in it. You will likely see a Subaru car when you go anywhere

Alternate explanation (not intended meaning): In town, bright light will make it hard to see all 7. Most cultures refer to the 7th sister as being missing, forced to sit in the back, or have some other explanation as to why only 6 are (easily) visible.

Some say my predecessor can hold up the world

As Eutherpy notes, they are the offspring of Atlas, who holds up the world.

In the west I am a group of siblings in a cow

Those 7 stars form the seven sisters (siblings) of the Pleiades (in Taurus, the cow) in Western astronomy.

Though in the east, a furry skull house in an achromatic cat

In Chinese astronomy, there is a group of stars that forms the White tiger of the West (achromatic cat). Seven of those stars form the 昴 (translated to hairy head). Groups of the stars are translated (again, according to the Wiki linked) as a mansion. Thus, achromatic cat's furry skull house.

And of course, there's the title

Horoscope relates to astronomy

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    $\begingroup$ You are getting pretty warm, I think you might be able to make this into a full answer $\endgroup$
    – Gordon Allocman
    May 6, 2016 at 14:36
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    $\begingroup$ I know I probably could, but I was just wanting to post a helpful partial answer for those who'd already put in the work! $\endgroup$
    – charfellow
    May 6, 2016 at 14:37
  • $\begingroup$ @GordonAllocman I decided to flesh it out as you "recommended" $\endgroup$
    – charfellow
    May 6, 2016 at 14:46
  • $\begingroup$ Good work, you only missed the second clue, maybe take a nice drive to clear your head for that one. I will accept this once you get that one (also of very little importance, the season depends on where in the world you live) $\endgroup$
    – Gordon Allocman
    May 6, 2016 at 14:47
  • $\begingroup$ Gave the second clue a second shot. $\endgroup$
    – charfellow
    May 6, 2016 at 14:50
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What comes to mind is:

Taurus (the constellation)

The "cow" reference is pretty obvious. It also fits in with the title hint

(horoscope)

and the "group of siblings" might be referring to

Pleiades/Hyades.

You might see it only at a certain time - "if it's your time", i.e.

if you're, for example, in the Northern hemisphere's winter or spring... although 6 a.m. seems to be a bit too late.

Edit:

I believe it's not the entire constellation, rather a group of stars (as Ivo noted in the comments) - either the Pleiades or the Hyades, since in Greek mythology, they are the children of Atlas, a titan condemned to hold up the sky ("Some say my predecessor can hold up the world").

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  • $\begingroup$ You are very close, you are just missing a few of the clues and your conclusion is a bit off $\endgroup$
    – Gordon Allocman
    May 6, 2016 at 14:13
  • $\begingroup$ My guess the answer is one of the stars of the constellation Taurus. Which might be in another constellation according to eastern believes $\endgroup$
    – Ivo
    May 6, 2016 at 14:17
  • $\begingroup$ Thinking of seeing it in 7 - how does the number 7 relate to the guess? There's a good connection you're missing. And how would being in a town (where there is lots of light) cause that number to be 6? Is one of the seven harder to see? $\endgroup$
    – charfellow
    May 6, 2016 at 14:25
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You're

Pleiades

You may see me in 7 if it's your time

Though you will probably see me in 6 all around town

The seven most prominent stars in this cluster [Pleiades] are at least visual magnitude six, and so the cluster is also named the "Seven Sisters" - via the Wikipedia article on Taurus

Some say my predecessor can hold up the world

Parents of Pleiades are Atlas and Pleione.

In the west I am a group of siblings in a cow

Though in the east, a furry skull house in an achromatic cat

Couldn't pin these last two down for Taurus or Pleiades, though I'm confident it's the latter...

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  • $\begingroup$ I like the effort put in here! But unfortunately this is incorrect $\endgroup$
    – Gordon Allocman
    May 6, 2016 at 14:34
  • $\begingroup$ Yeah I thought I had it, but the directions starting making Taurus a stretch... comments on @Eutherpy's answer also make me think it might be a star. "Siblings in a cow" could refer to stars within the constellation Taurus. $\endgroup$
    – cr0
    May 6, 2016 at 14:36
  • $\begingroup$ Edited this to what I think the answer is. Still need the last two clues pinned down... $\endgroup$
    – cr0
    May 6, 2016 at 14:42

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