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“Year of the Monkey” (February 8–January 27, 2017)—Anything Can Happen !

    Happy New Year –Chinese Style! Although the Chinese New Year 2016 doesn’t officially begin until February 8, many people start thinking of the animal sign on the first of the New Year.  [And much of Asia, including Japan, does not wait until February 8. Many now celebrate during the first two weeks of January.] As the Year of the Sheep comes to an end and the Year of the Monkey arrives, 2016 will be a year of invention and improvisation, unpredictability and unexpected change. The Year of the Monkey is considered the most volatile in the twelve-year cycle. The Monkey is considered...

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2015—Year of the Sheep, aka Year of the Goat or Ram (February 19, 2015—February 7, 2016) )

Happy New Year –Chinese Style! Although the Chinese New Year doesn’t officially begin until February 19, many people start thinking of the animal sign on the first of the New Year.  [And much of Asia, including Japan, does not wait until Feb 19. Many now celebrate during the first two weeks of January.] According to Chinese Buddhism, before the Buddha entered Nirvana only twelve animals came to pay homage. So, the Buddha honored them by naming a twelve-year cycle (=zodiac) after them. The sheep, the eighth animal in line to honor the Buddha, is recognized as a lucky animal with an artistic...

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“Year of the Horse” — A New Year Gallops On

The Chinese New Year doesn’t start until Jan. 31, 2014. but many people start thinking of the animal sign on the first of the New Year.  The spirit of the horse is recognized in the Chinese zodiac as energetic, elegant, warm-hearted, intelligent and able, but also capricious  with a  skittish and anxious nature as well. The year of the Wooden Horse is supposed to be a temperamental one, so if you feel like horsing around during the upcoming festivities, that may be particularly fitting this year. Just be careful with the fireworks! Since 2014 is meant to be a tempestuous year, prepare...

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The Year of the Snake (February 10, 2013 – January 30, 2014)–Symbol of a Second Chance

Happy New Year –Chinese Style–is still around the corner. According to Chinese Buddhism, before the Buddha entered Nirvana only twelve animals came to pay homage. So the Buddha honored them by naming a twelve-year cycle after them. The Snake, the most complex and “unsettling” force among the twelve, was the sixth animal to pay its respect to the Buddha. This year is the year of the black (water) snake. The Snake year has never been tranquil, due to the missteps and excesses rooted in the previous Dragon year (see my earlier post, “Happy New Year”–The...

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Happy New Year! –The Year of the Dragon

Happy New Year, everyone, and may some fire be breathed into your lives with good fortune, excitement, and the acceptance of transition and change! I always like to look up the feng-shui and Chinese New Year after toasting with champagne a few days earlier.  I found out that 2012 is the first black water dragon year in 60 years.  (The other dragon years were not water dragon years.) The dragon is considered unpredictable and untouchable.  Its mystery is never completely known.  People cannot see its head and tail at the same time. The dragon is the most powerful, revered symbol in ancient Chinese...

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