YOUR CHINESE ZODIAC ANIMAL

WHICH ZODIAC ANIMAL ARE YOU?

The Chinese zodiac, or Sheng Xiao (生肖), is a repeating 12-year cycle of animal signs and their ascribed attributes, based on the lunar calendar. In order, the zodiac animals are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig.

Your birth year determines your Chinese zodiac sign, but it can get tricky, as the lunar calendar varies from the solar, or Gregorian, calendar.

Because the dates of Chinese New Year change every year, individuals born in January or February will need to pay special attention to their birth date in addition to their birth year.

In Chinese culture, the top 5 luckiest/most popular zodiac signs are Dragon, Snake, Pig, Rat, and Tiger conventionally.

Ben Ming Nian (Zodiac Birth Year)
Maybe you think your zodiac year (本命年 / ben ming nian) will be lucky. It’s your year after all. However, it’s the total opposite.

It’s seen as a hurdle you have to jump over. The way to protect yourself from evil spirits and bad fortune are to wear red underwear every day for the entire year. Even in modern times, it’s still treated as a real concern.

In some places, married men even have to be accompanied by their wives when they go out at night during their year!

The top 5 luckiest/most popular zodiac signs are?

Feng Shui doesn’t offer one-size-fits-all solutions, there are some general principles that are easy to follow. Chinese New Year amplifies the period to check and balance our Feng Shui within every aspect of our life. “Feng shui is a philosophy behind living spaces but may apply to our wellness too; as these spaces affect our overall wellness. ‘Wind’ (Feng) refers to the flow of Qi and Energy, whereas ‘Water’ (Shui) can be interpreted as the importance of maintaining fluidity in day-to-day life. In essence, Feng Shui is all about people: [inside a home] you have to consider every occupant’s personal space and respect shared spaces. Therefore we need to set aside time to re-focus. ” Reducing clutter plays a very important part in improving the Qi flow of your home, workspace, etc, especially for those with large families. Fend Shui of the Mind, Body, and Spirit is imperative to our 360 degrees of Wellness and Good Living Integrations. Everything from physical, mental, work, and living space needs to be treated as if it is a 1Mind Body Fitness and Wellness program. Practice Tai Chi Quan, Qigong, and Meditation to recalibrate and reset for optimal daily performance. View our clickable images with links to finding your 1Mind Body Fitness programs.

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WHEN IS CHINESE NEW YEAR?

Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, is just around the corner.
Chinese New Year 2022 will fall on Tuesday, February 1st, 2022, starting a year of the Tiger.

Celebrations of Chinese New Year traditionally last for 16 days, starting from Chinese New Year’s Eve to the Lantern Festival. In 2022, that is from January 31st to February 15th.

As a public holiday, Chinese people will get 7 days off from work from January 31st to February 6th in 2022.

The most notable dates of the Chinese Lunar New Year 2022 are these three days:
• New Year’s Eve on January 31st, 2022
• New Year’s Day on February 1st, 2022
• The Lantern Festival on February 15th, 2022

Traditionally Chinese Lunar New Year activities started as early as three weeks before Chinese New Year’s Eve. Old-fashioned (mostly rural) folk start cleaning their houses from the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month (January 25th, 2022).

HOW LONG IS IT?

China’s public holiday for Lunar New Year is 7 days, from Chinese New Year’s Eve to the sixth day of the lunar calendar new year.

Offices, banks, factories, shops, and most non-essential services will close doors for a week’s holiday. Hotels and large retail outlets stay open and may even be busier than usual!

School holidays are four weeks long and migrant workers abandon their factory and construction jobs for weeks to return home.

Holidays in Hong Kong, Macao, and other Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and Korea are 1 to 3 days.

People go back home to be together with families, eat, drink, cook, visit extended family and friends to exchange good wishes and red envelopes.

WHICH ZODIAC ELEMENT ARE YOU?

The Chinese zodiac, is divided into 12 parts, and five elements. The five elements are metal, water, wood, fire, and earth. Each year of the Chinese Zodiac is represented by a different animal: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig

If you already know your zodiac animal in Chinese astrology, you might think your personality is similar to those born 12 years earlier or 12 years later in a year with the same zodiac animal as yours.

However, there is another factor to consider. In addition to the cycle of 12 zodiac animals, each year is also assigned one of five elements—Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, or Water. Each element is associated with certain traits and behavioral patterns, adding a dimension of richness to the matrix of personality in Chinese astrology.

The idea of these elements originated in the Five Elements Theory or Wu Xing in Chinese. This complex philosophical system divides everything in the world into five categories, each possessing different characteristics. It was first formalized in the Spring and Autumn period in Chinese history—a period that gave rise to iconic philosophers like Confucius and Laozi—and would go on to become the foundation of many disciplines including Daoism, Chinese philosophy, astrology, Feng Shui, and more.

According to Chinese astrology, the year of your birth sign is believed to be one of the most unlucky years of your life. It is thought that people in their zodiac year offend Tai Sui, the God of Age, and incur his curse. In Chinese culture, the top five luckiest or most popular zodiac signs are Dragon, Snake, Pig, Rat, and Tiger. In China, each one has an animal sign that is determined by the lunar birth date. In all, there are twelve animal signs each undergoes a 12-year cycle. So, every twelve years, one will meet the year of his birth sign. People born in the Year of the Tiger will be facing their “Ben Ming Nian” — their own zodiac year — in 2022. Followers believe this means there will be more disruptions and instabilities in the year to come. “Your financial luck isn’t too bad this year but you may be overshadowed by negative emotions. According to Chinese astrology, the zodiac year is a year of bad luck. Most Chinese people are afraid to spend their birth sign year. Why is it unlucky? It’s said that the people during the Ben Ming Nian are easy to encounter Tai Sui who is the legendary God in charge of people’s fortune. Their fortune usually fluctuates during the year. Many bad things such as illness, financial loss, extramarital affairs,s, etc. may happen to them. Some people think it’s superstitious to believe this. In fact, it’s not completely bad for people in the zodiac year. It varies greatly from individual to individual. Some people may have good fortune instead of bad luck. But in general, marriage, moving house, travel, starting business…are thought to be worthy of great attention during the year.