Snowy Owl
Retired in 2010, In Memoriam
What is the Lunar New Year?
<CENTER>The Year
of the
Rat
Feb 7, 2008
Lunar Year 4705
Next Chinese New Year
The Year of the Ox
Jan 26, 2009 </CENTER><CENTER> </CENTER>
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Chinese New Year formally commences at the beginning of Spring. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Hence, it is known as the Spring Festival. It is a time to cast away the bad blood of the previous year and wish for good fortune in the coming year. Unlike the western calendar, the Chinese have their own lunar calendar which revolves around the moon. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]T[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]he Chinese zodiac is too old to be traced. Fable has it that all the animals were asked to report to the emperor on Chinese New Year day. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Only the first twelve to reach the palace were to be rewarded with a year named after them. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Since then, each year has been represented by an animal with its own distinctive characteristic and fate. The upcoming year will be the Year of the Rat, beginning on Feb 7, 2008.[/FONT]
From ancient times, people have believed that ones destiny depends on the time of ones birth. In many Asian countries, major events such as weddings and business openings are planned with the timing of "auspicious" days in mind. Some Asian women have been known to take medicine to try to induce or delay labor, so as to give birth on a day that will give their child a better fate.
Chinese astrology has 12 animals representing a 12-year cycle based on the Lunar calendar: Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig, Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon. Each animal has different underlying personalities that are supposed to be present in people born during that year. Not all the animals have the same symbolism that they do in the West. (For example, few Westerners would like to be considered a pig or rat. In Asia, however, these animals represent success and ingenuity, respectively.)
Note that Chinese astrology assigns a representative animal to the year of birth, not the month, as in the West. In addition to the 12 animals are the 5 elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. Together, they form a 60-year (12 x 5) cycle in which the world moves. As such, a person's 60th birthday represents an extra special occasion.
Because a person's fate is supposedly determined at birth, parents often consult astrologers about prospective spouses for their children, rejecting those suitors who have inauspicious birth dates.
When visiting an astrologer or fortune teller, you must know your birth date according to the Lunar calendar. Some may have a conversion chart with them, but it is better to calculate it beforehand. Take a Korean friend, as very few will be able to speak English.
<CENTER>Also see information about Lunar New Year celebrations and traditions.</CENTER>[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Hence, it is known as the Spring Festival. It is a time to cast away the bad blood of the previous year and wish for good fortune in the coming year. Unlike the western calendar, the Chinese have their own lunar calendar which revolves around the moon. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]T[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]he Chinese zodiac is too old to be traced. Fable has it that all the animals were asked to report to the emperor on Chinese New Year day. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Only the first twelve to reach the palace were to be rewarded with a year named after them. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Since then, each year has been represented by an animal with its own distinctive characteristic and fate. The upcoming year will be the Year of the Rat, beginning on Feb 7, 2008.[/FONT]
From ancient times, people have believed that ones destiny depends on the time of ones birth. In many Asian countries, major events such as weddings and business openings are planned with the timing of "auspicious" days in mind. Some Asian women have been known to take medicine to try to induce or delay labor, so as to give birth on a day that will give their child a better fate.
Chinese astrology has 12 animals representing a 12-year cycle based on the Lunar calendar: Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig, Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon. Each animal has different underlying personalities that are supposed to be present in people born during that year. Not all the animals have the same symbolism that they do in the West. (For example, few Westerners would like to be considered a pig or rat. In Asia, however, these animals represent success and ingenuity, respectively.)
Note that Chinese astrology assigns a representative animal to the year of birth, not the month, as in the West. In addition to the 12 animals are the 5 elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. Together, they form a 60-year (12 x 5) cycle in which the world moves. As such, a person's 60th birthday represents an extra special occasion.
Because a person's fate is supposedly determined at birth, parents often consult astrologers about prospective spouses for their children, rejecting those suitors who have inauspicious birth dates.
When visiting an astrologer or fortune teller, you must know your birth date according to the Lunar calendar. Some may have a conversion chart with them, but it is better to calculate it beforehand. Take a Korean friend, as very few will be able to speak English.
of the
Rat
Feb 7, 2008
Lunar Year 4705
Next Chinese New Year
The Year of the Ox
Jan 26, 2009 </CENTER><CENTER> </CENTER>
The Chinese Zodiac consists of a 12 year cycle, each year of which is named after a different animal that imparts distinct characteristics to its year. Many Chinese believe that the year of a person's birth is the primary factor in determining that person's personality traits, physical and mental attributes and degree of success and happiness throughout his or her lifetime.
The Chinese New Year begins with the second new moon after the winter solstice, which occurs between
Jan 21 and Feb 19. To learn about your Animal sign find the year of your birth under the signs below.</B> The origin of the 12 animal signs of Chinese astrology is unclear. Chinese legend attributes the creation of the signs to the Yellow Emperor in 2637 BC. The Yellow Emperor is a semi mythical figure in Chinese history. Other legends accredit Buddha (c.563-c.483 BC) with the creation of the 12-animal cycle.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=10 width=760 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>The story behind the legend is that the Buddha of the sky decided to hold a competition for the animals' places in the zodiac sequence. What would happen is that the first animal who reported to the Buddha would be placed first in the sequence and so on. Originally, the rat and the cat were friends, and agreed that they would wake each other up on the day of the competition so that they would have a head start ahead of the other animals. However, the rat was rather conniving, and decided to sleep in the ear of the ox. </TD><TD>The rat knew that the ox was accustomed to waking up early. The next morning, the ox woke up very early, traveled across ponds and charged through valleys and just before they arrived in front of the Buddha, the rat jumped out of the tired ox's ear and gained first place in the sequence. The other animals followed, and you can see that the laziest animal, the pig, won the last spot in the sequence. The reason that there is no cat in the zodiac sequence is because the cat never woke up. This is the reason the cat and rat are enemies to this day. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=10 cellPadding=0 width=760 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>The Chinese Zodiac does become much more interesting. For instance, the aspect of every other year is either Yin or Yang and is also one of five elements being water, metal, fire, wood and earth. This year, the year of the Rat, Aspect is Yang and Element is Earth. This combination only happens every 60 years. The Zodiac is also divided 12 times a day which would make a total of 8640 combinations. (12 animals x 5 elements x 12 months x 12 times of day) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=10 width="65%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>RAT</TD><TD>1900 1912 1924 1936 1948 1960 1972 1984 1996 2008</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
From different chinese sources
Snowy
The Chinese New Year begins with the second new moon after the winter solstice, which occurs between
Jan 21 and Feb 19. To learn about your Animal sign find the year of your birth under the signs below.</B> The origin of the 12 animal signs of Chinese astrology is unclear. Chinese legend attributes the creation of the signs to the Yellow Emperor in 2637 BC. The Yellow Emperor is a semi mythical figure in Chinese history. Other legends accredit Buddha (c.563-c.483 BC) with the creation of the 12-animal cycle.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=10 width=760 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>The story behind the legend is that the Buddha of the sky decided to hold a competition for the animals' places in the zodiac sequence. What would happen is that the first animal who reported to the Buddha would be placed first in the sequence and so on. Originally, the rat and the cat were friends, and agreed that they would wake each other up on the day of the competition so that they would have a head start ahead of the other animals. However, the rat was rather conniving, and decided to sleep in the ear of the ox. </TD><TD>The rat knew that the ox was accustomed to waking up early. The next morning, the ox woke up very early, traveled across ponds and charged through valleys and just before they arrived in front of the Buddha, the rat jumped out of the tired ox's ear and gained first place in the sequence. The other animals followed, and you can see that the laziest animal, the pig, won the last spot in the sequence. The reason that there is no cat in the zodiac sequence is because the cat never woke up. This is the reason the cat and rat are enemies to this day. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=10 cellPadding=0 width=760 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>The Chinese Zodiac does become much more interesting. For instance, the aspect of every other year is either Yin or Yang and is also one of five elements being water, metal, fire, wood and earth. This year, the year of the Rat, Aspect is Yang and Element is Earth. This combination only happens every 60 years. The Zodiac is also divided 12 times a day which would make a total of 8640 combinations. (12 animals x 5 elements x 12 months x 12 times of day) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=10 width="65%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>RAT</TD><TD>1900 1912 1924 1936 1948 1960 1972 1984 1996 2008</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
From different chinese sources
Snowy