The Lunar New Year began last week, and this year is the Year of the Dog. But what does that mean? Here is a little background on the Lunar New Year tradition.
The Chinese calendar revolves around 12 animal zodiac signs. In order these animals are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig.
These animals are not as random as they may seem, the ox, horse, goat, rooster, pig, and dog are some of the main animals domesticated by Chinese people and the rat, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake and monkey are all loved by the Chinese.
The animals rotate based on the idea of Yin and Yang, each animal is determined to be a yin or yang based upon the even or odd number of toes/hooves/paws they have. The yang attribute comes first followed by yin. This cycle repeats every 12 years.
This is the year of the dog, which means any person born in this year will have the dog as their Chinese zodiac symbol. Previous years of the dog include 2006, 1994, 1982, 1970, 1958, 1946, and 1934.
Each zodiac animal is paired with a Celestial Stem (the elements of earth, wind, fire, and wood). These Celestial Stems rotate on a 60-year cycle. Your zodiac year and Celestial Stem pairing are believed to influence your personality traits and relationships with others. This year’s Celestial Stem is Earth which means dogs born in this year ” are stubborn and never give up. They aren’t very connected with the world and society. Though stubborn, they respect other perspectives. They believe that as long as they work hard, they’ll make it.” There has not been a Year of the Dog with the Celestial Stem Earth since 1958.
The Year of the Dog will influence the year for other signs. Depending on how compatible certain signs are with the dog, they will have a successful or challenging year. The zodiac year will dictate how other signs should dress, decorate their homes, or act, if they want good fortune.
For those born in previous Years of the Dog, this year will be difficult. Your zodiac year is seen as a “hurdle you have to jump over” or hardship you must overcome. Traditionally, the way to protect oneself from evil spirits and bad luck during one’s zodiac year was to wear red underwear everyday for the entire year. While this practice may not be widely observed by many Chinese today, bad fortune in one’s zodiac year is still treated as a concern.
If you’re interested in your Chinese zodiac, you can find out what the Year of the Dog will bring you here.
