Today the Yang Fire Monkey Year begins ! What does this mean for the quality of the year ahead?  Which signs are going to be affected most?  How does the element of fire play out in your life? What's the difference between a Yin and a Yang year? Does the Feng Shui Bagua really affect us?

Let's start with the element of Fire.  Fire means action, will, passion and anger.  Think of a fire burning. It has the amazing potential to warm us and cook our food, bend metal into tools we can use, purify us. It can just as easily get out of hand and burn our homes down, harm us, or even kill us. We are "playing with fire" - we are taking risks.  It's absolutely vital to take risks or we never grow, discover our true potential, find new ways to live and be.  And in every risk we know we could fall, or miss something, harm ourselves or others. This is the type of life force energy this year.  Are you ready to take some risks ? Are you ready to express your passions more? Is your anger in check or do you need to let it out in better ways? 

You can see how the Fire element is for you based on your year of birth :  

Years ending in 0 or 1 are Metal                                                                                                                                                     Years ending in 2 or 3 are Water                                                                                                                                             Years ending in 4 or 5 are Wood                                                                                                                                               Years ending in 6 or 7 are Fire                                                                                                                                                     Years ending in 8 or 9 are Earth 

Fire melts metal so if you are born in a Metal year it can be harder. Water puts out fire so it dominates the Fire and can be a good year.  Fire burns wood which is actually a good thing, they compliment each other. Fire and Fire can be very good or get out of hand. Fire warms the earth so this is a good sign for you. 

Here is the diagram that shows the elemental cycles best. For each element there is a creative cycle, a destructive cycle and a weakening cycle. 

The next factor is the Yin or Yang energy of the year.  Yin is feminine energy - dark, wet, attracting by being receptive instead or trying or working for it, creative in the sense of a pregnancy (even if it's not an actual baby). Yang energy is masculine - noisy, smelly, active, outgoing, extroverted, putting great effort into everything. There is no good or bad, just what is.  IN a Yang year our masculine energy is activated, so we may be more sporty, or busy, social, talkative, and not have as much time for quiet reflection. 

Here is a great chart to show the range of Yin and Yang energy in excess, balance or lack

When you can identify yourself in this chart you can decide if you need to balance your Yang energy this year and how. When we're in a lack of Yang, a year like this can help us a lot!  If we're in excess we will really have to watch and keep our reactions in check. 

I like to look at the actual animal in Nature before we go to the Chinese interpretation - because we are able to deeply see the range of personality and predominant traits of the year ahead.  Here are some main points about monkeys:

Monkeys eat fruits and veggies, flowers and some eat insects and eggs  

• They live in forested areas, in trees mainly and come down for food 
• They have very alpha male structures - males fighting for dominance, killing the young of the previous male, preferring the big and strong.  The Bonobo - closest to humans, are bisexual.
• They are susceptible to optical illusions, just like humans
• Some are trained and used in farmers fields to harvest coconuts and even as waiters in Japan
• They move by jumping and swinging, agile and able to leap, very dexterous and clever with their hands
• Monkeys like to groom each other, massaging, combing through hair to remove insects etc,
• They don't like direct eye contact
• They have no patience and can have sudden and violent outbursts
• See what I mean in this fun Youtube video 

Using the factual details of the animal in nature can give us some potential themes - too many to be interpreted gully, but let's look at an example:  No patience is a no brainer to see how this could affect us this year.  Jumping and swinging could show up as more participation in risky sports - rock climbing, trapeze etc. Using our hands more is a huge symbolism this year - anything from issues with manual labour, more creative energy with crafting, building, and general trade work.  Even their dietary preferences can show up or tell us something. 

Let's see how the Chinese interpret the personality of the Monkey Year

One Monkey I knew said to me once, " I like to get away with things because I can" This sums up a lot of the mindset we can encounter from some folks this year. I have to be honest - I am excited for this year because it feels like a lot will happen, and a certain active life will return after a heavy Goat year ( for many people).  I see the Monkey year as a great time to get social and get busy with projects. Go out and meet people, network, go see shows, write in your journals and paint or dance ! Monkeys know how to create beautiful and clever things  so I am excited to see what comes out of people in the arts and in terms of global initiatives. We will see a lot of ingenuity.   This is the upside of the Monkey - fun, expressive, active, detailed and well designed.

The downside of the Monkey year is people being bored if they aren't in touch with their goals and passions, and starting drama instead. People may like to nit pick or play games in a Monkey year. Some will play games to the point of deception. It's a year then to really pick your battles because the level of emotion and complexity or drama can run high.  The Monkey will always find a way to get what it wants - remember this in the workplace, or in relationships, and take action sooner than later on that. There's no need to be fearful of it, just honest that it isn't' a casual time when things move slowly and you can mull it over twice. It's  a year where there can be suddenness and temper tantrums. 

How is my Chinese sign compatible with the Monkey ?                                                                     for a detailed description I like this website

Let's take a look at the Feng Shui for this year. 

Every year the Bagua diagram is drawn and based on the way the numbers  and the starts show up, we interpret what might happen.  I find the starts always sounds very dramatic and won't play out literally necessarily and certainly not for all of us. IT's a general prediction for us all, vs your personal reading. Lets' see what it says !

The way we interpret this is by their directions. If you see a negative star - or number here - you look to what direction on the compass it falls in your home and your office.  For example, if my front door faces North West and I see the star of hostility, it would say I can expect anger and difficulties by way of my front door. Perhaps issues with neighbours or the landlord. If my bed is in the North and the robbery star is there, maybe I will have trouble with people taking advantage of me, back stabbing me or stealing in some other way - or I may have disturbed sleep and nightmares.  This kind of prediction is very specialised to interpret but I post it for you to ponder. Think of what compass direction you face at work, at home when you sleep, your front door facing outwards. These are very important because of how much time we spend there.  If you want to see a more in-depth report on this year's starts I recommend this site.

Overall the Fire Monkey can be a great adventure, full of new things and fun. Choose your battles wisely and explore your creative /expressive side and you can find a lot of joy and momentum. 

If you want a personal reading for your year ahead contact me at river.rain.catharine@gmail.com