There is a lot to share about Chinese New Year, changes are coming and it’s fun to explain things in more detail through Chinese medicine and the Five Elements.  For example, two consecutive years are spent in the same element (there are five elements:  fire, earth, metal, water and wood).  2022 was the year of the yang water tiger, here is the link to that article : http://daisylear.com/2022-year-of-the-water-tiger/

 

We will spend 2023 with the Yin Water Rabbit. 

 

The fun superficiality of the Chinese calendar runs deeply from observations made thousands of years ago that still apply to life today.  Like Chinese medicine, the calendar is pervasive throughout all aspects of being human, affecting day to day living, farming, health care, etc.  As we strive to live in harmony with our environment, we also notice how we change and respond with each season.  Each season corresponds to the Five Elements; fire/summer, metal/autumn, water/winter, wood/spring, and earth/transition between seasons.  And like everything you can possibly think of, each element also has Yin/still or Yang/active aspects.  2023 is a Yin Water Element cycle;  yin water represents the more still bodies of water such as ponds and lakes.  The deeper the water, the more still it tends to be.  Yin water needs a strong and still (yin) Earth Element to create boundaries.  Water’s corresponding season is winter, the associated environment is cold, the direction is north, the taste is salty and the color black.

 

Now that we’ve looked at water in our environment, let’s see what’s happening inside each of us.  According to Chinese medicine, Water corresponds to the Kidneys and Urinary Bladder, water metabolism, bone and bone marrow, the reproductive organs, lower back, knees and ankles, head hair and the pertaining sense organ ears/hearing.  From this list it is obvious that these aspects of ourselves are typically exuberant when we are young, and naturally decline as we age.  However, certain circumstances and stress can cause one or more of these areas to wane earlier than “normal”.  In a human life cycle, Winter is associated with our waning years.  Emotionally, the water element is associated with courage and fear.  Water also corresponds with money and responding more intuitively to situations.

 

The Water element is ever changing – emotional.  Water takes on the shape of anything it is poured into, and likewise freezes into any shape.  If we tune into water, this can help us “go with the flow”.

 

Each year the animal changes.  There are twelve animals, 2022 was the year of the yang water Tiger.  The Year of the Yin Water Rabbit begins January 22, 2023 and ends February 9, 2024.  People born in the year of the Rabbit :  1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023.

 

Observing rabbits in nature also provides us with lots of information about what to expect this year.  We see that they sit very still and can camouflage into their surroundings.  Not only are they quick, but run in a confusing zig zag pattern from predators.  Their noses and ears are very sensitive.   When they sense danger, they use their back legs to thump at the ground to warn other rabbits that danger is near.  This thumping can be heard underground to warn rabbits and kits in their burrows.  They live underground by digging extensive and complex burrows, which helps keep them safe, but also warm in winter and cool in summer.  They are quite territorial about these burrows and do not like sharing their spaces.  Rabbits have scent glands on their chin and will “chin” objects to indicate that something is theirs, a way of marking their territory.  They can become quite aggressive and can be heard growling.  Fertility is high because the kits’ average survival rate in the wild is 6-8 months.  If they survive past this age, rabbits can live 5 to 10 years.  In the wild, kits are cared for by the mother.  However, if the kits wander from the territory, father rabbit will bring them back.

 

Putting this all together, stability may be more easily attained in 2023 even though it may take some effort to find “stillness” when there is chaos or threats nearby.  We may find ourselves having to defend our ‘territory’ or perhaps, become self aware enough to see that another solution is possible. Because the water element corresponds with emotions, the yin water aspect may help us  find the courage to look more deeply at ourselves and our surroundings.  One aspect of people born in the year of the rabbit is that they typically try to avoid confrontation, and instead zig zag around a topic rather than being straightforward (much like a rabbit’s behavior in the wild).  Since it is advantageous to face and resolve confrontations, we may need to be more mindful of how confrontations are handled.  Whatever the situation, we can use this heightened sensitivity to help us make leaps forward.  While reading about rabbit behavior, I also learned that they jump into the air and click their heels together to indicate happiness and excitement!