Chinese Zodiac

Most of us are aware of the Chinese Zodiac. It is a 12 year cycle that designates a lunar year (not a calendar year mind you) to a specific animal. The idea is that is you are born in that specific year, you will inherit that animal's qualities. For example, I was born in 1988, which is the year of the dragon. According to the chart below, I am supposed to have good health and lots of energy. I am also supposed to be a good friend, as I am a good listener. Now, does everything this in that list apply to me? No. I think my energy level is very average. But I am a good listener? You betcha.

 

Consequently, certain animals get along better with others, so your year also defines which relationships are easy and which are difficult. Not surprisingly, the dragon's most compatible relationship is with the rat, which is Drew's sign! Ha! My older sister Stephanie also happens to be a rat. Dragons also have harmonious relationships with the pig, which is my parents' year. This explains everything....

One thing to note is that a few animals are essentially interchangeable in the Chinese vocabulary. For instance, there is really not much difference between a rat and a mouse for them. Oxen and cows are the same, as well as sheep and goats. 

Apparently also the rat tricked the cat out of his place in the cycle. Hence why there is no cat, and hence why cats eternally chase rats; to get back at them for such a trick. 

The dragon is also supposed to be the most popular zodiac sign. So, parents will purposefuly try to have their children during the dragon years. So, they get their own version of the Baby Boomers, but every 12 years. Coincidentally, both myself and my language partner are dragons. Funny enough, I can't tell if she is my age or 12 years older than me. She has a 3-year old daughter. That would make me think she is 38, as Asian women tend to have their children later in life than Americans. But, she has a very young looking face. So, I dunno. 

What I didn't realize until a few days when I had an in-depth conversation with my language partner, is that these 12 animals are also applied to a single 24-hour day. Each animal gets a 2 hour time slot in which the animal does or doesn't do something of note. I will outline said cycle below. It's extremely interesting, and you'll notice the animals remain in the same cycle as the lunar years.

11pm-1am: Mouse Time. This is the time of day mice are active and snoop around in the trash etc.
1am-3am: Cow Time: Cows are chewing cud and preparing for going to work in the field.
3am-5am: Tiger Time: This is when the tiger hunts and is the most fierce.
5am-7am: Rabbit Time: This one is more complex. The Chinese believed that both a beautiful lady and her pet rabbit live in the moon. So, the moon and rabbits are interconnected. Since both the moon and the sun are in the sky simultaneously at this time, it is the rabbit time. Just nod your head and say Ok.
7am-9am: Dragon Time: During this time the dragons fly across the sky, causing morning showers.
9am-11am: Snake Time: This is when the snakes hide in the grass, so they won't bite people.
11am-1pm: Horse Time: Another complicated one. All of the animals are given a yin or yang designation. The horse is a yang animal. Yang is also day, while yin is night. Since this is the peak of the day, or the height of yang, it is the horse time.
1pm-3pm: Sheep Time: This is when the sheep eats and is a very relaxing time.
3pm-5pm: Monkey Time: This is when the monkeys are the loudest, screaming from the trees.
5pm-7pm: Rooster Time: Since apparently roosters have poor nighttime vision, they like to return home at this time before it gets dark.
7pm-9pm: Dog Time: This is when the dog begins his guarding duties at the front door.
9pm-11pm: Pig Time: This is when it's time to sleep, and pigs love to sleep.

Not too bad huh? Now just wait, it gets better. Not only do these 2-hour time slots connect to animals, but also to organs in our body, dictating when we should or should not do things in order to have the best health.


11pm-1am: Gall Bladder. Must be asleep so that the gall bladder can correctly release its toxins.
1am-3am: Live: Must be asleep for same reason as above.
3am-5am: Lung: Watch out for respiratory problems. Also, best time to get a pulse reading.
5am-7am: Large Intestine. Drink water now to relieve constipation.
7am-9am: Stomach. Best time to eat large breakfast. Dim sum!
9am-11am: Spleen. Makes brain active, so best time to study.
11am-1pm: Heart. Should take a nap now to protect the heart.
1pm-3pm: Small Intestines. Should drink water now to protect channel flow.
3pm-5pm: Bladder. 2nd prime time to study.
5pm-7pm: Kidney. Drink water to prevent buildup of toxins.
7pm-9pm: Pericardium film. 3rd prime time to learn.
9pm-11pm: 3 warmers or channels. (This is a Chinese energy flow concept) Prepare to sleep.

Also seems to make sense huh? When to sleep, when to eat, when to study, when to drink water. It's all here! Now some people might say, well this is just common sense stuff. Most humans follow this pattern unknowing. But, whether this system just defines the obvious, or if humans instinctively follow it because it's true is an interesting debate. Just some food for thought here.

From all of this, I gathered a few core realizations.
1. Drew and I are a match made in heaven, both the Christian one and the Chinese one :)
2. Since the dragon time is 7am-9am, I am not allowed to wake up any early than 7am. Sounds appropriate to me.
3. Since the dragon time is also the stomach time, I can handle diverse foods more easily than others.
4. Drew and I can now adjust our 5-year plan to incorporate which zodiac sign we want our future children to have. Ha, just kidding. Or am I.....