January 25, 2020, starts the lunar new year, and we welcome the Year of the Metal Rat.
The Rat is associated with the Earthly Branch (地支—dì zhī) Zi (子) and the midnight hours. In terms of yin and yang (阴阳—yīn yáng), the Rat is yang and represents the beginning of a new day.
Earthly Branch of Birth Year: Zi
Wu Xing (The Five Elements): Shui (Water)
Yin Yang: Yang
People born in the Year of the Rat are instinctive, acute, and alert by nature. They are also popular with others, very social, sanguine, and very adaptable. In Chinese culture, rats were seen as a sign of wealth and surplus. Because of their reproduction rate, married couples also prayed to them for children.
Rats are clever, quick thinkers, and successful. They have the characteristics of an animal with spirit, wit, alertness, delicacy, flexibility, and vitality.
In modern society, most people find themselves living within the city environment. The sight of a rat usually distresses most people, and though they don’t have an elegant reputation, they are tremendously adaptable and resilient.
Cities have their own indigenous wildlife. The animals that survive and live in a city are very adaptable. Be careful about making biased judgments about city animals. Even a rat has wonderful, symbolic characteristics. In Chinese astrology, the Rat possesses characteristics that range from humorous to meticulous and often change directions.
The Rat is the first sign of the 12-animal cycle of Chinese astrology, and for this reason, 2020 is considered a year of new beginnings and renewals.
According to one myth, the Jade Emperor said the order of Chinese astrology would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived at his party. The Rat tricked the Ox into giving him a ride. Then, just as they arrived at the finish line, Rat jumped down and landed ahead of Ox, becoming first in line. So, in Chinese astrology, the first year is assigned to the Rat.
People born in the year of the Rat are said to be success-oriented, sometimes restless and nervous, but always very shrewd. Rats are highly social and often cooperate in survival efforts. They store food, reflecting an interest in the economy. They are the most adaptable animals, with the ability to survive and thrive in almost any environment. The Rat has succeeded in proliferation in spite of humanity’s efforts.
“The green reed which bends in the wind is stronger than the mighty oak which breaks in a storm.”
― Confucius
The Rat Aspected by the Metal Element
Metal is the source of such emotions as good self-esteem, loyalty, conceit, and longing for what has been. Metal helps us understand that we are more than the “day-to-day” of life, that we are connected to “all that is,” and that it is the source of our real self-esteem. It is about our ability to let go of what is not needed from our body, mind, spirit, and emotions, helping us to stay clean and not clogged up with what no longer serves us.
Metal is about our own purity, our spiritual essence, and our ability to have a connection to our spirit.
The metal element is focused and very precise, paying great attention to detail. It can be rigid in its ways; in combination with the adaptability of the Rat, this should be recognized. How can we adapt to change if we are not open to different ways of doing things? How can we work in a community if we only believe in our own viewpoints?
What can we learn about ourselves when we examine the Rat? Are you driving yourself or others too hard? Are you not pushing hard enough? Do you need to be more aggressive in pursuing your goals? How can you be more adaptable?
How can we shift from the ME generation to the WE generation?
*Rat with bubbles and sleeping baby rat Image by Artist: Diane Ozdam
