Happy New Year! 新年好
Following the Chinese calendar, January, 25th 2020 is the first day of the year of the rat. If you look at the Chinese character, it could also be named the year if the mouse – as mouse and rat share the same symbol. Perhaps, to imagine the year to come as “year of Mickey Mouse” is a nice alternative for some. Especially as the rat is more commonly associated with the transmission of diseases than with her modest life style and her intelligence.
What will the year of the rat bring?
This inevitable question reminds me of a discussion about human behaviour and its (ir)regularities with a Taiji friend who is and psychologist and coined the phrase: “Personality and disposition are psychological notions – character is for the church.”
Obviously, no human led by reason would believe in astrology, but anyway:
- Every 12 years, the Chinese animal calendar goes into the next cycle – with the year of the rat as its first year. Therefore, the year of the rat is associated with new beginnings oder renewal.
- For all those born in the year of the rat, it is now ”their“ year. They are at the center of astrological developments. What does that mean for me as a rat? Mildly put, you will have an interesting year to go through. Interesting not in the sense of “not boring”, but rather in the sense of the proverbial curse: “May you live in interesting times.”
Astrology and nature
The character of the average rat, by the way… – No, this would mean to carry things too far 😉
Originally, observation of nature inspired the attribution of typical character traits. In a few weeks, you might get lucky and be able to see a hazel dormouse in her natural surroundings. Too impatient to wait that long? Just take a closer look when you smell a rat swimming around in the canal this evening. – It’s time to form your own opinion!
No matter what findings will emerge from this exercise – have a nice Chinese New Year’s celebration!
