Fear the Crab

So, I started thinking about wanting an Ox baby, because I think Ox people are pretty cool. I am an Ox, so I know what I’m talking about.

But as I read up on whatever Chinese zodiac data there exists in the wide world of internet, I discover there are a few more specific details than just the stinky animal.

For example, based on the specific year you were born, you have one of five elements attached to the animal. Not only that, but you have two of each element. I am a “Yin Water Ox” to be precise. I will quote Wikipedia:

Water is yin or feminine in character, its energy is downward and its motion is stillness and conserving. It is associated with the planet Mercury, the north, winter and cold, darkness, night and the colour black. It is also associated with the moon, which was believed to cause the dew to fall at night. It is also believed to govern the kidneys, ears and bones. The negative emotion associated with water is fear, while the positive emotion is calmness. Its Primal Spirit is represented by the Black Tortoise.

In Chinese Taoist thought, water is representative of intelligence and wisdom, flexibility, softness and pliancy; however, an over-abundance of the element is said to cause difficulty in choosing something and sticking to it. In the same way, Water can be fluid and weak, but can also wield great power when it floods and overwhelms the land. In the birth and nurturing cycle, water spawns wood, and is spawned by metal. In the conquest cycle, water overcomes fire, and in turn is overcome by earth.

Wikip goes on to say that the year you were born determines how people perceive you, or how you choose to represent yourself. I guess that means people perceive me as being an Ox, which are supposed to be dependable, calm, methodical, patient, hardworking, ambitious, conventional, steady, modest, logical, resolute, tenacious. Can be stubborn, narrow-minded, materialistic, rigid, demanding.

I could agree with a lot of that, especially the later part.

Then there is the Inner Animal, which is determined by the month of your birth, and is said to be what motivates you. My inner animal (again, according to Wikip) is the Sheep: Righteous, sincere, sympathetic, mild-mannered, shy, artistic, creative, gentle, compassionate, understanding, mothering, determined, peaceful, generous, seeks security. Can be moody, indecisive, over-passive, worrier, pessimistic, over-sensitive, complainer.

I don’t know if that means I’m motivated by a desire to be righteous, sincere, etc, or even if indecision and all of my worries drive me to do things. Another website writes that the inner animal is the one we most want to be like. I do want to complain, often!

Finally there’s the Secret Animal, which if you’ve been following the logic so far, is figured out by knowing the exact hour of your birth. Seems we’re given a two-hour time slot (24 hours divided by 12 animals), and the secret animal is supposed to be your truest representation. I seem to have popped out at 2102, which makes me a Pig! Honest, simple, gallant, sturdy, sociable, peace-loving, patient, loyal, hard-working, trusting, sincere, calm, understanding, thoughtful, scrupulous, passionate, intelligent. Can be naive, over-reliant, self-indulgent, gullible, fatalistic, materialistic.

Fantastic!