If you’re born in the year of the pig, this is not going to be your year.

More often than not, the bad news is that it’s usually a “challenging” year for those born in the animal year of the lunar calendar.

A bit of history

According to mythology, the Jade Emperor had invited 12 animals to his feast. The pig overslept and was the last to arrive at the banquet. That is why he was (and is) the last among the zodiac animals in the Chinese calendar.

If there is one tradition that Filipinos observe, it is the Chinese Lunar New Year.

Here’s a bit of trivia

Unlike the Roman Calendar, the Chinese calendar is lunisolar – meaning, the years, months and days follow an astronomical observation based on the sun’s longitude and the moon’s phases. Days begin and end at midnight. Months begin on the day of the new moon (hence the term Lunar Calendar). Years begin on the second (or third) new moon after the winter solstice.

A common year has 12 months (353 to 355 days) while a leap year is 13 months (383 to 385 days) in the Chinese calendar.

There are two components to the Chinese Zodiac. Because the Chinese calendar does not count years in an infinite sequence, every year is assigned a name with two components that run over a 60-year cycle. The first component is called a celestial stem: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water. The second component is a terrestrial branch. Here is where the names of the animals in the zodiac cycle appear (in the following order): Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig. Each of both components are used sequentially. For example, the first year of the 60 year cycle is Jia-Zi or the wood rat, the second is Yi-Chou or the timber/wood ox, etc. One starts from the beginning when the end of a component is reached. And the cycle begins once more. The 60th year in a cycle is always called Gui-Hai or the year of the water pig.

The pig is the Yin (the dark swirl) in the Yin-Yang balance. The Yin is the dark, negative and feminine side of that balance. In Chinese culture, obesity or being fat is a symbol of wealth. Hence, the pig being regarded as a symbol of prosperity and wealth. The big ears of the pig are a symbol of long life as well.

The good news and the bad

As a general rule 2019 will be an auspicious year, because the Pig attracts success in all spheres of life. It will be a year of friendship, love and joy for all the zodiac signs.

Those that are considered to have good fortune this year include: the rat, the rabbit, ox and a recovery for the dog from their tumultuous 2018. (I can’t wait for February 05!).

Those where the year of the Pig will be challenging include those born in the year of the Pig, Tiger, Dragon, and the Snake.

The other animals will have a year under the influence of chance.

We all want to have lady luck on our side. We look forward to predictions in the hope that our future turns around for the better. I always tell my friends that the various “predictions and horoscopes” provides a general overview on how you can manage the coming year with fortitude.

Life, after all, is how we make it.

You can ask the universe for all the signs you want, but ultimately, we see what we want to see when we’re ready to see it.