Victoria's Calendar

Jessica's Calendar

Like the Western calendar, The Chinese Lunar Calendar is a yearly one, with the start of the lunar year being based on the cycles of the moon. Therefore, because of this cyclical dating, the beginning of the year can fall anywhere between late January and the middle of February.

This year it falls on February 12th. A complete cycle takes 60 years and is made up of five cycles of 12 years each.

The Chinese Lunar Calendar names each of the twelve years after an animal. Legend has it that the Lord Buddha summoned all the animals to come to him before he departed from earth.

Only twelve came to bid him farewell and as a reward he named a year after each one in the order they arrived.

The Chinese believe the animal ruling the year in which a person is born has a profound influence on personality, saying: "This is the animal that hides in your heart."

 Janarra's Calendar

YEAR OF THE MONKEY

CHINESE NEW YEAR:
The oldest and most important festival in China is the Spring Festival, more commonly known in the West as Chinese New Year. Like all Chinese festivals, the date of the new year is determined by the lunar/solar calendar rather than the Western (Gregorian) calendar, so the date of the holiday varies from late January to mid February.

The Spring festival celebrates the earth coming back to life, and the start of ploughing and sowing. In the past, feudal rulers of dynasties placed great importance on this occasion, and ceremonies to usher in the season were performed.

THE YEAR OF THE MONKEY:
Monkey Climbing a Tree
2004 is the year of the “Monkey climbing a tree”. This may not seem to be a particularly unusual thing, and indeed, the tree is the natural habitat for the money. This means that conditions are good for a comfortable year. As the Monkey is deemed to be a lucky creature, well able to make the most of opportunities which present themselves, this is a year in which taking some chances may be more acceptable than in other, less auspicious times. The tree is sometimes seen as symbolic of growth, advancement and prosperity. So 2004 is a year in which a conducive environment should lend itself to success.

There are always some points which need to be considered, even in the most auspicious years, and the monkey can be somewhat maverick, has its own way of doing things, and can become impatient with those who hesitate or choose a different route. This impatient can come across at times as rude or even arrogant, and so the need to ensure that the feelings of others are not hurt is important this year. If this is kept in mind, the natural friendliness and life of the monkey makes it a sociable creature, and this is a good year to make new friends and to strengthen existing friendships, but don’t be impetuous and choose your friends carefully.

Finally, beware of contradictions, and be ready to think things through to solve any resultant dilemmas. The monkey is associated with the colour white, the colour of autumn, and symbolises purity and cleanliness, but white is also associated with death, as is autumn, and as is the direction associated with the monkey – west. This is not a year when you can take things at face value on every occasion, ambiguity is not always obvious, and the monkey is, after all, known for its cleverness and ability to wiggle its way out of a situation, so don’t be fooled.