Chinese Animals Horoscope
- Sharon Chow
- Feb 15, 2022
- 3 min read
With every Chinese New Year cycle, one animal sign of the 12 animals shall take lead for that particular year. The animal sign will usually denote a particular energy for the year. The 12 animal signs are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. This year, 2022 is the year of the Tiger, which is the 3rd ranking animal since year 2021 was the year of the Ox.
I’ve always been curious, how did Tiger get its 3rd ranking or how those 12 animals got their rankings. And why those 12 animals, not others? My curiosity landed me to these findings.
There are varied versions or editions to the tales on this ancient folklore and excluding some minor details, the way the story goes is pretty much the same. The 12 animals were selected through a race.
And I personally like this version best. It all begin when the Jade Emperor wanted to select 12 animals to represent the calendar signs. Others say the Jade Emperor wanted to select 12 animals to be his guard. Now, the Jade Emperor was the The Emperor in Heaven in the Chinese Folklore. So, he sent an immortal being into the man’s world to spread the message that the earliest to arrive through the Heavenly Gate, the better rank it would have.
The next day, the animals set off towards the Heavenly Gate. The Rat got up very early. On his way to the gate, he encountered a river. He had to stop there, owing to the swift current. After waiting a long time, the Rat noticed the Ox about to cross the river and swiftly jumped onto the Ox's ear.
The Ox did not mind at all and simply continued. After crossing the river, he raced towards the palace of the Jade Emperor. Thinking it would be the first to arrive at gain the first placing, Suddenly, the Rat jumped off the Ox's ear and dashed to the feet of the Emperor. And Rat won the first place and Ox was second.
The Tiger and Rabbit came third and fourth. Although both are fast and competitive, but the Tiger was faster. (The Rabbit got across the river by hopping on stepping stones and a floating log.)
Now, the Dragon was fifth and was immediately noticed by the Jade Emperor, who said Dragon's son could be sixth. But the Dragon's son didn't come with him that day. Just then, the Snake came forward and said the Dragon was his adoptive father; so the Snake ranked sixth.
The Horse and Goat arrived. They were very kind and modest to let one another go first. The Jade Emperor saw how polite they were and ranked them seventh and eighth.
The Monkey had fallen well behind. But he jumped between trees and stones, and caught up to be ninth.
Last were the Rooster, Dog, and Pig. The Dog was busy playing and the Pig had rested after a full tummy only to arrive so late at the Heavenly gate.
And there you have it, the 12 animals that got selected or assigned to the calendar or became guards of the Heavenly Gate.
Many asked though, why wasn’t the cat present?
Story has it that although the Cat and Rat were neighbours, the former always bullied the latter, and Rat felt very angry.
Upon hearing the Emperor's decree, the cat asked the rat to wake it up for the race as it had a habit of sleeping in.
The Rat readily promised that he would but chuckled to himself and thought he would take this opportunity to seek revenge on the Cat.
On the morning, the Rat left quietly without informing Cat. The Cat didn't wake up until the race was over and it was too late – and so the Cat did not to make it into the cycle.
As mentioned, there are different editions to this simple folklore, some says that The Jade Emperor selected these animals through a swimming race. And then, the Elephant was said to participate in Chinese zodiac race too, but ran away finally because rat got into its trunk.
Many believe that one’s characteristics has something to do with the animal sign the year they were born into. I am fairly open on this. Perhaps, there is slight similarities but there is a lot more to our date of birth than just the year alone.
I hope this little ancient folklore lightens up your day & the way Chinese greet Happy New Year,
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