Auspicious Dates and Places for The (1st) month of the Metal Tiger, 2020/21

A 5 month                                   is a return, not always welcome
A typical Tiger Month           expands
Where to be this month:      South, North East.
Default orientation:               Face (not locate) South East
Where not to be this month: tai chi, South West
Favoured Animals:                 Tiger, Pig, Horse, Dog.
Especially challenged:           Monkey, Snake, Rat, Dragon.
The Hexagram (above):           11. Tai Peace Earth over Heaven. Connecting.

Special Advantage
9^th     February Especially suits: Horse, Sheep.
A brief opportunity to make an important journey. Spot the break in the clouds.

Special Caution           
16^th   February Specially affected: Rat, Ox. Year, Month, Day or Year)
Seemingly random setbacks. Not random.

The Month of the Metal Tiger, Animal by Animal:
These generic forecasts carry different nuances dependent upon whether this Animal rules your Year, Month, Day, Hour or Life House.

Rats (1948, 60, 72, 84, 96; December* births, 11pm-1am & certain days#). Could be exhausting; the yin Earth drags and for now you’re in its thrall. Accept it, I should. A very creative time but the Tiger draws on your energy.

Ox (1949, 61, 73, 85, 97; births in January*, 1-3am & on certain days#) You’re in charge. And you have a mission to fulfill; stick to it. Contain your impatience, there’s plenty of time. Opposition will fade. The whole year is demanding but that’s not such bad news actually.

Tiger (1950, 62, 74, 86, 98; February births*, 3-5am & certain days#) Approaching full power; not all there yet but plenty to chew on. Stick to the point.

Rabbit (1951, 63, 75, 87, 99; births in March*, 5-7am & on certain days#) It’s all a little too much right now – if you let it. When you’re overwhelmed, remember this is just one moment. Breathe, open; this too shall pass. In a good way.

Dragon (1952, 64, 76, 88, 2000; births in April* 7-9am & on certain days#) Argument likely. Address the common ground. The instructions on the packet are to love and trust. Try it, you’ll like it.

Snake (1941,53, 65, 77, 89; births in May*, 9-11am & on certain days#) Empowered but lacking in vision. And humility perhaps. Go back to that fork in the road and consider a different turning.

Horse (1942, 54, 66, 78, 90; births in June*, around midday & on certain days#) Early Fire. Don’t rush to judgement but do trust the wealth of ideas coming to you. There’s a thin line between consideration and creation.

Sheep (1943, 55, 67, 79, 91; births in July*, 1-3pm & on certain days#) Not easy; stick to what you know.

Monkey (1944, 56, 68, 70, 82; births in August*, 3-5pm & on certain days#) Tiger opposes but Ox fuels you; use the power responsibly. This means you!

Rooster (1945, 57, 69, 81, 93; births in September*, 5-7pm & on certain days#) Misunderstandings which fade away by April. Don’t address frontally.

Dog (1946, 58, 70, 84, 96; births in October*, 7-9pm & on certain days#) One of your best times in this very supportive year.

Pig (1947, 59, 71, 83, 95; births in November*, 9-11pm & on certain days#) As good as it gets this year. Concentrate. *Chinese Months start later than European ones. #You’ll need help or a Chinese Calendar for this.

Back to the Future: Metal Oxen past and present.
“Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” George Santayana
When Zhou En Lai, perhaps Mao’s closest aide, was asked the long term repercussions of the French Revolution, he replied: “Far too soon to tell.” This is a hint perhaps; over the years I have concluded that to get a bead on the coming year we may need to delve as deeply into history as into the ramifications of the 5 Yellow and Three Calamities.
Traditionally the yin earth of the Ox represents sensitivity and fertility; this is true both of an Ox year and those born in one. In one sense the Ox represents Gaia, Mother Earth. And the fact is that we have been abusing the Earth a very long time. So we might interpret Covid-19 whether manufactured or derived from some species of animal abuse, as an aspect of her suffering. And we might given the 6 lo shu of Authority ruling the year, expect further push-backs by Gaia, implying sink holes, coastal erosion, avalanches and the like. For similar reasons we might anticipate industrial dispute, queues and embargoes. No surprises there.
As for fertility, it’s reasonable to suppose that a whole generation of Lockdown kids are on the way. And under the current conditions this trend may extend into 2021. Boomers then Zoomers and now er… Gloomers? Doomers? My own 7^th grandchild emerged on December 21^st.
And yes, the Ox will be “poked”, the Horse & Sheep challenged, the Monkey unusually able to escape retribution and so on. But we may get the clearest indication of what 2021 promises by looking back. Specifically we might look at previous Metal Oxen that also boasted a 6 lo shu. And consider the parallels. Best do this with a light touch and not get too literal.
The last year to fit the bill is 1841 – precisely 180 years ago. At that point, the US was pushing the Texas/Mexico border further and further South. There was no wall of course but the mix between Anglos and Hispanics became more and more unbalanced until the Mexican Wars of that decade established that Texas was American. The parallel is clear: that border will remain a trouble spot for a while yet. Donald Trump saw to that.
That same year on January 19^th the British seized Hong Kong. Although that gain was later ratified by the Treaty of Nanjing, this and other 19^th Century agreements at gunpoint are still referred to as the “Unequal Treaties”. It is certain that Xi Jinping is aware of this history and it only takes examination of the skill involved in selecting the date and time of the 2008 Beijing Olympics to indicate that something of this may be pushing Chinese foreign policy right now: in Hong Kong for instance as well as Tibet and perhaps elsewhere. Never make the mistake of thinking that those in power in China have discarded the old ways.
Again let’s not be too slavish about this. But over the next decade the Opium Wars followed which meant that every Western power that could launch a gunboat pillaged China wholesale: British, French, Dutch, Portuguese, even the infant USA. No wonder China wants her land back with dividends.
It’s been commonplace this last little while to note that we face “the worst recession in 300 years.” Going back precisely that far we find that in the Metal Ox of 1721, the developed world was staggering from the bursting of the so-called South Sea Bubble. What had happened was that the egregiously named South Sea Trading Company (based in London) had bought the British National Debt following the disastrous harvest of 1709 – sometimes reckoned the coldest year on record – and turned it into bonds. Yes, the junk bond was invented not by Michael Milken at Drexel Burnham in the early 1980’s but by the South Sea Trading Company. Scratch any world disaster and you find a British signature.
Over the following decade or so the instrument increased in value thousands of fold. And then in the Metal Rat year of 1720, it crashed. Every major investor lost their shirt. For 1720 of course, read 2020.
We might also note that the Admiral Zheng He was dispatched by the Yong Le Emperor to collect tribute far and wide in the Metal Ox Year 1421. He probably made it to East Africa as he is reputed to have brought home giraffes; the name for those house-trained guardians of the threshold, the Qi Lin may indeed come from the Swahili for “giraffe”. Zheng He’s given name, as it happens was Sin Bao and like the Sinbad the Sailor of folklore, he undertook seven voyages.
Some think the Admiral made it further than that, some say as far as North America. But what’s useful to know is what followed: the Middle Kingdom withdrew from interaction with the outside world. Again let’s not be over-literal but the Belt & Road project currently underway, makes for a two-way connection between China and everywhere else in a way the Silk Route never did. Is it a step too far?
Closer to home, the first English withdrawal from Europe came with the rejection of the Roman Church by Henry VIII between the Earth Ox of 1529 (like 2009) and the Metal Rat of 1540. Chaos, bloodshed and martyrdom followed. How long did it take for England to recover from this proto-Brexit? Around 60 years, I think; it’s one full Gan Zhi Cycle to Shakespeare, the flowering of Elizabethan culture and the beginnings of Empire with the American Colonies in the late 16^th Century. That’s a daunting thought this side of the Atlantic.
And finally some will be aware that Qi Men Dun Jia Master Zhuge Liang’s victory at the Battle of the Red Cliff took place in the Metal Ox year 221. You’ll recall that he used QMDJ to float fireships into the enemy fleet. There’s a great but very long movie by John Woo (who made the Die Hard films) about it – somewhere between Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones and Dream of the Red Chamber. But who knew it took place very close to what is today Wuhan? And that the outcome was that the next historical epoch is known as the Three Kingdoms not the One Kingdom.
There are of course many other Earth Rat to Metal Ox sequences. Perhaps we’ll discuss some of those another time.
Richard Ashworth 27^th January 2021.

Where to be in February.
Summary: getting noticed.
North East, Wealth Star: Tai sui (Year Star): 9 Sun (Tiger NE3), Month Star:8.
If you want publicity or visibility, here’s the place to gather. North East, the home of Ox and Tiger belongs to the Earth Element and is hence a natural haven for prayer and meditation. So the context may be literally enlightened. Occupy all year for progress under the headings material, psychological & spiritual. NB: Occupation is the most powerful activation.
To stimulate: Fire: intermittent bright light, occupy.

Special Advantage
9^th     February Especially suits: Horse, Sheep.
Brief opportunity for an important journey. Spot the break in the clouds.

Where not to be in February.
Summary: fragile authority
Tai chi, Home, the centre: Year Star: 6 Month Star: 5
A return to base. Also home. The 5 Star threatens authority. There’s a changing of the guard and of regimes. No centre, HQ or seat of power is quite secure. Now and all year, expect disputes, queues and blockages but during the Tiger Month, the most aggressive and unruly side of dispute may emerge. Not pretty. This can happen on any or all levels – personal, commercial, global and so on. Your tai chi is not for settling this month but you might face this way awhile for a whiff of power.
Mitigate: t’ang lung; Metal: Metal things &/or 5/6 pipe windchime.
Special Caution           
16^th   February Specially affected: Rat, Ox. Year, Month, Day or Year)
Seemingly random setbacks. Not random.
Richard Ashworth ©2021
www.imperialfengshui.info

Richard Ashworth is among the most respected Western Feng Shui Masters. He was among the pioneers of feng shui survey & analysis at a distance (now of course pretty much the only way to do it) on MySpirit Radio in the noughties. A good taster of his approach may be found on Audible at https://adbl.co/2m92Es3.You can also see him at work on tv’s Housebusters at https://bit.ly/2lJWLBl

Richard has worked from Lebanon to Bermuda, in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and with stars such as Kelly Hoppen and Gillian Anderson. Unusually for a Western Master, he has addressed the Grand Masters at the International Feng Shui Conference in Singapore.

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www.imperialfengshui.info