Auspicious Dates and Places for the (11th) month of the Earth Rat 2025/6. As the Year turns from Wood Snake to Fire Horse
My new book I Talk to the Animals (click to sample or purchase) cover by the wonderful Ellie Spinelli is out! Also on ebook. It’s a how-to on the ba zi or Four Pillars of Destiny on which much of this bulletin is of course based. Here I am talking about it with the brilliant Hannah Murray on her Talk Radio Europe book programme.
For a limited time I will coach by email any subscriber to this bulletin who gets stuck working through it.
the (11th) month of the Earth Rat 2025/6.
(06:18am 7th December to 17:50pm 5th January inclusive)
as the Year turns from Wood Snake to Fire Horse.
Access strictly limited to Retainer Clients of Richard Ashworth feng shui Services
A 1 month is about communication and emotion
A Rat Month ties up the strands
Where not to be this month: South & South West (& NE all year)
Where to be this month: East, South East, tai chi
Favoured Animals: Monkey, Rat, Dragon, Ox
Especially challenged: Horse, Sheep
A note about 2026: There is a standard ba zi form called “Follow the Fire” which describes a chart with so much Fire that there is no point trying to fight it. The prescription is to go with it, making the over-represented Fire paradoxically a balancing Element. The Fire Horse Year 2026 is so fiery that many of us (mainly Horses, Sheep, Snakes, Rabbits and Dogs) may have to choose whether to resist the overwhelming Fire or lean into it.
Meanwhile……
The 1 Water Star which rules this month is all about chat which makes this December, the Rat Month, a seasonal opportunity to catch up with the events of a frantic year. World events will consist more of talking and less of action. Friction in certain trouble spots may mercifully be suspended one way or another while the future is under discussion. The 1 month star relates to all of us, so this kind of stasis is likely to show up at home as well as abroad; at work as well as at play. Apparently aimless chat may be the best use of the time. No reason not to do that with a mince pie in one hand and a cocktail in the other.
I have discovered working with writers, you’re not a real writer until all your socks are paired up. The monthly Hexagram from the Yi or Book of Changes (that is I Ching) is very much in keeping. It’s about beginnings, how to get started and how we get in our own way. Yi, Water over Thunder is often called “Difficulty at the Beginning” and deals with what we do with a totally new situation: a new job, a new task, a new group even a new relationship. There is advice against falling for the sexy but inappropriate suitor nearby in favour of the less exciting but more worthy one who may be less attentive. The Hexagram suggests is that we need to “own” territory (office/team) by breaking it down into pockets of authority first of all. Then we need to proceed systematically. But the heart of it is the excuses we have for not starting.
The Earth Rat is typically the least effusive of the Rats. It is as if its mouth is stuffed with Earth, making conversation limited. So it may be that Rats themselves are challenged to express themselves this month while surrounded by easy exchanges of ideas. This will tend to alter during 2026 when the Fire melts the ice and the resultant Water loosens tongues, boundaries and coastlines.
Richard Ashworth ©2025
Note: Individual Animal Fortunes Animal by Zodiac Animal will be on my website in mid-January as well as my Substack Page and the various social media
The Rat is up for challenge in 2026. The heat of the coming Fire Horse Year is pretty much in your face. But there are advantages even when you are very much the opposing Element; your eloquence and critical faculties are going to be of great value. Fire and Water in proportion are a very creative mix. You’re not quite ready to make hay now so read my suggestions as to how to get by in 2026 as they are published. You peak this month on the 29th. Get rid of ballast on the 10th &/or 22nd December so as to be ready.
Remember you have at least four Animals to consider in your own Ba Zi chart (one each for Hour, Day and Month of birth as well as Year) and that it is as unlikely that they’re all suffering this Month as that all are making hay. Each Animal illuminates a particular aspect of life. To know this about yourself may be timely. My 2026 Annual Animal Fortunes will be on the website mid-January, ready for the Chinese New Year. More detail about this month in the Podcast.
For some authorities the Ox is the most favoured this coming year. And indeed you’re in charge right away and can start now. Make space (like the Rat above) by jettisoning the unnecessary in anticipation on Remove Days the 10th and the 22nd. Meanwhile the 26th is a pretty special day for you.
Tiger may find 2026 uncomfortably hot. December 23rd and January 4th are days to get set for the Horse Year: pace yourself, seek the cool and quiet. But also remember that social activity and especially emotional expression constitute the Water that is plentiful for now. Seeking these will continue to keep you balanced over the next twelve months.
The Rabbit is fuelled by the Water of the Rat that brings you power which you can expect to be expressed and drawn out creatively by the coming Fire. The 12th offers opportunity to be creative right away. You will be at your strongest for some time. You’ve waited a while.
Dragons are traditionally favoured by the Rat. On the 29th your charisma is especially evident. If you need to make a persuasive case in pursuit of a long-standing objective, that’s probably the day.
Snake: Not of course in command during the enervating Pig month which preceded this Yang Water time. Despite that you remain on top for a while yet. The 26th and 12th are days to advance plans. Not the 8th though.
Horses may welcome the cool Water of the Rat as an opportunity for appraisal and a review of the year just passed. The 16th floats your boat; the 9th probably won’t. Build your strength now with the Wood of early rising and clear plans.
Sheep and Rat are technically a “Harm”, that is to say a proxy fight. Try not to rise to bait that is really not for you. You’re in charge on the 16th but very much not on the 19th when certain relationships may be at risk.
Comfortable month for the Monkey who can let their hair down along with everybody else and pretend that the tear in the corner of your eye is only the cold. The Snake fights your corner on the 26th. When you take a fresh turn. Caution on the 20th when you may be involved in a territorial dispute.
Roosters: best chill in preparation for a demanding – but satisfying – year to come. You are creative in a way you have not been for a long time. You may even now as the year breaks, be fighting off fresh acquaintance and quite possibly suitors. Or not. The 26th may be just such a day.
Power for Dogs is found in Water, there’s plenty of that about right now. That won’t be so by June. So fill your boots, trough whatever. You’re in for a hot year in so many ways. It’s a month to open your heart as wide as it will go, safest on the 23rd and 31st.
The Pig needs to refresh their speed dial. Be sure you know who and where your friends are this month, as you may feel swamped by the prevailing Water. You may find yourself expressing yourself more emotionally than you are (in retrospect) comfortable with on the 8th and 20th when the sentiment of the season and the moment overtakes you. You have a free ticket though on the 23rd December and the 4th January.
9 5 7
8 1 3
4 6 2
The kua at the heart of this month’s lo shu (above) is the communicative 1 which connects us all up with the Water of chat, lecture, dialogue and interview. Note that the 5 in the South is shaded because the san sha or Three Killings has landed there. This 1 Month is a foretaste of the lo shu of 2026 which will be very much the same as this when the South becomes the source of the tai sui, the most powerful force of the year as well as holding the pesky 5 all year. So not settling in the South (5) or South West (7) in December is wise as is spending more time in the South East of your space. Which may be awkward for some; if so remember that orientation which is relative to the universe is more powerful than location which is relative only to the building. Hope that helps.
In this month’s Podcast which should be out about the same time as this bulletin, I discuss with the brilliant Zoe Vita James the changing qi of the Month, its likely implications for each Animal and what we may each do about it as well as the usual feng shui and ba zi chat.
This month: we’re talking about how a house with a piece missing was mended and hopefully the broken heart of the lady living there. We’ll see. Also banter, Animal Forecasts, where to be and not to be, plus Reggie the dog, Zoe’s makeover and lots more. Join us.
My monthly Yi Jing (that is Book of Changes) class (next one: Wednesday January 7th) examines the ramifications of the Hexagram for next Month i.e. January, the Ox Month: this time Wu Wang Hexagram 25, Heaven over Thunder: The Blessing. Another name is Without Error, which may or may not tell you more about it.
You can visit the highlights of this and every monthly session on my YouTube Channel. You may not have the stamina for all sixty four Hexagrams but you could also join us live via Zoom for a year via Sheilaashworthfengshui@gmail.com.
A Helpful Day
Wednesday 10th December, Water Ox, Carriage, Remove (2) **** careful disposal
Things of little importance may have been lost in transit, especially if you travelled yesterday. Best use of the day is to jettison whatever no longer serves you.
Activity: at the Rooster (due West) supports precision.
Favours: everyone especially Snake, Rooster, Ox & Rat.
About Remove Days: just three Remove Days this Rat month. All three (unusually) are usable. Now may be the time to collect up clutter before more arrives over Christmas. The days are December 10th, 22nd and 3rd January. As you know Remove days are for clearing clutter (and more) but vary in quality. This means that you could make important and lasting mistakes on an unhelpful one. Conversely auspicious ones like these are an invitation to space clear.
Hazardous
Thursday 18th December, Metal Rooster, Dipper, Receive (3) *** rough
A day to work on mental acuity while there may be confusion all around. There’s real value in the tidbits that may be on the half heard edge of conversation. Do nothing for mere attention. Activity: SE for dreamtime. No favourites. Caution: Rabbit, Dog.
I’m teaching and practising ba zi and Classical Feng Shui one-to-one via Zoom all the time. If we consider healing to consist of a spectrum from performance enhancement to actual physical change, ba zi (the Four Pillars of Destiny) is perhaps the most powerful healing tool there is. If the moment concerned is your birth, we may learn all sorts of things from it about the past, the future, about potential and about opportunities that may otherwise be missed.
Unhelpful but with favourites
Sunday 28th December, Metal Sheep, Pleiades, Danger (8) *** binary.
Metal Sheep can be a bit hapless: “harmed” by the Rat in Pleiades, harmed and dangerous but it’s a “Dragon’s Lair” of firm and treacherous footing with huge opportunity for some. It’s you or it isn’t.
Special favour:
Water(1962) Wood(1974) & Fire(1986) Tigers;
Water(1942/2002) Wood(1954) & Fire(1966) Horses;
Metal(1970) Water(1982) Wood(1994) Dogs
Earth(1959) Metal(1971) Pigs
Activity: at the tai chi (geometric centre) for grounding.
Note:
Every house is different but certain forces affect us all wherever we are. What follows identifies which areas are better served by those forces (or qi) this month & which worse. That applies to all enclosed spaces. What to do about it depends very much on the individual house where the energies will be individual and may qualify or contradict my suggestions. But…. wherever a wu huang 5 Star is located place a t’ang lung. And wherever there is a 7, exercise caution. Ask if in doubt.
For guidance:
Fire: upwards motion, bright light, arrangements of 9; pointy, triangles, pyramids.
Earth: stillness, crystal, stone, quiet, arrangements of 2 or 8 flat, level shapes
Metal: circular motion, music, arrangements of 6 or 7, circular & globe shapes.
Water: random motion, chatter, emotion, arrangements of 1, the shapeless, still Water.
Wood: constant motion, plants, arrangements of 3 & 4, upright, columnar shapes.
Summary
Tai chi, Home, the centre: Year Star: 2 Month Star: 1
The 2:1 conjunction of Stars this month represents something like gain by way of dialogue. The tai chi is the place to hang out – given supportive Stars in your own space. Either way it is likely that people will be drawn to the heart of the home to talk during December. Which is ideal if it’s your living room or kitchen/diner. Less convenient if it’s missing or the guest bedroom. And if your tai chi is in a toilet this month’s stars are the least of your troubles.
To maximise well-being: Metal: circular motion, music, arrangements of 6 or 7, circular & globe shapes. Nothing pointy. It’s the bridge between the Earth and the Water.
Put simply: mostly convivial.
Location by Location
North West: Authority: Year Star: 3 Month Star: 2 Sui Po (Pig)
3:2 together speak of man-woman relationship on the one hand and a place of prosperity for an adult male on the other. Very much a blokey area, the North West holds authority, sometimes genuine, sometimes counterfeit. Suits the Tiger and Rabbit (for now – in 2026 it’ll often be uncomfortably fiery). There could easily be man/woman conflict here any time now though – depending on your particular set-up.
To make peace: Fire: upwards motion, bright light, arrangements of 9; pointy, triangular, pyramidal shapes. Not if there’s a 5 Wu Huang Star here nor during 2026.
Put simply: some power here.
North East, Beginnings & Endings: 5 Month Star: 4 Fortune Virtue (Tiger) Year Wu huang
Out of bounds all year, now beginning to recover. But coast not clear yet and in many homes toxic for the ambitious woman.
Mitigate: t’ang lung may help. But best left alone altogether.
Put simply: getting better but best steer clear.
Note: Directions are from the tai chi (ie heart of the property)
Richard Ashworth©
www.imperialfengshui.info © 2025
art by @elliespinelli ©