Monkey Diary: what to expect in August 2014

Monkey Diary: what to expect in August 2014.

The wrench of the Monkey.

Monkey Month opens: August 7^th 23:02pm.

Clueless in Gaza

The Monkey is a rebel, the Water Monkey defiant. Take these qualities together and you have a decision to make: are you part of the problem or part of the solution? There’s always upheaval in a Monkey month. Just when you thought it was safe to bag your place with a beach towel, a bank collapses, Gorbachev is ousted, there are riots in London or the Great War starts.

Karen Armstrong, perhaps the most important thinker of the 21^st century – I won’t add the qualification “female” – in her Brief History of Islam, calls the modern predicament facing the Muslim world, Islam Agonistes. This is a reference to Milton’s Samson, blind and abandoned in the temple at Gaza, chained between two pillars so that his only hope of redemption is to pull the roof down onto the Philistines, killing both them and himself. The world’s first suicide terrorist; go figure.

Meanwhile you may like to read this beautiful piece written by my son Jaime, who is qualified to comment on this Gaza hideousness:

framingthequestion.wordpress.com

The Monkey in the Monkey Month.

Monkeys (1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004) don’t like to get over-involved. They are often inclined to mischief before they lend a hand. When you double these qualities up you get what’s often termed the silly season; celebrities caught with too much cellulite or too little, comedians eating hamsters and so on. All three wise Monkeys keep themselves to themselves while the Monkey month offers a break to the over-worked Dragon, harmony to the unheard Rat and support – which may not always be comfortable – to the Snake. The Tiger is best biding time and marshalling resources, the Pig minding his own business.

Monkey Month Animal by Animal.

During the Monkey month:

Dragons are relieved.

The Snake receives love, tough and otherwise,

The Horse seeks (and may find) hidden treasure.

The Monkey chatters,

The Rooster stays aloof,

The Dog picks up stragglers,

The Pig puzzles,

The Rat unburdens.

The Ox charges – sometimes too much.

The Tiger seeks heart,

The Sheep takes time off – and offers it to others.

and

The Rabbit becomes restless.

The Monkey Pillars. Find your inner Monkey.

Birth in the Monkey hour (15:00pm-17:00pm): ingenious, technically-minded children.

Birth in the Monkey month (August*): hands-on work. Or absolutely not.

Birth on the Monkey day#: playful, musical, mechanically-minded, logical.

Birth in the Monkey year: tricky, rebellious heritage.

* Caution, the Chinese month generally starts and finishes a few days after ours.

# Just ask.

Where to do what, when and why.

This month’s lo shu is the 2, to do with the Mother, security, property, relationship, settling down, acquisitions and impediments. That’s a wide and contradictory range. In a 4 year, a 2 month offers choice. Do you appear to be presented with an opportunity or a burden? Upset and satisfaction are both a function of the meaning we add to events.

This month: the 8 Star is in the South West. Sit here, face this way, arrange to be in a building backing this way or activate the South West area for long term co-operation. 2 is the Mother; however she presents herself, she wants your dreams to come true.