Year of the Brown Earth Dog
Welcome to the 2018 Chinese Horoscope – 2018 Year of the Dog. This Chinese Zodiac Year begins 16 February 2018 at 8.05 am (Sydney time) and ends 4 February 2019 (depending on what Chinese system is used to calculate the date). The Dog is the 11th sign in the Chinese Zodiac which is determined by the lunar calendar. There’s quite a complicated formula involved in working out the Chinese New Year calendar but mostly it falls on the 2nd new (or dark) moon following the summer solstice in Australia (winter in the northern hemisphere).
As 2018 is an Earth year, people born in other Earth years, that is those ending in an 8 or a 9, need to be a bit careful with their diet. Minimise sugar and carbs in order to alkalise the body and this will help regain balance.
Some Brief Key Points of the Chinese Horoscope System
The ancient Chinese Zodiac has been around for thousands of years and is based on astronomy and there are some similarities to the western astrology system. Like western astrology, where there are 12 star signs, the Chinese horoscope system also has 12 zodiac signs but all of them are animal signs. The western system has some people e.g. Aquarius is the water bearer. The Chinese Zodiac is based upon the harmony of heaven, earth and water, which is a beautiful concept for obtaining balance. You can find your sign here for your 2018 Chinese horoscope (this information coming soon). Every 12 years (because there are 12 animal signs) your animal sign will cycle back around in different variations for 60 years before it is repeated.
Chinese element theory associates each year with an element which has its own colour – metal is white, wood is green, water is blue or black, fire is red and earth is brown, all of whom possess different characteristics and are recycled every 5 years. Each year is also associated with male yang or female yin characteristics. If the year ends in zero or an even number, it is considered to be yang or male in nature. If a year ends in an odd number, it is yin or female.
2018 is a Yang Male Energy
According to the Chinese horoscope, 2018 is yang or male and it is the year of the Brown Earth Dog denoting stability, loyalty, friendliness and protection. As there are 12 animal signs, 2 genders and 5 elements, it takes 60 years for the Brown Earth Dog to come back around. Therefore, many of us will not see another Brown Earth Dog again in our lifetime. Like the western astrology system, the Chinese horoscope is quite a nuanced and complicated system.
According to the Chinese horoscope, 2018 is an important year for friendships, sharing and caring. Greedy, selfish and unkind people will strike additional problems this year as the background energy of the dog is generally giving and caring. The intentions of unkind and selfish people are incompatible with the background male Brown Earth Dog energy. This year is a good year to take on board and be in harmony with the best of dog energy. Take dog qualities and make good use of them. You could do some charity work, help someone out, or be extra kind to someone who needs it. Go to some extra effort to be loyal, hardworking, patient and true to reap the rewards of 2018.
The Energy for 2018 will be Intensely Powerful
The 2018 Chinese Horoscope year of the male Brown Earth Dog will be intensely powerful and people will need to make compromises, be faithful and really trust their higher selves. While I am typing this, my dog Jupiter (in the picture) just jumped on my lap and cracked many of my knuckles in my right hand, which was a bit of a surprise and certainly a release of energy. Ouch! There are also indications of chaos and confusion at times as dogs sometimes like to run around barking like maniacs. Therefore, you will really need to get deeply in touch with your own dog energy to successfully ride the turbulent waves of life (imagine a dog surfing at Bondi beach here…that’s you!).
Avoid Risky Ventures and Be Sensible in 2018
Avoid risky ventures, be pragmatic and sensible or you just might get dumped by the waves. Communicate clearly especially around love, money and business. All animal signs will be more fortunate if they can adopt dog characteristics such as family values, bravery, intelligence, trust, honesty and hard work.
The negative side of dogs is fear, distrust, disloyalty, aggression and hostility. Do try to avoid these, lest you draw the dark side of dog energy towards you. This is best done by always focusing on the positives and being grateful for what you have. Notice, I use the word ‘focusing’, that doesn’t mean you don’t acknowledge problems when they strike. It means you don’t just mull over them in angst ad infinitum and do nothing. Acknowledge problems, feel the feelings then take action and move on. Don’t focus on them forever.
Western Astrology Signs in the Year of the Brown Earth Dog
It is immensely important that water star signs Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces, the fire signs Aries, Leo and Sagittarius and the air star signs Gemini, Libra and Aquarius stay grounded in 2018. You can call on the groundedness of the dog energy to help you keep your feet flat on the ground. With so many changes astrologically in 2018, there may well be a tendency for some people to go off into la la land and lose contact with physical reality. Earth signs Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn are already pretty grounded so they need to watch that they are not overly practical this year. Too much caution could put the kybosh on great opportunities and inspirations, so don’t be a stick in the mud. It could also lead to feelings of depression. Call on dog energy to find the balance within yourself.
Fire
Aries, Leo, Sagitarrius.
The realm of spirit – fiery passions, desires & inspiration. There is extra help balancing life this year as these signs may be feeling more grounded. Making your passions real.
Air
Gemini, Libra, Aquarius.
The realm of the mind – thoughts and analytical ability. Thoughts may become physical more easily than usual. Think writing, social media and publishing.
Water
Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces.
The realm of the heart – emotions and feelings. Emotions will translate into physical reality. Love and strong emotions have real effects on your life this year.
Earth
Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn.
The realm of the body, practicality, groundedness & physical manifestation. Organisation and bringing Heaven down to Earth. But also being over cautious and nervous about new endeavours. Success on the physical plane.
All realms and characteristics are equally important as each other. The mind does not trump emotions or spirit.
In the Chinese astrology system, it is unlucky if the element of the year of your birth coincides with the same element of the current year. Therefore this year if you were born in the Year of the Dog (1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994 or 2006) you could take special precautions such as wearing jade accessories or doing rituals. It is said people should not wear brown, black or red as it is a brown year. Choose complementary colours such as blues, greens, yellows and white.
Ritual Ideas
The Chinese Zodiac is many thousands of years old and was developed to teach people appropriate codes of behaviour. Today we know we should always pay attention to our behaviour and the consequences of the energy that we put out. Some people still believe that offering sacrifices to Tai Sui will avert bad luck, particularly during Ben Nian Ming, when the current zodiac animal year is the same animal as that in our zodiac year of birth.
My personal belief is that there are no rules, so do what you feel drawn to do. Instead of making sacrifices in a traditional sense, we can do personal rituals at an altar (or ‘alter’, which alters the energy). There are no hard and fast rules about how you structure your ritual, you could set up a shrine or place where you meditate.
- Follow the cycles of the moon
- Check out the meanings of Colour Therapy
- Check the meanings of numbers at our Free Numerology page
- Get ideas from our Moon Rituals
- Adopt the best qualities of dogs this year. Meditate for patience, trust and hope. Be faithful, hardworking and honest. Don’t allow people with negative dog characteristics to be around you. Cultivate being loyal and true to yourself first.
- Spend as much time as possible with dogs. You will then better understand the qualities of dogs which will help you to cope with the dog year.
Help your Ritual with Tai Sui
Some Chinese people also believe it is important to face the correct direction – that is away from Tai Sui, this will bring you good luck (if you believe in the concept of luck). So in 2017 you can face west when you do a personal ritual or move your furniture to face in that direction. You could also design your home and decor around the principles of Feng Shui. I would be more inclined personally to face west when wishing to use the forces of destruction and death to end something. I would face east when wishing to use the forces of creation to birth something in accordance with the death and subsequent birth of the sun every day. Nature gives us life clues if we follow her cycles.
Position of Tai Sui ‘God of Age’
According to Chinese tradition, face the opposite direction away from Tai Sui when you do your Ritual. So these are the directions to face up until 2028.
Dog | Year 2018 | Northwest (300 °)
Pig | Year 2019 | Northwest (330 °)
Rat | Year 2020 | North (0 °)
Ox | Year 2021 | Northeast (30 °)
Tiger | Year 2022 | Northeast (60 °)
Rabbit | Year 2023 | East (90 °)
Dragon | Year 2024 | Southeast (120 °)
Snake | Year 2025 | Southeast (150 °)
Horse | Year 2026 | South (180 °)
Goat | Year 2027 | Southwest (210 °)
Monkey | Year 2028 | Southwest (240°)
All the best for 2018 and remember to look to the helpful qualities of the dog to help you negotiate 2018, the year of the male Brown Earth Dog according to the Chinese Horoscope. Rose x
