2023 The Year of the Rabbit

Upon entering the new year, we said goodbye to the year of the tiger and welcomed the year of the rabbit. Chinese New Year landed on January 22nd, according to our solar calendar. The lunar calendar (what the Chinese New Year is based on) is mainly associated with the twelve Chinese zodiac animals. The zodiacs are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat (also known as the Ram and Sheep), Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig (which differ from the astrology zodiacs). This year’s 2023 zodiac is the rabbit. In this article, we dive into the myths, origins, and horoscopes of this zodiac.

In Chinese culture, there are two main stories about how the zodiac came to be. One story is about the Jade Emperor organizing a race between the twelve animals, called the Great Race. In this particular story, the Jade Emperor told the animals that their place on the zodiac cycle would depend on the order they arrived at his palace. The rat got to the palace first, which placed him first on the cycle, and the rest of the animals followed, with the rabbit in fourth place. While on the other hand, the second story claims they were placed in the order of what time the animals were most active in the day. Nevertheless, these are just two of the countless stories relating to the origin of the zodiac. No matter the story, these zodiacs play a big role in the traditions of the Chinese New Year.

Rabbits are very prominent and respected in Chinese culture. In Chinese culture, the rabbit is claimed to be the luckiest zodiac animal out of the twelve animals. The rabbit is also described as a symbol of good fortune and longevity (to have a longer life). A unique characteristic of the rabbit is their opportunistic nature. It is said that the rabbit waits for an opportune moment to jump into action.

Similar to the astrological zodiac, the Chinese zodiac has its own horoscope outlining traits of persons born during a particular time of year. In the case of the rabbit; they live free lives, and they pursue their ideas. Their easygoing personality may lead them to have weak wills and prevent them from doing great things. However, although generally calm, gentle, and loving, Rabbit people can be very ambitious and intuitively know how to get ahead in the world. They are good listeners, kind and sweet by nature, and are therefore often sought out as popular and trusted friends. Rabbits are also ambitious and steadfast in what they believe. They can be artistic and creative, but also tend to want to avoid risky situations. A less positive superstition about the rabbit is that a pregnant woman shouldn’t eat rabbit meat during pregnancy. This is because they believe that the baby would get a harelip.

Chinese New Year will always be a part of, not just Chinese culture, but the diverse culture of Hawaii. Learning about the traditions of the people who live here will not just connect you to your neighbors, but to people who live around the world. 

Source: https://studycli.org/chinese-zodiac/year-of-the-rabbit/