We’ve just had the celebration of Chinese New Year and, in the Chinese calendar, embarked on the Year of the Snake.
It’s appropriate, some would say, that the snake symbolises the year ahead. After all, the keys of the White House and the reins of the world’s greatest economic and military power have recently been handed over to some of the biggest snakes on the planet. Western cultures take a dim view of snakes, repulsed by their slithering physical appearance and associating them mentally with slyness, deviousness and general vindictiveness. And if Trump, Musk and co. aren’t slithering, sly, devious and vindictive, then who is?
However, snakes get a much better deal in the Chinese Zodiac. Folk born in the Year of the Snake are said to have plenty of positive qualities. ‘Enthusiasm’, ‘decency’, ‘sophistication’, ‘eloquence’, ‘humorousness’, ‘level-headedness’, ‘creativity’ and ‘rationality’ are among the qualities attributed to them on the various Chinese astrological websites I’ve read. That’s a relief. I was born in the Year of the Snake myself and would hate to think my personality is on par with that of Nagini in the Harry Potter books (1997-2007), Sir Hiss in Walt Disney’s animated version of Robin Hood (1973), Kaa in another Disney movie, 1967’s The Jungle Book (though not in Rudyard Kipling’s original 1894 collection of Jungle Book stories, where Kaa is a good guy), or indeed, Satan in the Bible.
My local shopping mall in Singapore has a big open area at the bottom of its stairwell that’s usually given over to promotions or to stalls selling cheap clothing, footwear and blankets. In advance of Chinese New Year, however, it was devoted to a display of giant horoscopes. Each panel told people born under each of the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac what to expect in the year ahead in terms of their wealth, career, relationships and health. These categories were given ratings out of five stars.
I’d naively expected that for someone born in a past Year of the Snake, the year ahead, also that of the Snake, would be a fortuitous one. But apparently people born under an animal aren’t guaranteed a good time when the year of that animal arrives every dozen years. My wealth, career, relationships and health prospects all look distinctly middling this year. I haven’t seen so many three-out-of-five-star ratings since Alien: Romulus was released last August.
Just as well I don’t believe in astrology and regard it all as superstitious guff. Mind you, I’m sure some positive astrological words at the start of the year would be nice for me subconsciously.
Anyway, Happy New Year again – Happy Chinese New Year this time. And enjoy the Year of the Snake, despite everything.