Cognitive Dissident
Maybe it’s time to acknowledge that you know things you would prefer not to know and act accordingly.
What’s it like for a Snake in a Snake year? As every good teacher will say to you sooner or later in answer to a question like that: it depends. What they usually mean is have you done your homework? Have you formulated an answer about that for yourself? These are questions I would pose to the Snake this year because ignoring or mishandling your own brilliance is the exact thing that could trip you up in 2025. You have the answer to your own question, should you choose to finally notice that.
The safest thing I can say about what the Snake year will be like for Snake is the Snake is at the top of the wheel, in the position of the Tai Sui or Year Boss. There are benefits to this that come with complications, naturally. For interpreting annual energies of 2025, I associate the Snake with Artificial Intelligence which suggests that it would benefit people with a Snake pillar to take care with how they use their flexibility. The Snake’s shape shifting prowess is their strongest asset and is usually the Snake’s preferred way to take or handle risk.
In a Snake year, the Snake doesn’t suffer from the self-clash as the Pig, Horse, Dragon and Rooster do in their respective years, so no problem there. As the ruler of the year, the Snake does take on special responsibilities and powers. Whether the experience is good or bad is something judged by you, based on your preferences. Other than that, I know most Snakes (and other big bosses) will be asking themselves why being the boss feels so unstable when they thought it would be the opposite. There are at least ten thousand answers to that question, but in terms of Chinese Astrology it’s you Snake! You’re the reason. Just ask 1965 Wood Snake Bashar Al Asssad.
Revolutions begin with the Snake. The Snake is at the beginning of a fresh long-term elemental pattern, a nine-year cycle within/alongside of other cycles if you will. Take notice of new opportunities and paths that will open in 2025. If there’s a Snake in your natal chart, it is trying to start something. You have Four Pillars, therefore even if you were not born in a Snake year, it’s possible that you have a Snake in your Ba Zi. What this means will vary depending on your day master and the makeup of your natal chart. If you want more specifics, book a Ba Zi with me.
Being the Tai Sui, Snakes are meant to have extra gravitas and visibility this year. If you find out that the year is offering much more than you feel ready to handle, you do have a choice. Take on the amount of fame you want. Instead of trying to avoid the truths you don’t want to believe, face them. This is the secret of 2025. You may learn how malleable trouble can be and how much you can influence it. You’ve got one year to work with this energy and if you apply yourself, you’ll be able to do it more easily in the future.
Visibility and perceptions are important to the Snake which means when they become too popular or well known, they may experience a dissonance with their natural affinity for the truth. Fame causes some Snakes to hide away, while other Snakes push themselves further into the spotlight. Either way, the Snake is susceptible to buying into their own brilliant take on everything except their own business.
Snakes are some of the best story tellers and dream weavers. A recent example of this trait involved Nancy Mace. One of the most successful writers of our time, J.K. Rowling was born in 1965, a Wood Snake year. While the Snake deserves their fans, it’s just as important for the Snake to experience being critiqued. A Snake on a pedestal is in a dangerous situation because Snakes are obsessed with truth, and they like to play with the truth too. That will get you knocked off. On the other hand, some of a Snake’s best work comes from what they can do with the truth once they have acknowledged their own. That’s what keeps you off the pedestal.
If you’re looking for the Snake, you’ll find them in the library in the 100-299 section. Snakes know things and they can teach you a thing or two. A Snake will wake things all the way up. When Tiger or Monkey is nearby, the Snake is drawn to gurus, but they are also the antidote to blind (over-enlightened?) obedience. If we think about this in context of the Cycle of 60 Pillars, it suggests that 2025 is a year to begin eradicating a cult like energy. It’s important for all of us to remember that not everything can or should be transcended by way of ideas – most of the time action is required. This might be a mission statement for the Snake.
One way that the Snake takes risks, more so in a Snake or Pig year than in others, is by going against orthodoxy and orthodox systems. Some Snakes will game the system, others will get attention for openly calling out authority. Conflicts of 2025 are likely in a context that feels like (or involves) religion. We will see people accused of being driven by emotion accusing their accusers of lying. Meanwhile, some people are lying and some are immobilized by their emotions. Engaging in this type of energetic exchange makes movement impossible. Why do these disagreements with people you don’t even know feel so personal? Are you feeling someone else’s feelings?
When you’re a Snake, you’re always trying to figure things out and much of the time this might mean feeling or trying to process someone else’s feelings. That will turn you onto the path of a philosopher or alchemist for sure. Snakes benefit from learning to selectively tune in with their empathy instead of blocking everything or letting themselves be without safeguards and overwhelmed. Practice sorting out which feelings are yours Snake. Let all the feelings pass through you and disperse to wherever they are meant to go. You don’t have to know everything.
Sometimes the Snake is associated with anxiety because even with their reams of evidence, they are waiting to find out that the things that hurt the most aren’t true. That’s a trap for anyone, but more so for the Snake with their ideas about relativity and absolutes. A Snake’s withdrawal or avoidance of truth is often an attempt to protect themselves, but sometimes the denial is done to protect someone else’s truth. Each time they do this, the body is harmed. The body remembers. Learning to acknowledge or accept your truth in a holistic way will help you stay healthy. People generally don’t like to hear the truth but you eating yours will wreck you. I promise you it’s better to know than try not to. You will have less anxiety if you let yourself know.
Once you know what you know, don’t stop there. Maybe you need to say your truth out loud or share it outside of your head. Experiment with that. As Snakes grow older many learn to comply with what they feel is a silent demand for obfuscation. Information is the Snake’s currency and at times this means not sharing it. This allows the Snake some plausible deniability, and maybe a feeling of safety, regarding those who aren’t their intimates. Maybe the truths that blind the Snake are the ones closest to home. A Snake mistake would be not acknowledging that.
I’m sure it won’t be a surprise to hear that 2025 will be a year of ups and downs for Snakes. The Snake rules the year so this will be true for all of us, but more magnified for the Snake. I guess the good/bad news is if you don’t like what is happening, you shouldn’t have to wait long for it to change. Buckle up and find your footing, as there will be adversity and challenge. Some triangles may plague you, but others can provide a magical stability if you find the right timing. Look for an “unknown” third party to be an important player in events and themes of the year. Stick with people you have known for awhile if you want more stability.
In this Wood Snake year, the Snake is a Nobleman. People may see you this way – as if it’s obvious. You may be asked to give expert advice. People might think you are a boss wherever you go. You may find yourself being asked to do work in places where you don’t work. You might think you are unqualified, but you are capable. Maybe you will want to help, otherwise don’t commit. Pay attention to your body if you’re not sure.
There’s travel in store for the Snake in 2025 and it may bring benefits. You might travel to assist others. Travel might be family related or otherwise depending on your Ba Zi. You might want to do that in May, along with your associates Ox and Rooster.
Expect those lasting relationships, past relationships, or the ones that feel/felt most connected to be prominent in 2025. If you want a do over with someone important to you, make the effort to re-establish bonds while letting go of illusions and attachments. Commit to people as they are, not in hope that they can be some other experience for you. Respect the messages of your body regarding whether certain commitments are safe for your health. There will be some difficult decisions to make. People may not understand but that’s okay. Let it be.
Maybe the most special gift the Snake receives in 2025 is the ability to resolve conflicts in any area of their life: finances, health or relationships. What might get in your way is fear, or a reluctance to experience and express your own emotions without privacy. Ultimately, it seems your good luck can overcome energies that are against you. But don’t take my word for it. Get out there and make it true.
Special Note for Snakes: Read the forecast for Tiger and Monkey too.
