The Monkey in the Year of Metal Ox 2021

Who is a Monkey?

Years: 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004.
Month*: August
Hour: 15.00-17.00
Day: You’ll need a Chinese Calendar or an expert for this.

* Caution: the start of the Chinese month can be as early as the 4th & as late as the 9th, depending on the year. I can let you know this too.

What is a Monkey?

The image of the Three Wise Monkeys, See No Evil, Hear No Evil, and Speak No Evil is a reasonable summary of the qualities of the yang Metal Monkey, a particularly quirky primate. This is typically someone who shrinks from deep involvement. In elemental terms, this often amounts to too much yang Metal. What is meant by yang Metal essentially is precision and hence competition. Often the Monkey is so competitive he dare not enter the race.

As well as competitive, the Monkey is typically charming, loveable, dextrous, logical and quick witted and exact. The balanced Monkey uses these qualities constructively and in the service of his fellow man. The unbalanced Monkey (with say an August birthday in the late afternoon) does not clean up behind himself. He is in short a monkey.

The Monkey is often the most acquisitive as well as the gentlest beast but he is above all, competitive. In the extreme this means warfare. In its milder forms it is the ruthless competition that involves the belief that another’s gain is our loss. This is a (painful) mistake. It’s what leads to steroid abuse in athletics and ballet dancing in the Premiership penalty box. A Water Monkey like Spurs’ Son Heung-Min may learn this lesson early; it’s what makes him focus on goals rather than adulation. Pretty much all Monkeys subscribe to this delusion or learn not to through hard experience.

As you’d expect, the Monkey’s pitfall is frivolity. If he can’t win he takes the Mickey. Their natural allies however are the more ponderous Rat and Dragon. This is a pretty heavy-duty grouping, perhaps the most powerful in the Chinese Zodiac. Dominant Rats and egotistical Dragons are not, as a rule a bundle of laughs; the Monkey however often is. And together these three get stuff done; so many big revolutions including those of ideas involve this team. A large number of years of revolution (1776, 1848, 1944, 1956, 1968 & many more) are Monkey years.

The influence of this trio spreads everywhere: Sigmund Freud perhaps the most influential thinker of the 20th Century, Michele Obama one of the most influential women in the world, Dragons. Even Jesus if you take AD32 as his birth year.* And somewhere in there if we delve deeply enough, we find unsung Monkeys and Rats making it happen. The Rat plots, the Monkey gets out there and competes. Probably
St Paul, the man who sold Christianity to the world was a Monkey.
* That’s up for debate of course but presumably he was a Capricorn anyway.

Monkey for sure is Karen Armstrong author of a History of God, founder of the Charter for Compassion and arguably the most important thinker of the 21st Century. This is a Monkey who has learned to speak no evil while seeing much. If you want to understand forgiveness, the heart of all healing, read Armstrong.

The Monkey also tends to understand the mechanical: engines and systems; he is the grease Monkey. He often also understand maths, science and argument and so is suited very often to a career in engineering or the law, also accountancy. Unbalanced, he neglects all of the above. The Monkey month of August spans Leo and Virgo and to see him as a hybrid of Virgo control and Leo passion is not far from the truth.

When the Tiger and the Snake meet the Monkey there is trouble. The Monkey both co-operates with and fights the Snake. The presence of the Tiger pushes this competition over the edge. Keep these three apart. The Monkey must take care to mind her p’s and q’s every February (the month of the Tiger) and every May (the month of the Snake).

So that’s the Monkey: argumentative practical, mischievous and so competitive he can withdraw altogether. But you knew that already didn’t you?
Richard Ashworth © 2021
www.imperialfengshui.info

The Monkey in 2021

If people are coming to you because of your amazing creativity this year, get more organized about your business so they will remember that about you too. The Monkey has a pretty decent year to look forward to in 2021. Get moving and use up all that endurance you’re going to have.

Competitors in 2021 are those who have improved upon your example. Their ideas may be more innovative this year. No matter. Focus on the basics of your craft. Stick with those first principles. That’s when you do your best work. Don’t worry if it feels like your ideas are taking too long to develop. They will be lasting. You will be adding to them and refining them for years to come.

For the whole of the year there may be a nagging feeling about the wrongs you want to right; those that are near and far. Despite your efforts, this may not be happening as quickly as you’d like. There are many ideas and things being said that you feel could use some reshaping. Focus on what you want instead of what you don’t want. Too much oppositional thinking could lead to actual physical illness, or accident.

Some Monkeys could be having a hard time feeling included in family groups, work groups, and even with partners and children. Who is/was looking out for you when you needed them? Who should have been full of care but wasn’t? Before you go too far with that, are you sure this is a live issue? Think it through. It could be echoes of past experiences are coming up again now. You may even be tempted to act out in some juvenile way. In the game of chicken, who is the winner if no one yields?

With Dragon Virtue, this year you have the power to improve upon your reputation. With Fire so weak in the last couple of years, it may have been diminished. June will be the best month to make a push on rehabilitating it. The Horse looks like they will be hanging around you this year, so take advantage of their spotlight when you can.

Time has come today
Young hearts can go their way
Can’t put it off another day
Recorded by The Chambers Brothers in 1966 (Fire Horse Year)

As I’ve mentioned in some of my other Animal Fortunes, if there’s ever been a time to rebrand, it’s 2021. The sooner the better. If you’ve blundered, make it known that you’re not okay with that. Set things right. The energy you put towards that will go far this year. You can help others to rebrand too by way of your creativity. It would be quite difficult to stop you when you team up with the Snake, even if in May that’s a bit risky. Be clear about the scope of your collaboration or you’ll end up creating more work for yourself. Direct your luck rather than just letting it wash over you.

Monkeys have the Scholar Star in 2021. Adult Monkeys are due for some new/further training or study. Younger Monkeys who are still in school may experience more academic success than usual. There may be some Monkeys graduating with honors in 2021. There are other factors in a BaZi that will give a more specific forecast, but with so much water in play I expect this will be pretty accurate. Being a Monkey, you’ll probably like to use what you learn, along with your creativity, in your business. Know that it can be applied to whatever you like.

Monkeys will have a deep longing to travel which will probably peak in August and October. In fact, you may have already been considering travel or you have made tentative plans. Wouldn’t that be great if you can go? It seems possible, but I’d still recommend you get a refundable ticket. In August you are due to travel for educational purposes. Take care with driving.

February, March	Make money. Have a care for where it’s coming from.
April	Abundant creativity
May	Old/new friends and exes arrive. Be discerning.
August	Choices you made in May give nuance to this month’s work. Kind of random though.
October	Take time off to visit a warmer climate.

Monkeys to Watch
1968 Earth Monkeys: Will Smith, Terry Crews, Susan Wojcicki
1980 Metal Monkeys: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jacinda Ardern
1992 Water Monkeys: Cardi B, Nick Jonas, Odell Beckham Jr.