Welcome to the Month of the Monkey!
Welcome to the Month of the Monkey! As the closest relative to Humans, the Monkey symbolizes the transformation of consciousness from animal self-regulation—the nervous system and metabolic systems— to a self-aware state of agency in the world. Monkeys are concerned with more than just food, warmth and safety—they also have an insatiable need to play and explore.
Monkeys, of all the zodiac animals, are the most social, not only with one another, but with other animals as well. Monkeys can be seen in nature playing tricks on other animals in the zodiac cycle, most notably their seasonal opposite, Tigers. Tigers are ferocious predators, and Monkeys do not prod and provoke the Tiger to create conflict, but simply to stir up the potentially rigid tiger, to break through fixed ideas about who we are and how things should go. In this way, the Monkey is a playful, rousing impulse, breaking through solipsism and waking us up to the fact we are not alone as sentient beings in the universe.
The living beings that surround and challenge our own agendas and preferences in life are not just other humans and systems created by humanity, but also animals, plants, viruses, even weather systems like heat domes and cold snaps that are the living expression of the Earth. All of these forces are alive, expressing themselves around and even inside of us, which can often subvert our own goals. But this also illustrates an important lesson about the world: that no one exists in isolation.
Our ambitions, goals and preferences are constantly challenged and subverted by the interplay of the beings that surround us. These interruptions can either generate frustration and irritation, like the Tiger becoming enraged when the monkey pulls its tail (Tigers are also symbolic of the Liver in East Asian Medicine, which is considered the organ that causes anger), or we can respond in a playful manner more like the monkey: encountering the world and its dynamic, unpredictable forces, with curiosity around how we can adapt to meet them.
The beginning of the month of the Monkey marks a pivot point in the year, where we move into a season of social animals. The year starts with the Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon and Snake, which are all hidden or “invisible” animals. The year then moves on to the Horse and Goat, which are somewhat sociable, but mostly keep to themselves. Now we are entering the phase of the year where the zodiac animals are more outgoing, gregarious and socially-oriented. Likewise, this is a time to begin to share our gifts and be more extroverted and find our place in community. This is a time to be social and playful, but more specifically to find your own groove in the world, among the people, animals, plants, and landscapes that surround us: to discover a way to be truly yourself amidst all these things that surround us and, yes, often challenge and test us.
Drawing on the example of the Monkey, this month is a time to be boldly ourselves— to add our voice to the conversation, our perspective to the picture, our story to the narrative and our harmony to the song. This isn’t done through force, but by staying connected to the youthful, playful aspect of our heart that allows us to be so carefree and unselfconscious that we can join in the dance of creation without apprehension or doubt— just like the monkey.