A quick guide to what you need to know to prepare for the Year of the Water Rabbit 2023. We will discuss the meanings of symbolism, mythology, and astrology related to the Water Rabbit and how we can put that energy into practice in the Year of the Water Rabbit.
What is the Water Rabbit and What Does It Symbolize in Chinese Astrology and Mythology?
The Rabbit’s energy flows with, is charged by, and is deeply woven into, the Moon. This is a marriage between the Rabbit and the Moon Goddess Chang’e. The Water Rabbit is said to bring luck in love and marriage, as well as protection from danger.
The Mystical and Enchanted Legends share the mythology of the rabbit creating and sharing elixirs of immortality with whom they deem worthy. If you look up at the moon, it is said that you can see an outline of the Jade Rabbit pounding the elixir of life for Chang’e with its mortar and pestle.
The Rabbit is deeply connected to the Moon symbol because of its essence of fertility and femininity. The Rabbit invites you to embrace your creative side, create, cultivate, and give back to the moon. The Water Rabbit is also one of the twelve zodiac animals in Chinese astrology, symbolizing ingenuity, intelligence, resourcefulness, fertility, and abundance. Through its association with the Moon Goddess, Chang’e, it also represents creativity and transformation.
What is the symbolism of the Water Rabbit?
The Rabbit’s symbolism reminds us to reflect, going inward to examine our subconscious, to use self-compassion and other intentional practices to heal our inner wounds. The Rabbit invites us to continue the journey of remembrance, to root ourselves in authenticity, and to honor ourselves in every aspect of our lives.
As we look deeper into the fertility of the Rabbit’s energy, we can observe nature itself; there is a reason why fertility and abundance of young have always been associated with rabbits. Does (female rabbits) can have up to 6 litters per year, birthing anywhere from one to twelve young with each pregnancy.
Rabbits emanate abundance and prosperity because they store food in their burrows during the warmer months in order to survive the long winter months. Their understanding of abundance, and their preparation, sustains them, allowing them to prosper even as the snow blankets their world.
Even though we all have a deep sense of intuition, it needs nurturing, development, and the profound conscious choice of listening, reflecting, and going inward. The Rabbit symbolism may also indicate a need for more planning, teaching us to work hard and prepare for lean times.
The Rabbit can also represent the symbolic fertility of ideas and the cultivation of creativity. It may come into your life to encourage you to act on ideas or plans.
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- What ideas have you put off acting on?
- What business did you want to build?
- What concepts have you been too afraid to share with others?
The Rabbit’s energy can help you create Divine Flow, embracing your spontaneous side and freeing you of whatever has you stuck. As much as Rabbits plan for the future, their unpredictability is also admirable, they tend to move quickly, often darting off in sudden, unexpected bursts, in seemingly random directions. This symbolism invites you to embrace spontaneity and random events as they come, because, more often than not, they bring about positive change.
The Rabbits invite us to listen to our self, higher self, source, and the earth and not become controlling and stuck simultaneously; Rabbits are powerful as they understand the yin and yang of movement and stillness. The Rabbit’s energy welcomes an ultimate balance between the two powers, which can often pull you in different directions; instead, the Rabbit embraces stillness when needed, takes rest, and springs to action when playful or in danger. In most cases of danger, the Rabbit remains entirely still as they know predators hunt based on movement. What is beautiful about this is we often think, during challenging times, that we need to move more, make a big effort and alert those against us to our success, when in fact, we need to remain grounded and focused on our energetic balance.
Let’s take a look at some of the Mythology around the Rabbit:
In Irish Mythology, Rabbits are creatures of the otherworld, often seen as supernatural beings, it is believed that Rabbits can shape-shift. In Celtic Mythology, the Rabbit is directly associated with the Moon’s energy. The Celts also used rabbits for divination, reading their tracks, also believing that rabbits burrowed underground in order to better commune with the spirit world, and that they could carry messages from the living to the dead.
In Egyptian mythology, the Goddess Wenet (Wenut) takes the form of a woman with the head of a hare, and Osiris Wennefer (High Priest of Osiris, the God of the Dead and husband to Isis) bears a hare as his emblem. The Egyptians celebrated rabbits for their swiftness and keen senses.
Greek & Roman mythology associated the rabbit with the goddesses Hecate, Artemis, and Aphrodite. Artemis would not permit the sacrifice of young hares, arguing that they instead be left to her protection.
In Christianity, rabbits are seen as a representation of fertility, abundance, and prosperity; this connection is easily seen through the Easter tradition, through the use of eggs (fertility), vibrant colors (prosperity), and chocolate (abundance).
The Significance of the Rabbit
The Rabbit represents the moon, Yin energy, and through its softness, gentleness, and caring nature, the Divine Feminine. It promotes the journey of inward reflection, a gentle dissection of the self. The Rabbit may appear soft and cuddly, but its confidence and selflessness are admirable – moving steadily toward its goals regardless of adversity, through planning, perseverance, and the embrace of spontaneity. This is a beautiful way to seek new adventures, venturing into the underworld, and celebrating the magical opportunities and challenges that you may face. The Rabbit invites you to practice a greater sense of gentleness on yourself, allowing room to grow, plan, create and restore.
What does this mean for 2023?
This means that it is a time to be gentle and compassionate with ourselves, to take things slow, and to practice intention in our lives. The year of the Rabbit invites us to focus on our inner growth, self-care, and nourishment.
This is a great opportunity to use the principles of Feng Shui to bring harmony into our homes and create an environment that supports this intention of compassion and gentleness. We can also use this time to reflect on our lives and make changes that will help us move closer to our goals. The Year of the Rabbit encourages us to take a step back from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, ground ourselves in nature, and create a sense of balance within ourselves.
This is the year to ask yourself:
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- Am I doing too much?
- Am I overloading my plate?
- How can I balance my personal and work life more effectively?
- What feels out of alignment?
- How can I slow down and appreciate the little things?
- How can I sustainably achieve my goals?
- How can I practice self-compassion on a deeper level?
As much as this year’s energy has a softer approach, it is also deeply connected to an intimate inner change – you are invited to change parts of yourself, deconstruct old beliefs and form confidence in your boundaries, to develop the compassion that will carry you through to the following year. Let us embrace this invitation with open arms, Beloveds. We are moving from the fierce energy of the Water Tiger to the slower and more intentional energy of the Water Rabbit, allow this transition to form organically and flow with it; and if you’re looking for a way to do that, I have good news!
The Year of the Yin Water Rabbit class is the perfect class to keep you updated on Feng Shui and astrology predictions for 2023, including remedies, flying stars, Feng Shui tips, affirmations, and a 2023 Calendar that will guide you through the moon cycles, monthly flying stars, seasonal dates, and monthly affirmations of 2023.
You are invited, you are welcome, and this class is for YOU.
If you miss the LIVE class on the 14th of January 2023, don’t worry, we will have a recording of the class and all the downloadable resources ready for you.
Register here today for a thriving, intentional, and abundant 2023!
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