Ox

The ox is an animal much wanted between the Chinese, in spite of his size it is meek and pacific, often in the villages, they are the smallest children those who deal with leading him to the field to playing, rarely he acquires the fierce role of the Mediterranean bull, although between some peoples of the South bulls fights are celebrated.

His contribution to the human well-being is always considered, working the fields, pulling the wagons, or simply, in his most poetical image, taking in his loins some wise person taoísta. His value is big, and when one was sacrificing the gods he supposed a big effort for the community. One treats him tenderly.

Between the minorities his value is particularly valued, since not only it is essential for the agriculture of the rice, but it constitutes a reservation of meat and proteins, always to hand, which will be used in the moments of crisis. His value grows up to going so far as to compare to that of the persons, going so far as to replace them, and we already will see that is exchanged by slaves, by women, like dowry of the wedding, or by the persons in general, in the sacrifices to the gods. Whenever there is wedding or funeral they sacrifice themselves, since the man is considered to be equal, and possibly be the substitutes of the human sacrifices practised formerly by some peoples.

We see to the ox then how a key piece in the symbolic universe and in the economic life of many peoples. Between Li de Hainan in every house there is a precious stone that they call "a soul of the ox". Between they those who are called Pooh consider to be "Children of the ox" and venerate to this animal like his protective god.

In the agricultural aspect, in numerous myths the contributions of the ox to the agriculture not only limit themselves to plowing the fields, but it assumes habe donated the cereals seeds to the humanity. It is by it that numerous holidays are celebrated in his honor.

Many peoples celebrate the holiday of the ox on March 8, and as we do not believe in the coincidences, some day we will find out why the same date is used like the Holiday of the Hard-working Woman.

• Li de Hainan calls it a Holiday of the Oxen. Oxen can kill themselves nor make them work, and they give to drink liquor leaked across the stone "soul of ox". It protects that to the ox and guarantees the future harvest.
• The Buyi call it a Holiday of Initiating the Plantation. It symbolizes the love and gratitude the oxen for plowing the ground. Glutinous rice is offered to the king of the oxen. It bathes to the oxen, which they rest this day.
• The Mulao call him a Birthday of the Ox. They venerate the God of the Corrals of Oxen, allow to rest to the oxen, and feed them with glutinous rice.
• The Zhuang celebrate it one month later, on April 8, call it a Festival of the Soul of the Oxen. It is the anniversary of the date in which the King of the Oxen goes down to the ground to protect to the illnesses oxen. For the Zhuang the oxen not only are an essential animal for his agriculture, but they went down the sky bringing the people the grains that would be cultivated. This day the ox does not work. Glutinous rice is fed him and the children lead him to playing to the river. Between caresses they bring him back to the stables.
• The Lisu her celebrate lunar June 5. They call it a Holiday of Washing the Oxen. It is a holiday to ask for good harvest, they wash the oxen in gratitude, since according to his legends the oxen were living in the sky, but on having seen that the man was spending famine, they gave him the cereals. The angry god expelled them to the ground.
• On June 6 it is between Dong of the South of Guizhou, that they call it a Holiday of Washing the Oxen.
• The Nama value so much to the ox, which there consider intermediary between the men and the god of the sky. It is for it that they realize a ritual sacrifice so that the ox rises to the sky to take his requests to the god. To prepare the disasters, to protect to the village, to bring peace and prosperity.

Perhaps the situation that illustrates us better on the enormous value of the ox, which goes so far as to replace the persons, it is between the Wa, that earlier they were hunting heads to offer his gods, and since they stopped doing it, in the 50s of the XXth century, they replace them with cows. We see something similar between the Hani, where the heroine Amatu, manages to cheat the demon that demands every year human victims deliver him to themselves, singing that the beef is much better than that of person. Since then cows sacrifice themselves him in time and persons and she has turned into the Goddess of the Village.

Between the Achang when a person is sick it is because of these spirits. By what a priest is called so that it realizes the ritual exchange of the soul of the patient, by that of the cow that they sacrifice. Between the Li the ceremony calls itself to Invite to the Spirits to Eat Cow. In the one that the priest calls each of the ancestors by his name, asking them to eat up the meat and to liberate the patient of his pain. The Nusu make something similar.

Between Yao of Baluo when someone of more than five years falls ill, the ceremony is celebrated of cutting the cow and touching the drums. That takes the ritual sacrifice of a cow as an icy point. When a person dies, in the funeral also the ceremony will be realized of cutting the cow.

The Chashan deliver like dowry a cow. The Dulong were exchanging with the Tibetan slaves (orphans or persons separated from the society) in exchange for cows. His feeding was based on a palm tree that grows in his grounds. A sacred tree for them since it has been vital for his survival. In fact an a little big tree can change for a cow.

Also, almost in each of the principal holidays of the ethnic minorities we see the sacrifice of a cow like climax. In the festival Munao de los Jingpo, which in some occasion more than 20 cows have gone so far as to sacrifice, the Holiday Kuzhazha de los Hani, The holiday Tebikai or Year New Jino, and any other important holiday.

Since in China we are ruled by the lunar calendar, and in Occident by the lot, the beginning and end of every year does not coincide exactly. Therefore, before knowing what says the Chinese horoscope on your sign, make sure that really you have been born under the sign of the Ox, as they it are the born persons in the dates included in the table of the left.

• 19-2-1901 to 27-2-1902 Metal
  6-2-1913 25-1-1914 Waters down
  24-1-1925 12-2-1926 Madeira
  11-2-1937 to 30-1-1938 Fire
  29-1-1949 16-2-1950 Earth
  15-1-1961 to 4-2-1962 Metal
  3-2-1973 22-1-1974 Waters down
  20-2-1985 to 8-2-1986 Madeira
  7-2-1997 to 27-1-1998 Fire

To complete your cosmic profile it is necessary to know the influence of Five Elements on your life. He verifies in the top table the element to which you belong. The hour of birth also has big influence on the character of the person. In general it is considered that the born during the hour chou (from 1 to 3 of the dawn) acquire some qualities of the ox, and are usually slower and calm than the born at other hours.

It is considered that the persons born under this sign are calm and patient. Systematical in his actions, they are benevolentes with the others. Stubborn, very responsible, it is difficult to them to recognize sometimes its own errors, since they feel big self-esteem, and a deep appreciation for the rules and social conventions. Sincere, tenacious, tidy, sometimes too much, it is difficult to them to understand the persons who are different, what sometimes is a handicap at the time of situations and persons value exactly.

They live in harmony with: Rooster, Rat, Snake.
Frequent conflicts arise with: Dog, Sheep and Tiger.

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