Our seasons in the Philippines are only wet and dry, but in the lunar calendar, now that we celebrate Chinese New Year, we do have summer, fall, winter, and—most hopeful—spring!

Every new year on the lunar calendar or the Chinese lunisolar calendar starts on the first day of spring. Thus the celebration, marking the end of winter, is otherwise called Spring Festival.

This year, the Year of the Water Tiger, is particularly spring-like, after the past three years, which in every sense have been a long winter of discontent (and dis-ease). In every 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac, the Tiger is the first of spring animals, following the “winter” years of the Pig, Rat, and Ox. Other spring animals include the Rabbit and the Dragon.

“Using this analogy, the world is emerging,” explains Patrick Fernandez, resident geomancer at the Yin & Yang Shop of Harmony at the New World Makati. “We will start to thaw gradually. What this means is that there’s going to be a re-energization or reinvigoration of the world after some hibernation.”

As an editor, I have dabbled in feng shui since 1994, when I started editing the monthly column of the late Hong Kong geomancer Paul Lau, who first made this 5,000-year Chinese tradition popular even among the non-Chinese in the Philippines. But it is only now, in this conversation with Patrick, that I have been introduced to such things as spring animals. Prior to our conversation, I had always limited myself to annual predictions.

But who doesn’t want spring now when life, like the trees and the flowers in spring, comes to bloom? Our seasons in the Philippines are only wet and dry, but because we now acknowledge the Chinese calendar, Proclamation 1236 having declared it as a special non-working holiday, we do have summer, fall, winter, and—most hopeful—spring!

To illustrate the point, Patrick takes me back to the winter years before this one we are at the moment emerging from. “The last winter cycle was 12 years ago, the global financial crisis around 2008, 2009,” he says. “Then 12 years prior to that was the Asian financial crisis, in 1997.”

In Chinese astrology, most of the animal signs take their turns in the lunasolar cycles in their yin (feminine) and yang (masculine) forms, with the exception of the Dragon, which is always yang, or the Snake, which is always yin. According to Patrick, it’s worthy of note that the Year of the Tiger, which roars in as the new moon in Asia rises on Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, is Yang Water. “Yang is very strong. It’s the stronger of the two polarities. So it’s usually tied with the more forceful animals like the Tiger, the Dragon, the Horse,” says Patrick. “We’re going to see a more active year. There’s going to be a lot more movement, compared to the past three years, which were represented by a lot more docile animal signs.”

But what does it take to make it in a Yang Water Year or, to be more precise, in the Year of the Water Tiger? Patrick has this to say: “We recommend to folks to take advantage of this intellectual energy: Work smarter, not harder. Try to find ways to be more creative and be more efficient in your work. The people who do this will succeed.”

What’s more, there is an academic star over 2022. “It means learning new things, taking on new challenges,” says the geomancer. “But it’s really about expanding one’s horizons and one’s mind.”

The hallmark of the Lunar New Year is the Tiger being bold. “The people who tend to be more conservative this year may not go as far as the people who look at all courses of action, and then think about what can and can’t go wrong with each one, and then carefully choose and push the envelope,” says Patrick. The flip side of all this is that the Tiger is also very impulsive, so when I ask him if it is better to take risks than to play safe this year, he cuts me off to say, emphatically, “Calculated risks. Think before you act. But those who push the envelope in the Year of the Tiger will do better than those who don’t.”

‘It seems a little counterintuitive, but if you’re having a hard time, then you focus on others.’

I’ve always thought of feng shui as a means to remind myself that, no matter what happens in my life, I am no mere victim of circumstances. It’s a way of taking control of my life vis-a-vis the forces of nature. More than about wearing the auspicious colors or changing the layout of my home, it is really about knowing, as Patrick puts it, “where the wind blows and where the water flows,” and whether I should go with the flow or against it.

A lot of feng shui is common sense or else it involves such virtues as kindness or humility or hard work. For those whose signs clash with the Year of the Tiger, such as the Tiger-born, the Dragon-born, and the Monkey-born, Patrick’s advice, as he himself describes it, “seems a little counterintuitive,” but yes, his advice is if you’re having a hard time, then you focus on others. “Interestingly enough, especially from the feng shui lens or the Chinese metaphysics lens, when you do selfless acts, you give away good chi and then you get more of it in return,” Patrick explains. Other cultures, such as ours, might find it easier to understand when we call it karma.

Whether you are in luck or out of luck in the Year of the Tiger, you will benefit from giving away your time (volunteering or being there for other people) or sharing your talents (mentoring people, organizing non-profits, participating in fund-raisers). But Patrick also recommends basking in positive chi by hosting or attending events, even on Zoom, thereby finding connections and also helping spread good vibes.

Keep in mind, however, that the pandemic isn’t over yet. Speaking of which, Patrick warns that three adverse stars will hover over the Year of the Tiger affecting health. “What that means is, unfortunately, this thing isn’t going away completely this year,” he says.

But this pesky virus, like the wind blowing this way or that or the water flowing in this or that direction, is, yes, a force of nature. Dealing with these forces, understanding these energies, and knowing how to respond to them are also exactly what feng shui, which literally means “wind and water,” tries to do.

May the good chi be with you. Kung hei fat choi!