2024 - Yang Wood Dragon

This coming year has a triple yang resonance. Every year is either yin or yang - 2024 is yang. Each year is associated with one of the five elements - 2024 is a Wood year. Each year is associated with one of the 12 houses of the zodiac - 2024 is a Dragon year. So this is a yang wood Dragon year. This means the energy of the year will be volatile, fast, and expressive. This kind of energy can breed more aggression and hostility, but it also can be generative, feeding into your ambitions. Don't rest on your plans as we move into the dragon year; you will be able to grow and expand enormously if you work toward your goals.

In the Chinese Five Elements system, the Dragon is associated with the element Wood. Each of the twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac is linked to one of the Five Elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water) in a cyclical pattern, creating a 60-year cycle. The association of the Dragon with the element Wood provides additional insights into the dragon's characteristics and attributes.

In Chinese astrology, the Wood element holds distinctive qualities associated with the Five Elements system (Wu Xing). Wood represents a dynamic and expansive force that is analogous to the characteristics of trees and plants. Those influenced by the Wood element are believed to embody growth, adaptability, and flexibility, akin to the way trees grow upward and sway with the wind. Wood individuals are often associated with a generous and benevolent nature, symbolizing the nurturing aspect of trees that provide shade and shelter. Vision and planning are key attributes, reflecting the ability to envision and execute future goals with strategic thinking. The assertiveness of Wood is exemplified in its upward movement, symbolizing ambition and leadership qualities. The wood is naturally expansive, dominant, and can be violent. War, aggression, and conquest are wood element actions; much like the qualities of Mars in the Roman system, the wood energy can manifest in activities of dominance and aggression.

In terms of the Chinese Zodiac, individuals associated with Wood years, such as the Tiger and the Rabbit, are believed to possess these qualities, contributing to a well-rounded and harmonious personality. The Wood element's influence extends to a sense of balance, as seen in a healthy forest, fostering harmony in relationships and personal endeavors. Overall, the Wood element in Chinese astrology represents a powerful and harmonizing force, influencing both individual characteristics and broader cosmic cycles.

The Dragon is associated with Hexagram 1 - Heaven - in the Yi Jing. This hexagram symbolizes strength, creativity, and the cosmic order. The Dragon, as a celestial being, embodies the divine and represents the ultimate power in the universe. The Dragon is seen as a symbol of transformation and change; it has the ability to ascend and descend, symbolizing the cyclical nature of life and the constant flow of yin and yang energies. The Dragon's presence signifies auspicious times and suggests that favorable changes are on the horizon. It is a symbol of power, majesty, and the ability to overcome challenges.

Hexagram 1 in the Yi Jing, known as "The Creative" or "乾" (Qián), signifies the fundamental cosmic force of unadulterated yang energy. Comprising six solid lines, symbolizing active and assertive characteristics, Hexagram 1 represents the initiating force of heaven and the universe. It is a potent symbol of the genesis of all things and the perpetual energy that sparks new cycles, ventures, or undertakings. Depicting the image of a boundless, creative force akin to heaven, Hexagram 1 encourages aligning with this energy for positive and constructive endeavors. Its judgment emphasizes the auspiciousness of initiating new actions and projects, underscoring the success achievable through creativity and assertiveness. In divination, Hexagram 1 suggests favorable circumstances for embarking on new paths, taking leadership roles, or engaging in creative pursuits, prompting individuals to tap into their creative potential for positive outcomes. As the starting point of the Yi Jing sequence, Hexagram 1 establishes the theme of initiation and underscores the creative energy as the foundational force underlying all transformations.

The yang wood is the gallbladder; so for those interested in medicine, this year is the Gallbladder Dragon.

The Gallbladder is the system which receives and conducts energy from the head down into the rest of the body. The channel emerges from the eyes and, gathering information from the brain, descends down through the body to anchor into the feet. On a physical level this is the vector responsible for the conduction of nervous system signaling from the brain out to the rest of the body. 2024 will see a strong gallbladder in each of us; the mind will naturally be sharp and quick; previously buried memories or ideas may emerge. Anyone with a nervous system disorder involving underactivity of the peripheral nervous system will see their condition improve. Take advantage of the energy and grow with it.

The Gallbladder is the bridge between Heaven and Earth, and the dominant energy of 2024 overall is that of 乾 / Heaven, the solid yang resonance of the yi jing - ䷀.

It is the nature of wood to seek the light and to rise toward it; the wood meets the light of the sun and draws it down into the earth. The liver (yin wood) rises toward the light, and the gallbladder (yang wood) is the sequestration of the light into the physical matrix. Within the physical body, that light, the Spirit, is hosted in the heart; this is the seat of fire in the organic form.

Like the sun, the heart emanates light and provides the energetic spark which makes life possible. In other words, the gallbladder facilitates the gathering of spirit into the physical body.

The highest point on the gallbladder channel, GB 13 is called “The Root of the Spirit” and it is located just at the corner of the forehead. This is the primary region where the physical body interfaces with the spiritual matrix. Animals which grow horns, antlers, or antennae generally grow them from this point. These structures are an extension of the gallbladder channel and provide a yin substrate to host increased yang activity in the body; this facilitates a more wood and fire dominant energetic state overall, lending qualities such as lightness of body, increased vigour, and fullness of spirit. In this way the gallbladder is the bridge between the physical and the metaphysical, between the conscious and the superconscious, it is the organ which facilitates miracles and it is the organ which receives God. The Gallbladder is the prophet, it is the alchemist, it is the priest and the shaman and the artist. This year will see a potentiation of spirit all around us and within us; take advantage of this time with increased practice and prayer.

The energy of 2024 will be volatile, expansive, powerful, and clear. This year will foster activities associated with growth in the domains of career, life goals, and physical, mental, or spiritual fitness. The energy of the year is generative and it will be a potent time to plant seeds for the future in any aspect of life. For those interested in developing in your spiritual practice this year is a potent time to put in the work. The gallbladder and lungs will be open and full of energy this year; it is a good time to take on practices to strengthen these organs. In the 2024 year of the Dragon the energy of heaven will come to penetrate and saturate our realm, so take advantage of it!