It may not be golden, but the Pig is here
By Kent Ewing
HONG KONG - The Year of the Pig, which kicks off on Sunday with a clamorous
parade of drums and dragons in this city of 7 million people, augurs well for
property moguls, hoteliers and computer programmers. Jewelers may also squeeze
in. But the biggest beneficiaries will probably be obstetricians and
gynecologists.
Feng shui masters and soothsayers may have different predictions on
political or economic development in Greater
China, and in the world as well. One thing is for certain, there will be a baby
boom in the Chinese community in this Year of the Pig.
In what could be bad news for China's controversial one-child policy, state-run
media report a soaring rise in pregnancies as couples plan for births in an
exceptionally auspicious year. The pig, one of 12 animals that make up the
Chinese zodiac, is always associated with virility and fertility.
In Hong Kong too, a baby boom is expected. The number of newborn babies in this
Year of the Pig could reach 73,000, more than 1% of the territory's total
population of nearly 7 million. This may ease the worry about the continuous
decrease of birth rate in the special administrative region (SAR).
This lunar year, however, is fraught with an especially strong dose of
astrological Viagra because it is believed to be the Year of the Golden Pig,
which - depending on the astrologer you consult - comes once every 60 or 600
years. Either way, it's a rare pig.
Or is it? Serious Hong Kong practitioners of the ancient art of feng shui,
or geomancy, have debunked the notion that this is a golden year, writing it
off as a commercial invention fostered by shopkeepers to boost business. The
next golden pig year, they say, will not come around until 2031.
But what is more important, perception or reality?
Counterfeit or not, most people have bought the gold, and porcine products and
themes abound in a city renowned for its love of money. Langham Place - a
shopping mall in the teeming Mong Kok district known for its attraction to
well-heeled mainland visitors - has set the standard, erecting a fiberglass
swine large enough for people to enter and navigate. This supersow is
illuminated by 380 gold lightbulbs and offers four auspicious locations to
visit.
Beyond that, the mall is festooned with 20 flying pigs carrying the promise of
wealth to all who shop there. So Langham Place is an irresistible attraction
for anyone seeking good fortune. And the jewelers there hope to sell a lot of
gold - in the form of pigs or anything else.
Actually, however, this is a fire-pig year, according to feng shui masters
such as Raymond Lo and Peter So. It is only golden in the fired imaginations of
shopkeepers scheming for additional profit. But those merchants have succeeded
in duping the general public.
Before the crass intervention of commerce, here, by most accounts, is how the
Chinese astrological system was supposed to work: each year in the lunar
calendar is represented by one of the 12 animals of the zodiac, which then
rotates through five earthly elements - metal, wood, water, fire and earth.
This year's pig is matched up not with gold but with fire and, significantly,
the fire sits on water. The elements are therefore in conflict - a theme not
particularly popular with merchants and mall decorators - and the year ahead
will be full of turbulence.
It would be better if this year's flame were a yang fire, which
symbolizes the warmth of the sun, politeness and optimism. But instead, it's a yin
fire, and that signifies the spark of tension, conflict and even war.
So if you thought US President George W Bush had lost his Texas swagger in the
wake of the Iraq debacle, think again. It's going to be another year of
regional and international antagonism.
In the United States, with Bush riding into the sunset after two strife-filled
terms, the campaign for presidential nominations in the country's two
mainstream political parties should be a corker. In fact, although the election
itself is nearly 21 months away, it seems things already started heating up
this week when Bush's antipodean partner, Australian Prime Minister John
Howard, characterized the Democrats as al-Qaeda's favorite party.
If that is a sign of things to come, feng shui experts might expect
Republicans to take political fire from the opposite side of the world. And
where, by the way, does Greenland stand on the "war on terror"? We are liable
to find out soon.
Although fire is a symbol of the financial market, don't count on a bumper year
for the world economy. This year's fire is deceptive because it sits on water,
and we all know that water conquers fire.
While the fire burns, the market will rise, but investors will have to play a
wary game in the latter half of the year as the flame wanes and then goes out.
Let's not forget that the Asian financial crisis occurred in a yin-fire
year, 1997.
Moreover, it's easy to be superstitious about any year ending in "7". Remember
the Wall Street plunge in 1987?
No wonder merchants want us all to think it's a golden year.
Sectors of the economy that should prosper are those represented by elements
not in conflict with water. Earth industries - for example, property, mining
and insurance - should thrive. Metal industries - such as machinery
manufacturers, high-tech companies and skin-care and health centers - should
also do well.
In addition, furniture salespeople, paper companies and book publishers -
dependent on wood - will prosper. But since water conflicts with fire, it might
be a tough year for soft-drink companies and the shipping industry, and also
for the flame-driven electricity and entertainment sectors.
Ultimately, however, the year could be hardest on mothers who literally labor
under the illusion that their pig children will be born into extraordinarily
good luck and fortune.
And the golden luck of the child is supposed to rub off on the parents. That
might explain why the Shanghai Population and Family Planning Commission
expects 7,000 more births in that city this year, while the Hong Kong Hospital
Authority predicts an 11% rise in newborns. That the authority's director of
operations, Allen Cheung, himself called 2007 a golden pig year has no doubt
served to stir couples to action.
At the same time that health officials have been encouraging reproduction
locally, however, the city has girded itself for a possible onslaught of
pregnant mainland women charging the border to have babies in Hong Kong whose
births would be outlawed at home by China's one-child policy.
Starting this month, mainland mothers have been paying double the hospital fees
of their Hong Kong counterparts. They may also be turned away at the border if
they appear more than seven months pregnant and do not have an advance hospital
booking.
Feng shui masters have been silent so far about the geomantic
implications of the new year starting off with Hong Kong immigration officials
brandishing tape measures to halt the progress of would-be mainland mothers
bent on delivering golden babies in the city's hospitals.
Kent Ewing is a teacher and writer at Hong Kong International School. He
can be reached at kewing@hkis.edu.hk.
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