ACCOUNTING FOR LEAP YEARS & WHAT THE YEAR OF THE RAT WILL BRING

2008 is a leap year and the year of the rat in the Chinese Lunar Calendar system. In the China time zone, the new year begins at exactly 11:44 on 7 February. In EST, it is at 21:44 of 6 February. In GMT, it is at 3:44 of 7 February. By Chinese reckoning, 2008 is the 4705^th year.

The ancient Egyptians first noted the discrepancy between the man-made calendar and the seasons. The Romans instituted February 29 to synchronize the calendar with the seasons. In the 16^th century, the Gregorian calendar defined years divisible by 4 as a leap year (a practice still followed today). Mother Earth actually takes 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds to travel around the Sun –thus, the need for a leap year.

Dragonboi1628 at http://answers.yahoo.com/ presents his analysis of what the year of the rat will bring in terms of Chinese astrology:

“. . . Since in the cycle of the Five Elements, earth controls water, it implies a year of tension and conflict. When you have “wet” earth, you have mud. This means there will be many mudslides or other natural disasters associated with earth and water. The missing elements in 2008 are metal and fire. In order to balance the lack of these two elements in 2008, it is best to have metal and fire around your home or business.

In addition, 2008 is also a year where Spring, or Lap Chun, is missing. . . Since the solar calendar starts before the Chinese Lunar New Year, it means there is a missing Lap Chun. This implies a lack of vital earth energy. There will be obstacles in terms of getting things completed for the coming year of the Rat.

One word describes the year of the Rat, change. Since the Rat is the first sign of the 12 zodiac animals, things have come full circle, because a full cycle has been completed. This means there will be change in 2008. Whether the change is good or bad depends on your zodiac sign. Those zodiac signs in harmonious relationship with the Rat will experience good change, whereas those who are in conflict will face challenges.”

from http://www.chinesefortunecalendar.com/ and http://answers.yahoo.com/