power – Offspring Magazine

Happy New Year! A chance to start over…again. Here is everything you need to know about 2022 the Year of the Water Tiger.

The Chinese New Year falls on Tuesday, February the 1st, also known as the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival. It is celebrated on the second full moon of the Winter Solstice and possibly the biggest celebration in Chinese culture.

The Chinese zodiac originates over 2000 years ago, from the Qin Dynasty embedded in a system of zoolatry (animal worship). The animals of the Chinese zodiac, follow one another in an established order and are repeated every twelve years. Each sign is associated with differing qualities, strengths and weaknesses, divided by their element as well as their yin (feminine) vs yang (masculine) spectrum.

The Chinese Zodiac acts in accordance to the year of birth as follows:

Ox – 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021

Rat – 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020

Tiger – 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022

Rabbit – 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023

Dragon – 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024

Snake – 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, 2025

Horse – 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026

Goat – 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027

Monkey – 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028

Rooster – 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029

Dog – 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018, 2030

Pig – 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031

The general forecast for the year of 2022, is a year of possibility and prosperity.

The lead up to this year comes from following on from 2020, the Year of the Rat, which was a year grounded on survival. 2021, the Year of the Ox, was focused on cementing ourselves in new reality. The past two years have been preparing us for 2022, the Year of the Tiger. We are now ready to action and advance with the big changes coming throughout the year ahead.

In the Chinese zodiac, those born in the birth Year of the Tiger are born leaders, independent and fearless. They are hungry for excitement, crave attention, typically walk and talk assertively and inspire respect. Tigers are courageous and energetic, as well as love a challenge or competition. They may also be rebellious, short-tempered and outspoken, typically known for preferring to give orders, rather than take them.

Tigers employ their strength and justice in the face of adversity. Utilising Tiger traits will benefit everyone entering this Lunar New Year. Reigning in the Year of the Tiger, means you can also expect good fortune in your relationships and family life.

The water element, makes 2022 especially distinctive as it falls only every 60 years. The Water Tiger is favourable as a symbol of strength, courage and predilection. The element of this year symbolises a year of wealth, influence, power, politics and a central focus on such advances.

Those who thrive on attention, decisiveness and decision, will be moving to the next level and benefit the most this coming year. “The challengers,” and those who will be tested this year, include those born in the year of the Tiger, Snake, Monkey and the Boar. The “trailblazers” of 2022 include those born in the year of the Rat, Ox, Rabbit and Dragon and the “superstars” of 2022, include those born in the year of the Horse, Sheep, Rooster and Dog.

A forecast for the year ahead:

Tiger: Although it is the Year of the Tiger, those born in this astrological year will be challenged. It probably will not be a year for relationship advances, and singles need to be patient when hoping for a suitable mate. They will however, have better luck in family and work relations.

Rabbit. A trailblazer of 2022, the Rabbit can look ahead to a lucky year. This will be predominant in business and career moves, international affairs and performance elevation. There is warning in regard to new friends this year, as some may become financial burdens.

Dragon: The Dragon should pay attention to social relationships, their health and their loved ones in 2022. It is said to be a year to focus on strength and self-resilience. No one is coming to save them this year, so they are warned to act conservatively and complain less.

Snake: Similar to the Tiger, the snake will be challenged this year. They must learn to control their temper this year, with disputes with family and possible exes on the horizon.

Horse: The Horse can look forward to a good year with work advancement and financial skills. There is room to cultivate interpersonal relationships with social entertainment opportunities on the horizon in 2022.

Sheep: The Sheep will be in luck in 2022, as they make big changes, persevere and advance. There is a year of romance on the horizon for the sheep, it is also a good year for marriage, having another child and moving to new property.

Monkey: The Monkey will have a tough year of twists and turns. There is advice to play conservatively as they will not have much luck in career or relationships this year. Relationships with family will however, be peaceful.

Rooster: This will be a great year for the Rooster, as two of the luckiest stars will be shining on them throughout 2022. This year there will be good food, wine, career advancements, relationships and adventures.

Dog: The Dog’s luck will be on their side this year, as their talents flourish. They must show care to their lovers, friends and family as well as their health to avoid illness and communication breakdown.

Pig: Those born in the year of the Pig will have opportunity for work promotion and collaboration. However, the pig should be weary of unfamiliar partnerships and competitors stealing opportunities.

Rat: The Rat will face average luck this year. They are warned to beware of any extreme activities as some unlucky stars indicate a possible injury. Rats may also find their schedules busier than usual making it harder to make new connections and friends.

Ox: The Ox can expect a good year with being more open to opportunities for relationships. It is a perfect year for those single, having the best luck in romance out of the twelve signs in 2022.

There are lucky colours and numbers associated with the Chinese zodiac and year ahead. For the Year of the Tiger, the colours green and blue will bring luck and fortune, with lucky numbers 1, 3 and 7. There are additional warnings to stay clear of the colour white and the numbers 4 and 9 throughout the year.

Tigers are strong, aggressive and they keep moving all the time. There’s an imperative warning, to keep your ego in check this year, to transition through 2022 with ease and advances, seizing every opportunity, just as the tiger would.

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WELLSPRING

Conflict crystals: Even sage can’t get rid of these bad vibes

By Rebecca Frost January 20, 2022

Demand for crystals has never been higher. But many can be traced back to dangerous origins in some of the world’s poorest countries. With little evidence to prove the industry will change any time soon, some wellness trends appear to be causing more harm than good.

Adele performs with them, Miranda Kerr sleeps with them, Victoria Beckham won’t leave her house without them. It appears that crystals have officially entered the mainstream. When Gwyneth Paltrow introduced her infamous Yoni Eggs – rose quartz and jade eggs designed to be inserted into the vagina and activated by “a Kegel-like physical practise” – the scientific community went nuts. She initially claimed that the eggs could be used to boost feminine energy by balancing hormones and regulating menstrual cycles, eventually leading to a (USD) $145,000 false advertisement lawsuit. Her website, Goop, now suggests using the eggs to feel better connected with your body.

Gwyneth Paltrow Goop — Goop is a wellness and lifestyle brand and company founded by actress Gwyneth Paltrow in 2008. In the past decade, Goop has grown into a multinational powerhouse valued at more than US$250 million.

International NGO Global Witness found that the Taliban earns up to $20m a year from Afghanistan’s lapis lazuli mines.

But believers say that crystals do have the power to make real change. When used correctly, crystals are said to conduct positive energy which redress imbalances in the body, mind, and spirit. Non-believers, on the other hand, argue that any changes felt are simply down to the placebo effect – an immensely powerful tool in itself. At worst, they say, crystals will do nothing at all. But crystals aren’t exactly harmless. Like diamonds, the crystal mining industry is rife with conflict and exploitation.

Kachin State in northern Myanmar produces 70% of the world’s jade. It is a $31 billion industry there – nearly half of the nation’s GDP – and is now controlled by a corrupt military junta known as Tatmadaw. In fact, the industry fuelled the Tatmadaw’s rise to power in February 2021, when the group deposed the National League for Democracy (NLD) in a violent coup d’état.

Jade mining Myanmar — Workers searching for jade in a mining site in Hpakant.

The military coup has made reform in the industry near impossible. As one of the main beneficiaries of jade wealth, the Tatmadaw have little incentive to continue implementing the legal framework put in place by the NLD. This has had devastating environmental and social consequences.

Keel Dietz, the Myanmar policy advisor for Global Witness, says that “the military, in their desperate efforts to maintain control, will look to the country’s natural resource wealth to sustain their rule, to buy weapons, and enrich themselves.”

He goes on to say that “The primary concern is really the destruction of the local environment and displacement of local people. Mining happens right in the middle of villages, and they move the entire village out. Sometimes so they can blast huge areas with dynamite so they can harvest the jade.”

A mining site in Hpakant — Aerial view of a mining site in Hpakant. Taken by Zaw Moe Htet for The Guardian.

The mines are made especially narrow and deep to maximise space, making them prone to landslides which occur almost daily. In July 2020, a major landslide in the Hpakant region of Kachin State killed at least 200 miners in the nation’s deadliest recorded mining accident. The actual death toll will never be known, as most of the bodies will be left under heaps of rubble – only to be discovered years later, in search of yet more jade.

“At first it was so scary for me,” says one worker. “But it’s becoming natural … We started [to accept] that we could die in any situation.”

Most miners are unregistered labourers living in make-shift shelters, who come from all over Myanmar in the hope of finding a fortune. Their testimonies reveal a destructive environment in the community around the mines, with endemic heroin addiction, high rates of HIV, and the abuse of young women and girls.

“There are no jobs in Hpakant for women except for working as a maid or in a massage parlour,” says a 26-year-old woman living in the community. “The parlours are fronts for brothels, and many, many women are sexually abused.”

Jade inspection Myanmar — Buyers check the quality of large jade stones at the annual gem stone exposition in Naypyidaw, 2016

And it isn’t just Myanmar that is facing this issue. Mineral extraction is linked to severe human-rights violations and environmental harm across the developing world.

In Afghanistan, Global Witness has found that the Taliban and other armed groups earn up to $20 million a year from ancient lapis mines. They produce almost all the world’s blue lapis lazuli – supposedly one of the best stones for activating the mind. It accounts for the second largest source of income for the Taliban, and if left unchecked will drive further corruption, conflict, and extremism across the country.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, where children are forced to work in the cobalt and copper mines, other stones such as citrine and smoky quartz are found as by-products. These precious stones, thought to bring positivity, are then bought by Western retailers and sold at a huge mark-up to the consumer.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, seven-year-old children work in the cobalt and copper mines, where crystals are found as a by-product.

Diamond mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo — Congolese workers search for rough diamonds in a Kangambala mine in Lunged, in the south west region of Kasai in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Photo taken by Lynsey Addario for Time Magazine, 2015.

But it’s hard to find a retailer who can specify the origins of individual stones, let alone find ones that are ethically sourced. Besides, there are no laws that require them to do so.

As the crystal market continues to grow, so does the need for change. In 2000, campaigning from organisations such as Global Witness fuelled a resolution from the United Nations to regulate the diamond trade. The establishment of the Kimberley Process in 2002 virtually eliminated blood diamonds and associated conflicts. It’s possible that the government could bring in similar regulations for crystals.

For now, the future of the industry depends on consumer behaviour. When demand starts to change, so too will supply.

Here’s what you can do to help:

Compare prices across shops and avoid the lowest-priced crystals.
Ask sellers about the origins of their products. If they can’t give you a straight answer, look elsewhere.
Talk to your friends and family about crystal mining issues to spread awareness.
Write letters to government officials advocating for stricter labour and mining laws.

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WELLSPRING

The Subconscious – Its power and purpose

By Monique Kristie February 5, 2021

From the moment we are born, every experience and emotion we have ever felt is stored in the part of our mind called the subconscious. Intangible, immeasurable, and for the most part inaccessible, this portion of the human mind is complex and extremely important to our individual personal identities.

Our mind is like an iceberg. Floating in the ocean, we can only see what is above the surface of the water – and while this may be colossal in size, it only makes up a tiny ten percent of the total size of the iceberg. What is hidden underneath is nine times larger. Our conscious mind represents this ten percent of the iceberg in view, above the water, and our subconscious represents all that is below. The conscious mind is only a tiny portion of what is going on underneath.

The conscious mind is responsible for collecting information in our day-to-day life through our senses, which it relays back to the subconscious. The subconscious encompasses those activities we take for granted such as breathing, blinking and monitoring our temperatures, but it also stores every past experience, emotion, and thought we have ever had. Like the iceberg under the water, we can’t see or readily access the true depth and size of our incredibly powerful subconscious mind but it plays an extremely important role in all of our lives.

The capacity of the subconscious mind is incredible, with few limitations on how much it can store. According to motivational speaker, renowned self-development expert and author of Focal Point Brian Tracy, “By the time you reach 21, you’ve already stored more than one hundred times the content of the entire Encyclopedia Britannica.”

The subconscious mind is constantly active and responsible for an incredible amount of our human functions, actions, choices and personality. In psychological terms, the subconscious is a secondary mind system that stores everything we receive through our senses in a kind of data processing memory bank. It monitors information coming in from our conscious mind such as sight, taste, hearing and touch.

The two aspects of the mind – conscious and subconscious – communicate all the time. The elements that are processed by our conscious mind only stay in the subconscious if they are intensely emotional experiences. This is partly what makes the subconscious so powerful and important in its long-term effects on us as individuals.

What does the subconscious mind actually do?

The subconscious element of our minds covers more than just suppressed desires and forgotten traumatic memories that we are often told about at school. It is responsible for all of those day-to-day movements and activities that we take for granted or don’t even consciously recognise doing. For example, breathing, blinking and regulating our body temperatures are all acts we do subconsciously.

According to psychologist Havan Parvez, of PsychMechanics, the subconscious is always active, even when we sleep. It communicates with us through images and symbols in our dreams, relaying information we have encountered during the day or even from many years ago – the subconscious storage bank goes back as long as we have been processing information through our senses.

Another key function of the subconscious relates to our behaviour. It regulates our reactions, actions, decisions, and physical choices to fit with those it has previously established as ‘ours’. It keeps our thoughts and beliefs consistent, establishing our comfort zones and deeming what activities would suit them.

Brian Tracy, self-development author and motivational public speaker, states that the subconscious mind is what, “Makes (our) behaviour fit a pattern consistent with (our) emotionalised thoughts, hopes, and desires.”

Psychology blog, Mindsets, also claims our natural intuition arises from the subconscious, which uses our previous experience, emotions and memory to help us assess situations. If you have ever felt a ‘gut feeling’ or inexplicable sense about something, this is your subconscious mind communicating with you and sending you signals based on your own previous knowledge.

According to Yvonne Oswald’s book, Every Word Has Power, the subconscious mind does the following:

Operates the physical body.
Has a direct connection with the Divine.
Remembers everything.
Stores emotions in the physical body.
Maintains genealogical instincts.
Creates and maintains least effort (repeating patterns).
Uses metaphor, imagery and symbols.
Takes direction from the conscious mind.
Accepts information literally and personally.
Does not process negative commands.

How can we harness its power?

It is important to know the ways in which we can harness the power of our subconscious minds. Think about emotional experiences you have had that have impacted your future life. Can personal issues with trust, relationships, certain habits, that you currently have be traced back to an incident or experience you had in the past? This is your subconscious mind acting based on the intense emotions you felt during that time.

One of the most significant reasons why we should endeavour to use the power of our subconscious for our mental health is to clear emotional blockages and for the purposes of personal healing. According to Joseph Drumheller, award-winning author and leader in meditation, healing and education, we must be in the proper state of mind before exploring our subconscious. He suggests practising some detachment when considering our emotional charges or particular feelings in isolation. Distance your rational mind from these emotions. Then it becomes easier, and safer, to push into these feelings a little deeper.

Drumheller says that letting yourself explore and feel your emotions as they arise or as you consider certain aspects of your life is important when working on your subconscious. Through your detachment from these emotions, start to think about them more critically. Take mental note of when a certain thought, image, noise, or memory triggers a particular emotion. From this point, we can start to ask ourselves why we feel this emotion, and if from our space of mental detachment, we can see that it may not be warranted, we can start to let the feeling go. As the emotion grows fainter and less raw, we are letting go of this emotional charge and clearing some weight from our subconscious.

This method is useful to try, but the results can differ from person to person. Drumheller suggests that if we are stuck with a particular emotional charge that is difficult to shift, or we begin to lose ourselves in the feelings of that emotion, then there is another method to try. Visualise a large scared object or symbol such as a flower or a cross hovering directly in front of you. Imagine that it holds immense power. Start to think about each of your emotions and visualise this object pulling the force of these emotions out of your heart and mind, drawing them into itself. In this way the power has been transferred to the object rather than your mind in releasing the emotional charge and is a good method for beginners or those struggling with release.

Further suggestions

There is an extensive array of literature, podcasts and other resources available for information and guidance regarding our subconscious. Several books written on the subject are available as audiobooks which can be a fantastic way to engage with the material.

Based on readership ratings, the following books are recommended:

The Power of Your Subconscious Mind by Joseph Murphy
Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman
Beyond the Power of your Subconscious Mind by C. James Jenson
The Subconscious Mind: How to Use the Hidden Power of Your Mind to Reach Your Goals by Linda Siegmund

Exploring your subconscious is something that can be done privately but is also worthwhile when done with the assistance of a mental health professional such as a psychologist. Those trained in this field can guide you, provide suggestions, and offer support should you need it.

Therapies for your subconscious such as Private Subconscious-mind Healing (P.S.H) are also available for more guided or targeted exploration of the subconscious. This therapy is non-invasive, extremely gentle in its approach, and is designed to assist in resolving underlying subconscious problems that are affecting our day to day lives.

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