The Ding-Mao Tai Sui: General Shen Xing

A candle in the dark

Ding is yin fire, a candle in a quiet room. It does not blaze, but it lights up the small corners. Mao is the rabbit in a spring morning mist, alert and never careless.

General Shen Xing watches over this year. People born in Ding-Mao years often notice what others miss and know when to move and when to wait.

Ears that hear everything

His helmet has two curved wings on top, like a rabbit's tall ears, so no sound escapes him. He has a strong face, thick brows and a sharp, watchful look. He wears a bright yellow cloak over red and gold armor.

He holds a spear in his left hand. His right hand is held out, palm forward, to stop danger before it reaches the people behind him.

The merchants who looked wrong

According to legend, he was Shen Xing, a commander of a small town in a time when China was split into warring kingdoms. His walls were not strong and his soldiers were few, but his eyes were very sharp.

One day a few "merchants" came to the market. Shen Xing noticed their eyes darting around and that they were heading the wrong way for traders. He had them quietly followed, then prepared all night. When the enemy army came at midnight, the walls suddenly blazed with light and the soldiers were ready. The attackers turned back.

The whole town slept safely. Nobody knew how close disaster had come.

A quiet kind of hero

He never bragged. He just kept walking the walls every morning, noticing which yard had a new horse and which street felt different. Heaven named him the Tai Sui of the Ding-Mao year.

Rabbit-ear wings on his helmet and good luck for the alert: that is his gift to everyone born in the Year of the Rabbit.

Born in 1987

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