Year of the Dragon 2012

Happy Chinese New Year!

The Dragon symbol of the 2012 year, began on January 23rd, is an intelligent and laborious worker who never puts aside work though sometimes this leads him to excesses. The water Dragon has enough courage to face challenges and easily finds weak points that stand on his way to success. 

Industries belonging to the wood (textile, media) and earth (property, construction) elements and will see some prosperity in 2012. Metal (banking) and water (shipping) industries will not be as profitable.

Whew!! for me (textiles) and my husband (property-construction)!

Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious (attended by good fortune- prosperous) powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck. With this, the Emperor of China usually uses the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power. 

 The Imperial Dragon was supposed to be made up of nine separate beings. They were the eyes of a demon, the head of a camel, the ears of a cow, the neck of a snake, the horns of a stag, the claws of an eagle and the belly of a clam. His soles were made of the feet of a tiger and his body was covered with carp scales numbering an odd 117. As a result, each picture of the Imperial Dragon shows a winding twisty golden-red colored fearsome creature that is nonetheless very beautiful to look at.

In Chinese daily language, excellent and outstanding people are compared to the dragon while incapable people with no achievements are compared with other, disesteemed creatures, such as the worm. 

OoooOOh my!

A number of Chinese proverbs and idioms feature references to the dragon, for example:

"Hoping one's son will become a dragon" 望子成龍

 more postings on Chinese Children's Hats here

In fact, China is expecting a huge baby boom this year!

In ancient China, the dragon became a symbol of the imperial hierarchy. At the end of his reign, the first legendary Emperor, Huang Di, was said to have been immortalized into a dragon that resembled his emblem, and ascended to Heaven. Since the Chinese consider Huang Di as their ancestor, they sometimes refer to themselves as "the descendants of the dragon." This legend also contributed towards the use of the Chinese dragon as a symbol of imperial power.

The dragon, especially yellow or golden dragons with five claws on each foot, was a symbol for the emperor in many Chinese dynasties. 

 

Chinese emperors thought they were the real dragons and the sons of heaven. Thus the beds they slept on are called the dragon beds, the throne called the dragon seat, and the emperor’s ceremonial dresses called the dragon robes.  It was a capital offense for commoners to wear clothes with a dragon symbol. 

The dragon is featured in the carvings on the steps of imperial palaces and tombs, such as the Forbidden City in Beijing.

There are nine ways the Chinese have traditionally represented these dragon each one revealing a different dragon characteristic.

• There are dragons carved on the tops of bells and gongs, because of the beast’s habit of calling loudly when attacked.
• A second type is carved on the screws of fiddles, since most dragons are fond of music.
• A third is carved on the tops of stone tablets, because of dragons’ love of literature.
• A fourth is found at the bottom of stone monuments, as dragons can support heavy weights.
• A fifth is placed on the eaves of temples, as dragons are ever alert to danger.
• A sixth occurs on the beams of bridges, since dragons are fond of water.
• A seventh is carved on Buddha’s throne, as dragons like to rest.
• An eighth is placed on the hilts of swords, since dragons are known to be capable of slaughter.
• The ninth is carved on prison gates, as these are dragons that are fond of quarreling and trouble making.

May you all have a auspicious 

Chinese New Year that 

exceeds your every dream!

Something New!

I love your questions and comments and they are always welcomed..and I have found most of you like to contact me personally instead of leaving a public comment...so please feel free to use this button...

The Soul of an Art Business

Last week, I talked about the new book of the year (see link to right of this posting) and how my business life is a whirling-twirling merry go round!

I know that I am fortunate to be artist and to have my own studio away from my home. With that comes responsibilities that you would not even think of when running your business, so it is always a learning experience. Which lead me to think about where my whirling business is today and how to create a more enjoyable and less stressful situation for me to work in.

I believe that is the one of the things I do most enjoy about being in business is problem solving- that is in the business itself and in the actual dollmaking. My students are so well versed with my phrase Dollmaking is just creative problem-solving! I find that having a problem and to creatively figure it out is fun- like a puzzle! Of course even better when you can take pieces from another puzzle and fit it in!!So with that in mind, I set out to figure out this puzzle...

I am well aware there are so many business courses out there, business books, CDs, DVD's etc etc. I have found most of them to be very product oriented.  How do you reach into your heart?

What about us artists?? I did some investigation and I came across an online class for businesses- more importantly for art business...

Hello Soul Hello Business.

I decided- what the heck, I'll give it a shot, it seems to be exactly what I am looking for...so I signed up!

how will the pieces fit together??

It has only been four days but truthfully, I could not of been more pleasantly surprised at approach of this course. It is a 9 week program and you have a new exercise to do daily (M-F)...if you really want it to work you need to be honest and  in a quiet location so you can dig deep...I am very excited to see where this will take my business!!

Book of the Year 2012

ok...so you all know that I love to have a word of the year to strive for or to reach a goal of being a better person. Last year my dear friend Kathy (aka Peep) introduced me to a book for the year. 

I so enjoyed every morning taking a quiet moment or two to read the thought of the day. It was a wonderful way to start the day. Unless you are one of the very few who have figured out how to have a balanced life, we are all thrown into our hectic lives to accomplish, as fast as we can, our goals for the day while being bombarded with more demands from things other that are not on our to do lists...humm- maybe this is tmi or a telling sign of what my life is!?!?!

With this in mind, Peep, shared with me another book for this year...this is help me with my goal of the year...to reach more people with my art while taking time to enjoy a bit of life...

Younger by the Day: 

365 Ways to Rejuvenate Your Body and Revitalize Your Spirit 

Since it is the beginning of the year, I have just started it. One of Victoria Moran's suggestion was to read through the book in its entirety...hummm...sister I am going to be lucky to read each day's thought!  

This could be a clue for me for my chosen hectic life. I am well aware that I am one of those who live an over-booked life and am well aware that I have done this to myself. I also realize that I am a do-er...I love creating and can't keep up with my thoughts. However I realize I am only one person and do need to look up from my computer or sewing machine every once and while to see the world. 

My main goal of the year is to slow the merry-go-round down a bit to have time...

It is a wondrous precious gift that I have been able to make a living being a doll artist, to have my own studio out of my house and fill my classes with my fabulous students. I have worked so very hard to bring this calling to life however, it has now whirled into its own entity and I am holding on...

 so it is now time to takes this creation and fine tune it...I am still working on that and will mold this into the ability to reach more people with my art while taking time to enjoy a bit of life...

I need time...just a moment of time...to step off this whirling machine and take a walk to give myself a moment of time to explore and to discover things life has to show us. 

You never know what else you can do in life until you get off the speeding merry go round and break away from the herd!!

So stayed tuned there is always more to come!! 

Life is GRAND!!

Kitsune- The Fox

My friend and supplier of vintage Japanese fabric, Judith  of wabisabi wears, brought to my attention the Japanese legend of the Kitsune...the Fox.

Kitsune 狐 is the Japanese word for fox. Foxes are a common subject of Japanese folklore; in English, kitsune refers to them in this context. Stories depict them as intelligent beings and as possessing magical abilities that increase with their age and wisdom. Foremost among these is the ability to assume human form. While some folktales speak of kitsune employing this ability to trick others—as foxes in folklore often do—other stories portray them as faithful guardians, friends, lovers, and wives.

Foxes and human beings lived close together in ancient Japan; this companionship gave rise to legends about the creatures. Kitsune have become closely associated with Inari, a Shinto kami or spirit, and serve as its messengers. This role has reinforced the fox's supernatural significance. The more tails a kitsune has—they may have as many as nine—the older, wiser, and more powerful it is. Because of their potential power and influence, some people make offerings to them as to a deity.

Characteristics

Kitsune are believed to possess superior intelligence, long life, and magical powers. They are a type of yōkai, or spiritual entity, and the word kitsune is often translated as fox spirit. 

However, this does not mean that kitsune are ghosts, nor that they are fundamentally different from regular foxes. Because the word spirit is used to reflect a state of knowledge or enlightenment, all long-lived foxes gain supernatural abilities.

There are two common classifications of kitsune.

The zenko 善狐 literally good foxes, are benevolent, celestial foxes associated with the god Inari; they are sometimes simply called Inari foxes. On the other hand, the yako 野狐literally field foxes, also called nogitsune) tend to be mischievous or even malicious. Local traditions add further types. For example, a ninko is an invisible fox spirit that human beings can only perceive when it possesses them. Another tradition classifies kitsune into one of thirteen types defined by which supernatural abilities the kitsune possesses.

Physically, kitsune are noted for having as many as nine tails. Generally, a greater number of tails indicates an older and more powerful fox; in fact, some folktales say that a fox will only grow additional tails after it has lived 100 years. One, five, seven, and nine tails are the most common numbers in folk stories. When a kitsune gains its ninth tail, its fur becomes white or gold. These kyūbi no kitsune 九尾の狐 nine-tailed foxes gain the abilities to see and hear anything happening anywhere in the world. Other tales attribute them infinite wisdom (omniscience).

Shapeshifting

 A kitsune may take on human form, an ability learned when it reaches a certain age—usually 100 years, although some tales say 50.As a common prerequisite for the transformation, the fox must place reeds, a broad leaf, or a skull over its head. Common forms assumed by kitsune include beautiful women, young girls, or elderly men. These shapes are not limited by the fox's age or gender,^[ and a kitsune can duplicate the appearance of a specific person.Foxes are particularly renowned for impersonating beautiful women. Common belief in medieval Japan was that any woman encountered alone, especially at dusk or night, could be a fox.

In some stories, kitsune have difficulty hiding their tails when they take human form; looking for the tail, perhaps when the fox gets drunk or careless, is a common method of discerning the creature's true nature. Variants on the theme have the kitsune retain other foxlike traits, such as a coating of fine hair, a fox-shaped shadow, or a reflection that shows its true form. 

Kitsune-gao or fox-faced refers to human females who have a narrow face with close-set eyes, thin eyebrows, and high cheekbones. Traditionally, this facial structure is considered attractive, and some tales ascribe it to foxes in human form. Kitsune have a fear and hatred of dogs even while in human form, and some become so rattled by the presence of dogs that they revert to the shape of a fox and flee. A particularly devout individual may be able to see through a fox's disguise automatically.

 

Other supernatural abilities commonly attributed to the kitsune include possession, mouths or tails that generate fire or lightning (known as kitsune-bi; literally, fox-fire), willful manifestation in the dreams of others, flight, invisibility, and the creation of illusions so elaborate as to be almost indistinguishable from reality. Some tales speak of kitsune with even greater powers, able to bend time and space or take fantastic shapes such as a tree of incredible height or a second moon in the sky.