Chinese Year of the Dragon to Cause A Chinese Baby Boom?

No, I would not want to live in a world without dragons, as I would not want to live in a world without magic, for that is a world without mystery.
~R.A. Salvatore

The Chinese New Year begins tomorrow (Jan 23, 2012). The dragon is the only mythical creature in the Chinese calendar. The year of the dragon is believed by many to be the most auspicious of the 12 zodiac signs. Dragon years in the past have seen a spike in birth rates in China and other places with Chinese populations such as Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore and even New York.

China is expecting a 5% increase in births this year, in spite of, or maybe because of, the year of the dragon. The dragon is special," says a pregnant Hong Kong resident, "I am not willing to wait 12 years for a dragon baby, but I was willing to wait one or two years." The one child rule also makes the birth date especially important.  Beijing hospitals are reporting maternity spaces booked through September. The estimate is a baby has to be conceived by May 2 in order to be born by end of the dragon year (February 9, 2013).



The expected boom will create a spending spree, and put a strain on public services. Businesses that cater to mothers and babies are gearing up. Since the one-child policy was introduced, one baby means more spending on children. The boom will put pressure on hospitals, child care, kindergartens, and schools.

Note: Both of my sons were born in years of the dragon. This was not planned, but has certainly been auspicious!

Something else I learned: 2012 is the year of the water dragon, water having a calming effect on the dragon.

New Year's Day Bonus Post - Pictures from Celebrations Around the World

Wow! The World celebrates the start of 2012.

The Temple of Heaven in Beijing, during a countdown event for new year 2012:


More awesome pictures here. I especially like the 1st sunrise of 2012 (at the end).

Bolon Yaxche Mayan God: Guardian of the Dark Rift in the Galactic Centre

...people hear about the so-called end date of the Mayan calendar, and today some people have even created the illusion that the Mayan calendar was designed only to point out this end date. In reality, there is nothing to indicate that the ancient Maya who developed the Long Count calendar had any interest in what would happen as this calendar came to an end. Instead what the ancient Mayan scriptures talk about is its beginning. The exact date for this beginning was apparently based on the day of the year, August 11, when the sun was in zenith in Izapa...
~Carl Johan Calleman 

The Mayan Calendar is mythologized through varied interpretations that extend well beyond the popular "the world will end in 2012." Maybe not, as it turns out (I hope so though, because my sister has an awesome party planned!). According to Sven Gronemeyer (a "German expert") the inscriptions on the Mayan calendar actually describe the return of Bolon Yokte The Mayan Lord of Creation. Read article

"The Mayan calendar marks the end of a 5,126 year old cycle around December 12, 2012 which should bring the return of Bolon Yokte, a Mayan god associated with war and creation."
~Mayan experts

According to Mayan religion:
August of 3114 BC was the start of a new age and when the creation Lord was reborn.  Bolon Yokte K’u, is closely associated with war, conflict, the underworld and is a god that is often present during Creation events. His image and the date 3114 BC appear on the Vessel of the Seven Lords. 3114 BC is the beginning of the 13-Baktun cycle we are currently in. The beginning of the next 13- Baktun cycle occurs on December 21, 2012, the so-called end of the Mayan Calendar.

Bolon Yokte as depicted on the Vessel of the Seven Lords:

Legible text, according to recent translations by David Stuart, reads: “At the end of 13 Baktuns, on 4 Ahau 3 Kankin, 13.0.0.0.0; something occurs when Bolon Yokte descends.”  The occurring "something" is illegible. However, the creation lord Bolon Yokte is depicted. So 2012, most popularly thought of as the end of the world, is more likely to be a creation or recreation of the world.

Bolon is the name given to the nine gods of the underworld, and Yaxche (Yokte) is the Mayan sacred tree of heaven "under which good souls rejoice." Bolon Yokte is also referred to as the Mayan God of Judgement and the Diety Attending the World renewal. Bolon Yaxche is a mysterious god to many researchers of the Mayan religion and calendar. Not sure where the "Guardian of the Dark Rift in the Galactic Centre" came from, but I think every religion should have one.

Note: The calendar and other artifacts left by the Mayans have been subjected to westernized misinterpretations. I don't think the world will end in 2012. Do you?

Something else I learned: There seem to be a lot of people taking this "world ends on December 21, 2012" very seriously.