The Year of the Dragon that arrived in 2024 didn’t just bring a new year, it also meant the ending of a cycle of time called Period 8 and it began a new twenty-year cycle of time called Period 9. This starts a new 20-year cycle and represents a shift in energies for the coming two decades.
Period 8 was marked by young men
The Period 8 cycle was ruled by the earth element of the northeast and the thinking mind and intelligence. This is a corner that relates to young men. Think of all the young men, like Mark Zuckerberg, who rose in prominence and influence during Period 8 as technology titans that began in 2004 and ended with the Year of the Dragon. More and more young men became millionaires and billionaires during this age.
The mental work of the Period 8 cycle has now been replaced by artificial intelligence, or AI. In 2024 through 2044, we will see the mind being taken over by computer processes that we can’t even imagine now. There will be problems, but there will also be amazing advances.
Here in Period 9, we will be watching reputation and social standing more closely. Is the Presidential address real? Is the declaration of war an AI deep fake? We will have to decide what is real and who we trust more closely than ever.
In the Year of the Dragon, the new shift began toward the feminine. We are seeing social changes that will continue and that will help propel a new age forward away from young men and tilt toward….the age of woman.
Period 9 is ruled by the fire element and the middle age of women.
This is the child-bearing woman, the young mother, who contains within her the ability to produce children, create change, and maybe even peace will be our new guiding light in the coming 20 years.
As the period related to the south, social causes will rise in prominence as we begin to consider that the world is only made up of us, not them. The collective will matter. New women leaders will emerge and new female entrepreneurs will eclipse the younger men as the harbingers of change and influence.
20 year cycles
In feng shui there are 20-year cycles of time and we have just concluded the Period 8 that ran from 2004-2024. This new Period 9 will last for another 20 years, from 2024 to 2044, and then it will be Period 1 from 2044 to 2064.
Good Stars vs. Bad Stars and the Fuss about Period 9
There is a lot of confusion about the changing of the Periods…will my house be okay? Do I need to change my house? What does Period 9 mean for me?
Let’s start with a review of the most well known energies, or, stars….
Generally, the 1, 6, and 8 stars are always considered to be auspicious and the 2, 3, 7 are considered less fortunate.
The 5 Yellow is always considered malevolent. The 4 star is regarded as unfavorable yet it has benefits, such as scholarly and romantic luck, and can be regarded differently according to the person it influences and location where it flies each year.
The 9 star is a mutable star, making good fortune better and making difficult luck more problematic.
Enter Period 9
During this time until 2044, the number 9 will be more favorable and the 8 will be less so, though the 8 is always regarded as a favorable star that portends wealth, no matter what the Period is.
The 8 star of the northeast is also the benevolent sibling to the 9 Purple Star that represents the south and the direction of the direct spirit of energy. The 1 star, and north direction, will now become the “future prosperity” star and is also the source of the “indirect spirit”.
Annual stars and their inherent energies
Annual stars are generally considered apart from period stars and flying stars, yet there still may be general characteristics that influence them both.
For example, in Period 7 (1984-2004), the double 7 flying stars known as mountain and water stars were considered lucky. However, the 7 annual star was still regarded as unfavorable so wherever it flew from year to year, it brought the afflictions of the 7 star like betrayal and theft.
It can get confusing….
What does this all mean?
It means that when “bad” stars are in their periods, they are less problematic. However, overall, I would say that annual stars are apart from the period stars and that they retain and follow their inherent natures, whether positive or negative.
So, even though the 2 star may be growing more beneficial as we move toward Period 1 and then Period 2, it will still be considered an intrinsically negative influence until then.
Even when we reach Period 2 and have a water star 2 and a mountain star 2, the annual 2 will still be deemed unlucky.
For that reason, you can still expect the 5 Yellow to exert the same negative energies in Period 9 that it had in Period 8, and maybe more so, and that all the stars you have known for their annual qualities will essentially remain the same into the next Period 9.
Lucky Directions
With the change from period 8 in which northeast-southwest axis houses were considered the most favorable, in Period 9, the south-north axis houses will have the most favorable directions and energies. If these are positive directions of your kua numbers, select a north-south house if you are an east kua number of 1, 3, 4, or 9.
Do you need to do anything to your house to change it to become a Period 9 house?
Many times, the answer is no. There’s nothing you really need to do about this change because through the course of living in a home and updating it as we often do – replacing carpets, tile floors, roofs, or even redecorating – these activities will often be enough change your home over to a Period 9.
There are some feng shui experts who say you must make significant changes to the flooring, roof, and front door in order to change your house over to the current period. But there’s an easier way.
My feng shui masters contend that simply moving to another house, making decorating changes, and the act of renovating your house over time is often enough to move it over to the current period. But, if you’d like to move the process ahead and make it move faster, consider making a change to the floor in your home, such as installing new tile or carpet in a living room, replace or repaint your front door, and replace a few roof tiles or shingles with new ones.
Moving ahead
Although you don’t have to make changes to your home, it’s a good idea to keep the energies of your home fresh, current, and revitalized. For that reason alone, it is a good idea to make some plans to help move your home forward and into the new Period 9.
Chances are, you may already have projects around your house ongoing, and often this is enough to help move your house over to the new period. If not, think of giving your front door a new coat of paint or changing the hardware and look around to see if there are any rooms that could use some freshening up with new paint or wallpaper.
