Have you ever been asked by your Chinese friend, "What is your zodiac sign?" Don't think they are making small talk. If you say, "I'm a Monkey," they immediately know you are either 24, 36, 48 or 60 years old.
Da li vas je ikada upitao vaš prijatelj iz Kine: „Koji je vaš horoskopski znak?“ Nemojte misliti da samo neobavezno ćaska. Ako kažete: „Ja sam majmun“, odmah zna da imate 24, 36, 48 ili 60 godina.
(Laughter) Asking a zodiac sign is a polite way of asking your age.
(Smeh) Pitati za horoskopski znak je učtiv način da se pita za godine.
By revealing your zodiac sign, you are also being evaluated. Judgments are being made about your fortune or misfortune, your personality, career prospects and how you will do in a given year. If you share you and your partner's animal signs, they will paint a picture in their mind about your private life. Maybe you don't believe in the Chinese zodiac. As a quarter of the world population is influenced by it, you'd be wise to do something about that.
Otkrivanje vašeg horoskopskog znaka znači i da vas procenjuju. Prosuđuje se o vašoj sreći ili nesreći, vašoj ličnosti, izgledima za uspeh u karijeri i kako će vam proći data godina. Ako podelite svoj i partnerov životinjski znak, u svom umu će sačiniti sliku o vašem privatnom životu. Možda ne verujete u kineski horoskop. Budući da on utiče na četvrtinu svetske populacije, bilo bi mudro da uradite nešto po tom pitanju.
So what is the Chinese zodiac, exactly? Most Westerners think of Greco-Roman zodiac, the signs divided into 12 months. The Chinese zodiac is different. It's a 12-year cycle labeled with animals, starting with a Rat and ending with a Pig, and has no association with constellations. For example, if you were born in 1975, you are a Rabbit. Can you see your zodiac sign there? Our Chinese ancestors constructed a very complicated theoretical framework based on yin and yang, the five elements and the 12 zodiac animals. Over thousands of years, this popular culture has affected people's major decisions, such as naming, marriage, giving birth and attitude towards each other. And some of the implications are quite amazing.
Šta je tačno kineski horoskop? Većina zapadnjaka ima na umu grčko-rimski horoskop, znake podeljene na 12 meseci. Kineski horoskop je drugačiji. To je krug od 12 godina označen životinjama, počevši od pacova i završavajući se sa svinjom, a nema nikakvu povezanost sa sazvežđima. Na primer, ako ste rođeni 1975. godine, vi ste zec. Možete li da vidite svoj horoskopski znak tamo? Naši kineski preci su izgradili veoma komplikovan teorijski okvir zasnovan na unutrašnjem jangu, pet elemenata i 12 horoskopskih znakova. Hiljadama godina, ova popularna kultura je uticala na velike odluke ljudi, kao što su davanje imena, brak, rađanje i međusobni stavovi. Neke posledice su vrlo zapanjujuće.
The Chinese believe certain animals get on better than the others. So parents choose specific years to give birth to babies, because they believe the team effort by the right combination of animals can give prosperity to families. We even refer to the zodiac when entering into romantic relations. I'm a Pig; I should have perfect romance with Tigers, Goats and Rabbits. Chinese people believe some animals are natural enemies. As a Pig, I need to be careful with a Snake. Raise your hand if you are a Snake. Let's have a chat later.
Kinezi veruju da se neke životinje slažu bolje od drugih. Zato roditelji biraju određene godine u kojima će rađati decu, jer veruju da timski rad kroz pravu kombinaciju životinja može doneti napredak porodici. Čak se vodimo horoskopom i kada ulazimo u romantične veze. Ja sam svinja. Trebalo bi da imam savršenu vezu sa tigrovima, kozama i zečevima. Kineski narod veruje da su neke životinje prirodni neprijatelji. Kao svinja, moram da se pazim zmije. Podignite ruku ako ste zmija. Hajde da popričamo kasnije.
(Laughter)
(Smeh)
We believe some animals are luckier than the others, such as the Dragon. Unlike the Western tradition, the Chinese Dragon is a symbol for power, strength and wealth. It's everyone's dream to have a Dragon baby. Jack Ma's parents must have been very proud. And they are not the only ones. In 2012, the Year of the Dragon, the birthrate in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan increased by five percent. That means another one million more babies. With a traditional preference to baby boys, the boy-girl ratio that year was 120 to 100. When those Dragon boys grow up, they will face much more severe competition in love and job markets.
Verujemo da neke životinje imaju više sreće od drugih, kao što je zmaj. Za razliku od zapadnjačke tradicije, kineski zmaj je simbol moći, snage i bogatstva. Svako sanja o tome da ima bebu zmaja. Roditelji Džeka Maa mora da su bili veoma ponosni. Nisu jedini. Godine 2012, godine zmaja, stopa rađanja u Kini, Hong Kongu i Tajvanu porasla je za pet procenata. To znači milion beba više. Sa tradicionalnom preferencijom za dečake, odnos devojčica i dečaka te godine bio je 120 prema 100. Kada ti dečaci zmajevi porastu, naići će na mnogo ozbiljniju konkurenciju u ljubavi i na tržištu poslova.
According to the BBC and the Chinese government's press release, January 2015 saw a peak of Cesarean sections. Why? That was the last month for the Year of the Horse. It's not because they like horses so much, it's because they try to avoid having unlucky Goat babies.
Prema Bi-Bi-Siju i saopštenju kineske vlade, u januaru 2015. godine je dostignut najveći broj carskih rezova. Zašto? To je bio poslednji mesec godine konja. Nije zato što toliko vole konje, već zato što pokušavaju da izbegnu da dobiju nesrećne bebe koze.
(Laughter)
(Smeh)
If you are a Goat, please don't feel bad. Those are Goat babies. They don't look like losers to me.
Ako ste koza, nemojte se osećati loše. To su bebe koze. Ne deluju mi kao gubitnici.
(Laughter)
(Smeh)
Tiger is another undesirable animal, due to its volatile temperament. Many Chinese regions saw a sharp decline of birthrate during those years. Perhaps one should consider zodiac in reverse, as those Tiger and Goat babies will face much less competition. Maybe they are the lucky ones. I went through the Forbes top 300 richest people in the world, and it's interesting to see the most undesirable two animals, the Goat and Tiger, are at the top of the chart, even higher than the Dragon. So maybe we should consider, maybe it's much better to have less competition.
Tigar je još jedna nepoželjna životinja, usled svog nestalnog temperamenta. U mnogim kineskim regijama došlo je do naglog pada nataliteta tokom tih godina. Možda bi trebalo razmotriti horoskop unatrag, jer će se te bebe tigra i koze suočiti sa neuporedivo manjom konkurencijom. Možda su one te koje imaju sreće. Prošla sam kroz Forbsovu listu 300 najbogatijih ljudi na svetu i zanimljivo je videti da su dve najnepoželjnije životinje, koza i tigar, na vrhu grafikona, čak i na višem položaju od zmaja. Dakle, možda treba razmisliti, možda je mnogo bolje imati manje konkurencije.
One last but interesting point: many Chinese people make their investment decisions based on the zodiac sign index. Although the belief and tradition of the zodiac sign has been over thousands of years, the trend of using it in making major decisions did not really happen until the past few decades. Our ancestors were very busy surviving poverty, drought, famine, riot, disease and civil war. And finally, Chinese people have the time, wealth and technology to create an ideal life they've always wanted. The collective decision made by 1.3 billion people has caused the fluctuation in economics and demand on everything, from health care and education to property and consumer goods. As China plays such an important role in the global economy and geopolitics, the decisions made based on the zodiac and other Chinese traditions end up impacting everyone around the world.
Poslednja, ali zanimljiva stvar - mnogi Kinezi donose odluke o ulaganju na osnovu pokazatelja horoskopskog znaka. Iako je verovanje i tradicija horoskopskih znakova prisutna hiljadama godina, trend njihovog korišćenja u donošenju važnih odluka nije se zaista dogodio do poslednjih nekoliko decenija. Naši preci su bili veoma zauzeti preživljavanjem siromaštva, suša, gladi, nemira, bolesti i građanskog rata. Najzad, kineski narod ima vreme, bogatstvo i tehnologiju da stvori idealan život kakav su oduvek želeli. Zajednička odluka koju je donelo 1,3 milijarde ljudi prouzrokovala je kolebanja u ekonomiji i potražnju za svime, od zdravstvene zaštite i obrazovanja do imovine i robe široke potrošnje. Budući da Kina ima tako važnu ulogu u globalnoj ekonomiji i geopolitici, odluke donete na osnovu horoskopa i drugih kineskih tradicija na kraju utiču na sve širom sveta.
Are there any Monkeys here? 2016 is the Year of the Monkey. Monkeys are clever, curious, creative and mischievous.
Ima li majmuna ovde? Godina 2016. je godina majmuna. Majmuni su pametni, radoznali, kreativni i nestašni.
Thank you.
Hvala.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)