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Rabbit and Rooster compatibility in the Chinese zodiac

The Rabbit avoids, the Rooster cuts through: diplomacy facing frankness, opposites that clash easily.

  • frankness
  • delicacy
  • contrast
鼠牛虎兔龍蛇馬羊猴雞狗豬
Rabbit and Rooster: opposition
The essentials

Rabbit and Rooster at a glance

For you

Tact and frankness size each other up: one learns to speak up, the other to listen, or the reverse.

A strength

The Rooster helps the Rabbit clarify their positions, and the Rabbit teaches the Rooster the art of softening criticism.

Something to watch

The Rooster’s criticism hurts the Rabbit, who withdraws; the Rabbit’s silence exasperates the Rooster, who presses on.

The relationship
Opposition
Fixed elements
Wood and metal
Between the elements
Wood is controlled by metal
Polarities
Yin on both sides
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By Thomas Guilhot · updated

Rabbit and Rooster: opposition

Opposition: Rabbit and Rooster face each other on opposite sides of the wheel.

The texts see in it temperaments that confront or complement each other. The elements underline the point, since Metal prevails over Wood, and sharpen the contrast of tone between firmness and delicacy. The Rabbit and the Rooster are both yin, a receptive polarity that somewhat tempers their opposition of style.

Rabbit and Rooster, point by point
Key factRabbitRooster
Branch卯酉
Fixed elementWoodMetal
PolarityYinYin
TriangleGoat, PigOx, Snake
Latest years2011, 20232005, 2017

Rabbit and Rooster, by type of bond

Love, friendship, work, or family: the same pair is not lived the same way depending on the relationship.

In love

Attraction plays on contrast: the Rooster admires the Rabbit’s elegance, the Rabbit the Rooster’s uprightness.

In intimacy, the Rooster says what they think, sometimes unfiltered, and the Rabbit takes it in without answering. Reproaches pile up on both sides. The Rooster does well to start with what is going well before bringing up what is not, and the Rabbit to say “that hurt me” rather than withdrawing. Carefully made moments, a prepared dinner, a neatly organized trip, please them both.

In friendship

A friendship that can be precious if each accepts the other’s style: the Rooster tells the truth, and the Rabbit receives it with subtlety.

They share a taste for beautiful things and well-done work. Friction comes from direct remarks about life choices. Agreeing on subjects where you refrain from advising preserves the bond. A decorative arts exhibition, a cooking class, a library: they share a taste for beautiful objects and well-done work.

At work

The Rooster ensures rigor, checks, and structure; the Rabbit diplomacy, client relations, and mediation.

The roles complement each other wonderfully. Conflict arises over tone: criticism too blunt on one side, prolonged silences on the other. A respectful feedback framework, starting with the successes, makes the collaboration very fruitful. In a bookbinding workshop or a haute couture house, the Rooster checks the finishes, and the Rabbit chooses the materials and welcomes the clientele with elegance.

In the family

A Rooster parent sometimes intimidates a Rabbit child, who dreads remarks and withdraws; the reverse is also true, the Rooster child correcting and asking for clear rules.

The home is orderly but may lack spontaneity. Acknowledging one well-done thing each day, and leaving room for mistakes, softens the atmosphere. A Rooster parent who teaches their Rabbit child to fold a tablecloth properly ends up receiving, in exchange, a bouquet composed with art.

Elements and tradition

Wood and metal: wood is controlled by metal

The Rooster’s Metal gets the upper hand: a chisel before the fine branch, according to the cycle of control.

What tradition says

Rabbit and Rooster are among the six oppositions of tradition.

How is it calculated?

Rabbit (no. 4) and Rooster (no. 10): 6 years apart in the cycle, opposition

Frequently asked questions: Rabbit and Rooster

Are the Rabbit and the Rooster compatible?

Yes, even though tradition speaks of opposition. This describes a contrast, not an inevitability. With kindness in tone and frankness in substance, the duo can be very complementary.

What does the opposition between the Rabbit and the Rooster mean?

That these two animals are at opposite points of the cycle, six years apart. Tradition sees in it a possible tension: attraction through contrast or friction through misunderstanding. It does not make it a sentence.

What is the strength of the Rabbit and the Rooster together?

Refinement and rigor combined. The Rooster structures, the Rabbit softens. Together, they carry out careful, elegant projects, held with seriousness.

Does each person’s element matter?

A great deal. Metal’s control over Wood eases with a Water Rooster or a Fire Rabbit, and sharpens with a Metal Rooster. Birth elements shift the balance point between firmness and gentleness.

Sister pairs

Other pairs to compare

The Rabbit’s 12 pairs →The Rooster’s 12 pairs →