The person born in the year of the Rat possesses a highly individual character. People who born in 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020, 2032, 2044 are Rat by Chinese Zodiac. A Rat is naturally sociable, enjoying conversation, relationships, parties, celebrations, and social events. He has an intuitive and rational mind which makes him inquisitive and individualistic. Rat Chinese Zodiac is often cheeky, critical, calculating, choosy, and on the defensive. He has a great gift for getting others to confide in him, to talk to him and reveal their weaknesses, which he sometimes exploits, or to get some personal gain for them.
Talking about the Rat Chinese zodiac personality, we should mention, that this person has a nose for business, especially his own. He is always charming and is a charmer, but also suspicious and cunning. He knows how to hide his intentions, how to use his magnetic power of seduction, and how to persuade and manipulate his opponents without appearing to, in order to achieve his ends. He is a shrewd strategist, capable of being very cold-blooded. On the other hand, he does not tolerate being used, exploited, betrayed, or rejected.
The Rat person has the knack of finding simple, practical solutions to the most complex situations or problems. He never gives up when faced with an obstacle. Problems stimulate his imagination and his need for an outlet for his energy and brain-power. He rates routine and the daily grind. He is meticulous and keeps a very close eye on his assets or property he has acquired. He hoards money. He economizes. He abhors wastage. He is generous, but rarely extravagant, mainly towards his partner, his children, or members of his circle.
The young Rat person can be fickle in love but, when his mind is made up, he shows a deep attachment to his loved one. He is not very demonstrative. He does not express his feelings easily but he is very sensual, passionate, possessive, jealous, and loyal to his commitments.
The Rat Chinese zodiac is compatible with Dragon and Monkey. It is the best match for this animal sign. The Rate is least compatible with Horse. Also, the Rate can build nice relationships with the Tiger and OX.
Chinese myths and the Rat symbols
In the West, the rat has a very bad reputation, since, more often than not, it is connected with the subterranean, nocturnal life and with Hell and demons. But it is quite different in the Orient. For example, to the Japanese, the rat is the companion and protector of Daikoku, the Nipponese god of luck, good fortune, and wealth. The Chinese, too, regard it as a symbol of plenty, prosperity, and opulence, none of which ignores its insatiable greed and avarice.
For them, the presence of a rat in a house is always felt to be a happy omen. According to a Chinese legend, the rat gave the rice – whose symbolic significance in the Orient is identical to that of bread in the West – to the mythical Emperor Shen Nung, who began cultivating this cereal, which became the staple diet of the Chinese. Finally, the qualities of cunning, skilfulness, secretiveness, elusiveness, and scheming, which they attribute to the rat, are considered to be distinctive features of man!
Similarities between Chinese and Western signs
We can make comparisons and see similarities between the Chinese and Western signs of the zodiac but there will also be many differences. We must take into consideration the fact that the Chinese devised their zodiac according to their culture and traditions. To do this, they followed the example of Mesopotamians, several centuries earlier, and noted, studied, and set out the obvious similarities they saw between the elements in nature, the landscape and the sky in ancient China and their own vision of the world and of life.
Rather than try to find exact areas or personality traits that are similar in the two horoscopes, it is more rewarding to observe how the qualities revealed by such and such a sign of the Chinese zodiac complete, accentuate or moderate, as the case may be, the qualities pellicular to our birt sign.
The Rat characteristics
It is the first sign of the Chinese zodiac for, according to the legend, the Rat was the first animal to respond to the call of Buddha.
- Chinese name: SHU (pronounced shou)
- Polarity: Yang
- Element: Water
- Season: Winter
- Month: December
Ql or periods of the year in the Chinese calendar:
– Li Chun (the first period): 4 to 9 February;
– Da Han (the 24th and last period): 21 January to 3 February.
The Rat astrological affinities
The Rat sign has similarities with the sign of Sagittarius and its ruling planet, Jupiter. In reality, it has an affinity chiefly with the last two decans of the sign of Sagittarius and the first decan of the sign of Capricorn, who together cover the month of December. Astrologically, the Rat has an affinity with Sagittarius, Capricorn, Jupiter, and Saturn.
Luck of Rat Zodiac
- The lucky Flower: Lily, African violet, lily of the valley
- The lucky Number: 2,3
- Your Inauspicious Number: 5,9
- The lucky color: Blue, gold and green
- Inauspicious Color: yellow and brown
- The lucky direction: Southeast, northeast