Chinese Animal Zodiac - TIGER 

1902, 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022

Ranking order: Third
Hours ruled by the TIGER: 3 am - 5 am
Direction of its sign: East-Northeast
Season and principal month: Winter-February
Corresponds to Western sign: Aquarius
Fixed Element: Wood
Stem: Positive

I am the delightful Paradox.
  All the world is in my stage.
  I set new trails ablaze;
  I seek the unattainable,
  And try the untried.
  I dance to life's music
  In gay abandon.
  Come with me on my carousel rides
  See the myriad colors,
  The flickering lights.
  All hail me the unparalleled performer.

  I am the Tiger.

    TIGER:  Courageous, active, and self-assured, a natural leader, passionate and independent. Possibly restless especially if born at night. Rebellious and dynamic. A warrior and center of attention. Quick tempered but considerate. Affectionate but careless. A roaring success awaits the Tiger.

You are sensitive, emotional, and capable of great love. However, you have a tendency to get carried away and be stubborn about what you think is right; often seen as a "Hothead" or rebel. Your sign shows you would be excellent as a boss, explorer, race car driver, or matador.

THE TIGER PERSONALITY
In the East, the Tiger symbolizes power, passion and daring. A rebellious, colorful and unpredictable character, he commands awe and respect from all quarters. This fearless and fiery fighter is revered as the sign that wards off the three main disasters of a household: fire, thieves and ghosts.

The Tiger is a fortunate person to have around, provided that you are prepared for all the activity that comes along with his dynamic personality. The impulsiveness and vivacity of the Tiger person are contagious. His vigor and love of life are stimulating. He will arouse every sort of emotion in people, except indifference. In short, the captivating Tiger loves being the center of attention.

Restless and reckless in nature, the Tiger is usually impatiently geared for action. However, because of his suspicious nature, he is prone to waver or make hasty decisions.  He finds it hard to trust others or to quell his emotions. He must speak his mind when upset. But just as he is quick-tempered, he is equally sincere, affectionate and generous. What's more, he has a marvelous sense of humor.

Every Tiger has the humanitarian touch in him. He loves babies, animals or anything that can catch his imagination and attention for the span of the moment. When he gets involved, his involvements are total. Everything, even breathing, will have to take second place to the object of his adulation. He is never halfhearted about his endeavors, and one can trust the Tiger to give 100 percent of himself or even more if he had it in him to do so.  The more sensual types usually have a fling at the bohemian life in their youth. Some never grow out of it. Adventurous models seeking romance in Paris, budding painters displaying their waves on street corners, amateur bands on the road, one-night-stand pop singers or ambitious actors working on shoestring budgets are all more likely to be Tiger children than flower children. This may be because, aside from being an optimist, the Tiger is just not materialistic or security conscious.   He must have one phase in his life in which he acts out his impulses - play all the fantastic roles he has cut out for himself. A chance to thumb his nose at what he disapproves of. A time to lash out at society and scoff at binding traditions. The Tiger must express himself, find his identity and shape his personality, and if rebellion or open defiance of accepted modes will offer him opportunity, then that's the road he will take.  Could one love him any less for these imperfections, if they can be labeled as such? No, nine times out of ten we find ourselves rooting for him. We may shake our heads at his audacity and gasp at his insane acts of daring, but just the same we never forget to say a silent prayer for him and feel we have experienced a warm personal triumph when we see him succeed.

When the Tiger is dejected he will need cartloads of sincere, undiluted sympathy. Don't rationalize about who is right and who is wrong. Logic does not appeal so much to him. That's beside the point. Don't be stingy about comforting him. He would do twice as much for you if the situation were reversed. He will love to hear your words of wisdom and will hang on to every kind word of advice. But this doesn't mean that he will take it. There is a difference, you know. It never pays to be arbitrary with this fellow.

Better just hold his hand and wait till he talks himself dry, bounces all his feelings off of you and collects all the pieces of his shattered ego. Then, he will kiss you, hug you and let you go off feeling like you have just put Humpty Dumpty back together again.

After he packs you off, well, in all probability he will go out and do exactly what he was planning to do in the first place. No matter how down and out the Tiger is, no matter to what depths of despair and depression he plunges, don't believe for one moment that he will ever say die! There will always be a tiny spark left somewhere in that unquenchable spirit of his to rekindle the fire and start him living and loving all over again.

A bit too intense to rely on in times of stress, the Tiger is still renowned for his ability to sway the crowd. At his best, he is warm, sensitive and sympathetic. At his worse, he is obstinate, unreasonable and selfish.

The lady Tiger is the most charming and radiant of hostesses. She can combine home and social life with aplomb. Solicitous, vibrant and absolutely disarming, she is a sweet little kitten only because this act gets her good reviews. But don't taunt her, she keeps her claws sharpened just in case she has need of them.

Fashion-conscious, articulated an liberated, the Tigress likes to pamper herself and can spend hours experimenting with new hair styles, makeup and costumes. She is the type who is constantly lamenting that she has nothing to wear. Actually she is at home just as much in blue jeans as with haute couture. Give a ball and she will turn out stun them every time. She is great with the children, too. She tells lovely stories, mimics and makes fun of herself, flashes her brilliant smile and, most of all, endears them to her forever by bending all the rules in their favor. When she is around, they can have sweets before dinner, double helpings of ice-cream and stay up late for their favorite TV program. Strange to say, her children are more spoiled than others. They learn their lessons well. Perhaps this is because, after she shows she loves them, she makes sure to enforce the law. She makes them mind their manners, and if they perform well, she is extremely generous with rewards. There will be picnics galore, trips to the zoo and the national parks, or boating and fishing expeditions. Now, how can anyone resist that?

Like the Dragon and Rooster, the Tiger native has a super ego. Money, power and fame will mean nothing if his ego is hurt. Thwarted, the Tiger could turn out to be the meanest and pettiest bully you ever came across. He will go to any length to get revenge, even to bringing down the house with him. Little slights will enrage him, but he may let big issues pass without a fuss. Just remember, he hates being ignored!

Paradoxically, his two main shortcomings in life will be his rashness on one hand and indecision on the other. If he can learn to take the middle of the road, the Tiger will be a roaring success.

At heart, the Tiger is a romantic. He is playful yet passionate and sentimental all at the same time, and it will be quite an experience being in love with or married to one. He or she is also inclined to be overpossessive and quarrelsome when jealous.  The first stage of the Tiger's life will probably be the best. In these formulative years, he could be taught to keep a tight rein on the explosive emotions which could be the ruin of him. In his youth and prime, the Tiger will be absorbed in the pursuit of success and the fulfillment of his dreams. His old age could be calm if he could learn to give up the front seat and just relax. However, this will be difficult as he will be plagued by bittersweet regrets about the things he did and did not do.

On the whole, the Tiger's life will be volatile. It will be filled to the brim with laughter, tears, pain, joy, despair and every conceivable emotion in the dictionary.  If there is one thing one should never do it is to feel sorry for him. He won't need it, either: he can only love life if he is allowed to live it to the hilt in whatever manner he chooses. The Tiger is the ultimate optimist who will always bounce back for fresh challenges.  The Tiger could make a good life with the Boar. The honest and good-natured Boar will complement the Tiger's rash moods and lend him stability and security. The Tiger will also do extremely well with the realistic and practical Dog.  The loyal Dog will stick by the Tiger and is capable not only of restraining the Tiger but of reasoning with him as well.

The colorful but nevertheless down-to-earth Horse will also make a prime partner for the Tiger. They will share the same zest for life and love of activity. But the quick and nimble Horse will sense danger before the headstrong Tiger does, and the Tiger will benefit immensely from the Horse's fine reflexes and good sense.  Persons born in the year of the Rat, Sheep, Rooster or another Tiger will have no difficulty getting on with the Tiger. The one thing the Tiger should never do is challenge the authority of one born in the year of the Ox. This is one serious and uncompromising fellow who will take no nonsense from the Tiger. In a confrontation, the Ox could gore the Tiger to death.

Likewise, the union between a Snake and Tiger is ill-advised. The only thing these two have in common will be their suspicious nature. But the Snake is quiet, cool and deadly with his misgivings, while the Tiger is loud and accusing. They will not find harmony.

Last, but not least, the Monkey will be the most elusive foe of the Tiger. This quick-witted imp never tires teasing the Tiger, who ends up losing his infamous temper and making a fool of himself. The matchless guile of the Monkey will prove too much for the Tiger and in his dealings with the Monkey, the Tiger could suffer.

THE FIVE TYPES OF TIGERS

Metal Tiger - 1890, 1950, 2010
This is definitely not a reticent type of Tiger. The Metal Tiger is bound to be active, aggressive and passionate. He may or may not be artistic but he will certainly see to it that he projects a glamorous image and personality that will not go unnoticed. Self-centered and ostentatious, he is a competitive and untiring worker when motivated in the right way.

He will approach his problems in a direct or even a radical way and is never in doubt about what he wants to accomplish. The problem is that he wants too much be too soo. He tends to be overoptimistic about expected results.

When Metal is combined with his native lunar sign, it could produce a Tiger who can be sudden, unorthodox and drastic in his actions. He is person who is constant only to himself and his desires, even if he has to step on a few toes along the way. This particular Tiger is easily stirred by both good and bad influences and will tend to act independently, as he hates having his freedom curtailed.

Water Tiger - 1902, 1962, 2022
This type is an open-minded Tiger who is always inclined toward new ideas and experiences. He also has gift for seeing things objectively, because the Water element combined with his lunar sign gives him a calmer nature. He is humane and an excellent judge of the truth, as he can relate to the way others feel. He is intuitive and has a well-developed faculty for communicating with people. He does excellent PR work.

This more realistic type of Tiger has his finger on the pulse of the people and knows the things he deals with. He makes few errors in his assessments. His mental abilities are above par, but like all Tigers, he sometimes wastes precious time procrastinating. Still, he is rated as less temperamental than the other Tigers, as he can control his emotional urges and concentrate on his endeavors.

Wood Tiger - 1914, 1974, 2034
This is a tolerant type of Tiger who evaluates situations in a practical and impartial light. He is democratic in his views and understands the importance of enlisting others' cooperation in order to advance more rapidly. He will attract a lot of friends and supporters, as he can mingle with people from all walks of life.

The Wood element gives him a more even and affable disposition, and his charming, innovative personality is very conducive to group efforts. He is sought after in polite society and has the knack of bringing incongruous people together. But mostly his loyalty is to himself. No one is indispensable to him. If you quit the club, well, he will wish you good luck and waste no time replacing you.

The Wood Tiger is also inclined to be the least penetrating of the Tigers. He may prefer to scan the surface of things and maintain only the semblance of order. Actually, he lacks depth and permanent control. Adept at delegating chores and skillful at commanding and manipulating people into performing for him, he will take on a minimum amount of responsibility. As his lunar sign is not blessed with any great ability for self-discipline, he should not embark on more than he can handle. But it will be hard for him to admit his limitations, and Tigers of all colors do not take readily to criticism, no matter how contructive or kindly given.

Fire Tiger - 1866, 1926, 1986
This type of Tiger finds it difficult to contain his enthusiasm and boundless energy. He is always ready for action and for going from one place to another. Transient by nature, he is most concerned with the present. He is independent and unconventional, and his moves are hard to predict. The only thing one can be sure of is that when he acts, he will be dramatic and uninfluential. Fire makes him even more expressive than he already is. This Tiger never fails to impress anyone he is after or to transmit his electric vitality to any project he decides to undertake.

He seeks constantly to convert his nervous energy and inspirations into forceful action. At times, he is downright theatrical. Generous to the hilt, he will also display more leadership qualities than tigers of the other elements. To him, everything he does is worthwhile and imperative, so don't try to tell him otherwise. He is thoroughly optimistic soul and has no use for doomsday prophets.

Brilliantly commanding, imposing and open, the Fire Tiger is sensual and finds it hard ever to be impersonal about anything in his or her life.

The Earth Tiger is the least likely to go for the bohemian life, no matter what he may like others to believe. First, he will make it to the top. Then, when he has proven to society and the world that he has the ability and the genius, he may act in a radical, scandalous or unconventional way, just to be different or to be noticed, as all Tigers love to be. Nonetheless, he will always be serious about his work, as his native element makes him desirous of status and recognition through stability and labor.

...Read TIGER Part 2

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