The ancient Chinese proverb "A Sly Rabbit Will Have Three Openings To Its Den"

This speaks to the cunning character of a sly rabbit. Such a rabbit will not have just one hole, but rather a few entrances and exits from his liar.

About 2,250 years ago a very rich man told his assistant to go and buy something wonderful that he did not yet posses. He was a man that already had everything, so the assistant went to a local village that owed a great deal of money to the rich man. The assistant told the village elders that all debts were forgiven. All the villagers rejoiced and praised the rich man's name. The assistant returned to the rich man and told him he had purchased "benevolence" for him. The rich man was mildly amused, but perhaps a bit confused by the action.

Some time later, the rich man fell from the favor of the Emperor, and was wiped out without a penny to his name. One day he was walking aimlessly and stumbled into the village in which the debts had been forgiven. The villagers recognized the man and welcomed him with open arms, clothed, fed, and gave him a place to live.

Without trying, the man had become like the sly and cunning rabbit. When his exit was blocked, he had another hole to emerge from - and was reborn. This story and idiom comes from a book titled "The Amendment" - it's unclear whether this man actually existed or not. But the book did propel this idiom into common use in China.

Still today this idiom about the rabbit is used in China when suggesting "backup plans" alternate methods, and anyone with a good escape plan.

This is the character for rabbit or hare in Chinese, old Korean, and Japanese.

If you were born in the year of the rabbit, you . . .


Are gentle and full of sympathy.
Love to help others.
Enjoy a quiet life.
Are a good worker.
Are however, a bit of a pushover.

See also our Chinese Zodiac page.

Even if you are poor, you should still feel satisfied in your life...

...Satisfaction, happiness, and the meaning of your life come from within yourself and not from money or riches of the world.

In Chinese, there are a lot of four-character idiomatic phrases which express some very old philosophies.
Though there are only four characters on this scroll, in Chinese the meanings often surpasses the dictionary definition of each character.

In this case, you should not set your expectations too high for the amount to money or riches you wish to have. One who sets their expectations too high, is almost always disappointed. Instead, you should cherish what you have, and seek to improve yourself from within, and not measure your personal worth by the size of your bank account.

This is the transliteration to Mandarin Chinese for the name Sly