Are the Monkey and Elephant Spirit Guardians compatible?

The board reads them as harm pairing, one of the harder branch relations in the twelve. On the first of four layers the pairing scores between 32 and 52, depending on which two birth years are actually being read — the branch relation is fixed, the year elements are not. That layer carries weight 0.30 and reads the birth years only; the other three read the two charts, so this is where a reading starts rather than where it lands.

Which birth years does this pairing cover?

1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040 on one side and 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031, 2043 on the other — 64 combinations in total, and they do not all read alike. The community repeats every twelve years but the year element turns on a ten-year cycle, so 1992 with 1995 and 2004 with 2007 are two different readings of the same pairing.

Does a difficult branch relation mean this pairing cannot work?

No. It means the year layer starts low, and that layer is 0.30 of four. Pairings on this footing routinely agree everywhere the charts are read, and the friction the Monkey Spirit Guardian and the Elephant Spirit Guardian produce is specific and nameable — which makes it something to plan around rather than a verdict.

Harm pairing

The Monkey and Elephant Spirit Guardians

Metal and Water · first-layer scores from 32 to 52

Birth years 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040 read against birth years 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031, 2043. That is 64 combinations, and the branch relation between the two communities — harm pairing — is the same in all of them. What is not the same is the year element behind each birth, which is why the first-layer score across this page runs from 32 to 52 rather than sitting on one number.

Together

The quickest community and the most trusting one. The Monkey Spirit Guardian is inventive, sociable and comfortable bending a detail; the Elephant Spirit Guardian assumes the best and rarely checks. Metal feeds Water in the cycle, and at its best that is exactly what happens — the Monkey Spirit Guardian's cleverness working on the Elephant Spirit Guardian's behalf.

What it costs

At its worst it is the same mechanism with nobody watching. The Elephant Spirit Guardian will not ask the question that would catch it and the Monkey Spirit Guardian is not volunteering, so an imbalance runs undetected until it is substantial. When the Elephant Spirit Guardian does finally notice, it does not argue — it withdraws completely, which the Monkey Spirit Guardian never expects.

All 64 birth-year combinations

Grouped by the Monkey Spirit Guardian's year. Within each group the branch relation is fixed and only the element cycle moves, which is the whole reason a pairing is not one answer.

Born 1956 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
1956 and 1959	Fire and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1956 and 1971	Fire and Metal	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1956 and 1983	Fire and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1956 and 1995	Fire and Plant	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1956 and 2007	Fire and Fire	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
1956 and 2019	Fire and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1956 and 2031	Fire and Metal	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1956 and 2043	Fire and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond

Born 1968 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
1968 and 1959	Earth and Earth	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
1968 and 1971	Earth and Metal	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1968 and 1983	Earth and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1968 and 1995	Earth and Plant	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1968 and 2007	Earth and Fire	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1968 and 2019	Earth and Earth	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
1968 and 2031	Earth and Metal	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1968 and 2043	Earth and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond

Born 1980 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
1980 and 1959	Metal and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1980 and 1971	Metal and Metal	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
1980 and 1983	Metal and Water	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1980 and 1995	Metal and Plant	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1980 and 2007	Metal and Fire	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1980 and 2019	Metal and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1980 and 2031	Metal and Metal	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
1980 and 2043	Metal and Water	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond

Born 1992 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
1992 and 1959	Water and Earth	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1992 and 1971	Water and Metal	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1992 and 1983	Water and Water	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
1992 and 1995	Water and Plant	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1992 and 2007	Water and Fire	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1992 and 2019	Water and Earth	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
1992 and 2031	Water and Metal	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
1992 and 2043	Water and Water	Same element	45 · Learning Curve

Born 2004 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
2004 and 1959	Plant and Earth	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2004 and 1971	Plant and Metal	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2004 and 1983	Plant and Water	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2004 and 1995	Plant and Plant	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
2004 and 2007	Plant and Fire	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2004 and 2019	Plant and Earth	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2004 and 2031	Plant and Metal	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2004 and 2043	Plant and Water	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond

Born 2016 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
2016 and 1959	Fire and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2016 and 1971	Fire and Metal	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2016 and 1983	Fire and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2016 and 1995	Fire and Plant	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2016 and 2007	Fire and Fire	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
2016 and 2019	Fire and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2016 and 2031	Fire and Metal	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2016 and 2043	Fire and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond

Born 2028 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
2028 and 1959	Earth and Earth	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
2028 and 1971	Earth and Metal	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2028 and 1983	Earth and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2028 and 1995	Earth and Plant	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2028 and 2007	Earth and Fire	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2028 and 2019	Earth and Earth	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
2028 and 2031	Earth and Metal	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2028 and 2043	Earth and Water	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond

Born 2040 with the Elephant Spirit Guardian's years

Pairing	Year elements	Element cycle	Year layer
2040 and 1959	Metal and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2040 and 1971	Metal and Metal	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
2040 and 1983	Metal and Water	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2040 and 1995	Metal and Plant	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2040 and 2007	Metal and Fire	Controlling cycle	32 · Patience Bond
2040 and 2019	Metal and Earth	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond
2040 and 2031	Metal and Metal	Same element	45 · Learning Curve
2040 and 2043	Metal and Water	Nourishing cycle	52 · Growing Bond

These readings are the first of the board's four layers — the birth years alone — and it carries weight 0.30 of the result. The other three read the two charts rather than the two communities, so a strong or difficult year layer is where a reading starts, not where it lands.

Either community on its own

Frequently asked

Are the Monkey and Elephant Spirit Guardians compatible?: The board reads them as harm pairing, one of the harder branch relations in the twelve. On the first of four layers the pairing scores between 32 and 52, depending on which two birth years are actually being read — the branch relation is fixed, the year elements are not. That layer carries weight 0.30 and reads the birth years only; the other three read the two charts, so this is where a reading starts rather than where it lands.
Which birth years does this pairing cover?: 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040 on one side and 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031, 2043 on the other — 64 combinations in total, and they do not all read alike. The community repeats every twelve years but the year element turns on a ten-year cycle, so 1992 with 1995 and 2004 with 2007 are two different readings of the same pairing.
Does a difficult branch relation mean this pairing cannot work?: No. It means the year layer starts low, and that layer is 0.30 of four. Pairings on this footing routinely agree everywhere the charts are read, and the friction the Monkey Spirit Guardian and the Elephant Spirit Guardian produce is specific and nameable — which makes it something to plan around rather than a verdict.

This page reads two communities. The board reads two people — four layers, of which the year pillars above are the first. Two birth years is enough to start.

Open the Bonding Map