Chinese Wisdom & Philosophy — Page 8

Rén suàn bùrú tiān suàn

"Human calculation cannot match heaven's calculation"

Rén wèi cái sǐ, niǎo wèi shí wáng

"Humans die for wealth, birds perish for food."

Qǐ rén yōu tiān

"The man of Qi worries about the sky"

Táng bì dāng chē

"The mantis raises its arm to block the chariot"

Tángláng bǔ chán, huángquè zài hòu

"The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind"

Jí yè chéng qiú

"Gather armpit fur to make a coat"

Zhongren shichai huoyan gao

"When many people gather firewood, the flames burn high"

Kè zhōu qiú jiàn

"Carve a mark on the boat to seek the sword"

Qǔ qī qǔ dé bù qǔ sè, jiāo yǒu jiāo xīn bù jiāo cái

"Marry a wife for virtue, not beauty; make friends for their hearts, not their wealth"

Ròu bāozi dǎ gǒu — yǒu qù wú huí

"A meat bun thrown at a dog — gone, no return"

Guā tián bù nà lǚ, lǐ xià bù zhěng guān

"In a melon patch, don't bend to adjust your shoes; under a plum tree, don't reach up to fix your hat"

Guā wú gǔn yuán, rén wú shí quán

"No melon is perfectly round; no person is completely perfect"

Wáng yáng bǔ láo, wéi shí wèi wǎn

"Mend the fence after losing a sheep—it's not too late"

Shī zhī háolí, miù yǐ qiānlǐ

"A tiny error at the start leads to a massive mistake at the end"

Guò le zhè ge cūn, méi le zhè ge diàn

"Opportunities are fleeting; seize them when they appear"

Nào lǐ yǒu qián, jìng chù ān shēn

"In the noise, there is money; in a quiet place, one finds peace"

Yǒu qián néng shǐ guǐ tuī mò

"With money, you can make the devil turn the millstone"

Qián bù shì wàn néng de, méi qián shì wàn wàn bù néng de

"Money is not omnipotent, but having no money is absolutely impossible."

Yuè dào shíwǔ guāngmíng shǎo, rén dào zhōngnián wànshì xiū

"After the fifteenth, the moon's brightness fades; at middle age, all endeavors rest"

Duō gè péngyǒu duō tiáo lù, duō gè yuānjia duō dǔ qiáng

"One more friend, one more path; one more enemy, one more wall"

Zhāo bù bǎo xī

"Morning does not guarantee evening"

Zhāo xiá bù chū mén, wǎn xiá xíng qiān lǐ

"With morning glow, don't go out; with evening glow, travel a thousand miles"

Zhāo Qín mù Chǔ

"Morning Qin, evening Chu"

Lǎoshǔ guò jiē — rén rén hǎn dǎ

"A mouse crossing the street — everyone shouts to beat it"

Yóu rèn yǒu yú

"Wielding the blade with surplus room"

Yán duō bì shī

"Much speech inevitably leads to mistakes"

Duō yán shù qióng, bù rú shǒu zhōng

"Many words soon exhaust — better to hold to the center"

Dé guò qiě guò

"Just get by and let it pass"

Yǎba chī huánglián——yǒu kǔ shuō bù chū

"A mute person eats goldthread—has bitterness but cannot speak of it"

Míng bù zhèng zé yán bù shùn

"If the name is not correct, words will not be accepted"

Āi jīn sì jīn, āi yù sì yù

"Near gold, one resembles gold; near jade, one resembles jade"

Jìn zhū zhě chì, jìn mò zhě hēi

"Near vermilion, one turns red; near ink, one turns black"

Jìn shuǐ zhī yú xìng, jìn shān shí niǎo yīn

"Near water, know fish nature; near mountains, recognize bird calls"

Bù zhì kě fǒu

"To neither affirm nor deny; to withhold judgment"

Wàisheng dǎ dēnglong — zhào jiù (zhào jiù)

"A nephew holds the lantern — lighting the way for his uncle (a pun: 'lighting the uncle' sounds identical to 'same as before')"

Huó dào lǎo, xué dào lǎo

"Live until old age, learn until old age"

Xīn guān shàngrèn sān bǎ huǒ

"A new official lights three fires upon taking office"

Chūshēng niúdú bù pà hǔ

"A newborn calf does not fear the tiger"

Xíng bǎi lǐ zhě bàn jiǔ shí

"For those traveling a hundred miles, ninety is only half"

Lí le hóng luóbo bù chéng xí

"Without red carrots, there's no proper banquet"

Fù cháo zhī xià wú wán luǎn

"When a nest is overturned, no eggs remain whole"

Rén wú yuǎn lǜ, bì yǒu jìn yōu

"A person without long-term concerns will surely have near worries"

Méiyǒu guīju, bù chéng fāngyuán

"Without compass and square, you cannot make squares and circles"

Cǐ dì wú yín sān bǎi liǎng

"No silver here, three hundred taels"

Shān zhōng wú lǎohǔ——hóuzi chēng dàwáng

"When there's no tiger in the mountains, the monkey declares himself king"

Jūn zǐ tǎn dàng dàng, xiǎo rén cháng qī qī

"The noble is broad and serene; the petty is always anxious"

Bù wèi wǔ dǒu mǐ zhé yāo

"Refusing to compromise one's integrity for material gain"

Fù guì bù néng yín, pín jiàn bù néng yí, wēi wǔ bù néng qū

"Neither riches nor status can corrupt him; neither poverty nor lowliness can change him; neither power nor force can bend him"

Bù zài qí wèi, bù móu qí zhèng

"Don't plan what isn't your position"

Bù dāngjiā bù zhī cháimǐ guì

"If you don't manage a household, you won't know how expensive firewood and rice are"