虛懷若谷
Chinese
to seem; like; as to seem; like; as; if |
valley | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (虛懷若谷) | 虛懷 | 若 | 谷 | |
| simp. (虚怀若谷) | 虚怀 | 若 | 谷 | |
| Literally: “receptive as an echoing canyon”. | ||||
Etymology
From Tao Te Ching, Chapter 15:
Alternatively, from Chapter 41:
- 上德若谷。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, trad. and simp.]
- From: Tao Te Ching, 4th century BCE
- Shàngdé ruò gǔ. [Pinyin]
- The great virtue resembles the valley.
Where Wang Bi annotated,
- 不德其德,無所懷也。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
- Bù dé qí dé, wú suǒ huái yě. [Pinyin]
- The truly virtuous ones do not regard his virtue as a possession; thus he harboured nothing within.
不德其德,无所怀也。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]
Pronunciation
- Mandarin
- (Pinyin): xūhuáiruògǔ
- (Zhuyin): ㄒㄩ ㄏㄨㄞˊ ㄖㄨㄛˋ ㄍㄨˇ
- Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Hanyu Pinyin: xūhuáiruògǔ
- Zhuyin: ㄒㄩ ㄏㄨㄞˊ ㄖㄨㄛˋ ㄍㄨˇ
- Tongyong Pinyin: syuhuáiruògǔ
- Wade–Giles: hsü1-huai2-jo4-ku3
- Yale: syū-hwái-rwò-gǔ
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shiuhwairuohguu
- Palladius: сюйхуайжогу (sjujxuajžogu)
- Sinological IPA (key): /ɕy⁵⁵ xu̯aɪ̯³⁵ ʐu̯ɔ⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
- (Standard Chinese)+
Idiom
虛懷若谷
- (figurative) modest and open-minded