功虧一簣
See also: 功亏一篑
Chinese edit
merit; achievement; result merit; achievement; result; service; accomplishment |
deficiency; deficit | one; single; a one; single; a; (before verbs) as soon as, once; (before a noun) entire (family, etc.) |
basket for carrying soil | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (功虧一簣) | 功 | 虧 | 一 | 簣 | |
| simp. (功亏一篑) | 功 | 亏 | 一 | 篑 | |
| Literally: “one basket (of dirt) short of success”. | |||||
Etymology edit
From the Forged Old Text chapters of the Book of Documents (《尚書·旅獒》):
- 嗚呼！夙夜罔或不勤，不矜細行，終累大德。為山九仞，功虧一簣。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: The Book of Documents, circa 4th – 3rd century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version
- Wūhū! Sù yè wǎng huò bù qín, bù jīn xì xíng, zhōng lěi dà dé. Wéi shān jiǔ rèn, gōng kuī yī kuì. [Pinyin]
- Oh! early and late never be but earnest. If you do not attend jealously to your small actions, the result will be to affect your virtue in great matters; in raising a mound of nine fathoms, the work may be unfinished for want of one basket (of earth).
呜呼！夙夜罔或不勤，不矜细行，终累大德。为山九仞，功亏一篑。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
The phrase likely originated as a paraphrase from the Analects, Book 9 (《論語·子罕》):
- 子曰：「譬如為山，未成一簣，止，吾止也；譬如平地，雖覆一簣，進，吾往也。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version
- Zǐyuē: “Pìrú wéi shān, wèi chéng yī kuì, zhǐ, wú zhǐ yě; pìrú píng dì, suī fù yī kuì, jìn, wú wǎng yě.” [Pinyin]
- The Master said, "(The prosecution of learning) may be compared to what may happen in raising a mound. If there want but one basket of earth to complete the work, and I stop, the stopping is my own work. It may be compared to throwing down the earth on the level ground. Though but one basketful is thrown at a time, the advancing with it is my own going forward."
子曰：「譬如为山，未成一篑，止，吾止也；譬如平地，虽覆一篑，进，吾往也。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Pronunciation edit
Idiom edit
功虧一簣