知命

Chinese edit

		to know; to be aware	life; fate
simp. and trad. (知命)		知	命

Etymology edit

"Age of fifty"

From the Analects:

子曰：「吾十有五而志於學，三十而立，四十而不惑，五十而知天命，六十而耳順，七十而從心所欲，不踰矩。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

子曰：「吾十有五而志于学，三十而立，四十而不惑，五十而知天命，六十而耳顺，七十而从心所欲，不逾矩。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Zǐyuē: “Wú shí yǒu wǔ ér zhì yú xué, sānshí ér lì, sìshí ér bùhuò, wǔshí ér zhī tiānmìng, liùshí ér ěr shùn, qīshí ér cóngxīnsuǒyù, bù yújǔ.” [Pinyin]

The Master said, "At fifteen, I had my mind bent on learning. At thirty, I stood firm. At forty, I had no doubts. At fifty, I knew the decrees of Heaven. At sixty, my ear was an obedient organ for the reception of truth. At seventy, I could follow what my heart desired, without transgressing what was right.

Pronunciation edit

Mandarin
(Pinyin): zhīmìng

(Zhuyin): ㄓㄇㄧㄥˋ
Cantonese (Jyutping): zi¹ ming⁶

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: zhīmìng
  - Zhuyin: ㄓㄇㄧㄥˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: jhihmìng
  - Wade–Giles: chih¹-ming⁴
  - Yale: jr̄-mìng
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: jyminq
  - Palladius: чжимин (čžimin)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ miŋ⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: zi¹ ming⁶
  - Yale: jī mihng
  - Cantonese Pinyin: dzi¹ ming⁶
  - Guangdong Romanization: ji¹ ming⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡siː⁵⁵ mɪŋ²²/

Noun edit

知命

(idiomatic) age of fifty

Derived terms edit

知命之年 (zhīmìngzhīnián)

Verb edit

知命

to understand the Decree of Heaven; to know destiny