白bái露lù白bái迷mí迷mí,，秋qiū分fēn稻dào秀xiù齊qí

What does 白露白迷迷，秋分稻秀齊 (bái lù bái mí mí, qiū fēn dào xiù qí) mean?

白露白迷迷，秋分稻秀齊 (bái lù bái mí mí, qiū fēn dào xiù qí) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "White Dew brings misty whiteness, Autumn Equinox shows rice heads all even." In use it means: Morning fog and heavy dew during the Bailu solar term signal ideal conditions for rice. By the Qiufen equinox two weeks later, all rice panicles should have emerged evenly, indicating a uniform and healthy crop. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Water note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Rabbit.

Literally: "White Dew brings misty whiteness, Autumn Equinox shows rice heads all even."

The reading

The name White Dew is not poetic decoration but a literal description of what the farmer sees: fields veiled in pale morning mist, every blade of grass beaded with moisture. This whiteness signals that nighttime temperatures have dropped just enough to produce heavy condensation, the exact thermal condition that pushes rice toward its final heading stage. Two weeks later at the equinox, the results are visible in rows of panicles bowing in unison. The mist was not ornament but instruction, readable by anyone who knew what the season was trying to say.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeyànyǔ 諺語
• FocusPresent-minded
• Element水 Water
• Zodiac tie兔 Year of the Rabbit

Source Rice-farming proverb from the Yangtze River basin, keyed to the Bailu and Qiufen solar terms

Sits beside

Keep reading

Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Nature, Seasons & Health, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rabbit, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.