諺語 · a single proverb
飽經滄桑
Simplified: 饱经沧桑
What does 飽經滄桑 (bǎo jīng cāng sāng) mean?
飽經滄桑 (bǎo jīng cāng sāng) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "having fully experienced the changes of the world." In use it means: A person who has lived through enough to understand how things really work. Experience earned through hardship, not study. 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 Ox.
Literally: "having fully experienced the changes of the world."
The reading
The young face is smooth because nothing has pressed against it. The old face has lines because life has pressed against it from every direction. Those lines are a map. The person who has been through the changes reads the next one coming before the people who have not.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Common idiom; references the 滄海桑田 image
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 Adversity & Resilience, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 飽經滄桑 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 飽經滄桑 (bǎo jīng cāng sāng) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Common idiom; references the 滄海桑田 image. It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 飽經滄桑?
In Mandarin it is bǎo jīng cāng sāng. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 飽經滄桑 aloud in Mandarin.