諺語 · a single proverb
春蠶到死絲方盡
Simplified: 春蚕到死丝方尽
What does 春蠶到死絲方盡 (chūn cán dào sǐ sī fāng jìn) mean?
春蠶到死絲方盡 (chūn cán dào sǐ sī fāng jìn) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞). Word for word it reads "the spring silkworm spins until death." In use it means: Total devotion to a cause or a person, giving everything until there is nothing left. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Earth note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Ox.
Literally: "the spring silkworm spins until death."
The reading
The silkworm does not spin because it wants to. It spins because that is what it is. The silk runs out when the body does. Li Shangyin used this to describe love, but it applies to any devotion so complete that the person and the work become the same thing.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Li Shangyin 李商隱, 無題 (Tang dynasty)
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 Perseverance & the Long Road, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 春蠶到死絲方盡 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 春蠶到死絲方盡 (chūn cán dào sǐ sī fāng jìn) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞), and it comes from Li Shangyin 李商隱, 無題 (Tang dynasty). 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 春蠶到死絲方盡?
In Mandarin it is chūn cán dào sǐ sī fāng jìn. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 春蠶到死絲方盡 aloud in Mandarin.