凍dòng斷duàn麥mài根gēn,，挑tiāo斷duàn麻má繩shéng

What does 凍斷麥根，挑斷麻繩 (dòng duàn mài gēn, tiāo duàn má shéng) mean?

凍斷麥根，挑斷麻繩 (dòng duàn mài gēn, tiāo duàn má shéng) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "Freeze that snaps wheat roots, carrying loads that snap hemp ropes." In use it means: A severe winter freeze that appears to destroy wheat roots actually leads to such an abundant harvest that the hemp ropes used to carry the bundled grain will break from the sheer weight of the yield. 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 Tiger.

Literally: "Freeze that snaps wheat roots, carrying loads that snap hemp ropes."

The reading

What looks like ruin in January becomes abundance in June. The deep freeze kills overwintering pests and forces wheat roots to push further into the soil for survival, producing stronger plants when spring arrives. Farmers who had lived through enough cycles learned not to mourn the frozen field too quickly. The harshest correction often sets up the most generous yield, a pattern that repeats in soils and in lives.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeyànyǔ 諺語
• FocusLooks ahead
• Element水 Water
• Zodiac tie虎 Year of the Tiger

Source Northern Chinese wheat-farming proverb, attested in regional nongyan collections from Hebei and Shandong provinces

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 Tiger, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.