諺語 · a single proverb
鐵杵磨針
Simplified: 铁杵磨针
What does 鐵杵磨針 (tiě chǔ mó zhēn) mean?
鐵杵磨針 (tiě chǔ mó zhēn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "grind an iron pestle into a needle." In use it means: Sustained diligence achieves what looks impossible. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Metal note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Rat.
Literally: "grind an iron pestle into a needle."
The reading
You looked at the size of what you are trying to become and called it impossible, and from where you stand today you are right. But impossibility is a statement about a single afternoon, not about ten thousand of them. Pick up the stone.
The story
The story is recorded in the 方輿勝覽 and attached to the poet Li Bai. As a boy he abandoned his studies and wandered off, where he met an old woman grinding a thick iron pestle against a stone. Asked what she was doing, she said she meant to grind it into a needle; struck by her patience, Li Bai returned to his books and became one of China's greatest poets.
Look at the size of what you are trying to become and admit that from a single afternoon it does look impossible. Then pick up the stone anyway, because impossibility is a statement about one day and not about ten thousand of them.
What kind of proverb it is
Source 方輿勝覽 (Li Bai legend)
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 Wealth, Work & Diligence, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rat, Year of the Ox, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 鐵杵磨針 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 鐵杵磨針 (tiě chǔ mó zhēn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from 方輿勝覽 (Li Bai legend). 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 鐵杵磨針?
In Mandarin it is tiě chǔ mó zhēn. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 鐵杵磨針 aloud in Mandarin.