諺語 · a single proverb
海內存知己，天涯若比鄰
Simplified: 海内存知己，天涯若比邻
What does 海內存知己，天涯若比鄰 (hǎi nèi cún zhī jǐ, tiān yá ruò bǐ lín) mean?
海內存知己，天涯若比鄰 (hǎi nèi cún zhī jǐ, tiān yá ruò bǐ lín) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞). Word for word it reads "if within the seas you have one who knows you, the ends of the earth are like next door." In use it means: A true friend collapses distance; when someone knows your heart, being far apart feels like living in the same neighborhood. 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 Rooster.
Literally: "if within the seas you have one who knows you, the ends of the earth are like next door."
The reading
The person who knows you best may live in another time zone, and it changes nothing. Distance is only cruel to acquaintances. For the one who understands you, a thousand miles reads like the width of a shared wall.
The story
From Wang Bo's Tang poem 送杜少府之任蜀州, Seeing off Vice-Magistrate Du to his post in Shu. Written to console a friend departing for a distant office, the couplet refuses the usual grief of parting: so long as one who knows your heart exists somewhere within the seas, the ends of the earth feel like the house next door.
When distance opens between you and the person who truly knows you, refuse the story that it must cool the bond. Send the message, keep the thread alive, and let a thousand miles read like the width of a shared wall.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Wang Bo 王勃, 送杜少府之任蜀州 (Tang poem)
Sits beside
君子之交淡如水
jūn zǐ zhī jiāo dàn rú shuǐ
True friendship between people of character is plain and unforced, not sweetened by flattery or gain, and lasting precisely because it asks for nothing.
士為知己者死
shì wèi zhī jǐ zhě sǐ
To be genuinely understood by another person is so rare that it can command a loyalty deeper than life: the debt owed to being truly seen.
路遙知馬力，日久見人心
lù yáo zhī mǎ lì, rì jiǔ jiàn rén xīn
Character and loyalty are proven only over time.
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 Friendship, Trust & Speech, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rooster, Year of the Goat, and Year of the Horse.
Questions
Is 海內存知己，天涯若比鄰 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 海內存知己，天涯若比鄰 (hǎi nèi cún zhī jǐ, tiān yá ruò bǐ lín) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞), and it comes from Wang Bo 王勃, 送杜少府之任蜀州 (Tang poem). 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 海內存知己，天涯若比鄰?
In Mandarin it is hǎi nèi cún zhī jǐ, tiān yá ruò bǐ lín. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 海內存知己，天涯若比鄰 aloud in Mandarin.