諺語 · a single proverb
江山易改，本性難移
Simplified: 江山易改，本性难移
What does 江山易改，本性難移 (jiāng shān yì gǎi, běn xìng nán yí) mean?
江山易改，本性難移 (jiāng shān yì gǎi, běn xìng nán yí) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "rivers and mountains are easier to change than a person's basic nature." In use it means: Landscapes shift over time, but deeply rooted character traits resist even the strongest efforts to alter them. 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: "rivers and mountains are easier to change than a person's basic nature."
The reading
You can move a river. You can level a hill. These are large projects, but they are physical and finite. A person's nature runs deeper than geography. It is not that change is impossible. It is that the scale of the project is usually underestimated, especially by the person attempting it.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Proverbial; variants in Song-era texts, widely quoted
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 Wisdom & Learning, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 江山易改，本性難移 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 江山易改，本性難移 (jiāng shān yì gǎi, běn xìng nán yí) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Proverbial; variants in Song-era texts, widely quoted. 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 江山易改，本性難移?
In Mandarin it is jiāng shān yì gǎi, běn xìng nán yí. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 江山易改，本性難移 aloud in Mandarin.