諺語 · a single proverb
金玉其外，敗絮其中
Simplified: 金玉其外，败絮其中
What does 金玉其外，敗絮其中 (jīn yù qí wài bài xù qí zhōng) mean?
金玉其外，敗絮其中 (jīn yù qí wài bài xù qí zhōng) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "gold and jade on the outside, rotten cotton on the inside." In use it means: Something that looks magnificent on the surface but is worthless underneath; all appearance, no substance. 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: "gold and jade on the outside, rotten cotton on the inside."
The reading
The orange was painted gold. The buyer admired it. Then he opened it and found ash and old cotton. Every purchase, every partnership, every promise has an inside and an outside. The outside is what the seller controls. The inside is what the seller hopes you never check. Check.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Liu Ji 劉基, Yu Li Zi 郁離子 (Selling Oranges essay)
Sits beside
井底之蛙
jǐng dǐ zhī wā
Someone with an extremely narrow view of the world, who mistakes the small circle of sky above the well for the whole sky.
冰凍三尺，非一日之寒
bīng dòng sān chǐ, fēi yī rì zhī hán
Nothing deep-a skill, a habit, a ruin-forms overnight.
心急吃不了熱豆腐
xīn jí chī bù liǎo rè dòu fu
Impatience will not speed things up.
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 Humility & Self-Mastery, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rooster, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 金玉其外，敗絮其中 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 金玉其外，敗絮其中 (jīn yù qí wài bài xù qí zhōng) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Liu Ji 劉基, Yu Li Zi 郁離子 (Selling Oranges essay). 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 金玉其外，敗絮其中?
In Mandarin it is jīn yù qí wài bài xù qí zhōng. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 金玉其外，敗絮其中 aloud in Mandarin.