諺語 · a single proverb
克己復禮
Simplified: 克己复礼
What does 克己復禮 (kè jǐ fù lǐ) mean?
克己復禮 (kè jǐ fù lǐ) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "subdue the self, return to propriety." In use it means: Master your own impulses and align your conduct with what is right; virtue begins as self-restraint. 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: "subdue the self, return to propriety."
The reading
The hardest thing you will ever govern is already sitting inside your own ribs. Rein the wanting self back to the line of what is fitting, and notice that the discipline nobody sees is the only kind that ever changes you.
The story
From the Analects, 12.1, where Yan Yuan asks about benevolence and Confucius answers that to subdue the self and return to ritual propriety is benevolence, and that if a person could do this for a single day the whole world would turn toward goodness. Virtue begins as self-restraint, the hardest government being the one over one's own impulses.
The thing most in need of governing today is sitting inside your own ribs, not out in the world. Rein the wanting self back to the line of what is fitting in one concrete moment, and trust that the discipline nobody sees is the only kind that changes you.
What kind of proverb it is
Source 《論語·顏淵》 (Analects 12.1), Confucius to Yan Yuan
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 Humility & Self-Mastery, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Monkey, and Year of the Rat.
Questions
Is 克己復禮 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 克己復禮 (kè jǐ fù lǐ) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from 《論語·顏淵》 (Analects 12.1), Confucius to Yan Yuan. 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 克己復禮?
In Mandarin it is kè jǐ fù lǐ. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 克己復禮 aloud in Mandarin.