諺語 · a single proverb
老馬識途
Simplified: 老马识途
What does 老馬識途 (lǎo mǎ shí tú) mean?
老馬識途 (lǎo mǎ shí tú) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "old horse knows the road." In use it means: An experienced person knows the way; value the wisdom of those with experience. 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 Horse.
Literally: "old horse knows the road."
The reading
The old horse has traveled this road in every season and remembers it in its muscles rather than its mind. What experience stores in the body is not data but knowing, the kind that does not need to be recalled because it never left. Defer to the seasoned traveler on questions of path; they have already paid for the information with their years.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Han Feizi 韓非子·說林上 (Shuō Lín I, Forest of Persuasions)
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 Horse, Year of the Frog, and Year of the Rat.
Questions
Is 老馬識途 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 老馬識途 (lǎo mǎ shí tú) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Han Feizi 韓非子·說林上 (Shuō Lín I, Forest of Persuasions). 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 老馬識途?
In Mandarin it is lǎo mǎ shí tú. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 老馬識途 aloud in Mandarin.