諺語 · a single proverb
窮則變，變則通
Simplified: 穷则变，变则通
What does 窮則變，變則通 (qióng zé biàn biàn zé tōng) mean?
窮則變，變則通 (qióng zé biàn biàn zé tōng) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "when exhausted change; when changed flow through." In use it means: When you reach the end of one path, transformation opens the next; adaptability is survival. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Water note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Snake.
Literally: "when exhausted change; when changed flow through."
The reading
The wall is only a wall if you keep walking the same direction. Turn, and it becomes a corridor. Every dead end in your life was an instruction to change shape.
What kind of proverb it is
Source I Ching 易經, Xi Ci 繫辭
Sits beside
冬至陽生春又來
dōng zhì yáng shēng chūn yòu lái
At the darkest moment of winter, yang energy is reborn and spring begins its return.
夜長夢多
yè cháng mèng duō
Delay leads to complications.
太公釣魚，願者上鉤
tài gōng diào yú yuàn zhě shàng gōu
The best way to attract people is not through trickery but through genuine worth.
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 Timing & Fortune's Turning, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Snake, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 窮則變，變則通 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 窮則變，變則通 (qióng zé biàn biàn zé tōng) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from I Ching 易經, Xi Ci 繫辭. 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 窮則變，變則通?
In Mandarin it is qióng zé biàn biàn zé tōng. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 窮則變，變則通 aloud in Mandarin.