諺語 · a single proverb
他山之石，可以攻玉
What does 他山之石，可以攻玉 (tā shān zhī shí kě yǐ gōng yù) mean?
他山之石，可以攻玉 (tā shān zhī shí kě yǐ gōng yù) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞). Word for word it reads "a stone from another mountain can polish jade." In use it means: Outside perspectives and tools can improve your own work; foreign criticism can refine domestic excellence. 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 Dragon.
Literally: "a stone from another mountain can polish jade."
The reading
The jade is beautiful but rough. The stone that polishes it comes from a different mountain entirely. Your own resources cannot finish what they started. It takes something foreign, something that does not match, something that rubs the wrong way, to bring out the shine. Welcome the abrasive input. It is doing work your own smoothness cannot.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Book of Songs 詩經, Xiao Ya 小雅, Heming 鶴鳴
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 Dragon, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 他山之石，可以攻玉 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 他山之石，可以攻玉 (tā shān zhī shí kě yǐ gōng yù) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞), and it comes from Book of Songs 詩經, Xiao Ya 小雅, Heming 鶴鳴. 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 他山之石，可以攻玉?
In Mandarin it is tā shān zhī shí kě yǐ gōng yù. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 他山之石，可以攻玉 aloud in Mandarin.