天tiān下xià興xīng亡wáng，匹pǐ夫fū有yǒu責zé

What does 天下興亡，匹夫有責 (tiān xià xīng wáng pǐ fū yǒu zé) mean?

天下興亡，匹夫有責 (tiān xià xīng wáng pǐ fū yǒu zé) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "the rise and fall of the world is every ordinary person's responsibility." In use it means: National and communal well-being is not just the concern of leaders; every individual shares the duty. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Fire note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Dragon.

Literally: "the rise and fall of the world is every ordinary person's responsibility."

The reading

The throne is not the only seat that matters. The farmer's stool, the teacher's chair, the merchant's bench, every seat carries a share of what happens next. The person who says it is not my responsibility is correct only in the narrowest legal sense. In every other sense, it is exactly their responsibility, because they live inside the result.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeyànyǔ 諺語
• FocusPresent-minded
• Element火 Fire
• Zodiac tie龍 Year of the Dragon

Source Gu Yanwu 顧炎武, Ri Zhi Lu 日知錄; often attributed (reformulated)

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 Courage & Decisive Action, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Dragon, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.