諺語 · a single proverb
吐故納新
Simplified: 吐故纳新
What does 吐故納新 (tǔ gù nà xīn) mean?
吐故納新 (tǔ gù nà xīn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "exhale the old, inhale the new." In use it means: Discard the old and take in the new; renewal through releasing the outdated. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Metal note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Snake.
Literally: "exhale the old, inhale the new."
The reading
The lungs know something the mind sometimes forgets: that holding on is the beginning of suffocation. Every breath is a small ceremony of release and reception, and the body performs it without being asked. What the breath does for the body, discernment can do for a life.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Zhuangzi 莊子·刻意 (Kè Yì chapter)
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 Nature, Seasons & Health, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Snake, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Rabbit.
Questions
Is 吐故納新 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 吐故納新 (tǔ gù nà xīn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Zhuangzi 莊子·刻意 (Kè Yì chapter). 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 吐故納新?
In Mandarin it is tǔ gù nà xīn. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 吐故納新 aloud in Mandarin.