諺語 · a single proverb
萬物並育而不相害
Simplified: 万物并育而不相害
What does 萬物並育而不相害 (wàn wù bìng yù ér bù xiāng hài) mean?
萬物並育而不相害 (wàn wù bìng yù ér bù xiāng hài) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞). Word for word it reads "ten thousand things grow together and do not harm each other." In use it means: All things can grow together without harming each other; the harmony of coexistence. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Wood note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Dragon.
Literally: "ten thousand things grow together and do not harm each other."
The reading
The forest does not decide which species gets to grow and which does not. The oak and the fern and the moss and the beetle find their place in the same system, each contributing something no other contributes, and the system is richer for the fullness. This is the ecology of genuine harmony: not agreement but coexistence that deepens rather than diminishes.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Li Ji 禮記·中庸 (Zhōng Yōng, Doctrine of the Mean)
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 Harmony, Virtue & Balance, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Dragon, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 萬物並育而不相害 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 萬物並育而不相害 (wàn wù bìng yù ér bù xiāng hài) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞), and it comes from Li Ji 禮記·中庸 (Zhōng Yōng, Doctrine of the Mean). 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 萬物並育而不相害?
In Mandarin it is wàn wù bìng yù ér bù xiāng hài. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 萬物並育而不相害 aloud in Mandarin.