諺語 · a single proverb
小不忍則亂大謀
Simplified: 小不忍则乱大谋
What does 小不忍則亂大謀 (xiǎo bù rěn zé luàn dà móu) mean?
小不忍則亂大謀 (xiǎo bù rěn zé luàn dà móu) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "small cannot endure then disrupts great plan." In use it means: Inability to endure small irritations will ruin great plans. 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 Ox.
Literally: "small cannot endure then disrupts great plan."
The reading
The grain of sand in the mechanism is small and the mechanism is intricate and one leads to the destruction of the other. Patience with the minor irritation is not passive but protective, a guard set against the small things that would displace the large work. What you cannot hold lightly, you cannot hold.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Analects of Confucius 論語·衛靈公 (Wèi Líng Gōng XV)
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 Humility & Self-Mastery, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 小不忍則亂大謀 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 小不忍則亂大謀 (xiǎo bù rěn zé luàn dà móu) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Analects of Confucius 論語·衛靈公 (Wèi Líng Gōng XV). 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 小不忍則亂大謀?
In Mandarin it is xiǎo bù rěn zé luàn dà móu. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 小不忍則亂大謀 aloud in Mandarin.