諺語 · a single proverb
修心養性
Simplified: 修心养性
What does 修心養性 (xiū xīn yǎng xìng) mean?
修心養性 (xiū xīn yǎng xìng) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "cultivate heart, nourish nature." In use it means: Cultivate the inner mind and nurture one's true nature; the work of inner development. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Water note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Snake.
Literally: "cultivate heart, nourish nature."
The reading
The mind left uncultivated fills with whatever passes through it, useful and useless alike, and the nature left unnourished grows wild in the direction of whatever pulls hardest. To tend to both is the continuous work of becoming someone you would choose to be. There is no finished version of this work; it is always in progress, always worthwhile.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Taoist and Confucian cultivation tradition
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 Snake, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 修心養性 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 修心養性 (xiū xīn yǎng xìng) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Taoist and Confucian cultivation tradition. 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 修心養性?
In Mandarin it is xiū xīn yǎng xìng. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 修心養性 aloud in Mandarin.