諺語 · a single proverb
言者無罪，聞者足戒
Simplified: 言者无罪，闻者足戒
What does 言者無罪，聞者足戒 (yán zhě wú zuì, wén zhě zú jiè) mean?
言者無罪，聞者足戒 (yán zhě wú zuì, wén zhě zú jiè) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "the one who speaks is without fault; the one who hears takes it as warning." In use it means: Honest criticism should not be punished, and the listener should take the caution to heart even if it doesn't wholly apply. It is a rule for keeping counsel open. 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: "the one who speaks is without fault; the one who hears takes it as warning."
The reading
When someone risks telling you the hard thing, the part of you that flinches wants to punish them for it. Don't. Thank the messenger, keep whatever fits, and you'll stay the kind of person people are still brave enough to be honest around.
The story
The line is from the Great Preface to the Classic of Poetry, where it defends the poet's freedom to remonstrate: the one who speaks is without fault, and the one who hears takes it as a caution. It is a rule for keeping counsel open, used to protect honest criticism and to ask the listener to weigh the warning even where it does not wholly fit.
When someone risks telling you the hard thing, do not punish the messenger for the sting of it. Thank them, keep whatever fits and let the rest go, and you will stay the kind of person people are still brave enough to be honest around.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Classic of Poetry 詩經, Great Preface 大序
Sits beside
己所不欲，勿施於人
jǐ suǒ bù yù, wù shī yú rén
The Confucian rule of reciprocity.
三思而後行
sān sī ér hòu xíng
Deliberate before you act: turn a decision over more than once before letting it out of your hands.
虛懷若谷
xū huái ruò gǔ
True humility keeps the mind hollow like a valley, open enough to receive every stream, every view, without needing to be right.
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 Friendship, Trust & Speech, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Goat, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Pig.
Questions
Is 言者無罪，聞者足戒 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 言者無罪，聞者足戒 (yán zhě wú zuì, wén zhě zú jiè) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Classic of Poetry 詩經, Great Preface 大序. 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 言者無罪，聞者足戒?
In Mandarin it is yán zhě wú zuì, wén zhě zú jiè. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 言者無罪，聞者足戒 aloud in Mandarin.