養yǎng不bù教jiào,，父fù之zhī過guò;；教jiào不bù嚴yán,，師shī之zhī惰duò

What does 養不教，父之過；教不嚴，師之惰 (yǎng bù jiào, fù zhī guò; jiào bù yán, shī zhī duò) mean?

養不教，父之過；教不嚴，師之惰 (yǎng bù jiào, fù zhī guò; jiào bù yán, shī zhī duò) is a line of classical verse (shīcí 詩詞). Word for word it reads "To raise without teaching is the father's fault; to teach without strictness is the teacher's laziness." In use it means: A parent who feeds a child but neglects moral instruction has failed in duty. A teacher who instructs without discipline is shirking responsibility. 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 Ox.

Literally: "To raise without teaching is the father's fault; to teach without strictness is the teacher's laziness.."

The reading

Feeding the body while starving the mind is a quiet form of neglect. Responsibility does not end where comfort begins. The father who corrects and the teacher who demands both plant roots that hold firm in storms. Love without guidance leaves a child rich in years but poor in direction.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeshīcí 詩詞
• FocusLooks back
• Element金 Metal
• Zodiac tie牛 Year of the Ox

Source Sān Zì Jīng (三字經), attributed to Wáng Yìnglín, Song Dynasty

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 Wisdom & Learning, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.