諺語 · a single proverb
一笑解百愁
What does 一笑解百愁 (yī xiào jiě bǎi chóu) mean?
一笑解百愁 (yī xiào jiě bǎi chóu) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "one smile dissolves a hundred sorrows." In use it means: A single smile can dissolve countless worries; laughter is the best medicine. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Fire note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Monkey.
Literally: "one smile dissolves a hundred sorrows."
The reading
The body does not know the difference between a fully earned smile and one chosen from within the sorrow, and what the face does, the interior tends to follow. The single genuine smile is not a denial of the hundred worries but a declaration that the person smiling is larger than any of them. This is what joy at the center of difficulty looks like.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Traditional Chinese folk saying (common in health and social wisdom)
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 Nature, Seasons & Health, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Monkey, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Rabbit.
Questions
Is 一笑解百愁 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 一笑解百愁 (yī xiào jiě bǎi chóu) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Traditional Chinese folk saying (common in health and social wisdom). 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 一笑解百愁?
In Mandarin it is yī xiào jiě bǎi chóu. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 一笑解百愁 aloud in Mandarin.