諺語 · a single proverb
一山不容二虎
What does 一山不容二虎 (yī shān bù róng èr hǔ) mean?
一山不容二虎 (yī shān bù róng èr hǔ) is a colloquial saying (súyǔ 俗語). Word for word it reads "one mountain does not hold two tigers." In use it means: Two rivals of great strength rarely share a single territory. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Wood note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Tiger.
Literally: "one mountain does not hold two tigers."
The reading
You were not built to share a peak. The pull to hold ground that is wholly yours reads as pride only from the outside; from within, it is the tiger knowing that some strengths need their own mountain to move at full stride.
The story
This is a folk proverb, a saying with no single author, that turns on the plain fact of two tigers unable to share one mountain because each needs the whole range to hunt. It is used of rivals of equal strength who cannot occupy the same ground, whether two bosses in one office or two powers on one border.
Notice where you are trying to share a peak with someone whose strength matches yours, and admit the friction is structural, not personal. Either claim ground that is wholly your own or divide the territory cleanly, rather than grinding against a rival on turf too small for both.
What kind of proverb it is
Source folk proverb 諺語
Sits beside
破釜沉舟
pò fǔ chén zhōu
Commit fully with no line of retreat.
事在人為
shì zài rén wéi
Whether a thing succeeds depends on human effort, not on fate.
尺有所短，寸有所長
chǐ yǒu suǒ duǎn, cùn yǒu suǒ cháng
Even the larger measure has its shortcomings and the smaller its strengths: everyone has gifts and gaps, so judge no one, and least of all yourself, by a single scale.
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 Courage & Decisive Action, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Tiger, Year of the Horse, and Year of the Monkey.
Questions
Is 一山不容二虎 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 一山不容二虎 (yī shān bù róng èr hǔ) is a colloquial saying (súyǔ 俗語), and it comes from folk proverb 諺語. 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 一山不容二虎?
In Mandarin it is yī shān bù róng èr hǔ. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 一山不容二虎 aloud in Mandarin.