諺語 · a single proverb
知足者常樂
Simplified: 知足者常乐
What does 知足者常樂 (zhī zú zhě cháng lè) mean?
知足者常樂 (zhī zú zhě cháng lè) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "those who know sufficiency are always happy." In use it means: The person who knows when they have enough will always find contentment; contentment is the real wealth. 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 Goat.
Literally: "those who know sufficiency are always happy."
The reading
The accumulation never ends if you don't decide it has. More becomes the water table: always lower than where you are standing. But the person who draws the line-who says this is enough-suddenly has everything, because enough is the one quantity that actually satisfies.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Tao Te Ching 道德經, ch. 46 (Laozi); common folk form
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 Goat, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 知足者常樂 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 知足者常樂 (zhī zú zhě cháng lè) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Tao Te Ching 道德經, ch. 46 (Laozi); common folk form. 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 知足者常樂?
In Mandarin it is zhī zú zhě cháng lè. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 知足者常樂 aloud in Mandarin.