CHINESE PROVERBS: The Wisdom of Cheng-Yu

The sayings known as Cheng-yu, represented in four elegantly drawn Chinese characters, are comparable to proverbs or idioms in English, but each has a depth of meaning and linguistic color very unlike their English equivalents. Many are rooted in ancient Chinese culture, and make oblique references to poetry, philosophy, or history. Chinese Proverbs features a selection of the most famous and most interesting of the more than 5,000 Cheng-yu, including “beat grass warn snake” (give the game away, tip someone off) and “sorrowing army must win” (justice will prevail). Alongside each phrase is an accessible and inspiring explanation, its literal translation in English, what the particular calligraphic strokes symbolize, and its various uses.