动心忍性 dòng xīn rěn xìng Be determined and patient

Explanation

这个成语出自《孟子·告子下》，意思是：形容一个人意志坚定，不为外界所动，坚持自己的目标和信念。

This idiom comes from Mencius, Chapter Gaozi. It means: To describe a person's firm will, not affected by the outside world, and to stick to his goals and beliefs.

Origin Story

战国时期，齐国有一位名叫田文的人，他从小就志向远大，立志要成为一位治国之才。他常年刻苦学习，勤奋读书，即使是冬天寒风凛冽，他也坚持在屋外读书，从不间断。后来，他的老师发现他虽然聪明好学，但性情急躁，容易冲动，于是就给他出了一道题：“你听说过刻舟求剑的故事吗？”田文点了点头，老师接着说道：“刻舟求剑的故事，就是比喻那些不懂得变通，固执己见的人。学习也是一样，如果只死读书，不思变通，就容易陷入死胡同，不能真正学到知识。”田文听完老师的话，深以为然。他从此以后，更加注重思考，不再盲目地学习，而是根据不同的情况，灵活运用所学的知识，最终成为了一位德才兼备的政治家。

zhàn guó shí qī, qí guó yǒu yī wèi míng jiào tián wén de rén, tā cóng xiǎo jiù zhì xiàng yuǎn dà, lì zhì yào chéng wéi yī wèi zhì guó zhī cái. tā cháng nián kè kǔ xué xí, qín fèn dú shū, jí shì shì dōng tiān hán fēng lǐn liè, tā yě jiān chí zài wài wū dú shū, cóng bù jiān duàn. hòu lái, tā de lǎo shī fā xiàn tā suī rán cōng míng hǎo xué, dàn xìng qíng jí zào, róng yì chōng dòng, yú shì jiù gěi tā chū le yī dào tí: “nǐ tīng shuō guò kè zhōu qiú jiàn de gù shì ma?” tián wén diǎn le diǎn tóu, lǎo shī jiē zhe shuō dào: “kè zhōu qiú jiàn de gù shì, jiù shì bǐ yù nà xiē bù dǒng de biàn tōng, gù zhí jǐ jiàn de rén. xué xí yě shì yī yàng, rú guǒ zhǐ sǐ dú shū, bù sī biàn tōng, jiù róng yì xiàn rù sǐ hú tóng, bù néng zhēn zhèng xué dào zhī shì.” tián wén tīng wán lǎo shī de huà, shēn yǐ wéi rán. tā cóng cǐ yǐ hòu, gèng jiā zhòng shì sī kǎo, bù zài máng mù de xué xí, ér shì gēn jù bù tóng de qíng kuàng, líng huó yìng yòng suǒ xué de zhī shì, zhōng yú chéng wéi le yī wèi dé cái jiān bèi de zhèng zhì jiā.

During the Warring States period in China, there was a man named Tian Wen in the state of Qi. He was ambitious from a young age and aspired to become a statesman. He studied diligently for many years and read books diligently. Even in the cold winter, he persisted in reading books outdoors without interruption. Later, his teacher found that although he was intelligent and eager to learn, he was also impatient and prone to impulsiveness. So he gave him a problem: "Have you heard the story of carving the boat to find the sword?" Tian Wen nodded. The teacher continued: "The story of carving the boat to find the sword is a metaphor for those who are inflexible and dogmatic. The same goes for learning. If you just read books blindly, without thinking flexibly, you can easily fall into a dead end and fail to truly learn knowledge." Tian Wen was convinced by his teacher's words. From that day forward, he paid more attention to thinking, no longer learning blindly, but instead applying his knowledge flexibly according to different situations, eventually becoming a statesman with both virtue and ability.

Usage

这个成语常用于形容一个人意志坚定，不屈不挠，无论遇到什么困难，都能坚持到底。

zhè ge chéng yǔ cháng yòng yú xíng róng yī gè rén yì zhì jiān dìng, bù qū bù náo, wú lùn yù dào shén me kùn nan, dōu néng jiān chí dào dǐ.

This idiom is often used to describe a person who is determined, unyielding, and will persevere no matter what difficulties they encounter.

Examples

• 为了梦想，他动心忍性，克服了种种困难，最终取得了成功。

  wèi le mèng xiǎng, tā dòng xīn rěn xìng, kè fú le zhǒng zhǒng kùn nan, zhōng yú qǔ dé le chéng gōng.

  He was determined to achieve his dream, overcame all sorts of difficulties and finally achieved success.

• 面对挫折，我们要动心忍性，不能轻易放弃。

  miàn duì cuò zhí, wǒ men yào dòng xīn rěn xìng, bù néng qīng yì fàng qì.

  In the face of setbacks, we should be determined and not give up easily.

Related Idioms

• 锲而不舍

• 持之以恒

Opposite Idioms

• 心猿意马

• 朝三暮四