当头棒喝 dāng tóu bàng hè A blow to the head

Explanation

比喻严厉警告，使人猛醒过来。

A metaphor for a stern warning to make someone wake up.

Origin Story

唐朝时期，佛教临济宗的修行者们常以棒喝作为一种独特的传道方式。据说，禅宗大师黄檗禅师曾用此法点化弟子临济义玄。一日，临济在禅堂参禅，心绪茫然，毫无头绪。黄檗禅师见状，突然举起手中的禅杖，重重地打在临济的背上，并大声喝道：‘咄! ’临济顿觉五雷轰顶，心中震撼，如梦初醒。他从此潜心参悟佛法，最终成为临济宗的杰出代表，开创了临济宗的独特风格。这个故事也成为了“当头棒喝”的经典案例，体现了禅宗直指人心，顿悟成佛的修行理念。临济后来也采用这种方式教导弟子，使其快速顿悟。这种方法虽然看似粗暴，却能有效地打破弟子们思想上的障碍，促使他们迅速领悟佛法的真谛。

táng cháo shí qī, fó jiào lín jǐ zōng de xiū xíng zhě men cháng yǐ bàng hè zuò wéi yī zhǒng dú tè de chuán dào fāng shì. jù shuō, chán zōng dà shī huáng bò chán shī céng yòng cǐ fǎ diǎn huà dì zǐ lín jǐ yì xuán. yī rì, lín jǐ zài chán táng cān chán, xīn xù máng rán, háo wú tóu xù. huáng bò chán shī jiàn zhàng, tū rán jǔ qǐ shǒu zhōng de chán zhàng, zhòng zhòng de dǎ zài lín jǐ de bèi shàng, bìng dà shēng hè dào: ‘duō! ’ lín jǐ dùn jué wǔ léi hōng dǐng, xīn zhōng zhèn hàn, rú mèng chū xǐng. tā cóng cǐ qián xīn cān wù fó fǎ, zhōng yú chéng wéi lín jǐ zōng de jié chū dài biǎo, kāi chuàng le lín jǐ zōng de dú tè fēng gé. zhège gù shì yě chéng wéi le “dāng tóu bàng hè” de jīng diǎn àn lì, tǐ xiàn le chán zōng zhí zhǐ rén xīn, dùn wù chéng fó de xiū xíng lǐ niàn. lín jǐ hòu lái yě cǎi yòng zhè zhǒng fāng shì jiào dǎo dì zǐ, shǐ qí kuài sù dùn wù. zhè zhǒng fāng fǎ suī rán kàn sì cū bào, què néng yǒu xiào de dǎ pò dì zǐ men sī xiǎng shàng de zhàng ài, cù shǐ tā men xùn sù lǐng wù fó fǎ de zhēn dì.

During the Tang Dynasty, practitioners of the Linji school of Buddhism often used the “stick and shout” method as a unique way of teaching. It is said that the Zen master Huangbo Zen master once used this method to enlighten his disciple Linji Yixuan. One day, Linji was meditating in the Zen hall, his mind was confused and unorganized. When Huangbo Zen master saw this, he suddenly raised his Zen stick and hit Linji hard on the back, and shouted loudly: “Dō!”. Linji felt like he was struck by lightning, his heart was shocked, as if he was waking up from a dream. From that day on, he devoted himself to meditating on Buddhism and eventually became an outstanding representative of the Linji school, creating the unique style of the Linji school. This story also became a classic example of “a blow to the head”, reflecting the direct nature of Zen Buddhism and the concept of sudden enlightenment. Linji later also used this method to teach his disciples, enabling them to quickly gain enlightenment. Although this method may seem crude, it can effectively break through the mental barriers of the disciples and prompt them to quickly grasp the essence of Buddhism.

Usage

多用于书面语，作主语、宾语。

duō yòng yú shū miàn yǔ, zuò zhǔ yǔ, bīn yǔ.

Mostly used in written language, as subject and object.

Examples

• 他这种行为，简直就是当头棒喝，让人猝不及防。

  tā zhè zhǒng xíng wéi, jiǎn zhí jiù shì dāng tóu bàng hè, ràng rén cù bù jí fáng.

  His actions were a real wake-up call, completely unexpected.

• 面对他的错误，我不得不给他当头棒喝，让他认识到问题的严重性。

  miàn duì tā de cuò wù, wǒ bù dé bù gěi tā dāng tóu bàng hè, ràng tā rèn shí dào wèntí de yán zhòng xìng。

  Faced with his mistake, I had to give him a stern warning to make him realize the seriousness of the problem。

Related Idioms

• 醍醐灌顶

• 振聋发聩

Opposite Idioms

• 循循善诱

• 耳提面命