百尺竿头 bǎi chǐ gān tóu A hundred-foot pole

Explanation

“百尺竿头”指的是桅杆或杂技长竿的顶端，比喻极高的官位和功名，或学问、事业有很高的成就。这个成语主要用于鼓励人们不要满足现状，要不断地追求进步，取得更大的成就。

“A hundred-foot pole” refers to the top of a mast or a long pole used for acrobatics. It is a metaphor for a very high official position and fame, or a high level of academic attainment and career achievement. The idiom is mainly used to encourage people not to be complacent and to constantly strive for progress to achieve greater success.

Origin Story

宋朝时期，长沙有一位名叫景岑的高僧，佛学造诣深厚，常到各地传道讲经。他的讲经深入浅出、娓娓动听，听众常与他谈论有关佛教的最高境界。他拿出偈帖给大家念道：”百丈竿头不动人，虽然得人未为真。百丈竿头须进步，十方世界是全身。“

sòng cháo shí qī, cháng shā yǒu yī wèi míng jiào jǐng cén de gāo sēng, fó xué zào yì shēn hòu, cháng dào gè dì chuán dào jiǎng jīng. tā de jiǎng jīng shēn rù qiǎn chū, wěi wěi dòng tīng, tīng zhòng cháng yǔ tā tán lùn yǒu guān fó jiào de zuì gāo jìng jiè. tā ná chū jì tiē gěi dà jiā niàn dào: ”bǎi zhàng gān tóu bù dòng rén, suī rán dé rén wèi wéi zhēn. bǎi zhàng gān tóu xū jìn bù, shí fāng shì jiè shì quán shēn.

During the Song Dynasty, there was a highly respected monk named Jingcen from Changsha, who was deeply rooted in Buddhist teachings and often traveled to different regions to teach and preach the Dharma. His sermons were easy to understand and captivating, and his listeners often discussed the highest levels of Buddhism with him. He took out a sheet with a poem and read it for everyone: “A hundred feet high the pole, it moves no one, even if it reaches people, it is not really. A hundred feet high the pole, one must go forward, the ten directions of the world are the whole body.”

Usage

这个成语主要用于鼓励人们不要满足现状，要不断地追求进步，取得更大的成就。

zhè ge chéng yǔ zhǔ yào yòng yú gǔ lì rén men bú yào mǎn zú xiàn zhàng, yào bù duàn de zhuī qiú jìn zhì, qǔ dé gèng dà de chéng jiù.

This idiom is mainly used to encourage people not to be complacent and to constantly strive for progress to achieve greater success.

Examples

• 学习要像登山一样，要不断地追求进步，才能达到更高的境界。

  xué xí yào xiàng dēng shān yī yàng, yào bù duàn de zhuī qiú jìn zhì, cái néng dá dào gèng gāo de jìng jiè.

  Learning should be like climbing a mountain, you should always strive for progress to reach higher heights.

• 他已经取得了很高的成就，但他依然不满足，他总是要百尺竿头更进一步。

  tā yǐ jīng qǔ dé le hěn gāo de chéng jiù, dàn tā yīrán bù mǎn zú, tā zǒng shì yào bǎi chǐ gān tóu gèng jìn yī bù.

  He has already achieved great success, but he is still not satisfied, he always wants to go one step further.

• 年轻人应该脚踏实地，不要好高骛远，以为自己已经到了百尺竿头，就停止了进步。

  nián qīng rén yīng gāi jiǎo tà shí dì, bú yào hǎo gāo wù yuǎn, yǐ wéi zì jǐ yǐ jīng dào le bǎi chǐ gān tóu, jiù tíng zhǐ le jìn zhì.

  Young people should be down-to-earth, not aim too high, and think that they have reached the top and stopped making progress.

Related Idioms

• 百丈竿头

Opposite Idioms

• 固步自封

• 止步不前