Chinese Wisdom Stories · Volume 1 · Story guide

曾子杀猪Zengzi Kills the Pig

zēng zǐ shā zhū

HSK4-成语故事

Zengzi's wife tells their son she will kill the pig for him if he stays quiet. She says it as a joke, but Zengzi takes the promise seriously and kills the pig.

Where this story comes from

《韩非子·外储说左上》

Hanfeizi, chapter “Wai Chu Shuo, Shang”

The story

曾子的妻子要去集市,儿子哭闹着要跟去。妻子随口说:你回去,等我回来给你杀猪吃。她回来后,曾子真的要去杀猪。妻子说:我只是哄孩子的话。曾子说:不能跟孩子开玩笑,孩子会学父母。今天你骗他,就是教他骗人;母亲骗孩子,孩子以后就不信母亲了。于是他杀了猪。

What the idiom means

曾子杀猪指父母言而有信,用行动教育孩子;比喻说话算数,不能因为对方是孩子就随便许诺。

Zengzi kills the pig to keep a promise to his child — parents must teach honesty by example, not with empty words.

How to use it

答应孩子的事就要做到,曾子杀猪的故事讲的就是这个道理。

dā yìng hái zi de shì jiù yào zuò dào , zēng zǐ shā zhū de gù shì jiǎng de jiù shì zhè gè dào lǐ 。

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Part of the Chinese Wisdom Stories series