Chinese idiom · 成语
愚公移山
Meaning
To persevere to achieve the impossible; determination overcomes obstacles.
Character by character
Origin and story
FableIn the Tangwen (湯問) chapter of Liezi (列子), an old man known as Yugong lives facing the Taihang and Wangwu mountains, which make every journey a long detour. Nearly ninety years old, he proposes digging them away. His family begins carrying out earth and stones, and a neighbor’s young son joins in. A man called Zhisou, the ‘Wise Old Man,’ mocks the plan.
Yugong replies that even after his death, children and grandchildren can continue the work, while the mountains will grow no larger. The tale ends with divine intervention: the heavenly ruler, moved by his determination, orders two powerful beings to carry the mountains away. Yugong does not finish removing them by hand. This fable is commonly used to praise persistence in a daunting task.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
整理这些旧档案需要愚公移山的精神，我们每天完成一点。
Sorting these old archives takes real perseverance; we’ll get a little done each day.
Often used in the phrase 愚公移山的精神 to praise sustained determination.