三年之喪

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Chinese

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three year 's; him/her/it; this lose (by death); mourning; funeral
trad. (三年之喪)
simp. (三年之丧)
Literally: “Three years of mourning”.

Etymology

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From the Analects, Book 17 (《論語·陽貨》):

:「已久君子不為不為。」子曰:「?」:「。」「君子居喪不甘不樂居處不安不為!」子曰:「不仁然後父母三年之喪天下通喪年之父母?」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
:「已久君子不为不为。」子曰:「?」:「。」「君子居丧不甘不乐居处不安不为!」子曰:「不仁然后父母怀三年之丧天下通丧年之父母?」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version
Zǎi Wǒ wèn: “Sān nián zhī sàng, qī yǐjiǔ yǐ. Jūnzǐ sān nián bùwèi lǐ, lǐ bì huài; sān nián bùwèi yuè, yuè bì bēng. Jiù gǔ jì méi, xīn gǔ jì shēng, zuàn suì gǎi huǒ, qī kě yǐ yǐ.” Zǐ yuē: “Shí fū dào, yī fū jǐn, yú nǚ ān hū?” Yuē: “Ān.” “nǚ ān zé wèi zhī! Fū jūnzǐ zhī jūsàng, shí zhǐ bùgān, wén yuè bùyuè, jūchù bù'ān, gù bùwèi yě. Jīn nǚ ān, zé wèi zhī!” Zǎi Wǒ chū. Zǐ yuē: “Yǔ zhī bùrén yě! Zǐ shēng sān nián, ránhòu miǎn yú fùmǔ zhī huái. Fū sān nián zhī sàng, tiānxià zhī tōngsàng yě. Yǔ yě, yǒu sān nián zhī ài yú qí fùmǔ hū?” [Pinyin]
Zai Wo asked about the three years' mourning for parents, saying that one year was long enough. "If the superior man abstains for three years from the observances of propriety, those observances will be quite lost. If for three years he abstains from music, music will be ruined. Within a year the old grain is exhausted, and the new grain has sprung up, and, in procuring fire by friction, we go through all the changes of wood for that purpose. After a complete year, the mourning may stop." The Master said, "If you were, after a year, to eat good rice, and wear embroidered clothes, would you feel at ease?" "I should," replied Wo. The Master said, "If you can feel at ease, do it. But a superior man, during the whole period of mourning, does not enjoy pleasant food which he may eat, nor derive pleasure from music which he may hear. He also does not feel at ease, if he is comfortably lodged. Therefore he does not do what you propose. But now you feel at ease and may do it." Zai Wo then went out, and the Master said, "This shows Yu's want of virtue. It is not till a child is three years old that it is allowed to leave the arms of its parents. And the three years' mourning is universally observed throughout the empire. Did Yu enjoy the three years' love of his parents?"

Pronunciation

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Idiom

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三年之喪

  1. One should mourn one's parents for three years when they die

Derived terms

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References

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  • 三年之喪 [Three Years of Mourning]”, in Baidu Baike [Baidu Encyclopedia] (in Chinese) (wiki), 2013 September 27, retrieved January 14, 2024