Chinese idioms from the Dao De Jing
合抱之木，生于毫末 (hé bào zhī mù, shēng yú háo mò)
Word for word from chapter 64
合抱之木，生于毫末, “a tree as wide as your arms can reach grows from a tiny shoot”, comes from chapter 64 of the Dao De Jing and means that great things grow from small beginnings.
Character by character
| 合抱 | hé bào | as wide as the arms reach |
|---|---|---|
| 之 | zhī | of, 's (linking particle) |
| 木 | mù | tree |
| 生 | shēng | to produce, give life, arise |
| 于 | yú | to, at |
| 毫 | háo | a fine hair, tiny |
| 末 | mò | tip, shoot |
| 合抱之木，生于毫末 | Everything great grows from something tiny; so build patiently, and deal with trouble while it is still small. | |
Where it comes from
-
合抱之木，
A tree as wide as your arms can reach
-
生于毫末；
grows from a tiny shoot;
How the meaning moved
This is the first of three images in chapter 64: “A tree as wide as your arms can reach grows from a tiny shoot; a tower of nine stories rises from a heap of earth; a journey of a thousand miles starts beneath your feet.” 合抱 is the girth two arms can just close around; 毫末 is the tip of a fine hair, the smallest thing one can name.
The chapter opens with the reason for the images: “What is brittle is easily broken; what is minute is easily scattered. Deal with things before they exist; put them in order before disorder comes.” In the book the tree is a warning as much as an encouragement: what will be huge is still small and easy to handle now. Today the line is used both ways: to say that any great achievement starts small and grows by patient work, and to say that a bad habit or a problem should be stopped at the first shoot.
Using it today
-
合抱之木，生于毫末，再大的企业也是从一间小作坊做起来的。
hé bào zhī mù, shēng yú háo mò, zài dà de qǐ yè yě shì cóng yī jiān xiǎo zuō fang zuò qǐ lái de.
A tree as wide as your arms can reach grows from a tiny shoot: even the biggest company started as a small workshop.
-
合抱之木，生于毫末，孩子的坏习惯刚冒头时就要纠正。
hé bào zhī mù, shēng yú háo mò, hái zi de huài xí guàn gāng mào tóu shí jiù yào jiū zhèng.
A tree as wide as your arms can reach grows from a tiny shoot: a child's bad habit should be corrected as soon as it appears.