Chinese idioms from the Dao De Jing
知止不殆 (zhī zhǐ bù dài)
Word for word from chapter 44
知止不殆 (zhī zhǐ bù dài), “knowing when to stop, you are not in danger”, comes from chapter 44 of the Dao De Jing and means that whoever stops in time stays safe.
Character by character
| 知 | zhī | to know |
|---|---|---|
| 止 | zhǐ | to stop, to rest |
| 不 | bù | not |
| 殆 | dài | danger, peril |
| 知止不殆 | Whoever knows when to stop stays out of danger. | |
Where it comes from
-
多藏必厚亡，知足不辱，
and great hoarding is sure to bring heavy loss. Knowing what is enough, you are not disgraced;
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知止不殆，可以长久。
knowing when to stop, you are not in danger, and can last long.
How the meaning moved
Chapter 44 ends: “Knowing what is enough, you are not disgraced; knowing when to stop, you are not in danger, and can last long.” The idiom is the second clause, word for word. Just before, the chapter has warned that “great attachment is sure to cost much, and great hoarding is sure to bring heavy loss.”
The book says the same in two other places. Chapter 32: “one should also know when to stop. Knowing when to stop, one can avoid danger.” And chapter 9:“Persisting in fulfilling it, is inferior to stopping in time.” The 止 here is stopping, holding back before too much. It is not the 止 of the Great Learning (大学), “knowing where to rest” (知止而后有定), which is about knowing one's goal. Today 知止不殆 is quoted to advise stopping in time, in a career, in business or at the table, and often follows 知足不辱.
Using it today
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炒股要懂得知止不殆，赚到预定的目标就该收手。
chǎo gǔ yào dǒng de zhī zhǐ bù dài, zhuàn dào yù dìng de mù biāo jiù gāi shōu shǒu.
On the stock market you have to know when to stop: once you reach the gain you set yourself, get out.
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他在事业最顺的时候选择退休，说这就是知止不殆。
tā zài shì yè zuì shùn de shí hou xuǎn zé tuì xiū, shuō zhè jiù shì zhī zhǐ bù dài.
He chose to retire when his career was going best, saying that this is how one who knows when to stop stays out of danger.