涅而不緇

Chinese

		blacken	and; as well as; but (not) and; as well as; but (not); yet (not); (shows causal relation); (shows change of state); (shows contrast)	not; no	Buddhists; black silk; dark
trad. (涅而不緇)		涅	而	不	緇
simp. (涅而不缁)		涅	而	不	缁

Etymology

From the Analects, Book 17 (《論語·陽貨》):

不曰堅乎，磨而不磷；不曰白乎，涅而不緇。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

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不曰坚乎，磨而不磷；不曰白乎，涅而不缁。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Bù yuē jiān hū, mó ér bù lín; bù yuē bái hū, niè ér bù zī. [Pinyin]

But is it not said, that, if a thing be really hard, it may be ground without being made thin? Is it not said, that, if a thing be really white, it may be steeped in a dark fluid without being made black?

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): niè'érbùzī

  (Zhuyin): ㄋㄧㄝˋ ㄦˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄗ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): nip⁶ ji⁴ bat¹ zi¹

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: niè'érbùzī
    • Zhuyin: ㄋㄧㄝˋ ㄦˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄗ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: niè-érbùzih
    • Wade–Giles: nieh⁴-êrh²-pu⁴-tzŭ¹
    • Yale: nyè-ér-bù-dz̄
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: nieherlbutzy
    • Palladius: неэрбуцзы (neerbuczy)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ni̯ɛ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ t͡sz̩⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: nip⁶ ji⁴ bat¹ zi¹
    • Yale: nihp yìh bāt jī
    • Cantonese Pinyin: nip⁹ ji⁴ bat⁷ dzi¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: nib⁶ yi⁴ bed¹ ji¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /niːp̚² jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵/

Idiom

涅而不緇

1. to be unaffected by adverse surroundings as one is virtuous

Synonyms

• 出淤泥而不染 (chū yūní ér bù rǎn)