Long waiting outside Cheng’s door on a snowy day, in the past, it referred to the respectful teaching of students. Now it is a metaphor for respectful teaching and a very sincere pursuit of learning.
Idiom Pronunciation:
程门立雪
chéng mén lì xuě
Origin book:
《二程全书·遗书十二》：“游、杨初见伊川，伊川瞑目而坐，二人侍立，既觉，顾谓曰：‘贤辈尚在此乎？日既晚，且休矣。’及出门，门外之雪深一尺。”
Origin Story:
During the Northern Song Dynasty in China, there was a man named Yang Shi in Jiangdong County, Fujian Province, who was very intelligent as a child and appeared to be a good writer. When he was a little older, he devoted himself to studying scriptures and history. He became a scholar in the ninth year of the Song Dynasty. At that time, Henan people Cheng Hao and his brother Cheng Yi were teaching the essence of Confucius and Mencius in Xining and Yuanfeng years, and scholars from these places in Henan and Luoyang went to pay homage to them. Unfortunately, Yang Shi was transferred to an official position and did not make it, so he took Cheng Hao as his teacher in Yingchang with the courtesy of a student, and the teacher and student got along very well.
When Yang Shi returned home, Roy Cheng saw him off and said, “My doctrine will spread to the south.” After four more years, Roy Cheng died. When Yang Shi heard about it, he set up a memorial for Roy Cheng in his bedroom and wept, and wrote a letter to obituary his classmates. After the death of Cheng Hao, he went to study at the Yichuan Academy built by Cheng Yi, the brother of Cheng Hao. At that time, Yang Shi was already more than forty years old, and his knowledge was quite high, but he was still open-minded, respectful of teachers and friends, so he was deeply loved by Cheng Yi.
One day, Yang Shi and his classmate You Er asked Cheng Yi for advice, but they happened to meet Mr. Cheng sitting in a fake sleep with his eyes closed. At that time, it started to snow outside. The two were eager to learn, so they stood respectfully at the door, without saying a word, waiting for the teacher to wake up. After waiting for most of the day, Cheng Yi slowly opened his eyes and saw Yang Shi and You Xu standing in front of him, he was astonished and said: “Ah, ah! The two of them are still here?” At this time, the snow outside the door has accumulated more than a foot thick, and Yang Shi and You Xu did not have a trace of fatigue and impatience look. Cheng Yi was deeply moved, more dedicated to teach Yang Shi. Yang Shi also lived up to his expectations and finally learned all of his teacher’s knowledge.
Similar Idioms:
- 尊师重道
