Idiom Explanation:
People who do not know how to play musical instruments pretend to be connoisseurs and mix in the band to make up the number. It is a metaphor for someone who is not competent to pretend to be competent, or to pretend to be good with inferior goods. Sometimes it is also self-effacing.
Pronunciation:
滥竽充数
làn yú chōng shù
Origin book:
《韩非子·内储说上》：齐宣王使人吹竽，必三百人。南郭处士请为王吹竽，宣王说之，廪食以数百人。宣王死，湣王立。好一一听之，处士逃。
Origin Story:
King Xuan of Qi loved music and especially liked to listen to yu, and he had 300 musicians under him who were good at playing yu. King Xuan of Qi liked to have a good time, loved to make a show, and always wanted to show the majesty of the king in front of people, so every time he listened to the music, he always asked these 300 people to play together for him.
A Mr. Nan Guo heard about this hobby of King Xuan of Qi and thought that he could make some money by exploiting a loophole. So he went to King Xuan of Qi and boasted, “Your Majesty, I am a famous musician, and no one who has heard me play yu is not moved, even birds and animals will dance and flowers and plants will tremble to the beat. King Xuan of Qi was so happy to hear this that he accepted him without any examination and included him in the 300-strong team.
After that, Mr. Nan Guo played with the 300 people to King Xuan of Qi, and enjoyed the same generous treatment as everyone else, and his heart was a happy one. In fact, Mr. Nan Guo did not know how to play yu at all. Whenever he played, Mr. Nan Guo held the yu and mixed in the team, seeing people shaking their bodies, he also followed the shaking body, seeing people swinging their heads, he also followed the swinging head, his face pretended to be an emotionally intoxicated look, look and others like the blowing forgetting the gods, it really can not see what the flaw to. Mr. Nan Guo so rely on deception to muddle through day after day, raking in a paycheck after paycheck.
However, the good times did not last long, after a few years, King Xuan of Qi, who loved to listen to the yu ensemble, died, and his son King Min of Qi succeeded to the throne. King Min of Qi also loved to listen to yu, but unlike King Xuan of Qi, he thought it was too noisy for 300 people to play together and not as pleasant as playing alone. So, King Min of Qi issued an order for the 300 people to practice well, and he would let the 300 people take turns to play yu one by one for his enjoyment. After receiving the order, the musicians all practiced actively and wanted to show their skills, but only the abusive Mr. Nan Guo was anxious like ants on a hot pot and was in a state of panic. He thought about it, and felt that this time can no longer be mixed up, so he had to pack up his luggage and fled in the night.
Similar Idioms:
- 鱼目混珠
