Pricking One's Thigh with an Awl

Characters:

Pronunciation: Yin(3) Zhui(1) Ci(4) Gu(3)

Explanation: Describing someone who studies assiduously with a firm determination.

The Story: Su Qin was a young man with high aspirations who lived during the Warring States Period. As he did not have much learning, he was never given any work of importance. Even his own family looked down on him. He felt miserable and deeply upset. So he decided to study hard. As he often read deep into the night, he sometimes found himself dozing off. To bestir himself, he placed an awl near his leg. Whenever he began to doze off, he would prick his thigh with it. He eventually became a statesman and military strategist going from place to place advocating a united front of the six states of Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao and Wei against the state of Qin. He truly became an intelligent man!

Usage Example (Pinyin): Yin(3) zhui(1) ci(4) gu(3) shi(2) yi(1) ge(4) hen(3) ke(4) ku(3) de xue(2) xi(2) fang(1) fa(3), ke(3) wo(3) jue(3) de bu(4) shi(4) he(2) ni(3).

Usage Example (English translation): Pricking your thigh with an awl is a very diligent way to study, but I do not think it's the right way for you now.

Note: The spoken Chinese Mandarin language has 4 spoken tones. We have attempted to re-create those above where after each syllable we tell you (1), (2), (3), or (4) as they correspond to each of the 4 tones. We encourage you to complement your Xianzai.com Chinese Idioms newsletter with a good offline study program.