既往不咎
Chinese
| the past; that which happened in the past; mistakes in the past | not; no | blame | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (既往不咎) | 既往 | 不 | 咎 | |
| simp. #(既往不咎) | 既往 | 不 | 咎 | |
| Literally: “Things that are past, it is needless to blame.” | ||||
Etymology
From the Analects, Book 3 (《論語·八佾》):
- 哀公問社於宰我。宰我對曰：「夏后氏以松，殷人以柏，周人以栗，曰使民戰栗。」子聞之曰：「成事不說，遂事不諫，既往不咎。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE
- Āigōng wèn shè yú Zǎi Wǒ. Zǎi Wǒ duìyuē: “Xiàhòushì yǐ sōng, yīnrén yǐ bǎi, zhōurén yǐ lì, yuē shǐ mín zhànlì.” Zǐ wén zhī yuē: “Chéngshì bùshuō, suìshì bùjiàn, jìwǎngbùjiù.” [Pinyin]
- Duke Ai asked Zai Wo about the altars of the spirits of the land. Zai Wo replied, "The Xia sovereign's clan planted the pine tree about them; the men of the Yin planted the cypress; and the men of the Zhou planted the chestnut tree, meaning thereby to cause the people to be trembling in awe." When the Master heard it, he said, "Things that are done, it is needless to speak about; things that have had their course, it is needless to remonstrate about; things that are past, it is needless to blame."
哀公问社于宰我。宰我对曰：「夏后氏以松，殷人以柏，周人以栗，曰使民战栗。」子闻之曰：「成事不说，遂事不谏，既往不咎。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Pronunciation
Synonyms
- 不咎既往 (bùjiùjìwǎng)
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