📖 Meaning
To defend the country's borders and let the people live in peace. It describes a policy of maintaining security at the frontiers while ensuring the populace can settle and prosper without the disruption of war. The phrase emphasizes that a ruler's foremost duty is to safeguard territory and give citizens repose.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase originates from the Biography of Liu Xiong in the Book of Zhou (周书·刘雄传), a history of the Northern Zhou dynasty compiled in the Tang era. It records that the Northern Zhou state had established diplomatic relations with the Northern Qi, agreeing that each side would protect its own borders and let its people rest, refraining from mutual invasion or harassment. Later writers, such as those compiling the Ming History (明史·外国五), reused the phrase to advise rulers that keeping the borders secure and the people at peace was the key to lasting fortune.
💡 Example Usage
王能保境息民，则福可长享。
If the king can defend the borders and let the people rest in peace, then good fortune may be enjoyed for a long time.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 保境息民
- Pinyin: bǎo jìng xī mín
- Literal Translation: protect, border, rest, people
- Category: Leadership
- Characters: 4