📖 Meaning
To avoid the ways of the world and conceal oneself, withdrawing from public life to escape a troubled era. It describes someone who, seeing the times turn chaotic or corrupt, chooses to live in obscurity rather than seek office or fame.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase comes from Jia Zhi of the Tang dynasty, in his 'Inscriptional Eulogy for the Temple of Weizi' (《微子庙碑颂》), which reads: '而君崎岖险阻，避迹藏时' ('Yet you, my lord, amid rugged perils, avoided the world's trace and concealed yourself in those times'). Weizi was the elder half-brother of King Zhou, the last ruler of the Shang dynasty; seeing the king's tyranny and the dynasty's inevitable ruin, he repeatedly remonstrated in vain and ultimately left the court to live in exile. The inscription praises him for enduring hardship and hiding himself away to escape a corrupt age, and because he preserved the Shang royal line he was later enfeoffed by the Zhou at Song.
💡 Example Usage
乱世之中，他选择避迹藏时，不问世事。
Amid the chaos of the times, he chose to withdraw from the world and live in obscurity, unconcerned with public affairs.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 避迹藏时
- Pinyin: bì jì cáng shí
- Literal Translation: avoid, trace, hide, time
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4