📖 Meaning
A metaphor for greedily pursuing fame, profit, and official position. The idiom likens worldly gains to carrion and rotten flesh, suggesting such pursuits are base and vulgar. It conveys disdain for those who scramble after material reward.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from 'Autumn Floods' (秋水), a chapter in the Daoist text Zhuangzi, written by the Warring States period philosopher Zhuang Zhou. In the parable, a mythical phoenix-like bird called the yuanchu flies from the South Sea to the North Sea, resting only on the parasol tree, eating only the fruit of the bamboo, and drinking only from sweet springs. Meanwhile, an owl has caught a rotting rat and, when the yuanchu flies overhead, the owl looks up in alarm and shrieks, fearing the noble bird wants its prize. Zhuangzi uses the owl guarding its carrion to mock those who jealously cling to petty official rank and wealth.
💡 Example Usage
那些贪官整日餐腥啄腐，最终难逃法网。
Those corrupt officials spent their days chasing after ill-gotten gains, and in the end none could escape the law.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 餐腥啄腐
- Pinyin: cān xīng zhuó fǔ
- Literal Translation: eat raw flesh, peck at rot
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4