📖 Meaning
To act with complete fairness and impartiality, free from any selfish motive. In modern usage it describes someone who works for the collective good with no consideration of personal gain or private advantage.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase originates from the Eastern Han dynasty scholar Ma Rong, who wrote in the Zhong Jing (Classic of Loyalty), in the chapter 'Heaven, Earth, Gods and Spirits': 'Loyalty means central and upright; it is the greatest public with no selfishness.' Ma Rong tied loyalty and righteousness to absolute impartiality, placing public duty above private interest. Over the centuries the expression became a standard idiom praising selfless devotion to the common good.
💡 Example Usage
他大公无私地把这笔奖金平分给了团队的所有成员。
Selflessly and impartially, he divided the bonus equally among all the members of the team.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 大公无私
- Pinyin: dà gōng wú sī
- Literal Translation: great, public, without, selfish
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4