📖 Meaning
The word 荠 (jì) refers to shepherd's purse, a plant with a sweet taste. The idiom means that when one's conscience is clear and one's heart is at peace, even the greatest suffering feels as sweet as shepherd's purse. It describes willingly and gladly bearing hardship when one believes it is the right thing to do.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the Classic of Poetry (诗经·邶风·谷风), a collection from the Western Zhou dynasty. The original line reads, 'Who says the sow thistle is bitter? It is as sweet as shepherd's purse,' spoken by a woman lamenting that her husband had abandoned her for a new bride. She compares the bitterness of the sow thistle plant to her own inner anguish, finding that even bitter things taste sweet by comparison. Over time the phrase evolved to describe the attitude of willingly enduring suffering when one's heart is at peace.
💡 Example Usage
为了国家的繁荣富强，他甘心如荠地承受着一切艰难困苦。
For the prosperity and strength of his country, he gladly endured all hardships and suffering.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 甘心如荠
- Pinyin: gān xīn rú jì
- Literal Translation: sweet, heart, like, shepherd's purse
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4