📖 Meaning
Mountain trees, having grown into useful timber, are cut down by people. This idiom metaphorically describes how being useful or talented can invite disaster upon oneself. It reflects the Daoist philosophy that usefulness itself can be a source of danger.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the Daoist classic Zhuangzi (《庄子》), specifically the chapter "In the Human World" (人间世), written by the philosopher Zhuang Zhou (庄子) during the Warring States period. The original passage reads "山木自寇也，膏火自煎也" — mountain trees bring ruin upon themselves, and grease feeds its own burning fire. Zhuangzi used this imagery to illustrate his philosophy that what is deemed useful invites exploitation and destruction, while the seemingly useless endures.
💡 Example Usage
他功高震主终遭罢黜，正应了山木自寇的道理。
His outstanding merits intimidated his lord and ultimately led to his dismissal, exactly illustrating the truth that usefulness invites ruin.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 山木自寇
- Pinyin: shān mù zì kòu
- Literal Translation: mountain, wood, self, plunder
- Category: Philosophy
- Characters: 4