📖 Meaning
To reward the worthy and virtuous while punishing the cruel and tyrannical. It refers to the principle of using both incentives for good conduct and deterrents for wrongdoing to maintain justice and social order. This idiom encapsulates the classical Chinese governance ideal of clear, impartial rewards and punishments.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom is rooted in the political philosophy of pre-Qin China, particularly within the Legalist and Mohist schools of thought. Han Feizi (韩非子), the great Legalist philosopher, argued that a ruler must apply clear rewards and punishments to govern effectively, a doctrine known as 'reward and punishment as the two handles' (二柄). Mozi (墨子) similarly advocated for promoting the worthy and punishing the oppressive as a means to achieve social harmony. The phrase distills the ancient belief that moral governance requires both the elevation of good people and the suppression of bad ones.
💡 Example Usage
赏贤罚暴是治国安邦的重要原则。
Rewarding the virtuous and punishing the cruel is a key principle for governing a country and maintaining peace.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 赏贤罚暴
- Pinyin: shǎng xián fá bào
- Literal Translation: reward, virtuous, punish, violent
- Category: Leadership
- Characters: 4