📖 Meaning
Refers to the natural cycle of waxing and waning, growth and decline that governs all things. It also describes the wisdom of knowing when to advance and when to retreat in step with changing circumstances. Rooted in Yijing cosmology, it holds that fullness and emptiness alternate as the way of heaven.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase traces to the commentary on the Bo hexagram (剥卦) in the Yijing (Book of Changes), a Zhou Dynasty oracle text (c. 11th century BCE). The original line reads, 'The gentleman values the waxing and waning, the fullness and emptiness, for this is the way of heaven' (君子尚消息盈虚，天行也). In classical usage, 消息 means 'waning and waxing' rather than 'news,' and 冲 (emptiness) later replaces 虚. Han Dynasty scholar Cai Yong (蔡邕) employed the phrase in his work Shihui (《释诲》), writing 'When it is time to advance, advance; when to stop, stop; follow the waxing and waning of fullness and emptiness, taking one's cue from the laws of heaven.'
💡 Example Usage
世事消息盈冲，盛衰有数，何必过于执著？
Worldly affairs follow the cycle of waxing and waning, fullness and emptiness; rise and fall have their measure, so why be overly attached?
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 消息盈冲
- Pinyin: xiāo xī yíng chōng
- Literal Translation: decrease, increase, fullness, emptiness
- Category: Philosophy
- Characters: 4