📖 Meaning
To choose what is good and act upon it. The idiom advises selecting beneficial or righteous courses of action and following through with them, rather than acting impulsively or ignoring sound advice.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase originates from the Tang Dynasty memorial 'Ten Gradual Failings to Persevere to the End' (《十渐不克终疏》) written by the renowned minister Wei Zheng (魏徵) to Emperor Taizong of Tang. In this blunt remonstrance, Wei Zheng criticized the emperor for merely trying to silence critics' mouths rather than genuinely choosing good advice and acting on it. Wei Zheng was famous for his fearless and candid admonitions that helped shape the prosperous Zhenguan era.
💡 Example Usage
面对各种投资建议，他始终择善而行，从不盲目跟风。
Faced with various investment suggestions, he always chose the good and acted on it, never blindly following trends.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 择善而行
- Pinyin: zé shàn ér xíng
- Literal Translation: choose, good, and, go
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4