📖 Meaning
To maintain a reverent and sincere attitude as the foundation of one's conduct. It was a core principle of self-cultivation advocated by Song dynasty Neo-Confucian scholars, who held that discipline of mind through reverence and sincerity is essential to moral refinement.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase synthesizes two classical sources. The Book of Changes (易·乾) advises one to 'guard against evil and preserve one's sincerity.' The Book of Rites (礼记·少仪) states that in receiving guests and conducting sacrifices, one should be guided by reverence. Song dynasty Neo-Confucian philosophers such as Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi drew upon these passages, making the upheld of reverence and the preservation of sincerity the cornerstone of personal discipline and ethical self-cultivation.
💡 Example Usage
宋儒提倡主敬存诚，以此作为修身立德的根本。
Song dynasty scholars advocated upholding reverence and preserving sincerity as the foundation of cultivating virtue and moral character.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 主敬存诚
- Pinyin: zhǔ jìng cún chéng
- Literal Translation: uphold reverence, preserve sincerity
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4