📖 Meaning
The body of laws, regulations, and institutional norms established by the founding emperors or earlier dynasties, which later generations are expected to uphold and follow without alteration. It embodies the Confucian ideal of filial piety extended to governance, where respecting ancestral institutions is a moral and political duty.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom appears in the Song dynasty historical novel 《宣和遗事》 (Xuānhé Yíshì, 'Events of the Xuanhe Era'), in a passage condemning the notorious minister Cai Jing (蔡京). The text accuses Cai Jing of 'disrupting and altering the ancestral laws and institutions' (变乱祖宗法度) and manipulating court appointments and rewards for personal gain. Cai Jing was a powerful chancellor under Emperor Huizong of the Northern Song, widely blamed for corruption and the eventual fall of the dynasty to the Jurchen Jin. The phrase thus carries a strong cautionary tone against officials who subvert established governance for selfish ends.
💡 Example Usage
朝中老臣坚持祖宗法度不可轻废。
The veteran ministers in court insisted that the ancestral laws and institutions must not be lightly discarded.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 祖宗法度
- Pinyin: zǔ zōng fǎ dù
- Literal Translation: ancestors, forefathers, laws, standards
- Category: Method
- Characters: 4