📖 Meaning
Literally, it means one should not sit close under the eaves of a house, where falling tiles or a slip could cause injury. Figuratively, it warns against lingering in places of danger and urges one to be prudent and protective of one's own safety. It is often used to describe a cautious, self-preserving attitude toward risk.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom comes from the Biography of Sima Xiangru in the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian), written by Sima Qian during the Western Han dynasty. When Emperor Wu of Han insisted on personally hunting fierce beasts, Sima Xiangru submitted a remonstrance citing the saying that a man of great wealth would not sit beneath the eaves, for the sake of his own safety. His point was that even a rich man values his life enough to avoid obvious danger, so the emperor, whose life was far more precious, should not recklessly expose himself to peril. The phrase 家累千金，坐不垂堂 thereby became a classic expression urging caution and self-preservation.
💡 Example Usage
君子坐不垂堂，从不涉足险境。
A gentleman does not linger where danger lurks, and never sets foot in hazardous situations.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 坐不垂堂
- Pinyin: zuò bù chuí táng
- Literal Translation: sit, not, near, eaves
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4