envy sb . better or abler than oneself

envy sb . better or abler than oneself

The Chinese idiom, Pinyin is d ù Xi á NJ í n é ng, which means to hate people whose moral character and ability are stronger than themselves. It comes from the historical records of Gaozu.

The origin of Idioms

In the Western Han Dynasty, Sima Qian's "historical records of Gaozu", it is said that "Xiang Yu is envious of the virtuous and the capable, those who have made great contributions will do harm to him, and those who have doubts about him." The biography of fan Ju and Cai Ze in historical records says, "if you are envious of the virtuous, you will be able to protect it." In the Western Han Dynasty, Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, summed up his winning experience with the officials in the south palace of Luoyang. He raised the mausoleum and said: Xiang Yu was jealous of the virtuous, killed the meritorious subordinates, and the virtuous didn't use them. He was headstrong, so he failed. Liu Bang immediately added that he was not as good at strategizing as Zhang Liang and fighting as Han Xin. He was just good at employing people.

Idiom usage

It has a derogatory meaning and refers to jealousy. Chapter 19 of Shi Naian's the complete story of the Water Margin: "this man is only jealous of the virtuous and the capable, but he is afraid of the pressure of the heroes." Chapter 97 of the chronicles of the states of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty: "fan Ju said:" I heard that Marquis Chen was expert in the power of the Qin Dynasty. He was envious of the virtuous and the able, and hated the guests of the princes. For fear of humiliation, I'll hide it in the trunk to avoid it. " Lu Xun's collection of letters to Zhai Yongkun: "I've selected all his best and latest articles, because I'm envious of the virtuous and the capable, and I'm afraid that he will be famous."

Analysis of Idioms

[synonym] be envious of the virtuous, be envious of the ability and be envious of others