哀莫大於心死

See also: 哀莫大于心死

Chinese

		sorrow; grief; pity sorrow; grief; pity; to grieve for; to pity; to lament	do not; there is none who	to be greater than; to be bigger than	heart; mind	to die; impassable; uncrossable to die; impassable; uncrossable; inflexible; rigid
trad. (哀莫大於心死)		哀	莫	大於	心	死
simp. (哀莫大于心死)		哀	莫	大于	心	死
Literally: “Nothing is more lamentable than a dead heart.”

Etymology

From Zhuangzi, chapter 21 (Tian Zifang):

夫哀莫大於心死，而人死亦次之。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

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夫哀莫大于心死，而人死亦次之。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: Zhuangzi, circa 3^rd – 2^nd centuries BCE

Fú āi mò dàyú xīn sǐ, ér rén sǐ yì cì zhī. [Pinyin]

There is no sorrow to be compared with the death of the mind. The death of the body is of but secondary importance.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): āi mò dàyú xīn sǐ

  (Zhuyin): ㄞ ㄇㄛˋ ㄉㄚˋ ㄩˊ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄙˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): oi¹ mok⁶ daai⁶ jyu¹ sam¹ sei²

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: āi mò dàyú xīn sǐ
    • Zhuyin: ㄞ ㄇㄛˋ ㄉㄚˋ ㄩˊ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄙˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: ai mò dàyú sin sǐh
    • Wade–Giles: ai¹ mo⁴ ta⁴-yü² hsin¹ ssŭ³
    • Yale: āi mwò dà-yú syīn sž
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: ai moh dahyu shin syy
    • Palladius: ай мо даюй синь сы (aj mo dajuj sinʹ sy)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ˀaɪ̯⁵⁵ mu̯ɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ tä⁵¹ y³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: oi¹ mok⁶ daai⁶ jyu¹ sam¹ sei²
    • Yale: ōi mohk daaih yū sām séi
    • Cantonese Pinyin: oi¹ mok⁹ daai⁶ jy¹ sam¹ sei²
    • Guangdong Romanization: oi¹ mog⁶ dai⁶ yu¹ sem¹ séi²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɔːi̯⁵⁵ mɔːk̚² taːi̯²² jyː⁵⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ sei̯³⁵/

Proverb

哀莫大於心死

1. Despair is the greatest sorrow; Nothing gives greater cause for sorrow than despair; There is no grief so great as despair; There is no poverty like the poverty of spirit.