禮崩樂壞

Chinese

		gift; propriety; rite	collapse; fall into ruins	music; happy; laugh music; happy; laugh; cheerful	bad; evil; rotten bad; evil; rotten; spoiled
trad. (禮崩樂壞)		禮	崩	樂	壞
simp. (礼崩乐坏)		礼	崩	乐	坏

Etymology

From the Analects, Book 17 (《論語·陽貨》):

宰我問：「三年之喪，期已久矣。君子三年不為禮，禮必壞；三年不為樂，樂必崩。…… [Classical Chinese, trad.]

宰我问：「三年之丧，期已久矣。君子三年不为礼，礼必坏；三年不为乐，乐必崩。…… [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Zǎi Wǒ wèn: “Sān nián zhī sāng, qī yǐ jiǔ yǐ. Jūnzǐ sān nián bù wéi lǐ, lǐ bì huài; sān nián bù wéi yuè, yuè bì bēng....... [Pinyin]

Zai Wo asked about the three years' mourning for parents, saying that one year was long enough. "If the superior man abstains for three years from the observances of propriety, those observances will be quite lost. If for three years he abstains from music, music will be ruined. …

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): lǐbēngyuèhuài

(Zhuyin): ㄌㄧˇ ㄅㄥㄩㄝˋ ㄏㄨㄞˋ
Cantonese (Jyutping): lai⁵ bang¹ ngok⁶ waai⁶

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: lǐbēngyuèhuài
  - Zhuyin: ㄌㄧˇ ㄅㄥㄩㄝˋ ㄏㄨㄞˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: lǐbengyuèhuài
  - Wade–Giles: li³-pêng¹-yüeh⁴-huai⁴
  - Yale: lǐ-bēng-ywè-hwài
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: liibengyuehhuay
  - Palladius: либэнъюэхуай (libɛnʺjuexuaj)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /li²¹⁴⁻²¹ pɤŋ⁵⁵ ɥɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯aɪ̯⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: lai⁵ bang¹ ngok⁶ waai⁶
  - Yale: láih bāng ngohk waaih
  - Cantonese Pinyin: lai⁵ bang¹ ngok⁹ waai⁶
  - Guangdong Romanization: lei⁵ beng¹ ngog⁶ wai⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /lɐi̯¹³ pɐŋ⁵⁵ ŋɔːk̚² waːi̯²²/

Idiom

禮崩樂壞

(literally) feudal system collapses and rites and music deteriorate
(figuratively) social order collapses and morals deteriorate