ONGO — Hanja and Eastern classics, one character a day

臥薪嘗膽 와신상담

Meaning

"Sleep on firewood, taste the gall: keep the resolve alive."

臥薪嘗膽 (와신상담) means "Sleep on firewood, taste the gall: keep the resolve alive". Tasting the gall each day—a resolve kept warm so long it finally catches fire.

Hanja

臥薪嘗膽

Pronunciation

와신상담

Learn with Music

Burn It Up

Study Material

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臥薪嘗膽

Burn It Up

Tasting the gall each day—a resolve kept warm so long it finally catches fire.

Learn 臥薪嘗膽 (와신상담) with music

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Lyrics & concept by Jawoon · made with SUNO (paid license)

Lyrics are not yet available.

Summary

Sleep on firewood, taste the gall: keep the resolve alive.

Origin & Background

Tasting the gall each day—a resolve kept warm so long it finally catches fire.

Source: Shiji, "House of King Goujian of Yue" — only 嘗膽 (tasting the gall) appears there; 臥薪 (sleeping on firewood) was joined to it later, Su Shi (Song) being an early four-character use.

Credit: Lyrics & concept by Jawoon · made with SUNO (paid license)
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