破山中贼易，破心中贼难破山中賊易，破心中賊難破山中賊易，破心中賊難

beating bandits in the mountains is easy; beating the bandit in your heart is hard

Saying俗语俗語

Proverb谚语諺語 · Widely known

Meaning: Defeating external enemies is easier than overcoming your own bad thoughts and desires. A saying from Wang Yangming's philosophy, used in moral self-improvement.

Sign up for a free account to save sentences and hear them read aloud

Simplified: 破山中贼易，破心中贼难
Traditional (Taiwan): 破山中賊易，破心中賊難
Pinyin: pò shān zhōng zéi yì, pò xīnzhōng zéi nán
Bopomofo: ㄆㄛˋ ㄕㄢㄓㄨㄥㄗㄟˊ ㄧˋ，ㄆㄛˋ ㄒㄧㄣㄓㄨㄥㄗㄟˊ ㄋㄢˊ

Written with HSK 7-9 vocabulary, at CEFR level C1.

Words in this sentence

Where this sentence is used

Chinese sayings

Sign up for a free Chinese Boost account

Save the words and sentences you find here to your own list, and hear them read aloud. You can export the list to your flashcards whenever you like.

Create a free account

All Chinese example sentences