先天下之忧而忧，后天下之乐而乐
Traditional form:
先天下之憂而憂，後天下之樂而樂
Pinyin (reading):
xiāntiānxiàzhīyōu'éryōu,hòutiānxiàzhīlè'érlè
Definitions:
- to be the first to worry about affairs of state, and the last to enjoy oneself (quotation from the essay On Yueyang Tower 岳陽樓記／岳阳楼记 ( Yuèyánglóujì) by Song writer Fan Zhongyan 范仲淹 ( Fàn Zhòngyān)
Characters:
- 先 - first, former, previous
- 天 - sky, heaven; god, celestial
- 下 - below, underneath; inferior; to bring down; next
- 之 - marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; to go to
- 忧 - sad, grieving; melancholy, grief
- 而 - and, and then, and yet; but
- 忧 - sad, grieving; melancholy, grief
- 后 - after; behind, rear; descendants
- 天 - sky, heaven; god, celestial
- 下 - below, underneath; inferior; to bring down; next
- 之 - marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; to go to
- 乐 - cheerful, happy, laughing; music
- 而 - and, and then, and yet; but
- 乐 - cheerful, happy, laughing; music
Traditional characters:
- 先 - first, former, previous
- 天 - sky, heaven; god, celestial
- 下 - below, underneath; inferior; to bring down; next
- 之 - marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; to go to
- 憂 - sad, grieving; melancholy, grief
- 而 - and, and then, and yet; but
- 憂 - sad, grieving; melancholy, grief
- 後 - after; behind, rear; descendants
- 天 - sky, heaven; god, celestial
- 下 - below, underneath; inferior; to bring down; next
- 之 - marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; to go to
- 樂 - cheerful, happy, laughing; music
- 而 - and, and then, and yet; but
- 樂 - cheerful, happy, laughing; music