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泥菩薩過江
nai4 pou4 saat3 gwo3 gong1
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in a sorry/pitiable plight; unable to protect even one's own interests; hardly able to save oneself (let alone anyone else) [literal] like a clay idol fording a river [國] 泥菩薩過河 This is a two-part allegorical saying with 自身難保 as the latter part that is often said together with the first part. There is no pun intended in this saying. The explanation is rather straightforward - a clay idol can hardly keep going while crossing a river, let alone helping anyone else.
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| 泥菩薩過江 / 泥菩萨过江 | ||
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This word has been viewed 2457 times since 30th Oct 2012, was added by C Chiu on 25th Aug 2011 05:06 |
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Studying in China | Learn Chinese in China | Learn Mandarin in China | Chinese School | Chinese course in London |
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Characters in this word:泥 nai4 nei6 - mud, plaster; bigoted菩 pou4 - bodhi 薩 saat3 - Buddhist gods; (transliteration) 過 gwo3 - pass through; across 江 gong1 - large river; Chinese surname |
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