不識廬山真面目
See also: 不识庐山真面目
Chinese
to fail to see; not to know; not to appreciate | Mount Lu | true features; true identity; true colors | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
trad. (不識廬山真面目) | 不識 | 廬山 | 真面目 | |
simp. (不识庐山真面目) | 不识 | 庐山 | 真面目 | |
Literally: “to be unable to recognize the true face of Mount Lu”. |
Etymology
From the poem 題西林壁 by Song dynasty poet Su Shi in 1084.
- 不識廬山真面目,只緣身在此山中。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: 1084, Su Shi, 題西林壁
- Bùshí Lúshān zhēnmiànmù, zhǐ yuán shēn zài cǐ shān zhōng. [Pinyin]
- I cannot make out the true face of Mount Lu
only because I am within this very mountain.
不识庐山真面目,只缘身在此山中。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Pronunciation
Idiom
不識廬山真面目
- to not recognize the full picture or true nature of something because one only has a partial understanding of it
Related terms
- 廬山真面目/庐山真面目 (lúshān zhēnmiànmù)