299Japanese quotation 名言
国破れて山河あり
くにやぶれてさんがありKuni yaburete sanga ari
“The country is broken; mountains and rivers remain.”
The meaning
After the disaster, what is greater than us goes on — and on that permanence one can rebuild. Bashō quoted this line weeping over the ruins of Hiraizumi.
At the origin
A line by the Chinese poet Du Fu (8th century), deeply woven into Japanese culture through Bashō.
The characters
In practice
After a loss, look for what remains: it is the foundation of the rest.
Editorial note
Line by the Chinese poet Du Fu, adopted by Japanese tradition.
Themes
Similar proverbs
- 225 五月雨や大河を前に家二軒 June rains — facing the swollen river, two houses.
- 104 山高きが故に貴からず A mountain is not noble because it is tall.
- 109 ゆく河の流れは絶えずして、しかももとの水にあらず The river flows on and on, and yet the water is never the same.
- 156 山あり谷あり There are mountains, there are valleys.
- 212 山路来て何やらゆかしすみれ草 Mountain path — something quietly moving: a wild violet.