抱薪救火 — “To carry firewood to put out a fire”
抱薪救火 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to adopt a wrong method to deal with a dangerous situation, which only makes it worse; to add fuel to the flames”. Literally, “To carry firewood to put out a fire”.
抱薪救火 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 抱bào
- 薪xīn
- 救jiù
- 火huǒ
抱薪救火 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 抱薪救火
Origin and Story of 抱薪救火
In the late Warring States period, the Qin state launched successive large-scale attacks on the Wei state. Wei was powerless to resist, and large tracts of its land were occupied by Qin forces. By 273 BCE, Qin once again sent troops to Wei, with unprecedented ferocity.
The King of Wei summoned his ministers, his face etched with worry, and asked if there was any way to make Qin withdraw its troops. Having endured years of war, the ministers trembled at the mention of battle, and none dared to speak of "resistance." In this critical moment, with a large army at their borders, most ministers advised the King of Wei to seek peace with the King of Qin, offering vast territories north of the Yellow River and south of the Taihang Mountains as a price.
The strategist Su Dai, displeased by these words, stepped forward and said to the King of Wei, "Your Majesty, they are simply cowardly and afraid of death, which is why they urge you to betray our country and seek peace. They have no regard for the state. Consider this: ceding vast territories to Qin might temporarily satisfy the King of Qin's ambition, but Qin's desires are endless. As long as Wei still possesses land, Qin's army will not cease its attacks on us."
At this point, Su Dai recounted a story: "Once upon a time, a man's house caught fire. Others advised him to quickly use water to extinguish the blaze, but he refused to listen. Instead, he picked up a bundle of firewood to put out the fire, simply because he didn't understand that firewood not only cannot extinguish a fire but can actually fuel it. If Your Majesty agrees to seek peace by ceding Wei's land, wouldn't that be like carrying firewood to put out a fire?"
Although Su Dai's arguments were compelling, the timid King of Wei only cared for immediate peace and still ceded large parts of Wei's territory to Qin, following his ministers' advice. Sure enough, by 225 BCE, the Qin army launched another major offensive against Wei, surrounding its capital, Daliang, and breaching the Yellow River levee to flood the city. Wei was ultimately destroyed by Qin.
Idioms Related to 抱薪救火
Synonyms of 抱薪救火
Antonyms of 抱薪救火
More idioms starting with 抱
- bào抱bù不píng平to stand up against injustice
- bào抱lìng令shǒu守lǜ律rigidly adhere to rules
- bào抱fó佛jiǎo脚make a hasty last-minute effort
- bào抱guān关jī击tuò柝hold a humble, lowly position
- bào抱guān关zhí执yuè籥Hold a humble gatekeeper position
- bào抱guān关zhí执yuè钥serve as a gatekeeper
- bào抱bīng冰gōng公shì事arduous unrewarding public service
- bào抱tóu头dà大kū哭weep bitterly and uncontrollably
- bào抱tóu头tòng痛kū哭weep bitterly in each other's arms
- bào抱tóu头suō缩xiàng项cower in fear
- bào抱tóu头shǔ鼠cuàn窜flee in a panic
- bào抱zǐ子nòng弄sūn孙enjoying old age with children and grandchildren
Questions about 抱薪救火
- What does 抱薪救火 mean?
- 抱薪救火 (bào xīn jiù huǒ) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to adopt a wrong method to deal with a dangerous situation, which only makes it worse; to add fuel to the flames”.
- How do you pronounce 抱薪救火?
- 抱薪救火 is pronounced bào xīn jiù huǒ in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 抱薪救火 literally mean?
- Literally, 抱薪救火 means “to carry firewood to put out a fire”. It is used to mean “to adopt a wrong method to deal with a dangerous situation, which only makes it worse; to add fuel to the flames”.
- Where does 抱薪救火 come from?
- 抱薪救火 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 抱薪救火?
- 薪：柴草。抱着柴草去救火。比喻用错误的方法去消除灾祸，结果使灾祸反而扩大。