黍离麦秀 — “A lament for the desolation and ruin of a former prosperous place”

黍离麦秀 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a lament for the desolation and ruin of a former prosperous place”. Often a capital, now overgrown with crops, symbolizing the fall of a dynasty or the irreversible decline of a once magnificent site. Literally, “Millet grows tall, wheat flourishes”.

Frequency

黍离麦秀 Pronunciation and Pinyin

黍离麦秀 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
黍	shǔ	12	broomcorn millet
离	lí	11	to leave or separate from
麦	mài	7	wheat, barley, oats, grain
秀	xiù	7	outstanding, elegant, show

Example Sentence with 黍离麦秀

故地重游，眼见旧日繁华已成断壁残垣，处处“黍离麦秀”，令人心生无限感慨

Revisiting the old place, seeing the former prosperity reduced to ruins and overgrown with crops everywhere, evokes an endless sense of melancholy, reminiscent of 'millet growing tall and wheat flourishing' on desolate grounds.

Origin and Story of 黍离麦秀

The idiom 'Shu Li Mai Xiu' (Millet Standing Tall, Wheat Flourishing) originates from two historical laments.

It is said that after the collapse of the Western Zhou Dynasty, a high official from Zhou journeyed to its former capital. He was deeply saddened to see that the magnificent ancestral temples and palaces had been reduced to overgrown fields of millet. Overwhelmed with emotion, he composed the poem 'Shu Li' to express his profound sorrow for the lost glory.

Later, during the Spring and Autumn period, Viscount Wei, a nobleman from the Shang Dynasty, visited the ruins of Yin (Yinxu), the former Shang capital. Witnessing the grand palaces now in ruins and covered with luxuriant wheat, he was overcome with grief and composed the song 'Mai Xiu.'

Combining these two stories, the idiom 'Shu Li Mai Xiu' has since come to signify a deep lament for the desolation and ruin of a once glorious place, especially a fallen capital or dynasty, where nature has reclaimed what was once magnificent.