百尺竿头 — “To have reached a very high level of achievement in one's studies”
百尺竿头 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to have reached a very high level of achievement in one's studies”. Career, or position, but to still need to strive for further progress and greater heights. Literally, “The top of a hundred-foot pole/mast”.
百尺竿头 Pronunciation and Pinyin
百尺竿头 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 百尺竿头
Origin and Story of 百尺竿头
During the Song Dynasty, there was an eminent monk in Changsha named Jingcen, also known as Master Zhaoxian. He possessed profound knowledge of Buddhism and often traveled to various places to preach and expound on sutras.
One day, Master Zhaoxian was invited to lecture in the Dharma hall of a Buddhist temple. Many monks came to listen. The master spoke with great clarity and eloquence, deeply moving his audience. The hall was silent, save for the master's voice.
After Master Zhaoxian finished his lecture, a monk stood up, bowed to him, and asked several questions, requesting the master's answers. The master returned the bow and slowly began to respond. Whenever the monk found something unclear, he would ask again, and the two engaged in a warm and natural dialogue.
The listeners realized they were discussing the highest realm of Buddhism—the Ten Directional World.
To further explain what the Ten Directional World truly entailed, Master Zhaoxian presented a gatha, which is a Buddhist text containing chants. The master pointed to a passage and chanted: 'A hundred-foot bamboo pole is not considered high; one still needs to take a step further, for only then can the Ten Directional World be truly seen as the ultimate peak.'
Idioms Related to 百尺竿头
Synonyms of 百尺竿头
More idioms starting with 百
- bǎi百wàn万mǎi买zhái宅，，qiān千wàn万mǎi买lín邻Good neighbors are priceless
- bǎi百wàn万xióng雄bīng兵a vast and mighty army
- bǎi百wàn万xióng雄shī师a vast and mighty army
- bǎi百xià下bǎi百quán全perfectly accurate and unfailingly successful
- bǎi百xià下bǎi百zháo着unfailingly successful
- bǎi百bù不yī一cún存not one in a hundred remains
- bǎi百bù不yī一shuǎng爽always accurate and reliable
- bǎi百bù不yī一dài贷make no exceptions
- bǎi百bù不yī一yù遇extremely rare
- bǎi百bù不wèi为duō多，，yī一bù不wèi为shǎo少Excellent things are always valuable
- bǎi百bù不shī失yī一unerringly accurate
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Open the tool →Questions about 百尺竿头
What does 百尺竿头 mean?
百尺竿头 (bǎi chǐ gān tóu) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to have reached a very high level of achievement in one's studies”.
How do you pronounce 百尺竿头?
百尺竿头 is pronounced bǎi chǐ gān tóu in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 百尺竿头 literally mean?
Literally, 百尺竿头 means “the top of a hundred-foot pole/mast”. It is used to mean “to have reached a very high level of achievement in one's studies”.
Where does 百尺竿头 come from?
百尺竿头 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 百尺竿头?
桅杆或杂技长竿的顶端。比喻极高的官位和功名，或学问、事业有很高的成就。