飘茵堕溷 — “Float on cushions, fall into cesspool”
飘茵堕溷 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to describe how accidental circumstances can lead to vastly different fates, some rising to wealth and prominence, others falling into poverty or disgrace. It is also often used to describe a woman's fall into a life of disrepute”. Literally, “Float on cushions, fall into cesspool”.
飘茵堕溷 Pronunciation and Pinyin
飘茵堕溷 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 飘茵堕溷
Origin and Story of 飘茵堕溷
During the Liang Dynasty of the Southern Dynasties, Ziliang was discussing the fortunes of life with the atheist Fan Zhen, asking about the relationship between wealth, poverty, and karma.
Fan Zhen responded, 'Life is like the flowers on a single tree. Though they all grow on the same branch, when a strong wind suddenly blows, some petals drift onto the cushions of the affluent, while others fall into cesspools. This is indeed where cause and effect (or destiny) plays its role.'
Idioms Related to 飘茵堕溷
Synonyms of 飘茵堕溷
More idioms starting with 飘
- piāo飘rú如yóu游yún云elegant and graceful like floating clouds
- piāo飘fán樊luò落hùn溷Drifting into disrepute
- piāo飘bó泊wú无dìng定Drifting without a fixed home
- piāo飘yáng洋háng航hǎi海travel across oceans
- piāo飘yáng洋guò过hǎi海travel across vast oceans
- piāo飘rán然yù欲xiān仙floating as if about to become immortal
- piāo飘rán然ruò若xiān仙to float lightly as if an immortal
- piāo飘rán然yuǎn远zhù翥gracefully soar away from worldly strife
- piāo飘wǎ瓦xū虚zhōu舟untraceable unprovoked harm
- piāo飘fān籓zhuì坠hùn溷fall from grace into disrepute
Recommended tools
Character Highlight Animator
Choose character parts and animate their colors, together or in stroke order
Open the tool →
Picture Worksheets
Chinese and English fill-in vocabulary worksheets
Open the tool →
Writing Worksheets
Printable tracing sheets with a QR learning companion
Open the tool →
Chinese Text Image Generator
Create PNGs with pinyin, highlight character parts or remove strokes
Open the tool →Questions about 飘茵堕溷
What does 飘茵堕溷 mean?
飘茵堕溷 (piāo yīn duò hùn) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to describe how accidental circumstances can lead to vastly different fates, some rising to wealth and prominence, others falling into poverty or disgrace. It is also often used to describe a woman's fall into a life of disrepute”.
How do you pronounce 飘茵堕溷?
飘茵堕溷 is pronounced piāo yīn duò hùn in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 飘茵堕溷 literally mean?
Literally, 飘茵堕溷 means “Float on cushions, fall into cesspool”. It is used to mean “to describe how accidental circumstances can lead to vastly different fates, some rising to wealth and prominence, others falling into poverty or disgrace. It is also often used to describe a woman's fall into a life of disrepute”.
Where does 飘茵堕溷 come from?
飘茵堕溷 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 飘茵堕溷?
比喻由于偶然的机缘而有富贵贫贱的不同命运。亦多指女子堕落风尘。