







刺股悬梁 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to study with extreme diligence and perseverance”. Often by employing self-disciplinary methods to stay awake and focused. Literally, “Stab thigh and hang hair from beam”.
The idiom 'Ci Gu Xuan Liang' combines two historical tales of extraordinary academic dedication.
During the Han Dynasty, the scholar Sun Jing was so dedicated to his studies that he would tie his hair to a beam above him. If he started to fall asleep, the pull on his hair would immediately wake him.
In the Warring States period, the strategist Su Qin, after a failure, resolved to study harder. To combat sleepiness during his late-night studies, he would stab his own thigh with an awl.
Both stories exemplify extreme self-discipline and perseverance in the pursuit of knowledge.

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Open the tool →刺股悬梁 (cì gǔ xuán liáng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to study with extreme diligence and perseverance”.
刺股悬梁 is pronounced cì gǔ xuán liáng in Mandarin Chinese.
Literally, 刺股悬梁 means “Stab thigh and hang hair from beam”. It is used to mean “to study with extreme diligence and perseverance”.
刺股悬梁 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
形容刻苦学习。