季孙之忧 — “Internal troubles”

季孙之忧 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Internal troubles”. Domestic worries; problems arising from within an organization or group. Literally, “Ji Sun's worries”.

Frequency

季孙之忧 Pronunciation and Pinyin

季孙之忧 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
季	jì	8	season, quarter, youngest
孙	sūn	6	grandchild or descendant
之	zhī	4	possessive or connective particle
忧	yōu	7	to worry or be anxious

Example Sentence with 季孙之忧

一个团队若不能解决内部矛盾，忽视潜在的季孙之忧，就很难实现长远的共同目标。

If a team cannot resolve internal conflicts and ignores potential domestic troubles, it will be difficult to achieve long-term common goals.

Origin and Story of 季孙之忧

During the Spring and Autumn period, Ji Kangzi, a high official of the State of Lu, sought to attack the neighboring state of Zhuan-yu to consolidate his own power. Undecided, he consulted Confucius's disciples Ran You and Zi Lu, who then relayed the matter to Confucius.

Confucius remarked, "If a state cannot ensure its people live in peace and contentment, and is instead in a state of disunity, then disaster will likely strike from within its own walls." He meant that the real danger for the Ji family lay not in Zhuan-yu, but in their own internal instability and misgovernance.