结草衔环 — “To show profound gratitude and repay a kindness”

结草衔环 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to show profound gratitude and repay a kindness”. Remembering it even beyond one's death or as a lifelong commitment. Literally, “Knot grass and hold a ring in the mouth”.

Frequency

结草衔环 Pronunciation and Pinyin

结草衔环 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
结	jié	9	tie, knot, conclude, bear fruit
草	cǎo	10	grass, straw, draft, rough
衔	xián	11	hold in mouth or rank
环	huán	8	ring, surround, link

Example Sentence with 结草衔环

他对老师的悉心教导心怀感激，希望能有机会结草衔环，报答这份恩情。

He is deeply grateful for his teacher's meticulous guidance and hopes to have the opportunity to repay this kindness, akin to the story of knotting grass and holding a ring.

Origin and Story of 结草衔环

During the Spring and Autumn period, when Wei Wuzi of the Jin State was ill, he instructed his son Wei Ke to marry off one of his concubines who had not borne any children after his death.

Later, as Wuzi's illness worsened, he again told Wei Ke that this concubine should be buried with him after his death.

After Wuzi died, Wei Ke felt that his father's words during his critical illness might have been delirious ramblings, so he followed his earlier instruction and married off Wuzi's beloved concubine.

Later, when Wei Ke led his troops to battle against the Qin State, he saw an old man on the battlefield tying all the grass into knots, tangling the Qin army's warhorses. This caused the Qin soldiers and generals to fall from their horses, allowing Wei Ke to win the battle and capture Qin general Du Hui.

That night, Wei Ke had a dream. In the dream, the old man who had tied the grass on the battlefield claimed to be the father of the concubine he had married off. He said he did this to repay Wei Ke's kindness for not having his daughter buried with Wuzi.