







善颂善祷 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to offer praise or congratulations that subtly includes advice, admonition, or a reminder of reality; to be skillful in praising and also in offering constructive counsel”. Literally, “Skillful in praise and prayer”.
When Jin Wenzi Zhao Wu had a new house completed, Zhang Lao, a high official of the Jin state, went to congratulate him and said, "How magnificent and splendid it is! May you sing here, weep here, and gather your clan here!"
Others present were greatly surprised by these seemingly ambiguous words.
Jin Wenzi, however, understood their deeper meaning and replied, "If I can indeed sing here, weep here, and gather my clan here, it means I have lived a full life, able to follow my ancestors in the afterlife."
People praised Zhang Lao's words as exemplifying "shàn sòng shàn dǎo," meaning skillful in offering praise that subtly includes advice or well-wishing that acknowledges the full spectrum of life.

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Open the tool →善颂善祷 (shàn sòng shàn dǎo) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to offer praise or congratulations that subtly includes advice, admonition, or a reminder of reality; to be skillful in praising and also in offering constructive counsel”.
善颂善祷 is pronounced shàn sòng shàn dǎo in Mandarin Chinese.
Literally, 善颂善祷 means “Skillful in praise and prayer”. It is used to mean “to offer praise or congratulations that subtly includes advice, admonition, or a reminder of reality; to be skillful in praising and also in offering constructive counsel”.
善颂善祷 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
关于颂扬,关于祝祷。用来称赞能在颂扬之中带有规劝的意思。