大义灭亲 — “To uphold justice even if it means punishing one's own kin”
大义灭亲 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to uphold justice even if it means punishing one's own kin”. To place righteousness above family loyalty. Literally, “Great righteousness eliminates kin”.
大义灭亲 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 大dà
- 义yì
- 灭miè
- 亲qīn
大义灭亲 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 大义灭亲
Origin and Story of 大义灭亲
During the Spring and Autumn period, Zhou Xu of the State of Wei murdered his elder brother, Duke Huan of Wei, and proclaimed himself ruler. Zhou Xu forced the common people to go to war, which provoked widespread public discontent.
Worried about the instability of his reign, he consulted with his confidant, Shi Hou, about how to consolidate his rule. Shi Hou then went to ask his father, Shi Que, a high-ranking official in Wei, for advice on how to secure Zhou Xu's position.
Shi Que told his son, "When a vassal lord takes the throne, he should obtain permission from the Son of Heaven (the Zhou king); only then can his position be stable."
Shi Hou asked, "Zhou Xu seized the throne by killing his brother. What if the Son of Heaven does not grant permission?" Shi Que replied, "Duke Huan of Chen is highly trusted by the Son of Heaven, and Chen and Wei are friendly neighboring states." Without waiting for his father to finish, Shi Hou eagerly interjected, "Are you suggesting we ask Duke Huan of Chen for help?" Shi Que nodded repeatedly.
Zhou Xu and Shi Hou prepared many gifts, but they were detained by Duke Huan of Chen. It turned out this was Shi Que's arrangement. The State of Wei sent someone to Chen to execute Zhou Xu.
The ministers of Wei felt that Shi Hou, being Shi Que's son, should be treated leniently. However, Shi Que sent his own household retainer to Chen to kill Shi Hou. Historians regarded Shi Que's act of executing his son as "大义灭亲" (placing righteousness above family loyalty).
Idioms Related to 大义灭亲
Synonyms of 大义灭亲
Antonyms of 大义灭亲
More idioms starting with 大
- dà大zhōng中zhì至zhèng正utterly fair and impartial
- dà大jǔ举jìn进gōng攻launch a large-scale attack
- dà大yì义lǐn凛rán然awe-inspiring righteousness
- dà大shū书tè特shū书write about with great emphasis
- dà大shì事bù不hú糊tú涂clear-headed in important affairs
- dà大shì事huà化xiǎo小reduce a major problem to a minor one
- dà大shì事huà化xiǎo小，，xiǎo小shì事huà化wú无reduce big problems to nothing
- dà大shì事qù去yǐ矣Major matters are beyond recovery
- dà大shì事wán完bì毕major tasks completed
- dà大shì事yǐ已rán然The major event is already done
- dà大shì事pū铺zhāng张make an extravagant display for big events
- dà大ren人bù不jiàn见xiǎo小rén人guài怪Great people do not blame petty people
Questions about 大义灭亲
- What does 大义灭亲 mean?
- 大义灭亲 (dà yì miè qīn) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to uphold justice even if it means punishing one's own kin”.
- How do you pronounce 大义灭亲?
- 大义灭亲 is pronounced dà yì miè qīn in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 大义灭亲 literally mean?
- Literally, 大义灭亲 means “Great righteousness eliminates kin”. It is used to mean “to uphold justice even if it means punishing one's own kin”.
- Where does 大义灭亲 come from?
- 大义灭亲 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 大义灭亲?
- 大义：正义，正道；亲：亲属。为了维护正义，对犯罪的亲属不循私情，使受到应得的惩罚。