Chinese idiom-揠苗助长 yà miáo zhù zhǎng

The story of “Pulling Up Seedlings to Help Them Grow” originates from “Mencius:公孙丑上” (Mencius: Gongsun Chou, Part Upper). The story tells of a man in the State of Song who was impatient with the slow growth of his seedlings.

He went to the field and pulled each seedling up by hand, hoping to make them grow taller quickly. Exhausted, he returned home and told his family, “Today I am truly exhausted! But I finally made the seedlings grow taller in one fell swoop!” However, when his son went to the field to see, all the seedlings had died.

This story teaches people that the development of objective things has its own growth laws, and good wishes and enthusiasm alone are not enough. Improper actions can often lead to adverse consequences. This idiom also conveys a specific lesson: “haste makes waste.” Everything should be done in accordance with its natural laws, step by step and steadily, without subjective impatience or overreaching.

It mocks those who violate objective laws, seeking quick results but only making things worse. It reminds us that anything has its own laws of development, and to accomplish something well, we must follow its natural laws. No one can violate them.