I was cited this “four-character aphorism” by a student (I’ve discussed these special types of aphorisms [broken link! FIXME] before). He didn’t bother to explain it – somehow it’s just something people should know – as is so often the case with aphorisms.
So I had to figure it out. First of all, I went online and found the hanja (Chinese characters), as my student had only cited the hangeul spelling of it.
自强不息
자강불식
ja.gang.bul.sik
self.exert.not.breathe
Really I’m not totally confident I understand it. I found this definition in Korean, which I don’t fully get: “스스로 힘써 몸과 마음을 가다듬고 쉬지 않음.”
The definition seems to mean something to the effect of “working hard doesn’t take care of heart and body.” I have decided the aphorism must mean something like “sometimes one should take a break.” Perhaps it’s like “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”
After trying to figure this out, I decided to take a break.
[daily log: walking, 6.5 km]