003Japanese proverb ことわざ
千里の道も一歩から
せんりのみちもいっぽからSenri no michi mo ippo kara
“A journey of a thousand leagues begins with a single step.”
Word for wordEven a road of a thousand ri starts from one step.
The meaning
Great achievements are not accomplished in one stroke. They are born of one modest gesture, then another, until the distance is covered.
At the origin
A proverb long naturalized in Japanese, inherited from an ancient Chinese maxim attributed to the Tao Te Ching.
The characters
- 千里 senrithousand leagues
- の noof (link)
- 道 michiroad, way
- も
- 一歩
- から
のParticleLinks two words: possession or belonging, like “of”.
In practice
Reduce your big project to one doable step today, and take it.
Editorial note
Ancient Chinese origin, long adopted in Japan.
Themes
In the collections · Michi
Similar proverbs
- 200 人の一生は重荷を負うて遠き道を行くが如し A man's life is a long road walked under a burden; there is no need to hurry.
- 302 一日一歩、三日で三歩 One step a day: in three days, three steps.
- 151 学問に王道なし There is no royal road to learning.
- 079 千丈の堤も蟻の一穴から The tallest dike fails through an ant's hole.
- 180 千慮の一失 In a thousand thoughts, one slip.