孟mèng母mǔ三sān迁qiān

Literal: Mencius's mother moved three times
Figurative: Environment shapes a person; a parent's effort to give a child the right surroundings in which to grow and learn.

Where does 孟母三迁 come from?

Tradition holds that the mother of the philosopher Mencius (Mèng Zǐ) moved house three times in search of a good environment to raise him. First they lived near a graveyard, and the boy imitated funerals; then near a market, and he imitated the merchants; finally they settled next to a school, and the boy began to imitate the rites and study. So the mother chose to stay.

Source (出处): 《列女传》

How is 孟母三迁 used? Two examples

为wèi了le孩hái子zi的de教jiào育yù，他tā们men学xué孟mèng母mǔ三sān迁qiān，搬bān到dào了le学xué校xiào附fù近jìn。
For their child's education, they followed Mencius's mother's example and moved near the school.
孟mèng母mǔ三sān迁qiān的de故gù事shi告gào诉su我wǒ们men，成chéng长zhǎng的de环huán境jìng非fēi常cháng重zhòng要yào。
The story of Mencius's mother teaches us that the environment in which one grows up matters greatly.

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