为之于未有

為之於未有

wéi zhī yú wèi yǒu

quotation

Meanings

1 act on a thing before it has taken shape
2 deal with problems before they arise
3 lit. to do it before-it-exists

Characters

(object pronoun) it

Examples

HSK 6

政策制定要为之于未有，不能临时抱佛脚。

Zhèngcè zhìdìng yào wéizhīyúwèiyǒu, bùnéng línshíbàofójiǎo.

Policy-making must address issues before they appear - you cannot grab the Buddha's feet at the last moment.

HSK 7-9

高明的管理者善于为之于未有，防患于未然。

Gāomíng de guǎnlǐzhě shànyú wéizhīyúwèiyǒu, fánghuànyúwèirán.

Skilled managers are adept at acting before problems arise, guarding against trouble before it occurs.

Tips

history

From 道德经 chapter 64 (Laozi): 为之于未有，治之于未乱 - 'Act on a thing before it takes shape; govern it before disorder arises.' The foundational Daoist statement of pre-emptive, minimalist intervention - also a favourite quotation in Chinese policy speeches on risk management.

usage

Always paired with 治之于未乱. 之 is a classical object pronoun; 于 = 'at/in/when'. The terse classical structure is hard to parse - think 'do-it at not-yet-exist'.

Stroke Order

为 wéi

之 zhī

于 yú

未 wèi

有 yǒu