天然去雕饰

天然去雕飾

tiānrán qù diāoshì

quotation

Meanings

1 natural beauty, with all ornament stripped away
2 unadorned naturalness - beauty that needs no carving or dressing up

Characters

(adverbial suffix, 天然 = natural)

remove; do away with

decorate; ornament

Examples

清水出芙蓉，天然去雕饰，形容文章朴实自然。

Qīngshuǐ chū fúróng, tiānrán qù diāoshì, xíngróng wénzhāng pǔshí zìrán.

'The lotus rising from clear water, natural without ornament' - describing writing that is plain and natural.

她的歌声天然去雕饰，非常动人。

Tā de gēshēng tiānrán qù diāoshì, fēicháng dòngrén.

Her singing is natural and unadorned - deeply moving.

Tips

history

From 李白's Tang 《经乱离后天恩流夜郎忆旧游书怀赠江夏韦太守良宰》: 清水出芙蓉，天然去雕饰 (A lotus rising from clear water, natural, without carved ornament.) Li Bai used it to praise a friend's plain and powerful style; later generations adopted it as a touchstone aesthetic of 自然 (naturalness).

usage

Always paired with 清水出芙蓉. 去 = to remove / strip away, not 'to go.' 雕饰 = carving and ornament.

Stroke Order

天 tiān

然 rán

去 qù

雕 diāo

饰 shì