紧箍咒

緊箍咒

jǐngūzhòu

idiom #40,610

Meanings

1 the Band-Tightening Spell (from Journey to the West)
2 a means of keeping someone in line
3 an inescapable constraint

Characters

incantation; spell

Examples

新规定就像紧箍咒，谁也不敢乱来。

Xīn guīdìng jiù xiàng jǐngūzhòu, shéi yě bù gǎn luànlái.

The new rules work like the Band-Tightening Spell — nobody dares step out of line.

老婆一念紧箍咒，他立刻就老实了。

Lǎopó yī niàn jǐngūzhòu, tā lìkè jiù lǎoshi le.

One incantation from his wife and he falls right into line.

KPI成了员工头上的紧箍咒。

KPI chéngle yuángōng tóu shàng de jǐngūzhòu.

KPIs have become the golden band clamped around employees' heads.

Tips

culture

From 《西游记》: Tripitaka keeps the Monkey King in check with a gold band around his skull. Whenever Monkey misbehaves, reciting the 紧箍咒 tightens the band into a splitting headache. Today it's shorthand for any rule or relationship that keeps a wild soul on a leash.

usage

Often 念紧箍咒 ('to chant the spell') — to invoke the rule against someone, i.e. to rein them in.

In Pop Culture

西游记 Xīyóujì

Journey to the West

Ming-dynasty novel by Wu Cheng'en in which Tripitaka uses the 紧箍咒 to discipline Sun Wukong. The spell is one of the most recognizable images in Chinese popular culture.

Stroke Order

紧 jǐn

箍 gū

咒 zhòu