Tā zuòshì zǒngshì jiànxiánsīqíyān, cóngbù jídù biérén de chéngjiù.
In his work he always strives to match the virtuous — never envying others' achievements.
Tips
history
From 《论语·里仁》 (Analects: Li Ren). Confucius says: 『见贤思齐焉，见不贤而内自省也』— 'when you see the worthy, think of matching them; when you see the unworthy, examine yourself inwardly.' The template for self-improvement through observing others. The more common four-character form is the chengyu 见贤思齐.
usage
焉 is a classical sentence-final particle here, roughly equivalent to 了 or a soft assertion — it is not pronounced as a separate semantic word. Modern prose usually uses the 4-char 见贤思齐 instead of the 5-char form.
