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通古今之变

通古今之變
tōnggǔjīnzhībiàn
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 to comprehend the transformations of past and present
  2. 2 to grasp how history changes from antiquity to now
  3. 3 Sima Qian's statement of the historian's aim

Examples

读史是为了通古今之变。
Dú shǐ shì wèile tōng gǔ jīn zhī biàn.
We read history in order to comprehend the changes from ancient times to the present.
司马迁写《史记》，志在通古今之变。
Sīmǎ Qiān xiě Shǐjì, zhì zài tōng gǔ jīn zhī biàn.
Sima Qian wrote the Records of the Grand Historian aiming to comprehend the transformations of past and present.

Tips

history
From Sima Qian's (司马迁) 《报任安书》 (Letter to Ren An): 究天人之际，通古今之变，成一家之言 — 'to plumb the boundary between Heaven and man, to comprehend the changes of ancient and present, and so establish the words of one school.' This triad is the most famous statement of purpose in the Chinese historiographical tradition, often invoked when discussing what history is for.
usage
Always cited as part of the three-clause slogan (究天人之际……成一家之言). Formal, academic; a rhetorical staple in historiography and essays about the value of the humanities.

Stroke Order

通 tōng
古 gǔ
今 jīn
之 zhī
变 biàn