How to Read “木に縁りて魚を求む”
Ki ni yorite uo wo motomu
Meaning of “木に縁りて魚を求む”
“Climb tree and seek fish” is a proverb that expresses the foolishness of using completely misguided methods to achieve a goal.
If you want to catch fish, you should go to a river or the sea, yet for some reason you climb a tree instead. No matter how high a tree you climb, no matter how hard you search, there’s no way fish would be there. This refers to situations where the purpose and means are fundamentally misaligned.
This proverb is used when someone is clearly trying to proceed with the wrong method. The person may be working earnestly, but because their basic direction is wrong, the more they try, the further they get from their goal. Even today, it’s sometimes used for students who are using wrong study methods or businesspeople who are developing misguided sales strategies. This proverb doesn’t simply point out failure, but contains a deep lesson that one should reconsider their fundamental thinking and methodology.
Origin and Etymology
“Climb tree and seek fish” is a proverb that originates from the Chinese classic “Mencius.” It comes from words used by the Warring States period philosopher Mencius when he taught King Hui of Liang about the proper way of governance.
Mencius admonished the king, saying “Trying to unify the realm without practicing benevolent government is like climbing a tree to catch fish.” The “縁” (en) in this context doesn’t mean “connection” as in modern usage, but is an archaic word meaning “to climb up.” In other words, it expressed the recklessness of the act of “climbing up a tree to seek fish.”
This teaching was meant to warn against the foolishness of having completely mismatched purposes and means. Fish live in water, so why climb a tree? No matter how earnestly you climb a tree, there are no fish there. Mencius taught that the same applies to politics – true governance cannot be achieved without benevolent government that cares for the people.
This saying was introduced to Japan around the Heian period along with Chinese classics, and has been passed down as a lesson for a long time. Particularly in Edo period education, it was widely used as an important proverb for teaching the principles of things.
Interesting Facts
The archaic word “縁る” (yoru) is rarely used in modern times, but it was actually a verb meaning “to climb up” or “to follow.” Modern people easily confuse it with the “縁” (en) in “having a connection” because the kanji character is the same.
In the era when Mencius used this metaphor, tree climbing was one of the common skills in China. Many people could climb trees to pick fruit or keep watch. That’s probably why the contrast of “climbing a tree itself is easy, but there are no fish there” was a very understandable example for people of that time.
Usage Examples
- He says he wants to be able to speak English, but only reads grammar books – that’s like “climb tree and seek fish.”
- If you want to improve sales performance, you should listen to customer needs, but giving one-sided product explanations is an act of “climb tree and seek fish.”
Modern Interpretation
In modern society, the meaning of this proverb has become more complex. In our information society, we are surrounded by countless options and methodologies, making it difficult to find the “right method” itself.
Modern people who want to gain popularity on social media but only focus on follower counts, or who say they want to be healthy but keep trying different supplements one after another, are in exactly a “climb tree and seek fish” situation. What’s really needed is creating high-quality content or improving basic lifestyle habits, yet they seek quick fixes.
Particularly in the business world, more companies are trying to ride the wave of digitalization while neglecting basic trust relationships with customers. Even if they introduce the latest marketing tools, without the essential value of their products or services, they end up in futile labor like climbing a tree to look for fish.
However, the value of this proverb could be said to be increasing precisely because of modern times. In an age of information overload, it teaches us the importance of cultivating the ability to discern the essence. The habit of asking “Am I in the right place?” before heading toward a goal may be especially necessary for modern people.
When AI Hears This
Modern people spend an average of 7 hours a day on their smartphones, exposed to countless pieces of information, yet somehow they only see opinions from people who think similarly. This is the “information tree-climbing phenomenon.”
Social media algorithms continuously display content similar to posts you’ve “liked.” In other words, even though you think you’re gathering information, you’re actually just moving up and down a single giant “tree of thought.” No matter how much you gaze at the ocean from atop a tree, you can’t catch any fish.
For example, someone considering a career change watches job-hunting YouTube channels one after another. But what they really need might be casual conversations with people from completely different industries. Someone who keeps searching for diet information might not need nutritional knowledge, but rather a solution to the psychological reasons why they overeat.
Google research shows that over 90% of search results are completed on the first page. This means most people are clinging to the same branch of the same “tree.”
The real answers lie in a “different forest” – closing your usual apps, having conversations with people you don’t normally talk to, or reading books from completely different genres. Precisely because we live in an age of information overload, we need the courage to consciously “climb down from the tree.”
Lessons for Today
“Climb tree and seek fish” teaches modern people the importance of stopping to check our direction. In our busy daily lives, we tend to make “working hard” itself the goal. But what’s really important is whether that effort is heading in the right direction.
This proverb also gives courage to people who are unable to act because they fear failure. It teaches the flexibility that “if the method is wrong, you can change it.” If you climb a tree and find there are no fish, you can honestly climb down and head to the river.
In modern society, “efficiency” is emphasized, but sometimes the path that seems like a detour is actually the most reliable path. In human relationships, work, and learning, first ask yourself “What is the real purpose?” and “Is the current method appropriate?”
If what you’re working on now isn’t producing the results you expect, it may not be that your effort is insufficient, but rather it’s time to reconsider your methods. This proverb teaches us the importance of having the courage to change direction.
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