How to Read “Those who borrow a cart drive it, those who borrow clothes wear them”
Kuruma wo karu mono wa kore wo hase, koromo wo karu mono wa kore wo kiru
Meaning of “Those who borrow a cart drive it, those who borrow clothes wear them”
This proverb describes a human tendency to use borrowed items carelessly, as if they were our own.
Borrowed items should be returned to their owners, so we should handle them more carefully. But in reality, the awareness that something isn’t ours can lead to less cautious behavior.
When you borrow a cart, you drive it hard. When you borrow clothes, you wear them without hesitation.
This behavior comes from a weakened sense of ownership responsibility. With our own things, we want to avoid damage and make them last. But with borrowed items, we often lack that attachment and consideration.
You can see this proverb’s meaning in modern life. People drive rental cars more roughly than their own vehicles. They handle borrowed tools carelessly.
This expression captures a simple truth about human psychology. Our sense of responsibility weakens for things we don’t own.
Origin and Etymology
The exact source of this proverb is unclear. However, its structure suggests influence from Chinese classics.
The literary expression “之” and the balanced parallel structure are features found in classical Chinese writing.
The pairing of “those who borrow a cart drive it” and “those who borrow clothes wear them” is a rhetorical technique. It shows patterns of human behavior.
By using two important items from daily life—carts and clothing—the proverb expresses attitudes toward all borrowed things.
To drive a cart hard means to run it vigorously. A cart you would treat carefully if it were yours gets used roughly when borrowed.
To wear clothes describes putting on garments. Here too, borrowed clothing gets worn casually, as if it were your own.
This expression emerged from observations about ownership and responsibility. It sharply captures human psychology when we’re not the owners.
The awareness that “this isn’t mine” affects how we behave. Evidence suggests this saying was already used in the Edo period. It has been passed down as a lesson about human nature.
Interesting Facts
The “cart” in this proverb doesn’t mean a modern car. It refers to cargo carts pulled by horses or oxen, or rickshaws.
In pre-Edo Japan, carts were precious transportation tools. They were valuable property that deserved careful treatment.
Yet people still used borrowed carts roughly. This human tendency hasn’t changed across the ages.
The word “drive hard” means more than just operating something. It carries the meaning of running it vigorously and forcefully.
So this proverb doesn’t just mean “use.” It means “use without restraint or care”—a much stronger meaning.
Usage Examples
- I borrowed a game console from my friend, and just like “those who borrow a cart drive it, those who borrow clothes wear them,” I ended up breaking it
- I tend to speed in rental cars—that’s exactly “those who borrow a cart drive it, those who borrow clothes wear them”
Universal Wisdom
This proverb reveals the delicate relationship between ownership and responsibility. Why do people use borrowed items so casually, as if they were their own?
The psychological distance created by not owning something actually produces a lack of restraint.
With our own possessions, we fear losing them. We want to keep using them for a long time. These feelings guide our behavior.
But with borrowed items, we unconsciously recognize that final responsibility lies with the owner. This recognition makes us less careful.
The awareness that “this isn’t mine” gets twisted into the false logic that “therefore I don’t need to treasure it.” This shows human weakness.
What’s interesting is that this psychology doesn’t come from malice. It arises from the ambiguity of ownership relationships.
People are most careful when they feel clear responsibility. But in the in-between state of borrowing, that sense of responsibility easily fades.
This proverb has endured because it touches on truth about the foundation of trust in human society.
Lending and borrowing relationships cannot exist without mutual trust. Yet humans have a tendency that can betray that trust.
This contradiction is an eternal challenge in social life.
When AI Hears This
People who drive borrowed cars roughly are actually making a rational calculation. If it’s your own car, you pay for repairs.
But with borrowed items, the owner sees the deterioration after you return it. This structure—where the person who acts doesn’t see the consequences—is exactly what economics calls information asymmetry.
What’s fascinating is that this problem has the power to destroy entire markets. In the used car market Akerlof analyzed, buyers can’t fully judge car quality.
So sellers try to sell poor-quality cars at high prices. Then buyers become suspicious and only offer low prices, even for good cars.
As a result, owners of good cars leave the market. Only bad cars remain. This is called “adverse selection.”
The same phenomenon occurs in rental car markets. If rough customers increase, companies must raise deposits or lower quality.
Then careful customers feel it’s overpriced and stop using the service. Only rough customers remain—a vicious cycle.
The essence of this proverb is that ownership presence or absence completely changes behavior. We treasure our own things but treat others’ things carelessly.
This psychology exists because human brains are designed to feel “loss pain” only for their own assets. Ancient China already understood the biggest challenge facing today’s sharing economy.
Lessons for Today
This proverb teaches us more than just how to handle borrowed items. It poses a deeper question: what does responsible behavior really mean?
In modern society, rental and sharing services are widespread. Cars, tools, even spaces—we borrow what we need, when we need it.
That’s why this proverb’s lesson matters more than ever. Treat borrowed items even more carefully than your own possessions.
This isn’t just courtesy. It’s the foundation that supports society’s trust relationships.
When you borrow something, be conscious of honoring the lender’s trust. Handle it more carefully than your own things.
This mindset polishes your character. It builds trust from those around you.
And this lesson applies not just to objects. It applies to time, opportunities, and kindness from others too.
Don’t take what you’re given for granted. Handle it with gratitude and care. That attitude is the key to nurturing rich human relationships.
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