天经地义

Pronunciation: tiān jīng dì yì Literal meaning: Heaven's law, earth's norm

Origin & Usage

The Zuo Zhuan records a discussion of ritual propriety during a Zhou succession crisis, defining it as the constant thread (经) of heaven (天) and the right order (义) of earth (地). 经 is the warp of a fabric, the fixed threads that everything else is woven across. The phrase therefore claims that something is not a rule but a structural fact. It is used for what is taken to need no argument — and, quite often, in an argument about exactly that, by whichever side would rather not supply one.

Examples

English: "In his speech, he emphasized the importance of justice and morality in society."

Chinese: 在他的演讲中，他强调了社会中正义和道德的重要性。