班门弄斧

Bān Mén Nòng Fǔ

在鲁班门前摆弄斧子。比喻在专家面前卖弄自己的本事。

Showing off your axe at Lu Ban's door — trying to impress an expert with a skill they already mastered long ago.

shíhòuyǒuwèifēichángyǒumíngdejiàngjiàobānshǒugāochāotiānxiàdejiàngdōujìngpèidàngchéngshī

hěnjiǔhòuyǒuniánqīngdejiàngzuòhuózuòdeháijiùchángchángzàibiérénmiànqiánkuādeběnshì

yǒuguòbāndejiāménkǒukànjiànménqiányǒushùjiùchūzidāngzhebānjiāréndemiàntōngluànkǎnháishuō:“kànzhètóushuǎduōpiāoliàng!”

pángbiānderénkànlerěnzhùxiàolái:“zhèshìbāndejiāménkǒuzàizhèshuǎzishìliàngma?”zhèwèiniánqīngjiàngtīngwánliǎnxiàzihóngle

hòuláirénmenjiùyòngbānménnòngláixǐngjiāzàizhēnzhèngdegāoshǒumiànqiánzuìhǎoduōxuéxuéyàotàizhemàinòng

Long ago there lived a master carpenter named Lu Ban. His skill was so famous that carpenters everywhere honored him as their ancestral teacher.

Many years later, a young carpenter with only average skill liked to boast about his own work.

One day he happened to pass Lu Ban's old house. Seeing a great tree in front of the door, he pulled out his axe and started chopping away showily, right in front of Lu Ban's family. “Look at how well I swing this axe!” he bragged.

The people watching burst out laughing. “This is Lu Ban's own doorway! Swinging an axe here — aren't you reaching beyond your own ability?” The young man's face turned bright red.

Ever since, “swinging an axe at Lu Ban's door” reminds us: before a true master, it's wiser to learn than to show off.