biết tội đâu mà tránh, biết phúc đâu mà cầu

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

Do not avoid something just because it might bring trouble, and do not pursue something just because it might bring benefit.

Literally: know crime where avoid, know blessing where seek

Examples

Anh ấy không biết tội đâu mà tránh, nên vẫn đến dự tiệcHe didn't know what trouble to avoid, so he still attended the party

AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)

Sources & notes

Discovered via Nam ngạn chích cẩm (Phạm Quang Sán, 1918; public domain, via vi.wikisource); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Attested in Nam ngạn chích cẩm (Phạm Quang Sán, 1918). Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-08-01; pending editor spot-check.

Common questions

What does “biết tội đâu mà tránh, biết phúc đâu mà cầu” mean?

Do not avoid something just because it might bring trouble, and do not pursue something just because it might bring benefit. Literally: know crime where avoid, know blessing where seek

Is “biết tội đâu mà tránh, biết phúc đâu mà cầu” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.