Thứ nhất thì tu tại gia, thứ nhì tu chợ, thứ ba tu chùa
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Prioritize self-cultivation at home, then in society, and lastly in a spiritual setting
Examples
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Headword listed in the vdict.com proverb dictionary index (discovery source; headword only — no source content copied). Entered as candidate 2026-08-05; definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-08-08; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “Thứ nhất thì tu tại gia, thứ nhì tu chợ, thứ ba tu chùa” mean?
Prioritize self-cultivation at home, then in society, and lastly in a spiritual setting Literally: First cultivate at home, second cultivate at market, third cultivate at temple
Is “Thứ nhất thì tu tại gia, thứ nhì tu chợ, thứ ba tu chùa” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.