Tao: hold back, be soft and hide. Light: sharp-edged and exposed; Extended to outstanding and exposed talent, ability, honor, etc. The literal meaning of "keeping a low profile" is to converge the light, and the extended meaning is to avoid publicity.
Raise: rest and cultivate. Hey: Hide. The literal meaning of "keeping dark" is invisible, cultivating self-cultivation, and the extended meaning is retiring and waiting for time. Idioms refer to hiding one's talents, hiding them and resting in inconspicuous places. This is also a "hidden plan"
Extended data
Related stories:
The most famous story about "keeping a low profile and keeping a low profile" in history comes from the famous story of "Cao Cao cooking wine on heroes" in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao held the emperor to make the princes, which was very powerful. Although Liu Bei is your uncle, he is weak. In order to prevent Cao Cao from killing people, he had to grow vegetables in the backyard of his residence and water them himself, thinking that this was a plan to hide his strength and bide his time.
One day, when Liu Bei was watering vegetables, Cao Cao sent someone to invite Liu Bei, so Liu Bei had to go home to see Cao Cao trembling. Cao Cao said: I just saw plums in the yard, and I remembered the past. I can't help admiring this plum today. Just as the wine is cooking, please sit in the pavilion for a while.
Liu Bei followed Cao Cao to the pavilion, only to find that all kinds of wine vessels had been set, and there were plums on the plate, so he put the plums in the bottle and boiled the wine. The two of them sat opposite each other and drank heartily.
Halfway through the drink, suddenly dark clouds are gathering and rain is coming. Cao Cao talked about the character of the dragon and compared it to a contemporary hero. He asked Liu Bei who he thought was the contemporary hero. Liu Bei pretended to have no ambition and said several people, all of which were denied by Cao Cao.
Cao Cao wanted to inquire about Liu Bei's psychological activities at this time to see if he wanted to dominate the world, so he said, "A man who can be called a hero should aim high, have a good plan in his belly, have the opportunity to hide the universe and have the desire to breathe heaven and earth."
Liu Bei asked, "Then who can be called a hero?"
Cao Cao pointed to Liu Bei, then pointed to himself and said, "The only heroes in the world today are you and me!" "
Liu Bei was taken aback when he heard this sentence, and the chopsticks in his hand unconsciously fell to the ground. It's raining cats and dogs at this time, and the thunder is very loud. Liu Bei had a brainwave, bent down and picked up chopsticks calmly, saying that he was afraid of thunder and dropped them. Cao Cao smiled and said, "Are men afraid of thunder?"
Liu Bei said, "A saint will change his face when he hears the wind and thunder. How can I not be afraid? " After such concealment, Liu Bei made Cao Cao think that he was a mediocre man with no ambition and cowardice, and Cao Cao never doubted Liu Bei again. Only in this way can we make a comeback in the future and divide the world into three.
Baidu encyclopedia-hide one's strength and hide one's weakness