Chinese Idiom Stories

The Fox Borrows The Tiger's Power

There once was a tiger who was very hungry. He searched and he searched for some kind of animal to eat, but he could find nothing. Finally, he caught a fox. But before the tiger could eat him, the fox said, "You can't eat me! Heaven has made me King of the Beasts, and if you eat me, you will be breaking Heaven's law!" The tiger did not believe that an animal as small as the fox could be King of Beasts, and so the fox continued, "If you don't believe me, just walk behind me, and see how many of the animals dare not to run when they see me coming!" The tiger agreed, and began to follow the fox. And when the animals saw them coming, they all fled in fright. The tiger did not know that it was actually himself, and not the fox, that the animals were afraid of.

Today, this idiom is used to describe a person who uses another's influence to frighten to bully people.

狐假虎威

戰國時期,楚國是南方一個強大的國家。

一天,楚宣王問大臣們說:“我聽說北方諸國都害怕我們的昭奚恤將軍,真是這樣嗎?”群大臣們無人回答。江乙說:“老虎捕捉獵物來吃,結果捉到一隻狐貍。狐貍對老虎說:‘您不敢吃我,上天派我來做群獸的領導,如果您吃了我,就違背了上天的命令。您如果不相信我的話,請讓我在前面走,您跟在我的後面,看看群獸見了我,有哪一個不害怕的?’老虎就和狐貍同行,野獸們見了它們,都紛紛逃走了,老虎不明白野獸們是害怕自己才逃跑的,卻以為是狐貍的原因。現在楚國方圓五千裏,大軍百萬,昭奚恤將軍掌管著楚國的軍政大權。所以,北方諸國害怕昭奚恤,其實是害怕我們楚國,這就像野獸們害怕老虎一樣啊。”

“狐假虎威”比喻依仗別人的勢力欺壓人。


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