放下屠刀，立地成佛 fàng xià tú dāo ， lì dì chéng fó

to repent and be absolved of one's crimes

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. to repent and be absolved of one's crimes
  2. 2. lay down butcher's knife, become a Buddha on the spot (idiom); instant rehabilitation

Characters

Character Meaning
放 fàng HSK 3
to put; to place; to release
下 xià HSK 1
down; below; to go down
屠 tú
to massacre; to slaughter (animals for food); surname Tu
刀 dāo HSK 4
knife; blade; classifier for knife cuts or stabs
立 lì HSK 5
to stand; to establish; to set up
地 dì HSK 3
ground; land; adverb marker -ly
成 chéng HSK 3
to become; to succeed; to complete
佛 fó HSK 5
seemingly; (female) head ornament; variant of 彿fú