救人一命胜造七级浮屠 jiù rén yī mìng shèng zào qī jí fú tú

DEFINITIONS

  1. saving a life is more meritorious than building a seven-floor pagoda (idiom)

CHARACTERS

救 jiù save, rescue, relieve; help, aid
人 rén man; people; mankind; someone else
一 yī one; a, an; alone
命 mìng life; destiny, fate, luck; an order, instruction
胜 shèng victory; excel, be better than
造 zào construct, build, make, begin; prepare
七 qī seven
级 jí level, rank, class; grade
浮 fú to float, drift, waft; to exceed; superfluous
屠 tú butcher, slaughter, massacre