塞翁失马

塞翁失马

Literally means:

the old man lost horse

Actually means:

a loss may turn out to be a gain; misfortune might be a blessing in disguise

塞 refers to the frontier; 翁 means an old man.

An old story has it that an old frontiersman lost his horse, but later his horse came back to him and brought with it another good horse.

This figuratively means misfortune and blessing are covertible. Misfortune may becosome a blessing under some conditions. It is often used to advise others or oneself not to be upset about a loss, failure or misfortune,for it may turn out to be a gain or blessing.

塞，边界险要之处。翁，老头。

古时候边塞上有个老头丢了一匹马，后来这匹马不但自己回来了，还带了另一匹好马。

比喻祸福可以互相转化，坏事在一定条件下也可以变为好事。多用于安慰别人或自己，不要因为受到损失或遇到坏事而难过，因为也许会因祸。