# tang ping look up tang ping in wiktionary the free dictionary tang ping (chinese: 躺平; pinyin: tǎng píng; lit. 'lying flat') is a chinese slang neologism that describes a personal rejection of societal pressures to overwork and over-achieve such as in the 996 working hour system which is often regarded as a art race with ever diminishing returns. tang ping means choosing to "lie down flat and get over the beatings" via a low-desire more indifferent attitude towards life tang ping can be considered as the chinese equivalent of the american hippie counter-culture movement and the japanese herbivore men phenomenon. novelist liao zenghu described "lying flat" as a passive-aggressive resistance movement and the new york times called it part of a nascent chinese counterculture. it has also been compared to the great resignation a surge of resignations that began in the west at roughly the same time. the national language resources monitoring and research center an institution affiliated to education ministry of china listed the word as one of the 10 most popular memes for 2021 in the chinese internet. chinese search engine sogou also listed the word at the top of its list of most trending memes for 2021 unlike the hikikomori in japan who are socially withdrawn these young chinese people who subscribe to "lying flat" are not necessarily socially isolated but merely choose to lower ir professional commitment and economic ambitions simplify ir goals while still being fiscally productive for ir own essential needs and prioritize psychological health over economic materialism the phrase "quiet quitting" meaning doing only what one's job demands and nothing more which became popular in the united states in 2022 was thought to be inspired by the tang ping movement. another newer related phrase is bai lan (chinese: 摆烂; pinyin: bǎi làn; lit. 'let it rot') which means "to actively embrace a deteriorating situation rather than trying to turn it around." basically it refers to a voluntary retreat from pursuing certain goals because individuals realize they are simply too difficult to achieve # origin this term first appeared around february 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic which is on the chinese internet. but the movement began in april 2021 with a post by luo huazhong (username "kind-hearted traveler") on the internet forum baidu tieba in which ey discussed ir reasons for living a low-key minimalist lifestyle. in 2016 26-year-old luo quit ir factory job because it made ir feel empty. ey then cycled 2-100 km (1-300 mi) from sichuan to tibet and now back in ir home town jiande in eastern zhejiang province spends ir time reading philosophy and gets by doing a few odd jobs and taking us$60 a month from ir savings. ey only eats two meals a day luo's post entitled with "lying flat is justice" illustrates > i can just sleep in my barrel enjoying a sunbath like diogenes or live in a cave-like heraclitus and think about 'logos'. since there has never really been a trend of thought that exalts human subjectivity in this land i can create it for myself. lying flat is my wise movement only by lying down can humans become the measure of all things luo's post and story quickly gained a following on social media being discussed and soon becoming a buzzword on sina weibo and douban. the idea was praised by many and inspired numerous memes and has been described as a sort of spiritual movement. business magazine abc money claimed it resonated with a growing silent majority of youth disillusioned by the officially endorsed "chinese dream" that encourages a life of hard work and sacrifice with no actual life satisfaction to show for it spawning the catchphrase "a chive lying flat is difficult to reap" (躺平的韭菜不好割 tǎng píng de jiǔcài bù hǎo gē) # response the chinese communist party (ccp) moved quickly to reject the idea. the cac internet regulator ordered online platforms to "strictly restrict" posts on tang ping and had censors remove luo's original tieba post while a discussion group of nearly 10-000 followers on chinese social media site douban is no longer accessible. selling tang ping-branded merchandise online is forbidden in may 2021 chinese state media xinhua published an editorial asserting that "lying flat" is shameful. in may a video clip of cctv news commentator bai yansong criticizing the low-key mindset circulated on the popular video-sharing website bilibili and had attracted thousands of mockeries and slurs on the danmu commentaries in response. the same month a commentary of hubei radio and television economic channel said "you can accept your fate but you mustn't lie flat." an october article by ccp general secretary xi jinping published in the communist party journal qiushi called for "avoiding 'involution' and 'lying flat'" however there were official voices offering more empathic opinions on the tang ping phenomenon. beijing's party-affiliated guangming daily newspaper added that tang ping should not be discounted without reflection - if china wants to cultivate diligence in the young generation it should first try to improve ir quality of life. huang ping a literature professor who researches youth culture at east china normal university told sixth tone that official media outlets may be concerned about the tang ping lifestyle because of its potential to threaten productivity but "humans aren't merely tools for making things... when you can't catch up with society's development - say skyrocketing home prices - tang ping is actually the most rational choice" # see also **+** quiet quitting - a similar movement in united states which employees working the bare minimum required **+** lazy girl job **+** 9x generation **+** buddha-like mindset **+** goblin mode **+** herbivore men **+** hikikomori - the japanese term for acute social withdrawal **+** neijuan **+** karoshi - japanese term for overwork death **+** n-po generation **+** neet - acronym for "not in education employment or training" **+** refusal of work **+** sampo generation **+** satori generation **+** slacker **+** strawberry generation **+** work-to-rule **+** zhou liqi - chinese slacker influencer **+** 996 **+** lily kuo (june 5 2021.) "young chinese take a stand against pressures of modern life - by lying down." the washington post **+** kelly tang; lin yang (june 15 2021.) "china youth 'lie flat' as good life seems unattainable." voice of america **+** "china's disenchanted youth 'lie flat' to cope with modern life." agence france-presse. june 3 2021 - via france24 // republic of bob