⛩️ Temple etiquette in Chinese

大家好！

I love exploring ancient temples.

Recently I was traveling in Thailand and while I was exploring the many temples here I was surprised to find that many of the signs here were in Chinese (many Chinese tourists here).

So today, we’re going to break down this real sign I saw inside a temple that contains lots of useful vocabulary.

Do you know what it says?

Step 1: Pre-test

Try to read the original text without help first. (how many of you skip this? 😅)

This is proven to enhance memory by focusing your attention.

Students who pre-test learn significantly more compared to those who don’t, even if they feel like they “bomb” the pre-test.

Step 2: Listen + Read

Next, listen to the audio file below and read along with the characters, pinyin, and translation (shadow). Learn more about how to shadow in my speaking course.

Look up any words you don’t understand (vocabulary list below).

Cānbài sìmiào, fúzhuāng zhěngjié pǔsù, duānzhuāng détǐ.

参拜寺庙，服装整洁朴素，端庄得体。

參拜寺廟，服裝整潔樸素，端莊得體。

When visiting temples, dress neatly, plainly, and modestly.

Xū jiǎng wénmíng, zhùyì xíngwéi jǔzhǐ.

需讲文明，注意行为举止。

需講文明，注意行為舉止。

Be civilized and pay attention to your behavior.

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Vocabulary List

Organize all your vocabulary in one hub and learn Chinese faster here.

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Step 3: Repetition + Retrieval

Most learners stop here, but they miss the most important step: repetition and active recall/retrieval (proven to enhance memory).

Read the characters out loud. Focus on getting the correct tones/pronunciation.

Try not to look at the pinyin, but use it like training wheels if you forget.

Repeat until you don’t need to look at the pinyin.

Cānbài sìmiào, fúzhuāng zhěngjié pǔsù, duānzhuāng détǐ.

参拜寺庙，服装整洁朴素，端庄得体。

參拜寺廟，服裝整潔樸素，端莊得體。

Xū jiǎng wénmíng, zhùyì xíngwéi jǔzhǐ.

需讲文明，注意行为举止。

需講文明，注意行為舉止。

Step 4: Final “Test”

Final stretch. Re-read the original text again.

How does it feel? Do you feel more confident reading it?

Congrats! You just read a piece of real Chinese material.

This is the exact system I used to learn practical and real Chinese fast.

See you next week for another breakdown!

循序渐进，

Danyo Pang

PS I’m always trying to make these lessons better, mind taking 5 seconds to let me know what you think below?

PPS Here are some other ways I can help you:

1. Speaking Course: This is the step-by-step system I used to go from being afraid to speak to having meaningful conversations with native Chinese speakers (in real life, podcasts, live streams etc.) and making life-long friends.

2. The Language Learner OS: The all-in-one hub to help me organize all my notes, track my progress, stay more productive, and learn Chinese faster and more effectively.

3. The Monthly Signs: Dive deeper into these lessons with interactive vocab lists, flashcards, study tracker, and more.