10 Russian proverbs with lifewisdom

We've already written about some here. But, you can never have too much advice, so check out our latest collection!

1. «Держи голову в холоде, живот в голоде а ноги в тепле» (“Derzhi golovu v kholode, zhivot v golode a nogi v teple.”)

Keep your head cool, your stomach hungry and your feet warm.”

It's believed that Russian commander Alexander Suvorov coined this advice, which he gave to his soldiers. It's also useful in civilian life. The proverb encourages keeping a clear head, avoiding colds and taking care of your health.

2. «Знал бы, где упасть — соломки бы подстелил» (“Znal by gde upast' — solomki by podstelil.”)

“If you knew where you would fall, you would have laid down straw.”

It's impossible to foresee every problem. 

3. «Береженого Бог бережет» (“Berezhenogo Bog berezhet.”)

“God protects those who take precautions.”

A cautious person who avoids risky behavior is much less likely to get into trouble.

4. «Дело мастера боится» (“Delo mastera boitsya.”)

“A master's work is feared.”

An experienced person does their job efficiently and quickly.

5. «Со своим уставом в чужой монастырь не ходят» (“So svoim ustavom v chuzhoy monastyr' ne khodyat.”)

“Don't bring your own rules to someone else's monastery.”

Don't try to impose your own rules or customs where local ones already exist. Respect the boundaries of others. This expression was originally addressed to monks moving from monastery to monastery. But. over time, it came to be applied to anyone who wants to impose their views and habits on others.

An English equivalent would be: “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

6. «Одна голова хорошо, а две лучше» (“Odna golova khorosho, a dve luchshe.”)

“One head is good, two heads are better.”

A collection of Russian proverbs compiled by Vladimir Dahl contains a similar one: "Two heads are better than one." A problem can be solved more quickly if you work together.

7. «Дружба дружбой, а табачок врозь» (“Druzhba druzhboy, a tabachok vroz.”)

“Friendship is friendship, but tobacco is separate.”

Everything has its limits; friendship and business should not be mixed. In the old days, they might say: "Bread and salt together, but tobacco apart." The fact is, tobacco was quite an expensive commodity, so people were in no hurry to share it. In the 1950s, poet Konstantin Simonov reinterpreted this expression in his poem ‘Friendship is friendship, but duty is duty…” In it, he described a situation when friends turn away from a person if even a shadow of suspicion falls on them.

8. «От добра добра не ищут» (“Ot dobra dobra ne ishchut.”)

“One doesn’t expect good from good.”

There's no point in improving what's already good. Another way to put it: the perfect is the enemy of the good.

9. «Куй железо, пока горячо» (“Kuy zhelezo, poka goryacho.”)

“Strike while the iron is hot.”

Act immediately, don't miss the opportunity.

10. «У страха глаза велики» (“U strakha glaza veliki.”)

“Fear has big eyes.”

To a coward, any danger seems greater and more significant than it really is.