ProverbMoralityJapanese origin

天網恢恢疎にして漏らさず (Tenmō kaikai so ni shite morasazu)

Meaning: Wrongdoers cannot escape punishment in the end.

Literally: Heaven's net is wide, but nothing escapes it

Example: “二十年逃げていた犯人がついに逮捕された。天網恢恢疎にして漏らさずだ。” — The criminal who had been on the run for twenty years was finally arrested: the wheels of justice turn slowly.

Equivalents in English, Spanish, German, Russian, Polish, and Chinese

  • English: The wheels of justice turn slowly
  • Spanish: La justicia tarda pero llega (literally: Justice is slow but it arrives)
  • German: Gottes Mühlen mahlen langsam, aber sicher (literally: God's mills grind slowly, but surely)
  • Russian: Бог правду видит, да не скоро скажет (Bog pravdu vidit, da ne skoro skazhet) (literally: God sees the truth but doesn't tell it soon)
  • Polish: Pan Bóg nierychliwy, ale sprawiedliwy (literally: The Lord is slow, but just)
  • Chinese: 天网恢恢，疏而不漏 (Tiān wǎng huīhuī, shū ér bú lòu) (literally: Heaven's net is wide; loose, yet nothing slips through)

Origin: From chapter 73 of Laozi's Tao Te Ching. Laozi's original ends 疏而不失, loose but losing nothing; the form with 漏 (to leak through) became the usual one later.

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