죽은 석숭보다 산 돼지가 낫다 -- A live pig is better than a dead Shi Chong.

Shi Chong (석숭, 石崇), was a Chinese official during the Jin Dynasty of unimaginable wealth and prosperity. He refused to give consent for his beautiful concubine to marry another official, who consequently had Shi Chong falsely accused of treason and executed. In alluding to him, this proverb reminds us that all the riches of the Earth are of little use in death, and so no matter what the hardships one faces it is alway better to be alive. (석숭이 중국 진(晋)나라 때의 큰 부자였던 데서, 죽으면 부귀영화가 다 소용없게 되니 아무리 고생스러워도 죽는 것보다는 사는 것이 낫다는 말.)

[edit] See also

• 죽다: to die
• 살다: to live
• 돼지: a pig
• 낫다: to be better