the leaf always falls down on its root
"the leaf always falls down on its root"


落(fallen)

葉(leaves)

歸 (go back to)

根 (the root)

落葉歸根 means "fallen leaves always go back to the root"

It is a metaphor for "a person come back to his birth place to settle". It is considered a fulfilling event.

The thinking is a traditional one. Nowadays, the tie between a person and his birth place is nowhere as strong as in olden time. 

Hong Kong is my birth place, but I am happy to settle in Toronto until the day I die.