Chinese Lessons
Experiencing Chinese
Chinese Idioms And Fables
A frog lives In an abandoned well . One day, a big turtle which comes from the sea meets the frog beside the well . The frog says to him: \"I am the well master, It's free in this well, why don\'t you enjoy with me?" The turtle listened to frog and says , "Have you seen the ocean? I live in the sea which is a thousand metres long and a milloins metre wide, it is really joyful!"The narrow-minded frog listened and startled.
Liu Bei searches talent in every way for realize the great aspiration of uniting the world,specially visits Zhuge Liang who lives in seclusion, asks him to become an official. He went twice and not be able to see, the third time he went, then met. Liu Bei made the explanation patiently, he compared himself to the fish, compared Kong Ming to the water, explained repeatedly, Kong Ming's talent and brave, to capture the world great undertaking.
The Song Dynasty first year, Song Taizong Zhao Guangyi directed to compile a classification encyclopedia - Song Taizong was tired but still persist to study , read three volumes every day . sometimes the national affairs busily delayed the reading, he also makd up later.
The idiom meaning is :open the books, always get the profit. Commonly used in encouraging people to be diligent , studies will bring benefits.
[Chinese Idioms And Fables] To beat the grass and unintentional frighten away the snake hidden there
A county magistrate in Tang Dynasty named Wang Lu takes bribes and ignores justice, plunders people's wealth, thereupon the subordinates imitate a lot. Someone wrote the petition with the private gaining and skulduggery of his secretary .He read and wrote eight characters on the petiton: although you cut her grass, my snake has been startled also.
[Chinese Idioms And Fables] The fox borrows the tiger's ferocity
The fox borrows the tiger's ferocity One day, a tiger caught a fox and was about to devour it. The quick-witted fox stopped the tiger, saying: "How dare you eat me? You should know that I was sent by the heavens to be the king of beasts. If you don't believe me, come with me and see for yourself that there is not animal that isn't afraid of me!"
During the Warring States Period (475-221 BC), Handan, the capital of the State of Zhao, was famous for people's walking style...
Three at Dawn and Four at Dusk
In the state of Song, there was a man who reared monkeys. He was very fond of monkeys and kept a large number of them. He had a strong bond with the monkeys; he understood them and they understood him. He loved his monkeys so much that he went as far as reducing the amount of food for his own family in order to satisfy the monkeys. There then came a time when his family didn't have enough to eat. He had no choice but to cut down on the monkeys' food. But he was afraid that the monkeys would not submit to him as a result. So, he decided to trick them into accepting less food. He asked them, "If I gave you three chestnuts in the morning and four in the evening, would that be enough?" The monkeys were furious and refused to accept his proposal. A short while later, he asked them, "If I gave you four chestnuts in the morning and three in the evening, would that be enough?" This, the monkeys accepted and rolled around happily on the ground.
[Chinese Idioms And Fables] Stuffing His Ears for the Purpose of Stealing a Bell
Stuffing His Ears for the Purpose of Stealing a Bell Once upon a time, a thief stole a bell and tried to carry it away on his back. But the bell was too big and heavy. So, he decided to break it into pieces with a hammer to make it easier to carry. When he hit the bell, it made a loud noise. Afraid that someone might hear him breaking the bell, and try to steal it from him, he decided to plug his ears. If he couldn't hear anything, nobody else could either. A decision as foolish as this is sometimes compared with burying one's head in the sand.
No More Tricks, Mr. Nan Guo! (Pretending to Play the Yu to Retain His Position in the Orchestra)
In the period of the Warring States (475-221 BC), there was a state called Qi. The king of Qi was so fond of the yu, a wind instrument, that he had a band of more than 300 musicians play for him every afternoon. The king was most satisfied with the band and the harmonies they performed.
[Chinese Idioms And Fables] Adding feet to a drawing of a snake
"Adding feet to a drawing of a snake" – to ruin the effect of something by adding something superfluous. Adding Feet to a Drawing of a Snake An official in the ancient State of Chu gave a pot of wine to his men to celebrate the Spring Sacrifice ceremony. One of the men said: "We have only one pot of wine, and it's only enough for one. So, let's play for it. The first one to finish drawing a snake in the ground wins the pot of wine."