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Heaven Sent
天来 is a Chinese and Japanese title that means: heavenly; divine; inspired; heaven sent.
This can also be the Japanese surname Tenrai or Japanese female given names Takara or Sora.
Broken Mirror Rejoined
Used in modern times for divorced couples that come back together
破鏡重圓 is about a husband and wife who were separated and reunited.
About 1500 years ago in China, there lived a beautiful princess named Le Chang. She and her husband Xu De Yan loved each other very much. But when the army of the Sui Dynasty was about to attack their kingdom, disposed of all of their worldly possessions and prepared to flee into exile.
They knew that in the chaos, they might lose track of each other, so the one possession they kept was a bronze mirror which is a symbol of unity for a husband and wife. They broke the mirror into two pieces, and each of them kept half of the mirror. They decided that if separated, they would try to meet at the fair during the 15th day of the first lunar month (which is the lantern festival). Unfortunately, the occupation was brutal, and the princess was forced to become the mistress of the new commissioner of the territory, Yang Su.
At the Lantern Festival the next year, the husband came to the fair to search for his wife. He carried with him his half of the mirror. As he walked through the fair, he saw the other half of the mirror for sale at a junk market by a servant of the commissioner. The husband recognized his wife's half of the mirror immediately, and tears rolled down his face as he was told by the servant about the bitter and loveless life that the princess had endured.
As his tears dripped onto the mirror, the husband scratched a poem into his wife's half of the mirror:
You left me with the severed mirror,
The mirror has returned, but absent are you,
As I gaze in the mirror, I seek your face,
I see the moon, but as for you, I see not a trace.
The servant brought the inscribed half of the mirror back to the princess. For many days, the princess could not stop crying when she found that her husband was alive and still loved her.
Commissioner Yang Su, becoming aware of this saga, realized that he could never obtain the princess's love. He sent for the husband and allowed them to reunite.
This proverb, 破鏡重圓, is now used to describe a couple who has been torn apart for some reason (usually divorce) but have come back together (or remarried).
It seems to be more common these days in America for divorced couples to reconcile and get married to each other again. This will be a great gift if you know someone who is about to remarry their ex.
Undaunted After Repeated Setbacks
Persistence to overcome all challenges
百折不撓 is a Chinese proverb that means “Be undaunted in the face of repeated setbacks.”
More directly translated, it reads, “[Overcome] a hundred setbacks, without flinching.” 百折不撓 is of Chinese origin but is commonly used in Japanese and somewhat in Korean (same characters, different pronunciation).
This proverb comes from a long, and occasionally tragic story of a man that lived sometime around 25-220 AD. His name was Qiao Xuan, and he never stooped to flattery but remained an upright person at all times. He fought to expose the corruption of higher-level government officials at great risk to himself.
Then when he was at a higher level in the Imperial Court, bandits were regularly capturing hostages and demanding ransoms. But when his own son was captured, he was so focused on his duty to the Emperor and the common good that he sent a platoon of soldiers to raid the bandits' hideout, and stop them once and for all even at the risk of his own son's life. While all of the bandits were arrested in the raid, they killed Qiao Xuan's son at first sight of the raiding soldiers.
Near the end of his career, a new Emperor came to power, and Qiao Xuan reported to him that one of his ministers was bullying the people and extorting money from them. The new Emperor refused to listen to Qiao Xuan and even promoted the corrupt Minister. Qiao Xuan was so disgusted that in protest, he resigned from his post as minister (something almost never done) and left for his home village.
His tombstone reads “Bai Zhe Bu Nao” which is now a proverb used in Chinese culture to describe a person of strong will who puts up stubborn resistance against great odds.
My Chinese-English dictionary defines these 4 characters as “keep on fighting despite all setbacks,” “be undaunted by repeated setbacks,” and “be indomitable.”
Our translator says it can mean “never give up” in modern Chinese.
Although the first two characters are translated correctly as “repeated setbacks,” the literal meaning is “100 setbacks” or “a rope that breaks 100 times.” The last two characters can mean “do not yield” or “do not give up.”
Most Chinese, Japanese, and Korean people will not take this absolutely literal meaning but will instead understand it as the title suggests above. If you want a single big word definition, it would be indefatigability, indomitableness, persistence, or unyielding.
See Also: Tenacity | Fortitude | Strength | Perseverance | Persistence
Tiger Rumor
These four characters together relay the meaning that can be expressed in English as “When three people say there's a tiger running in the street, you believe it.”
Of course, there is an ancient story behind this idiom...
三人成虎 is actually a proverb that resulted from a conversation that occurred around 300 B.C.
The conversation was between the king of the Wei kingdom and one of the king's ministers named Pang Cong.
It was near the end of one of many wars, this time with the Zhao kingdom. Pang Cong was to be sent by the king to the Zhao kingdom with the king's son, who was to be held hostage. It was common at the time for a king to make his son a hostage to secure stable peace between warring kingdoms.
Before minister Pang Cong departed, he asked his king, “If one person told you a tiger was running in the street, would you believe it?.”
“No,” the king said.
The minister continued, “What if two people told you?”
The king replied, “Well, I would have my doubts but I might believe it.”
The minister continued, “So, what if three people told you that a tiger is running in the streets?”
The king replied, “Yes, I would believe it. It must be true if three people say it.”
The minister then reminded the king, “Your son and I are now traveling far away to live in the distant Zhao kingdom - much farther from your palace than the street. Rumors may fly about me in my absence, so I hope your majesty will weight such rumors appropriately.”
The king replied, “I have every trust in you, do not worry”
While the minister was gone, the king's enemies gossiped about minister Pang Cong on many occasions. At first, the king thought nothing of these comments and rumors. But slowly, as the rumors mounted, the king began to suspect ill of his minister.
Sometime later, when peace was well-established, the minister and prince were freed and returned to the kingdom of Wei. The king received his son BUT DID NOT EVEN SUMMON MINISTER PANG CONG TO THE PALACE!
Hopefully, this story will help you see how dangerous words can be when used to promote rumors or create ill will. And perhaps will inspire you not to believe everything you hear.
There is also a secondary suggestion in this idiom that gossip is as ferocious as a tiger. Some Chinese people who don't know the ancient story above may believe that this scroll means that rumors are as vicious as three tigers.
Note: This proverb appears in my Korean dictionary but is not well-known in Korea.
Better Late Than Never
It's Never Too Late Too Mend
Long ago in what is now China, there were many kingdoms throughout the land. This time period is known as “The Warring States Period” by historians because these kingdoms often did not get along with each other.
Sometime around 279 B.C. the Kingdom of Chu was a large but not particularly powerful kingdom. Part of the reason it lacked power was the fact that the King was surrounded by “yes men” who told him only what he wanted to hear. Many of the King's court officials were corrupt and incompetent which did not help the situation.
The King was not blameless himself, as he started spending much of his time being entertained by his many concubines.
One of the King's ministers, Zhuang Xin, saw problems on the horizon for the Kingdom, and warned the King, “Your Majesty, you are surrounded by people who tell you what you want to hear. They tell you things to make you happy and cause you to ignore important state affairs. If this is allowed to continue, the Kingdom of Chu will surely perish, and fall into ruins.”
This enraged the King who scolded Zhuang Xin for insulting the country and accused him of trying to create resentment among the people. Zhuang Xin explained, “I dare not curse the Kingdom of Chu but I feel that we face great danger in the future because of the current situation.” The King was simply not impressed with Zhuang Xin's words.
Seeing the King's displeasure with him and the King's fondness for his court of corrupt officials, Zhuang Xin asked permission from the King that he may take leave of the Kingdom of Chu, and travel to the State of Zhao to live. The King agreed, and Zhuang Xin left the Kingdom of Chu, perhaps forever.
Five months later, troops from the neighboring Kingdom of Qin invaded Chu, taking a huge tract of land. The King of Chu went into exile, and it appeared that soon, the Kingdom of Chu would no longer exist.
The King of Chu remembered the words of Zhuang Xin and sent some of his men to find him. Immediately, Zhuang Xin returned to meet the King. The first question asked by the King was “What can I do now?”
Zhuang Xin told the King this story:
A shepherd woke one morning to find a sheep missing. Looking at the pen saw a hole in the fence where a wolf had come through to steal one of his sheep. His friends told him that he had best fix the hole at once. But the Shepherd thought since the sheep is already gone, there is no use fixing the hole.
The next morning, another sheep was missing. And the Shepherd realized that he must mend the fence at once. Zhuang Xin then went on to make suggestions about what could be done to reclaim the land lost to the Kingdom of Qin, and reclaim the former glory and integrity of the Kingdom of Chu.
The Chinese idiom shown above came from this reply from Zhuang Xin to the King of Chu almost 2,300 years ago.
It translates roughly into English as...
“Even if you have lost some sheep, it's never too late to mend the fence.”
This proverb, 亡羊补牢犹未为晚, is often used in modern China when suggesting in a hopeful way that someone change their ways, or fix something in their life. It might be used to suggest fixing a marriage, quitting smoking, or getting back on track after taking an unfortunate path in life among other things one might fix in their life.
I suppose in the same way that we might say, “Today is the first day of the rest of your life” in our western cultures to suggest that you can always start anew.
Note: This does have Korean pronunciation but is not a well-known proverb in Korean (only Koreans familiar with ancient Chinese history would know it). Best if your audience is Chinese.
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Below are some entries from our dictionary that may match your sent search...
| Characters If shown, 2nd row is Simp. Chinese |
Pronunciation Romanization |
Simple Dictionary Definition |
鬼 see styles |
guǐ gui3 kuei oni(p); ki おに(P); き |
More info & calligraphy: Ghost Demon(1) ogre; demon; oni; (2) (See 亡魂) spirit of a deceased person; (3) (おに only) ogre-like person (i.e. fierce, relentless, merciless, etc.); (4) (おに only) (See 鬼ごっこ・おにごっこ) it (in a game of tag, hide-and-seek, etc.); (5) (き only) {astron} (See 二十八宿,朱雀・すざく・2) Chinese "ghost" constellation (one of the 28 mansions); (prefix) (6) (おに only) (slang) (See 超・1) very; extremely; super-; (surname) Miniwa preta 薜荔多, departed, dead; a disembodied spirit, dead person, ghost; a demon, evil being; especially a 餓鬼 hungry ghost. They are of many kinds. The Fan-i ming i classifies them as poor, medium, and rich; each again thrice subdivided: (1) (a) with mouths like burning torches; (b) throats no bigger than needles; (c) vile breath, disgusting to themselves; (2) (a) needle-haired, self-piercing; (b) hair sharp and stinking; (c) having great wens on whose pus they must feed. (3) (a) living on the remains of sacrifices; (b) on leavings in general; (c) powerful ones, yakṣas, rākṣasas, piśācas, etc. All belong to the realm of Yama, whence they are sent everywhere, consequently are ubiquitous in every house, lane, market, mound, stream, tree, etc. |
天来 see styles |
tenrai てんらい |
More info & calligraphy: Heaven Sent |
菩提樹 菩提树 see styles |
pú tí shù pu2 ti2 shu4 p`u t`i shu pu ti shu bodaiju; bodaiju ぼだいじゅ; ボダイジュ |
More info & calligraphy: The Tree of Enlightenment / The Bodhi Tree(1) Tilia miqueliana (species of linden tree); (2) (See インドボダイジュ) sacred fig (Ficus religiosa); bodhi tree; bo tree; peepal tree; pipal tree; (given name) Bodaiju bodhidruma, bodhitaru, bodhivṛkṣa; the wisdom-tree, i.e. that under which Śākyamuni attained his enlightenment, and became Buddha. The Ficus religiosa is the pippala, or aśvattha, wrongly identified by Faxian as the palm-tree; it is described as an evergreen, to have been 400 feet high, been cut down several times, but in the Tang dynasty still to be 40 or 50 feet high. A branch of it is said to have been sent by Aśoka to Ceylon, from which sprang the celebrated Bo-tree still flourishing there. |
觀世音 观世音 see styles |
guān shì yīn guan1 shi4 yin1 kuan shih yin Kanzeon かんぜおん |
More info & calligraphy: Guan Shi Yin: Protector Of Life(out-dated kanji) Avalokiteshvara (Bodhisattva); Avalokitesvara; Kannon; Kwannon; Guanyin; Buddhist deity of compassion Regarder of the world's sounds, or cries, the so-called Goddess of Mercy; also known as 觀音; 觀世音善薩; 觀自在 (觀世自在); 觀尹; 光世音 (the last being the older form). Avalokiteśvara, v. 阿 8. Originally represented as a male, the images are now generally those of a female figure. The meaning of the term is in doubt; it is intp. as above, but the term 觀自在 (觀世自在) accords with the idea of Sovereign Regarder and is not associated with sounds or cries. Guanyin is one of the triad of Amida, is represented on his left, and is also represented as crowned with Amida; but there are as many as thirty-three different forms of Guanyin, sometimes with a bird, a vase, a willow wand, a pearl, a 'thousand' eyes and hands, etc., and, when as bestower of children, carrying a child. The island of Putuo (Potala) is the chief centre of Guanyin worship, where she is the protector of all in distress, especially of those who go to sea. There are many sūtras, etc., devoted to the cult, but its provenance and the date of its introduction to China are still in doubt. Chapter 25 of the Lotus Sūtra is devoted to Guanyin, and is the principal scripture of the cult; its date is uncertain. Guanyin is sometimes confounded with Amitābha and Maitreya. She is said to be the daughter of king Śubhavyūha 妙莊王, who had her killed by 'stifling because the sword of the executioner broke without hurting her. Her spirit went to hell; but hell changed into paradise. Yama sent her back to life to save his hell, when she was miraculously transported on a Lotus flower to the island of Poo-too'. Eitel. |
発 see styles |
fā fa1 fa hatsu はつ |
Japanese variant of 發|发 (suffix noun) (1) (See 着・1) departure; departing from ...; leaving at (e.g. 8:30); (suffix noun) (2) sent from ...; (a letter, etc.) dated ...; datelined ...; (counter) (3) counter for engines (on an aircraft); (counter) (4) counter for gunshots, bursts of gas, etc.; counter for bullets, bombs, etc.; counter for blows (punches); counter for jokes, puns, etc.; counter for ideas, thoughts or guesses; (counter) (5) (vulgar) counter for ejaculations or sexual intercourse; (given name) Hiraku |
鏢 镖 see styles |
biāo biao1 piao |
dart-like throwing weapon; goods sent under the protection of an armed escort |
三逆 see styles |
sān nì san1 ni4 san ni sangyaku |
The three unpardonable sins of Devadatta, which sent him to the Avici hell— schism, stoning the Buddha to the shedding of his blood, killing a nun. |
下獄 下狱 see styles |
xià yù xia4 yu4 hsia yü gegoku げごく |
to imprison (n,vs,vi) being sent to prison |
二光 see styles |
èr guāng er4 guang1 erh kuang nikō |
The dual lights, i.e. 色光 the halo from a Buddha's body and 心光 the light from his mind. Also 常光 the constant halo from the bodies of Buddhas and 神通光 the supernatural light sent out by a Buddha (e.g. from between his eyebrows) to illuminate a distant world. |
五刀 see styles |
wǔ dāo wu3 dao1 wu tao gotou / goto ごとう |
(surname) Gotou The 'five swords' or slayers who were sent in pursuit of a man who fled from his king, e. g. the five skandhas 五蘊. |
來文 来文 see styles |
lái wén lai2 wen2 lai wen |
received document; sent document |
便函 see styles |
biàn hán bian4 han2 pien han |
an informal letter sent by an organization |
信件 see styles |
xìn jiàn xin4 jian4 hsin chien |
letter (sent by mail) |
光瑞 see styles |
guāng ruì guang1 rui4 kuang jui kouzui / kozui こうずい |
(given name) Kōzui The auspicious ray sent from between the Buddha's eyebrows before a revelation. |
入獄 入狱 see styles |
rù yù ru4 yu4 ju yü nyuugoku / nyugoku にゅうごく |
to go to jail; to be sent to prison (n,vs,vi) being imprisoned; being sent to prison |
写メ see styles |
shame しゃメ |
(noun/participle) (1) (abbreviation) (colloquialism) (See 写メール・1) email with attached photos sent from a mobile phone; (noun/participle) (2) (abbreviation) (colloquialism) photo taken with a mobile phone; taking a photo with a mobile phone |
出使 see styles |
chū shǐ chu1 shi3 ch`u shih chu shih |
to go abroad as ambassador; to be sent on a diplomatic mission |
出動 出动 see styles |
chū dòng chu1 dong4 ch`u tung chu tung shutsudou / shutsudo しゅつどう |
to start out on a trip; to dispatch troops (n,vs,vi) mobilization; going into action; being dispatched; being sent out; being called in; turning out |
同送 see styles |
dousou / doso どうそう |
(can be adjective with の) shipped together; sent at the same time |
回訓 see styles |
kaikun かいくん |
(n,vs,vi) instructions sent in response to a question (from an embassy, consulate, etc.) |
国書 see styles |
kokusho こくしょ |
(1) diplomatic message sent by a head of state; sovereign letter; (2) book written in Japanese (as opposed to Chinese, etc.); Japanese book; national literature (of Japan) |
天警 see styles |
tenkei / tenke てんけい |
heaven-sent warning |
帰米 see styles |
kibei / kibe きべい |
(noun/participle) (1) returning to the United States; (2) (See 二世・にせい・1) kibei; Japanese-American children (nisei) born prior to WWII who were sent to Japan for schooling before returning to America |
快信 see styles |
kuài xìn kuai4 xin4 k`uai hsin kuai hsin |
letter sent by express mail |
擲還 掷还 see styles |
zhì huán zhi4 huan2 chih huan |
please return (an item sent in the mail) |
末田 see styles |
mò tián mo4 tian2 mo t`ien mo tien matsuda まつだ |
(place-name, surname) Matsuda Madhyāntika, 末田地 (末田地那); 末田底加, 末田提; 末田鐸迦; 末彈地; 末闡地 or a 摩 is also used for 末. It is tr. by 中; 日中, 水中河中, and 金地. One of the two chief disciples of Ānanda, to whom he handed down the Buddha's doctrine. He is reputed to have been sent to convert 罽賓 Kashmir, the other, 商那和修 Śāṇakavāsa, to convert 中國 which is probably Central India, though it is understood as China. Another account makes the latter a disciple of the former. Eitel says that by his magic power he transported a sculptor to the Tuṣita heavens to obtain a correct image of Maitreya. |
玉豪 see styles |
yù háo yu4 hao2 yü hao gyokugō |
玉毫 The ūrṇā or white curl between the Buddha's eyebrows, from which he sent forth his ray of light illuminating all worlds. |
知青 see styles |
zhī qīng zhi1 qing1 chih ch`ing chih ching |
educated youth (sent to work in farms during the Cultural Revolution), abbr. for 知識青年|知识青年[zhi1 shi5 qing1 nian2] |
答電 see styles |
touden / toden とうでん |
(1) reply telegram; answer to a telegram; (2) (electronic) reply message (sent by a government, head of state, etc.) |
親電 see styles |
shinden しんでん |
telegram sent by an emperor or head of state |
Click here for more sent results from our dictionary
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
| Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
| Heaven Sent | 天来 | tenrai / takara / sora | tiān lái / tian1 lai2 / tian lai / tianlai | t`ien lai / tienlai / tien lai |
| Broken Mirror Rejoined | 破鏡重圓 破镜重圆 | pò jìng chóng yuán po4 jing4 chong2 yuan2 po jing chong yuan pojingchongyuan | p`o ching ch`ung yüan pochingchungyüan po ching chung yüan |
|
| Undaunted After Repeated Setbacks | 百折不撓 百折不挠 | hyaku setsu su tou hyakusetsusutou hyaku setsu su to | bǎi zhé bù náo bai3 zhe2 bu4 nao2 bai zhe bu nao baizhebunao | pai che pu nao paichepunao |
| Tiger Rumor | 三人成虎 | sān rén chéng hǔ san1 ren2 cheng2 hu3 san ren cheng hu sanrenchenghu | san jen ch`eng hu sanjenchenghu san jen cheng hu |
|
| Better Late Than Never | 亡羊補牢猶未為晚 亡羊补牢犹未为晚 | wáng yáng bǔ láo yóu wèi wéi wǎn wang2 yang2 bu3 lao2 you2 wei4 wei2 wan3 wang yang bu lao you wei wei wan | wang yang pu lao yu wei wei wan wangyangpulaoyuweiweiwan |
|
| In some entries above you will see that characters have different versions above and below a line. In these cases, the characters above the line are Traditional Chinese, while the ones below are Simplified Chinese. | ||||
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