狐假虎威 (Hú jiǎ hǔ wēi) (1) lit. the fox exploits the tiger’s might (idiom) (2) fig. to use powerful connections to intimidate people In the Warring States Period, at the time when the State of Chu was most powerful, King Xuan of Chu was surprised that all the northern states were afraid of his subordinate,…
026. Blancaflor
026. Whiteflower (Blancaflor) There was a married couple who wanted to have children, but the woman was unable to conceive. So many years went by until the husband, after coming back from hunting one day, said to his wife: I would like to have a son even if the devil takes him away! for that…
Hú lún tūn zǎo (囫圇吞棗 – 囫囵吞枣)
囫圇吞棗 (Hú lún tūn zǎo) (1) to swallow in one gulp (idiom) (2) (fig.) to accept without thinking (3) to lap up From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=4 The Blue Cliff Record – The Third Book contains the following story: A monk asked Master Zhaozhou (趙州和尚) whether he had ever personally met Master Nanquan (南泉大師)? Zhaozhou gave an analogy…
025. The Thief’s Bride
025. The Thief’s Bride (La Novia Del Ladrón) There was a rich man who had three beloved daughters. The rich man and his wife had to be away for some time to attend to matters concerning some land that they owned in a nearby valley, and they decided to leave the house in the care…
Hòu shēng kě wèi (後生可畏 – 後生可畏)
後生可畏 (Hòu shēng kě wèi) (1) the young will be redoubtable in the years to come (idiom) (2) the younger generations will surpass us in time (3) the younger generations are formidable From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=467 Kongzi (Confucius) was a sage who lived in the Spring and Autumn Period. When his advice was heeded in the State…
024. The Forbidden Room
024. The Forbidden Room (El Cuarto Prohibido) There was a woodcutter who had three very beautiful daughters. The woodcutter [himself] was a poor man and lived from hand to mouth. Every day he would go to the mountain to cut wood and, on one of those days, he was chopping a tree with his axe…
Hòu qǐ zhī xiù (後起之秀 – 後起之秀)
後起之秀 (Hòu qǐ zhī xiù) (1) an up-and-coming youngster (2) new talent (3) a brilliant younger generation From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=878 From “Book of Jin – Volume Seventy Five – Biography of Wang Zhan (王湛)”. Wang Chen (王忱) was a talented man from the Eastern Jin Dynasty, where even at a young age he had already possessed…
SUP – 2022/11/06 – Big Break Regional Shoreline
Although I usually paddle on Saturdays, I had to wait until today to be out on the water as it was raining a good deal yesterday. This was the second rainy day within the span of a week or so, which is always good news for the forever dry SF Bay Area. I traveled to…
023. The Black Kid Goat
023. The Black Kid Goat (El Cabrito Negro) [Note: A “kid” in this context is a young goat under a year of age.] A young man had been courting a young woman for some time, and had finally given her his words for marriage. The young man thought that the words of marriage would be…
Hòu lái jū shàng (後來居上 – 後来居上)
後來居上 (Hòu lái jū shàng) (1) lit. late-comer lives above (idiom); the up-and-coming youngster outstrips the older generation (2) the pupil surpasses the master Story: Ji An was a man living in Emperor Wu of Western Han‘s time period, who was respected by everyone for his integrity, righteousness, and courage to speak the truth. He…