Home
News
In Focus
Business
Metro
Nation
World
Sports
Feature
Opinion
View more »Opinion Columns
Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
Birds of a feather may flock together, but they don’t necessarily build nests
Village at source of Huangpu River at forefront of revitalization efforts
Sunday
- Subscribe
Home » Feature » Art and Culture
The drawbacks of distant relatives and distant water
Print Edition
BOTH in Chinese and English, we find similar sayings about close neighbors and distant relatives.
One Chinese proverb says yuanqin buru jinlin, or literally “a neighbor close by is better than a family far away.” In English, people might say: “Better is a neighbor that is near than a brother far off.”
The Chinese expression was first uttered by Qin Jianfu, a dramatist of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), and later quoted in China’s classic novel “Outlaws of the Marsh.”
In fact, the Chinese have a much older expression in the same vein, but from a different angle.
This old saying reads yuanshui jiubuliao jinhuo, which translates directly as “distant water cannot put out a nearby fire.”
This phrase comes from one of the most important philosophical classics in ancient China, written by Han Feizi during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC).
In his eponymous book, Han quotes someone saying: “If there is a fire, the water is to be taken from the sea. Although there is a lot of water in the sea, the fire will not be extinguished. The water far away cannot put out the fire nearby.”
The above two Chinese proverbs tell us we should build close relationships with neighbors and hoard some vital resources in case of emergencies that require timely response.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
