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天衣无缝 (tian1 yi1 wu2 feng4) - The heavenly dress
By Zhang Ciyun |
September 20, 2009, Sunday
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There's a saying that nothing is perfect. But Chinese people disagree. They believe there is one perfect thing in the universe and that is "a heavenly dress without seams," or "tian1 yi1 wu2 feng4."
This saying came from a dream had by a young man called Guo Han, who lived in a small village a long, long time ago.
One hot summer night, Guo could not fall asleep, so he came out of the house and sat down on a straw mattress in his courtyard to enjoy the coolness outside.
Looking at the dark curtain of the sky, dotted with a bright moon and twinkling stars, he became lost in a reverie.
He thought of the legend of the goddess of the moon and the legendary romance between the cowherd and a female spinner, who flew to the moon and had lived there alone ever since.
"Now that the pretty woman weaver is living in the heaven, all the colorful clouds we can see at dawn and in the evening must be her works," he thought.
Just then, a cloud in the dark sky metamorphosed before his eyes, and a beautiful young woman gracefully descended into his courtyard.
He could not believe his eyes.
"I must be dreaming," he said to himself, but he clearly saw the breathtakingly beautiful young woman standing in front of him.
After recovering from his initial shock, the young man asked her: "Are you a goddess from heaven?"
The woman answered, "I am the woman weaver who appeared in your imagination just a moment ago."
Hardly able to contain his excitement, the young man looked the divine woman up and down and saw that her dress was truly remarkable, so shapely and amazing, made without a single seam.
He asked: "Did you make your dress yourself? Why does it have no seams?"
She answered: "Yes, I tailored it. This is a heavenly dress, so it has no seams."
When the young man woke from his dream, the lady spinner was gone, but the next morning, he couldn't wait to tell his story to all his neighbors.
Today, "tian1 yi1 wu2 feng4" has become a popular saying among Chinese speakers. It is used to describe something that is flawless, particularly a well-designed plan, an immaculate theory or a water-tight legal case. So, if there's anything perfect in this world, it must be as perfect as the "seamless heavenly dress."
This saying came from a dream had by a young man called Guo Han, who lived in a small village a long, long time ago.
One hot summer night, Guo could not fall asleep, so he came out of the house and sat down on a straw mattress in his courtyard to enjoy the coolness outside.
Looking at the dark curtain of the sky, dotted with a bright moon and twinkling stars, he became lost in a reverie.
He thought of the legend of the goddess of the moon and the legendary romance between the cowherd and a female spinner, who flew to the moon and had lived there alone ever since.
"Now that the pretty woman weaver is living in the heaven, all the colorful clouds we can see at dawn and in the evening must be her works," he thought.
Just then, a cloud in the dark sky metamorphosed before his eyes, and a beautiful young woman gracefully descended into his courtyard.
He could not believe his eyes.
"I must be dreaming," he said to himself, but he clearly saw the breathtakingly beautiful young woman standing in front of him.
After recovering from his initial shock, the young man asked her: "Are you a goddess from heaven?"
The woman answered, "I am the woman weaver who appeared in your imagination just a moment ago."
Hardly able to contain his excitement, the young man looked the divine woman up and down and saw that her dress was truly remarkable, so shapely and amazing, made without a single seam.
He asked: "Did you make your dress yourself? Why does it have no seams?"
She answered: "Yes, I tailored it. This is a heavenly dress, so it has no seams."
When the young man woke from his dream, the lady spinner was gone, but the next morning, he couldn't wait to tell his story to all his neighbors.
Today, "tian1 yi1 wu2 feng4" has become a popular saying among Chinese speakers. It is used to describe something that is flawless, particularly a well-designed plan, an immaculate theory or a water-tight legal case. So, if there's anything perfect in this world, it must be as perfect as the "seamless heavenly dress."
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