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饮鸠止渴 (yin3 jiu1 zhi3 ke3) Poisoned wine relief
February 7, 2010, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
IN a desperate situation, people tend to seek temporary relief regardless of the consequences. Most Chinese speakers would likely quote the saying "yin3 jiu1 zhi3 ke3" or "drinking poisoned wine to quench one's thirst," to describe such an act.
The Chinese character for zhen that is used in the expression is the name of a legendary bird which has purplish green feathers and likes to eat snakes.
It is said that the zhen's feathers are deadly poisonous. In ancient times, people sometimes stirred a cup of wine with a zhen feather to make it toxic.
The Chinese phrase that refers to the drinking of zhen wine was first cited by Huo Xu, an official of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220).
When Huo was only 15, his uncle, Song Guang, was accused of rewriting a document issued by the imperial court without authorization.
To defend his jailed uncle, the brave teenager wrote a letter to a general in charge of his uncle's case.
In the letter, Huo said his uncle was an honest man and upright official.
"Also, he is a very cautious person who would not do things like drinking zhen wine just to quench his thirst," Huo said in the letter.
"Therefore, it can't be possible for uncle Song to have made changes in the imperial document for personal interest or any other reasons."
The general was impressed by the teenager's letter and personally attended the hearings on the case.
Huo eventually managed to help clear his uncle's name and some years later he himself became a high-ranking official of the imperial court.
Today, the phrase "y(r)°‰n zh(r)(r)n zh(r)°‰ k(r)?" as quoted by the teenager in his appeal letter has become a popular saying.
But in modern usage, it is often quoted as an advice for persuading people not to seek any sort of temporary relief which may bring long-term devastating consequences.
The Chinese character for zhen that is used in the expression is the name of a legendary bird which has purplish green feathers and likes to eat snakes.
It is said that the zhen's feathers are deadly poisonous. In ancient times, people sometimes stirred a cup of wine with a zhen feather to make it toxic.
The Chinese phrase that refers to the drinking of zhen wine was first cited by Huo Xu, an official of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220).
When Huo was only 15, his uncle, Song Guang, was accused of rewriting a document issued by the imperial court without authorization.
To defend his jailed uncle, the brave teenager wrote a letter to a general in charge of his uncle's case.
In the letter, Huo said his uncle was an honest man and upright official.
"Also, he is a very cautious person who would not do things like drinking zhen wine just to quench his thirst," Huo said in the letter.
"Therefore, it can't be possible for uncle Song to have made changes in the imperial document for personal interest or any other reasons."
The general was impressed by the teenager's letter and personally attended the hearings on the case.
Huo eventually managed to help clear his uncle's name and some years later he himself became a high-ranking official of the imperial court.
Today, the phrase "y(r)°‰n zh(r)(r)n zh(r)°‰ k(r)?" as quoted by the teenager in his appeal letter has become a popular saying.
But in modern usage, it is often quoted as an advice for persuading people not to seek any sort of temporary relief which may bring long-term devastating consequences.
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