Idiom Explanation:
Jingwei fills the ocean, like the idiom “Yugong moves the mountain“, it’s a metaphor for perseverance and perseverance, not afraid of hardship, and will not rest until the goal is achieved.
Pronunciation:
精卫填海
jīng wèi tián hǎi
Origin book:
《山海经·北山经》：有鸟焉，其状如乌，文首、白喙、赤足，名曰精卫，其鸣自詨。是炎帝之少女，名曰女娃，女娃游于东海，溺而不返，故为精卫。常衔西山之木石，以堙于东海。漳水出焉，东流注于河。
Origin Story:
According to legend, the Yandi Shennong’s favorite daughter, the female child, looks slender, but has a strong character. Sisters like to dress up, but she loves sports, especially water sports, swimming and boating, diving and surfing.
Early one morning, the wind and sunshine, it is a good time to go out. The girl sailed a light boat, wandering in the blue waves of the East Ocean sea. The sea breeze blew gently, the waves softly undulated, she carried the boat to the depths of the ocean drift. The young and innocent girl, unaware of the world’s dangers, still intoxicated in the gentle blue sea. Suddenly, the calm sea changed its face, the smiling sun disappeared, the gentle sea breeze became sharper than a knife blade, and the soft waves became harder than a hammer. The girl with excellent skills, chopping waves, left and right to avoid, and the sea around. Time a minute, a minute passed, an hour, an hour passed, the sea waves are getting higher and higher, the girl’s strength is getting weaker and weaker.
Night fell, the world was dark, probably the stars closed their eyes, could not bear to see the tragedy: the boat was crushed into pieces by the huge waves, the girl was swallowed by the sea, the noise of the waves drowned out the girl’s cry for help. But she was not willing to be drowned by the water, and her spirit became a beautiful, brave little bird, and she always called out when she flew, “Jingwei! Jingwei!” So she was called “Jingwei”. Jingwei lived on the mountain of Faju, which was covered with woods, and was determined to fill the hated East Sea. Every day, she took a branch or a small stone from the west mountain and flew high with her wings to the East Sea and threw them into the sea. Day after day, year after year, regardless of the scorching sun or rain and snow fall, it constantly called “Jingwei, Jingwei” to inspire their fighting spirit, it will be persistent spirit to fill the East China Sea.
The East China Sea is angry, the East China Sea roars, the waves are noisy, foamy: “Why do you want to fill me up? Why do you hate me so deeply?” From the sky came the cries of hatred of the Jingwei bird: “Because you took away my young life, because you will take away thousands of other young lives.”
“Forget it, little bird! Even if you fill a million years, you will never fill me up!” Donghai covered his embarrassment with a loud booming laugh. Without hesitation, Jingwei replied, “Even if I fill up to 10 million years, 10,000,000 years, until the end of the world, I will still fill you up.” From then on, Jingwei kept going back and forth between Mount Fatu and the East Sea, throwing branches and stones from the West Mountain into the East Sea.
Similar Idioms:
- 矢志不移
- 愚公移山
