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I learned on HN some time ago that: > "May you live in interesting times" is an English expression that is claimed to be a translation of a traditional Chinese
by bl0b 6y ago
I learned on HN some time ago that:
> "May you live in interesting times" is an English expression that is claimed to be a translation of a traditional Chinese curse. While seemingly a blessing, the expression is normally used ironically; life is better in "uninteresting times" of peace and tranquility than in "interesting" ones, which are usually times of trouble. [0]
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_you_live_in_interesting_times https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_you_live_in_interesting_ti...
- laddng 6y agoI heard this phrase in Shanghai and never knew it may be a curse - thanks for sharing this - I usually say this every once in a while but maybe shouldn't
- techer 6y ago“Despite being widely attributed as a Chinese curse, there is no known equivalent expression in Chinese.[2] The nearest related Chinese expression translates as "Better to be a dog in times of tranquility than a human in times of chaos." (寧為太平犬，不做亂世人)”
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- danbolt 6y agoIt looks like the symbols for dog (犬) and person (人) are at end of each verse. I can't speak Chinese, but I'd imagine the line rings well hearing the ordering of subject/object/verb like that.
- justinnhli 6y agoThere are more constraints than that - the corresponding words in each phrase are also the same parts of speech, and are often read with a specific cadence. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antithetical_couplet https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antithetical_couplet
- soared 6y agoI might argue it’s always better to be a dog.
- CamperBob2 6y agoAs a human, one should strive to be the owner of such a fortunate dog. I don't think I'd want to swap places with most dogs, personally.