Aboyholdingadragon-shapedlanternwatchesashowataSpringFestivaltemplefairinYanchengcounty,EastChina'sShandongprovince,Feb12,2024.[Photo/Xinhua]
KickofftheYearoftheDragon(龙年,lóngnián)withsomeusefulChinese"chengyu(成语,chéngyǔ)"aboutthismythicalcreature
TheYearoftheDragonhasalwaysbeenoneofChina'sfavoriteyears.Asoneofthecountry'smostbelovedzodiacanimals(十二生肖,shíèrshēngxiào),dragonshavebeenseenassymbolsofthenationsinceancienttimes.Chinesepeopleoftenevenrefertothemselvesas"descendantsofdragons(龙的传人,lóngdechuánrén)."
IntraditionalChineseculture,dragonsarepowerfuldivinebeasts(神兽,shénshòu),symbolizingauthority,nobility,andgoodfortune.Manybelievebeingbornintheyearofthedragonwillbringthemgoodluck.Thebeliefispervasive:Chinaoftenexperienceshigherbirthrates(出生率,chūshēnglǜ)indragonyears.
Overcenturies,dragon(龙lóng)storieshaveformeddozensofchengyu,Chineseidiomsnormallyconsistingoffourcharacters(四字成语,sìzìchéngyǔ).Mostoftheseidiomsincludingdragonsarepositive(正面的,zhèngmiànde),oftendescribingaperson'soutstandingappearance,status,orabilities.
Forexample,atalentedorpowerfulindividualisoftenreferredtoasa"dragonamonghumans(人中之龙,rénzhōngzhīlóng)."Theleaderofanexcellentteammaybehailedasthe"headofagroupofdragons(群龙之首,qúnlóngzhīshǒu),"andparents'greatambitionsfortheirchildrenareencapsulatedintheterm"expectthechildtobecomeadragon(望子成龙,wàngzǐchénglóng)."Hereareafewmoredragonidiomsandtheirfascinatingstories.
画龙点睛Dottingtheeyesafterpaintingadragon
ThisidiomoriginatesfromthestoryofZhangSengyao(张僧繇,zhāngsēngyáo),arenownedpainterduringtheSouthernandNortherndynastiesperiod(420–589).AccordingtoHistoryofFamousPaintingsAcrossDynasties(《历代名画记》lìdàimínghuàjì),thefirstcomprehensivehistoryofChinesepainting,ZhangpaintedfourgoldendragonsinAnleTempleinJinling(today'sNanjing).ButZhanglefttheireyesunpainted,claimingthatgivingthemeyeswouldmakethecreaturesflyaway.
PeoplewereskepticalaboutZhang'sstatementsohedrewintheeyesoftwodragons.Thebeastsimmediatelybrokefreefromthewallamidthunderandlightning,soaringintothesky,whiletheothertwodragons,stilleyeless,remainedinplaceonthemural.
Thetalecametosymbolizethesignificanceofafinalcrucialstepinanyliteratureorartcreation.Theidiomisnowwidelyusedtodescribethepracticeofusingafewsentencestoclarifykeypointsinwritingorspeeches,therebyenhancingthecontent'sclarityandimpact.
Thelastfewsentencesofthearticlereallybreathedlifeintothedragonbydottingitseyes.Zhèpiānwénzhāngdezuìhòujǐjùzhēnshìhuàlóngdiǎnjīngzhībǐ.这篇文章的最后几句真是画龙点睛之笔。
来源：TheWorldofChinese编辑：万月英
来源：TheWorldofChinese
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