Mere China Language   

Fun Chinese Lessons - 5: 

Burn the Zither and Boil the Crane - A Chinese Saying

“Burn the zither and boil the crane?- the expression is used to describe the disregard for, or the destruction of, fine culture and good taste. In traditional China, music was one of the essential subjects a cultivated gentleman should master, along with philosophy, poetry, calligraphy and board games, and the zither came to be viewed as a symbol for that ideal. The crane also has some special significance in Chinese iconography, standing (on those looooong legs) for high-mindedness, nonchalance, and freedom from worldly concerns. To burn the zither to boil the crane are therefore acts of cultural annihilation, doubly appalling, committed in ignorance for some modest and questionable material gains.

Incidentally, the Chinese characters contained in this phrase make good examples that demonstrate the pictographic (picture-like) origin of the Chinese writing system. Look closely at the characters below - “burn, zither, boil, crane?- and see if you can identify the parts of the words that suggest fire, strings, water, and bird, respectively.

fen qin zhu he (burn zither boil crane)

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