Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2016 November 9

= November 9 =

襄王有意神女无心
Can someone explain this Chinese idiom to me? I understand what it means but I want to know about the history and background behind it.--KAVEBEAR (talk) 17:08, 9 November 2016 (UTC)


 * An English translation would be helpful here. StuRat (talk) 19:34, 9 November 2016 (UTC)


 * King Xiang wants it, but the goddess does not. Or: The fairy is willing, but King Xiang does not dream. It has to do with a woman's unrequited love. —Stephen (talk) 01:34, 10 November 2016 (UTC)
 * Again, I know the meaning metaphorically. I'm of Chinese descent. I wanted to know the history and background of the literal saying since most Chinese idioms are rooted in history. Who is King Xiang and who is the Goddess being referred?--KAVEBEAR (talk) 03:39, 10 November 2016 (UTC)


 * Curious that these two translations are opposites in who is and isn't willing. —Tamfang (talk) 20:20, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

襄王有意神女无心 appears to be a variant of 神女有心，襄王无梦 It would appear that the 神女 (goddess, fairy) in question is "巫山神女", the Wushan goddess. (See: Wushan) (Sort of) according to those (quite possibly unreliable) sources, Ms Wūshān Shénnǚ appeared in dreams to both 楚懷王 and 周襄王, asking for marriage, but they both declined. The latter appears to be the source of 襄 in the set phrase. --Shirt58 (talk) 08:28, 13 November 2016 (UTC)
 * Oh thanks! Was this rooted in contemporary or later legends?--KAVEBEAR (talk) 09:11, 13 November 2016 (UTC)
 * Switching into a language I actually understand: mi scusi, ma non lo so. Kia ora, KAVEBEAR. Pete "NZ passports are in English and Māori but Australian passports are in English and French. Why aren't they in English, a randomly selected community language and a randomly selected living indigenous language? In my opinion, ..." AU aka --Shirt58 (talk) 09:51, 15 November 2016 (UTC)