春花秋月

Chinese

		spring (time); gay; joyful spring (time); gay; joyful; youthful; love; lust; life	flower; blossom; to spend flower; blossom; to spend; fancy pattern	autumn; fall; harvest time autumn; fall; harvest time; a swing	moon; month
trad. (春花秋月)		春	花	秋	月
simp. #(春花秋月)		春	花	秋	月

Etymology

From a poem by ruler of the Southern Tang dynasty Li Yu:

春花秋月何時了，往事知多少。小樓昨夜又東風，故國不堪回首月明中。雕欄玉砌應猶在，只是朱顏改。問君能有幾多愁，恰似一江春水向東流。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

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春花秋月何时了，往事知多少。小楼昨夜又东风，故国不堪回首月明中。雕栏玉砌应犹在，只是朱颜改。问君能有几多愁，恰似一江春水向东流。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: Li Yu, The Beautiful Lady Yu (虞美人), translated by Xu Yuanchong

Chūn huā qiū yuè héshí liǎo, wǎngshì zhī duōshǎo. Xiǎo lóu zuóyè yòu dōngfēng, gùguó bùkān huíshǒu yuèmíng zhōng. Diāo lán yù qì yìng yóu zài, zhǐshì zhūyán gǎi. Wèn jūn néng yǒu jǐduō chóu, qiàsì yī jiāng chūnshuǐ xiàng dōng liú. [Pinyin]

When will there be no more moon and spring flowers,
For me who had so many memorable hours?
My attic which last night invernal wind did stand,
Reminds cruelly of the lost moonlit land.
Carved balustrades and marble steps must still be there,
But rosy faces cannot be as fair.
If you ask me how much my sorrow has increased,
Just see the over brimming river flowing east!

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): chūnhuāqiūyuè

  (Zhuyin): ㄔㄨㄣ ㄏㄨㄚ ㄑㄧㄡ ㄩㄝˋ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): ceon¹ faa¹ cau¹ jyut⁶

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: chūnhuāqiūyuè
    • Zhuyin: ㄔㄨㄣ ㄏㄨㄚ ㄑㄧㄡ ㄩㄝˋ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: chunhuaciouyuè
    • Wade–Giles: chʻun¹-hua¹-chʻiu¹-yüeh⁴
    • Yale: chwūn-hwā-chyōu-ywè
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: chuenhuachiouyueh
    • Palladius: чуньхуацююэ (čunʹxuacjujue)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ ɥɛ⁵¹/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: ceon¹ faa¹ cau¹ jyut⁶
    • Yale: chēun fā chāu yuht
    • Cantonese Pinyin: tsoen¹ faa¹ tsau¹ jyt⁹
    • Guangdong Romanization: cên¹ fa¹ ceo¹ yud⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ faː⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐu̯⁵⁵ jyːt̚²/

Idiom

春花秋月

1. a metaphor for a wonderful time spent in a beautiful location