Xi Shi (西施, 506 BC – ?)

Xi Shi (西施, 506 BC – ?)

Xi Shi (Chinese: 西施; pinyin: Xī Shī, 506 BC – ?) was one of the renowned Four Beauties of ancient China. She was said to have lived during the end of Spring and Autumn Period in Zhuji, the capital of the ancient State of Yue. Her name was Shi Yiguang (施夷光).[1]

Xi Shi's beauty was said to be so extreme that while leaning over a balcony to look at the fish in the pond, the fish would be so dazzled that they forgot to swim and gradually sunk away from the surface. This description serves as the first two characters of the Chinese idiom 沉魚落雁, 閉月羞花 (pinyin: chényú luòyàn, bìyuè xiūhuā), which is used to compliment someone's beauty.


The Story of Xi Shi

King Goujian of Yue, king of Yue, was once imprisoned after a defeat in a war by King Fuchai of Wu, king of the State of Wu. The state of Yue later became a tributary to Wu. Secretly planning his revenge, Goujian's minister Wen Zhong suggested training beautiful women and offering them to Fuchai as a tribute (knowing Fuchai could not resist beautiful women). His other minister, Fan Li, found Xi Shi and Zheng Dan, and gifted them to Fuchai in 490 BC.

Bewitched by the beauty and kindness of Xi Shi and Zheng Dan, Fuchai forgot all about his state affairs and at their instigation, killed his best advisor, the great general Wu Zixu. Fuchai even built Guanwa Palace (Palace of Beautiful Women) in an imperial park on the slope of Lingyan Hill, about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) west of Suzhou. The strength of Wu dwindled, and in 473 BC Goujian launched his strike and put the Wu army to full rout. King Fuchai lamented that he should have listened to Wu Zixu, and then committed suicide.

In the legend, after the fall of Wu, Fan Li retired from his ministerial post and lived with Xi Shi on a fishing boat, roaming like fairies in the misty wilderness of Taihu Lake, and no one saw them ever again. This is according to Yuan Kang's Yue Jueshu 《越绝书》. Another version, according to Mozi, is that Xi Shi eventually died from drowning in the river. (西施之沈,其美也)


Influence

She is remembered by the Xi Shi Temple, which lies at the foot of the Zhu Luo Hill (苎萝)in the southern part of the city, on the banks of the Huansha River.

The West Lake in Hangzhou is said to be the incarnation of Xi Shi, hence it is also called Xizi Lake, Xizi being another name for Xi Shi, meaning Lady Xi. In his famous work of song poetry, Drinks at West Lake through Sunshine and Rain (飲湖上初睛居雨), renowned scholar Su Dongpo compared Xi Shi's beauty to the West Lake.

Li Bai of the Tang dynasty wrote a poem about Xi Shi.

Imogen Heap released a song in 2012 titled Xizi She Knows after spending time in Hangzhou, China.

The Shih Tzu dog, among other stories, is believed to be an attempt to make a dog as beautiful as Xi Shi.


Other references

There is another well-known figure of unknown origin, probably fictional and parodical, named Dong Shi (東施). The "Dong" in her name means "east" contrasting to Xi Shi's "Xi", which means "west". Apart from her name, she is said to be the exact opposite of Xi Shi in being extremely ugly. This in turn has created the saying "Dong Shi imitates a frown" (东施效颦), whereas Dongshi, being ugly and thus inviting no suitor, emphasized her own ugliness while imitating Xishi's look of sexualized frailty and suffering. The saying has taken on a meaning to signify one's vain attempt imitating another only to emphasize one's own weaknesses.
A tongue twister that works best in Mandarin references XiShi: 西施死時四十四,四十四時西施死。(XīShī sǐ shí sì shí sì, sì shí sì shí XīShī sǐ.) It means Xishi died at (the age of) forty-four, at (age) forty-four Xishi died.


References

[1]^ 古代笔记中的西施归宿之争


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Beauties
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xi_Shi
人物: http://magupeople.blogspot.com/1983/05/xi-shi-506-bc.html

Xhosa people

Xhosa people

The Xhosa (pronounced [kǁʰɔsɑ]) people are speakers of Bantu languages living in south-east South Africa, and in the last two centuries throughout the southern and central-southern parts of the country.
Xhosa-speaking peoples are divided into several tribes with related but distinct heritages. The main tribes are the Mpondo, Mpondomise, Bomvana, Xesibe, and Thembu. In addition, the Bhaca and Mfengu have adopted the Xhosa language.[1] The name "Xhosa" comes from that of a legendary leader called uXhosa. There is also a theory that the word xhosa derives from a word in some Khoi-khoi or San language meaning "fierce" or "angry", the amaXhosa being the fierce people. The Xhosa refer to themselves as the amaXhosa and to their language as isiXhosa.

Presently approximately 8 million Xhosa people are distributed across the country, and Xhosa is South Africa's second most common home language, after Zulu, to which Xhosa is closely related. The pre-1994 apartheid system of Bantustans denied Xhosas South African citizenship, but enabled them to have self-governing "homelands" namely; Transkei and Ciskei, now both a part of the Eastern Cape Province where most Xhosa remain. Many Xhosa live in Cape Town (iKapa in Xhosa), East London (iMonti), and Port Elizabeth (iBhayi).

As of 2003 the majority of Xhosa speakers, approximately 5.3 million, lived in the Eastern Cape, followed by the Western Cape (approximately 1 million), Gauteng (671,045), the Free State (246,192), KwaZulu-Natal (219,826), North West (214,461), Mpumalanga (46,553), the Northern Cape (51,228), and Limpopo (14,225).[2]


Xhosa Proverb

Advice

@ One does not become great by claiming greatness.


References

[1]^ a b c d e f g h i Xhosa, Article at everyculture.com
[2]^ "SouthAfrica.info". SouthAfrica.info. 2003-07-09. Retrieved 2011-12-20.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xhosa_people
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Xhosa_proverbs

Xenophon (430–354 BC)


Xenophon (430–354 BC)

Xenophon (Ancient Greek Ξενοφῶν, Xenophōn; c. 430 – 354 BC), son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates. He is known for his writings on the history of his own times, the 4th century BC, preserving the sayings of Socrates, and descriptions of life in ancient Greece and the Persian Empire.


Quotes

Fast is fine, but accuracy is everything.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenophon