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会挽雕弓如满月

會挽雕弓如滿月
huìwǎndiāogōngrúmǎnyuè
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 I shall draw my carved bow as round as the full moon
  2. 2 (fig.) martial resolve to serve the country; eagerness to confront the enemy
  3. 3 (lit.) will draw carved-bow like full-moon

Examples

会挽雕弓如满月，西北望，射天狼，苏轼的词何等豪迈。
Huì wǎn diāogōng rú mǎnyuè, xīběi wàng, shè tiānláng, Sū Shì de cí héděng háomài.
'I shall draw my carved bow as round as the full moon, gaze to the northwest, and shoot the Sirius wolf' — how heroic Su Shi's lyric is.
军人演练射击时自勉：会挽雕弓如满月。
Jūnrén yǎnliàn shèjī shí zì miǎn: huì wǎn diāogōng rú mǎnyuè.
Soldiers exhort themselves in marksmanship training: 'I shall draw my carved bow as round as the full moon.'

Tips

history
From 苏轼《江城子·密州出猎》(Su Shi, Northern Song, 1075), written during a hunt at Mizhou and a turning-point for 豪放 (bold/martial) cí: 老夫聊发少年狂... 持节云中，何日遣冯唐？会挽雕弓如满月，西北望，射天狼 (Old man that I am, for a moment I feel a boy's wild spirit... when will the court send Feng Tang to pardon me? I shall draw my carved bow as round as the full moon, gaze northwest, and shoot the Sirius wolf). 天狼 = Sirius, a star symbolizing the Western Xia invaders.
usage
Typically quoted as the triplet 会挽雕弓如满月，西北望，射天狼 — the three short clauses close the cí with a burst of action. 会 here = 'shall / will' (future resolve), not 'meeting.' 雕弓 = a bow carved/decorated, a high-status warrior's bow.

Stroke Order

会 huì
挽 wǎn
雕 diāo
弓 gōng
如 rú
满 mǎn
月 yuè