但愿人长久 (dànyuànrénchángjiǔ): may we all live long and well — a wish for the lasting well-being of loved ones, especially those far away

Meanings

1 may we all live long and well — a wish for the lasting well-being of loved ones, especially those far away
2 literally: only wish that people be long-lasting

Characters

但

Examples

中秋的月饼盒上常写着：但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。

Zhōngqiū de yuèbǐng hé shàng cháng xiě zhe: dàn yuàn rén cháng jiǔ, qiān lǐ gòng chán juān.

Mid-Autumn mooncake boxes often bear the line: 'May we all live long, and share this fair moon across a thousand miles.'

爷爷生日那天，全家举杯：但愿人长久。

Yéye shēngrì nà tiān, quán jiā jǔ bēi: dàn yuàn rén cháng jiǔ.

On grandpa's birthday, the whole family raised their glasses: 'May you live long and well.'

Tips

history

From Su Shi's (苏轼) Song-dynasty ci 《水调歌头·明月几时有》, written on Mid-Autumn 1076 missing his brother Su Zhe. Closing couplet: 但愿人长久，千里共婵娟 — 'Only wish that we may live long, and together share this fair moon across a thousand miles.' 婵娟 (chánjuān) here poetically refers to the moon. Teresa Teng's (邓丽君) 1983 song 《但愿人长久》 cemented the phrase in the modern imagination.

usage

Paired couplet — almost always quoted with its mate 千里共婵娟. The go-to Mid-Autumn / family blessing; also appears on wedding stationery, birthday cards, and farewell toasts.

In Pop Culture

《但愿人长久》 Dàn Yuàn Rén Cháng Jiǔ

Wishing We Last Forever

1983 Teresa Teng song setting Su Shi's entire ci 《水调歌头》 to music, later covered by Faye Wong (王菲) — probably the single biggest reason the phrase is known by everyone in the Chinese-speaking world.