海上明月共潮生

hǎi shàng míngyuè gòng cháo shēng
quotation

Meanings

  1. 1 the bright moon on the sea rises together with the tide
  2. 2 a sublime, cosmic image of simultaneity and natural grandeur
  3. 3 lit. sea, upon, bright, moon, together, tide, rise

Examples

HSK 5
Zhàn zài hǎibiān, kàn hǎi shàng míngyuè gòng cháo shēng de jǐngxiàng.
Standing by the sea, watching 'the bright moon on the sea rise with the tide.'
HSK 7-9
Zhōngqiū zhī yè, tā xiǎngqǐ Zhāng Ruòxū hǎi shàng míngyuè gòng cháo shēng de míngjù.
On the night of Mid-Autumn she recalled Zhang Ruoxu's famous line 'on the sea, the bright moon rises with the tide.'

Tips

history
Opening line of 张若虚春江花月夜》 (Zhang Ruoxu, Tang, late 7th c.), 'Spring River, Flower, Moon, Night', praised by Qing critic 王闿运 as 孤篇压全唐 ('one poem that outweighs all of Tang'): 春江潮水连海平海上明月共潮生. The poem weaves moon, river, tide, blossoms, and human separation into one of the most celebrated meditations in classical Chinese verse.
usage
here = classical 'together with.' The line is a favorite epigraph on Mid-Autumn posters, postcards, and calligraphy. Often quoted alongside its opening companion 春江潮水连海平.

Stroke Order

hǎi
shàng
míng
yuè
gòng
cháo
shēng