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何时缚住苍龙

何時縛住蒼龍
héshífùzhùcānglóng
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 when shall we bind the blue dragon?
  2. 2 (fig.) when will we finally subdue the enemy / overcome the great challenge?
  3. 3 (lit.) what-time tie-fast blue-dragon

Examples

面对强敌，将士们心中都在问：何时缚住苍龙？
Miànduì qiáng dí, jiàngshìmen xīnzhōng dōu zài wèn: héshí fùzhù cānglóng?
Facing a powerful foe, every soldier is asking in his heart: 'when shall we bind the blue dragon?'
科研攻关数十年，何时缚住苍龙一直激励着团队。
Kēyán gōngguān shù shí nián, héshí fùzhù cānglóng yīzhí jīlìzhe tuánduì.
Decades of hard research — 'when shall we bind the blue dragon?' has kept the team motivated.

Tips

history
From 毛泽东《清平乐·六盘山》(Mao Zedong, Qing Ping Yue: Liupan Mountain, 1935), paired with 今日长缨在手: 今日长缨在手，何时缚住苍龙 (Today the long cord is in my hand — when shall we bind the blue dragon?). 苍龙 traditionally refers to 蒋介石/日本 (interpretations vary by annotator) — the principal enemy of the moment. Mao's note: 'here 苍龙 means the Japanese imperialists, not Jiang Jieshi.'
usage
Inseparable from 今日长缨在手 (entry 831 in this set). 苍 (cāng) = dark-blue / greyish-green; here, dragon color. 缚 (fù) = to bind/tie up (not 绑 bǎng). Modern rhetorical use: any monumental but still-unfinished goal.

Stroke Order

何 hé
时 shí
缚 fù
住 zhù
苍 cāng
龙 lóng