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零落成泥碾作尘

零落成泥碾作塵
língluòchéngníniǎnzuòchén
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 fallen, scattered, crushed into mud and ground to dust
  2. 2 (fig.) even ruined and destroyed, the essence remains pure
  3. 3 (lit.) scattered-falling, become mud, crushed-into dust

Examples

老艺术家一生坎坷，但始终零落成泥碾作尘，只有香如故。
Lǎo yìshùjiā yīshēng kǎnkě, dàn shǐzhōng língluò chéng ní niǎn zuò chén, zhǐ yǒu xiāng rú gù.
The old artist's life was full of hardship, but throughout — 'crushed to mud, ground to dust, only the fragrance remains as before.'
这句零落成泥碾作尘道出了坚贞不屈的品格。
Zhè jù língluò chéng ní niǎn zuò chén dào chū le jiānzhēn bù qū de pǐngé.
The line 'crushed to mud, ground to dust' expresses an unyielding, upright character.

Tips

history
From 陆游《卜算子·咏梅》(Lu You, Southern Song, 12th c.): 驿外断桥边，寂寞开无主……无意苦争春，一任群芳妒。零落成泥碾作尘，只有香如故 (By the broken bridge beyond the postal station, the plum blooms lonely, masterless... it never strove for spring, let all the flowers envy it. Fallen, crushed to mud, ground to dust — only the fragrance remains as before). Lu You's declaration that integrity survives any destruction.
usage
Absolutely inseparable from 只有香如故 — the two lines are always quoted together. 碾 (niǎn) = to crush by rolling. 作 here = 成 (to become). Mao Zedong's own《卜算子·咏梅》(1961) is an explicit response/inversion of Lu You's poem.

Stroke Order

零 líng
落 luò
成 chéng
泥 ní
碾 niǎn
作 zuò
尘 chén