沧海横流 Cāng Hǎi Héng Liú Turbulent sea

Explanation

沧海横流比喻政治混乱，社会动荡不安。

"Cang Hai Heng Liu" is a metaphor for political chaos and social unrest.

Origin Story

西晋末年，随着五胡乱华的爆发，天下陷入一片混乱。战火纷飞，百姓流离失所，哀鸿遍野。许多官员贪污腐败，百姓民不聊生，社会秩序荡然无存。一时间，国家风雨飘摇，如同沧海横流，处处不安。一位名叫王尼的官员，目睹了这一切，他带着年幼的儿子逃离战乱，前往江南避难。一路上，他们颠沛流离，饱受饥寒。王尼不禁悲叹道：“沧海横流，处处不安也！”最终，他们在江夏投奔荆州刺史王澄，然而好景不长，王澄不久便去世，王尼父子也因饥饿而死。他们的悲惨命运，正是当时社会动荡不安的真实写照。

xī jìn mò nián, suí zhe wǔ hú luàn huá de bàofā, tiān xià miàn rù yī piàn hùn luàn. zhàn huǒ fēn fēi, bǎi xìng liú lí shī suǒ, āi hóng biàn yě. xǔ duō guān yuán tānwū fǔ bài, bǎi xìng mín bù liáo shēng, shè huì zhì xù dàng rán wú cún. yī shí jiān, guó jiā fēng yǔ piāo yáo, rú tóng cāng hǎi héng liú, chù chù bù ān. yī wèi míng jiào wáng ní de guān yuán, mù dǔ le yī qiè, tā dài zhe nián yòu de ér zi táo lí zhàn luàn, qián wǎng jiāng nán bì nàn. yī lù shang, tā men diān pèi liú lí, bǎo shòu jī hán. wáng ní bù jīn bēi tàn dào: “cāng hǎi héng liú, chù chù bù ān yě!” zuì zhōng, tā men zài jiāng xià tóu bēn jīng zhōu cì shǐ wáng chéng, rán ér hǎo jǐng bù cháng, wáng chéng bù jiǔ biàn qù shì, wáng ní fù zǐ yě yīn jī è ér sǐ. tā men de bēi cǎn mìng yùn, zhèng shì dāng shí shè huì dòng dàng bù ān de zhēn shí xiě zhào.

At the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, with the outbreak of the Wu Hu war, the world fell into chaos. War raged, the people were displaced, and cries of grief filled the land. Many officials were corrupt and the people lived in poverty; social order had completely collapsed. For a time, the country was in turmoil, like a raging sea, nowhere was safe. An official named Wang Ni witnessed all this, and he fled with his young son to Jiangnan to escape the war. Along the way, they suffered hardship and hunger. Wang Ni sighed: "Cang Hai Heng Liu, chu chu bu an ye!" Finally, they sought refuge in Jiangxia with Wang Cheng, the governor of Jingzhou, but good fortune was short-lived; Wang Cheng soon passed away, and Wang Ni and his son also died of starvation. Their tragic fate was a true reflection of the social unrest of the time.

Usage

用于形容社会动荡不安的局面。

yòng yú miáo xiè shè huì dòng dàng bù ān de jú miàn

Used to describe a turbulent and unstable social situation.

Examples

• 西晋末年，天下大乱，正如沧海横流，百姓流离失所。

  xī jìn mò nián, tiān xià dà luàn, zhèng rú cāng hǎi héng liú, bǎi xìng liú lí shī suǒ

  At the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, the country was in great chaos, just like the turbulent sea, and the people were displaced.

• 面对国家危亡之际，英雄豪杰们挺身而出，在沧海横流的乱世中展现了他们的本色。

  miàn duì guó jiā wēi wáng zhī jī, yīng xióng háo jié men tǐng shēn ér chū, zài cāng hǎi héng liú de luàn shì zhōng zhǎn xiàn le tā men de běnsè

  In times of national peril, heroes and heroines stood up, showing their true colors amidst the turbulent sea of chaos.

• 改革开放初期，经济环境复杂多变，如同沧海横流，充满机遇与挑战。

  gǎi gé kāi fàng chū qī, jīng jì huán jìng fù zá duō biàn, rú tóng cāng hǎi héng liú, chōng mǎn jī huì yǔ tiǎo zhàn

  In the early days of reform and opening up, the economic environment was complex and volatile, much like a turbulent sea, full of opportunities and challenges.

Related Idioms

• 战乱

• 动荡

• 混乱

Opposite Idioms

• 国泰民安

• 太平盛世