The Chinese legend of the butterfly lovers - Lijun Zhang
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- čas přidán 23. 03. 2022
- Dig into the Chinese myth of Zhu Yingtai, who disguises herself as a boy in order to attend school, and her love Liang Shanbo.
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Although only boys were allowed at the Confucius Academy, what Zhu Yingtai wanted was to go to school. She begged her parents to let her attend dressed as a boy and, seeing her determination and clever disguises, they finally agreed- as long as she kept her identity a secret and later returned to the traditional path they’d set for her. Lijun Zhang shares the Chinese myth of the butterfly lovers.
Lesson by Lijun Zhang, directed by Amir Houshang Moein.
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to everyone saying "butterfly only lives for two weeks" -- how long it may be, it will still be the love of a lifetime, and that's what matter.
quote by an indian author and artist nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore- "A butterfly counts time by moments and not months and has time enough"
@Rainbow Rose Princess Mishti yup ...afterall he is a legend 😅
Also maybe they became butterfly fairies or spirits (chinese mythological creatures) who could live a long time, and maybe even cultivate to have human shapes later on. Maybe they lived happily ever after in some mountain or valley. Anything's possible lol
my favourite comment ever.
yes, it doesn't matter how long or short it is, what matters is they can be together without feeling of separation again.
The real meaning of "historians will say they were best friends"
💀
LMAO
😆
HELP
Lol
the idea of love that sparks from their eyes without one looking at the other's gender is just so special.
love is love after all
And wierd too
@@theAi_journey ?
This was the exact feeling I felt when I saw her magical eyes, brimming with beauty and intelligence.
im your 1000th like
The music is definitely inspired by the Butterfly Lovers violin concerto. It's a very famous chinese orchestral music made inspired by this tale. Please give it a listen!
I just found one on YT, thank you for the recommendation! 🙏🏻
Twoset? 😊
Ahh it used to be my favorite concerto
Karen Chen, U.S. Figure Skater skated her 2022 Olympic Program to the Butterfly Lovers Concerto.
♡♡
although they left life apart from each other and heartbroken they reunited on thier next life as butterflies, creatures that are free from human rule, stories of legends are mostly sad but somehow deeply beautiful, great animation and great narrating ♡
yea at some point it's a good ending
Even though the story is really sad, it’s giving me Romeo and Juliet vibes
Butterflies are also a symbol of devotion, because they have only one partner in their lives
Likewise with Mandarin ducks, which feature in Chinese art as a of symbol of fidelity.
@@perverttbeautiful…
"Without hesitation, Yingtai threw herself in."
True romance is so rare and incredible it can only be told as myth. Awesome. 💘
Actually it’s a novel
@@kfc0802 not confirmed, so it is a myth
Amazing as always. Also, I didn't realize there was another Chinese legend about a girl disguising herself as a man. First Mulan, and now this bittersweet tale.
At least Mulan, the original version, was about being independent. Not at first wanting education but in the ending having it be about being in love with someone.
@@itsgonnabeanaurfromme The point of this story isn't being independent, it's freedom of choice for women. Yingtai chose romance over arranged marriage, which honors her indepentent choice.
Yea, why many stories about boys in love with girls in boy's outfit?
@@masakanistriku6203 That's not the point.
Yea, Chinese women have been fighting the patriarchal structure of society and misogyny for a long time
I’m Chinese and I’m really impressed by how good the pronunciation of the Chinese names are. Also thanks for making this video, I’ve encountered this legend many times in the form of concertos and movies and poems, and it’s nice that the rest of the world can know about it too :)
The narrator is Chinese :))
Same!! Super impressed with the pronunciation!!
Many people from different cultures made the same comment. I think because Ted respects different cultures and tries to represent all the world in their videos.
the narrator is Chinese. Check their name in the credits at 4:11
I'm pretty sure tge narrator is Chinese
I love this tale, because it shows that even in Ancient China, gender's roles ("You are born as a girl/boy, so you NEED to do this and that) were a terrible ennemy to freedom, liberty and happiness.
Pfft! Ancient China was INFAMOUS for it! They were all about small but stern rules that mean the difference between, what they considered to be, honor and shame!
Even in? How disconnected r u from history?
They dont call modern usa a free country for no reason
@@yokokurama5174 whoa there
OP didn't quite word it right, but it was clear that they meant that the fact that gender roles were stifling was _recognized_ , even if not outwardly and openly _acknowledged_ ; the fact that the story of the Butterfly Lovers resonated with enough people that it has recognition even in modern times is proof of that
@@videogollumer It depends on what period of Ancient China you're talking about. There were periods with huge strides forward in gender equality that eventually blackslid due to changes in power and new regimes.
@@qwertyuiopqwertywert Alright, yeah, I get it with the change of dynasties and successions of leaders and all that. Still, like I said, it's mark on China's history is anything but subtle. Then again, I'd be lying if I said that other countries didn't have a history with such restrictions.
"When Yingtai's wedding day came, it also felt like a funeral." :'(
IM IN LOVE WITH YOUR PFP
The Chinese pronunciations are spot on!
Good job Ted Ed 👍
Thank you!
I want to like but I don't want ruin 222 likes
@@user-lm9gf2wh6t already ruined 👀💀
"And when all the wars are over, a butterfly will still be beautiful." -Ruskin Bond 🙂❤️
☘️
❤
Wow. Thank you Ted-Ed. This was very beautiful in a tragic way.. It's fascinating to learn about myths from different parts of the world. So it would be interesting to hear about ancient Persian and Turkish mythologies as well.
Wonderful recommendations - thanks, Esma!
@@TEDEd✨💗
Persian and Turkish mythologies are so cool! We love hearing stories from around the world!
@@TEDEd Indian too 😇
@@TEDEd Hate to ruin the uplifting mood of the ending of this #Chinese 🥠 fable , #Justsayin 🙋 : Butterflies 🦋 Only live for 10 days 😢🗓 . 🏯👩🏫🧑🏫
Chinese folk tales include so many stories about girls disguised as boys to pursue different careers and live their best lives. E.g. Mulan fighting for her country and sharing her father's burden, Zhu Yingtai pursuing education, the widows from Yang family becoming female generals after their husbands died in war.
My grandma likes to watch Yue Opera which is a type of traditional Chinese Opera. Some of her favourite stories are about smart young women in ancient China who dressed like boys so they could attend the national exams and become officials or scholars.
Two lovers
Forbidden from one another
A war divides their people
And a mountain divides them apart
Built a path to be together...
SECRET TUNNEL SECRET TUNNEL
@@thebender3118 THRU THE MOUNTAIN
@@BingQilin SECRET SECRET SECRET SECRET TUNNEL
*atla’s cave of lovers intensifies*
Omashu
The Butterfly Lovers is one of my favourite violin concertos and I always wondered what the story behind it was! I love replaying the parts in the piece where they are forced to separate and the very end when they reunite again. The emotions are so raw through the music I can't help but feel sad and then elated during the end.
Thanks to your comment, I found lovely new music. Thank you!
Successful lovers are friends, selfless and equal. Beautifully told tale.
I read a version of this myth or perhaps TedEd chose to focus on the lovers' arc. The two lovers also came to the school with a servant. The servants fell in love with one another and fortunately didn't have to endure the same 'tragedies' as their masters and loved freely.
Does the tale mention the _gender_ of the two servants? 🤔 I'm not familiar with how ancient China would have viewed homosexuality...
@@Ikajo there is no homosexuality (sorry if my comment was misleading) Zhu Yingtai's servant was female and had to disguise herself as a male like her mistress. Liang Shanbo's servant was a male.
@@tiffanychan9627 Don't worry about it, I just tend to be more likely to wonder about gender in stories. As I think it would change the implications. And because I think it is sweet when people of the same gender gets to have a happy ending.
@@Ikajo if you are interested in an actual ancient chinese tale involving two lovers of the same gender, look up the story of the "cut sleeve", which is about Emperor Ai and his lover---it wasn't uncommon for love to cross the bounds of gender back in certain dynasties of China. This specific tale is so famous that the "cut sleeve" is now a euphemism in china for being attracted to the same gender.
@@Chromebeetle_ I've heard of it before. I'm more familiar with Japanese history due to having studied the language
what a way to bring 2 lovers together
-that was beautiful
The way she mixes Chinese pronunciation of the names in sentences makes me feel so serene
Dude these butterflies just reminds me of Hua Cheng, his butterflies were the symbol of the most sincere devotion 😭
The most sincere devotion🌕
😫❤️😭OMGGG YESSSS
This story is so beautiful, despite being tragic. And the animation at 0:54 literally left me breathless. Great job!
Roses are red
Sky is blue
The story was great
Animation too
Yingtai turned into a butterfly
Shanbo turned too
And said 'I love you'
To which Yingtai replied
'Love you too'
Good one🌈
its sweet shanbo tried to look for yingtai's "brother" before he realized
their story is so beautiful 🦋
My goodness- how in the world did you captivate me and break my heart in 5 minutes?? Thank you for this beautiful tale.
Glad they reunited and together again as butterflies , they will start a new life together, and love each other forever.
This is one of the stories I had read and loved growing up. In some version it’s said that they’re the reincarnation of two servants of the Queen Mother of Heaven (WangMu NiangNiang), Gold Boy and Jade Girl, and the reason they’re unable to marry is also because YinTai’s family is wealthy and ShanBo was born into a poor family, so when she asked her parents to let her marry him, they denied her and arranged the marriage with Ma family instead.
I love this series of TED-Ed. Hope we could see Filipino myths soon!
Yeah, like the legend of Mt. Mayon or Folktales of Maria Makiling
I agree. It would be very interesting.
The narration was so beautiful that tears roll down my face. Great job Ted-Ed.
there’s something beautiful about tragedies teaching us that it’ll be okay
0:53 "as their eyes met, they shared an instant connection." 🥺💖
I almost cried looking at the title. This was a story my parents would tell me when I was younger and it's always as touching and sad as it was the first time I heard it.
Though I"m not Chinese, my childhood was filled with Chinese films. The video really took me back to my old days. There's also a film about Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. I remembered having watched it every evening when I was 8. Thank Ted for this beautiful video!
I came to the comment for this. I also remember the movie. If i am not wrong, the actor is Nicky Wu
i just know that shanbo was a closeted bi
The Chinese pronunciations are spot on! Good job Ted Ed . Successful lovers are friends, selfless and equal. Beautifully told tale..
this has been my favourite chinese legend for the longest time. thanks TED-Ed for sharing it with the world with such a beautifully done video
Butterfly lovers song lyric :
Distant place ( yuan fang)
Dawn just doesn't understand our sorrow
Two people are now left with only one
Who could forget those times ?
It't easy to part but difficult to reunite
Wind, could not blow away the vicissitudes
Rain, lightly drops around the eyes
In this world, who else feels the warmth ?
I'm far away, the heart is tired of waiting
The mountains and oceans are boundless
The familiar sceneries make me sad
I'm far away, the nostalgia in my thoughts deepens
Tears drench my white shirt
I'm in a distant place , the flower falls, my heart breaks
Life is not joyful, death is not peaceful either
I'm in a distant place
I sadly lean against the windowsill
Waiting for you to leave me broken hearted
You are in a distant place.
Anyone else's mind blown by the bittersweet beauty of this story?
Their story still enchants me, even after all these years!
Hello Amy 👋
Just wanted to say hello 👋 as pass by your comments and would also say that beauty has been the most expensive part of life XOXO
"..she could float forever, with Shanbo by her side." crying crying crying
Tragic love stories are always the best ones! 🥺
except when they are about ourselves
this was one of my favourite stories when I was younger (and it possibly still is). it makes me really happy to see it covered here!
Love it when the narrator pronounces the names correctly.
Oh my god, this is so beautiful. I hate it that I didn't dive into Chinese/Asian myths deeper. Their stories are beautiful. The first part reminds me of Mulan and Li Shang. But the ending is...
“I almost wish we were butterflies and liv'd but three summer days - three such days with you I could fill with more delight than fifty common years could ever contain.” -John Keats
🥺✋ Do you have any more love quotes like this?
@@raisyrosye7656 Read the poem The More Loving One by W.H Auden (it's about unrequited love)
@@blobfishblobfish6418 I read it, thank you so much for telling me about this poem. The use of stars really was well thought out!
Never skipping Ted-Ed videos. They always excite me.
“The young scholar he _always loved_ “ there’s no way this dude was straight
Love can manifest itself in many different ways
I'm glad that atleast her parents let her pursue what she wanted, even though they clearly stated that she had to return to the traditional path later on.
🍁
Love never dies
Even if lovers die
Love flies to another lover
Just like flowers' scent
That butterflies flew to other lovers
Another story
Maybe happy ending 🌺
Waah very nice 👏👏👌
☘️
♥️♥️♥️ the story, the animation and literally everything has been done with so much love and beauty 💫
I know this tale because I watched a Chinese film when I was a child. This title in Vietnamese is Lương sơn bá chúc anh đài. It was really famous in Vietnam at that time. And now I know it has another name, Butterfly lovers.
(Basically what I imagine they talk)
Shanboo: How could I ever be apart of my brother soul despite of our different flesh and bone?
Yingtai: Part of you is not as you known.
Shanboo: Better than ever be. We shall be as one flesh and bone. Together forevermore.
Yingtai: If only fate chose to unite us now by cutting the other lines who interrupt this crossing engagement.
Shanboo: O Yingtai. How you are far but near. Near but so far. Like a ship that I can grasp under palm and yet not able to reach out. Love me if may, at least see me once in my death.
Yingtai: If heaven may not want us to be together in this life, let us be one in death. For a bird with a single wing can't fly without the other.
Shanboo & Yingtai: Love is free but never cheap. If there is no other way better than to sacrifice, then let it be so! Even when it is costly, even if we have to suffer!
This was beautiful❤❤
Serene but heart wrenching. Many vow to each other.. Till death do us part.. But for them, it was that very death that let them 'float' together
@@MaimV I bet they said all thal lol
This just popped in after seeing two dancing butterflies in the backyard.
And earlier this morning I was listening to Bei Bei’s guzheng version of the song.
A loved one passed a few years ago, and this all happened today. What a lovely reminder
This randomly popped up on my feed after I saw two butterflies in front of a date's car too.
The 1994 movie based on this story is just soo good~ Titled "Sampek Engtay" (basically their name) or Butterfly Lovers.. Still remember I cried so bad watching that 💔 Such a classic!
I love the way how the narrator take her time to pronounce each of the words properly. Great job : D
More of this please! Beautiful art and music as beautiful as the love story♡
It doesn’t matter how long butterflies live. They’re love was true and pure. And they will find each other in the next life
Beautiful Story! Great narration
That's what storytelling is all about ☺
I am crying while listening to this story. So beautiful. 😭
it's from another hemisphere and century, but I can't help but be reminded of "Dos Oruguitas": two caterpillars who must transform into their best selves to find each other again and fly forward.
It’s so amazing, heart warming and satisfactory !! Keep up the good work Ted Ed !!😄
Too much heart strings pulled. Beautifully presented
Told really well and very moving. I've seen this legend live in a traveling Noh theatre with my partner. Today 8 years in my true love marriage begun as a crush from across a field crossed with parents wishes betrayed for it- I cant help but feel like one of these butterflies.
Another amazing myth. My favorite Ted-Ed series for sure.
Whoa, before this was a video about Zhuangzi and how we may be the dream of a butterfly, now this.
Thank you, After Yang.
I’m very happy and moved by this rendition of this famous legend.
Why this suddenly popped up as my recommendation and why this breaks my heart.. love like this is rare these days and it just hurts how they were not meant to be together in this lifetime…
Die for other is easy, live for other is harder.
The story and music was so tragic I almost teared up.
After reading the comments, I searched and watched both Butterfly Lovers Concerto videos in Violin & ErHu (the traditional Chinese musical instrument) I cried so much! True love regardless genders, family backgrounds, culture restrictions etc. So rare & so touching for hundreds of years...
My grandmother used to tell me stories like this when i was younger. I’ve been looking for the tales that she told me online, trying to find the one about the butterflies - my all time favorite. Now I’ve found one that sounds almost exactly like the version that my grandmother told me :D
Thank you sm, ted-ed
I cannot believe teded hooked me up to the story in 5 mins and it took me a moment to come into the real world once again
Wow. What a sad story, but it's very beautiful though. I love the animation, music, and the narrator's voice. I love Chinese legends and history. I hope we see more of them. This story definitely hit me hard and made me cry.
Another storyteller with superb Mandarin skills. The pronunciations were spot on.
I saw this play at a theatre in Beijing. Just beautiful.
Such a lovely story. More please!
This is so beautiful, thank you for sharing this wonderful story with us 🙏🏽📖
Everyone keeps calling Orpheus' story a tragedy; but consider that he ultimately reunited with Eurydice when he died, it's not really a tragedy at all. It was more of a tribulation; he had to endure a lot of sorrow, but he ultimately got a happy ending.
This is one of the best love stories in the world
That was great. Good animation and a good story. Keep up the Chinese myths. They are really good, tragic, and sad.
Loved the story and animation TED-Ed!
Such a beautiful story... it really touched my heart.
his makes me SOB. the artwork is beautiful, the Storytellers great voice and clear and resounding storytelling. the storyboarding is great. lovelovelove this.
That is a great story. I hope that we no longer have to die to finally love who we want to love.
For those who are interested, the master director/producer Tsui Hark made a movie about this tale, simply called "The Lovers". You should give it a watch (as well as its other films tbh)
This story was beautiful!
I love how on point and accurate the pronunciations are, the narrator is probably is a native Chinese speaker 🤔
A tragic yet beautiful tale of love. Somehow this reminded me of Omashu from ATLA
I must say this seems to be a different version of the tale I am accustomed to! Beauty of folktales I guess!
I grew up with this legend and was obsessed with this when I was 6-8
Thanks TED-ED!
I just love any of TedEd videos ❤
Such a amazing story !
I love it.
I read this story when I was a kid in a Chinese folktale book .Amazing story and amazing video
Wonderful. Thanks for sharing this 🙌
Beautiful imagination. Changed my perspective of the butterfly beauty.
What a beautiful ancient story about love to start anyone's day. #endlesslove #love #truelove
nice
this is a famous Chinese myth that my grandpa told me
thanks Ted ed for retelling the story :)