Chinese Fable

风声鹤唳🔊

Fēng Shēng Hè Lì
📚 Fables⏱ 3 min read🎧 Audio

This fable describes extreme panic where even the wind and cranes seem like enemies.

The Story 🔊

Tóngyàng shì Féishuǐ zhī zhàn de gùshi
同样Tóngyàng🔊shì🔊淝水之战Féishuǐ zhī zhàn🔊de🔊故事gùshi🔊
Qián Qín jūnduì zhànbài hòu shìbīng men pīnmiàn táopǎo
前秦Qián Qín🔊军队jūnduì🔊战败后zhànbài hòu🔊士兵们shìbīng men🔊拼命pīnmiàn🔊逃跑táopǎo🔊
Tāmen tīngdào fēngshēng yǐwéi shì zhuībīng lái le
他们Tāmen🔊听到tīngdào🔊风声fēngshēng🔊以为yǐwéi🔊shì🔊追兵zhuībīng🔊来了lái le🔊
Tīngdào hè de jiàoshēng yě yǐwéi shì Dōng Jìn jūnduì zhuī lái le
听到Tīngdào🔊鹤的hè de🔊叫声jiàoshēng🔊🔊以为yǐwéi🔊shì🔊东晋Dōng Jìn🔊军队jūnduì🔊追来了zhuī lái le🔊
Kǒngjù ràng tāmen cǎo mù jiē bīng fēng shēng hè lì
恐惧Kǒngjù🔊ràng🔊他们tāmen🔊草木皆兵cǎo mù jiē bīng🔊风声鹤唳fēng shēng hè lì🔊
English Translation:
This is also from the Battle of Fei River. After the Former Qin army was defeated, soldiers fled desperately. When they heard the wind, they thought pursuing troops were coming. When they heard the cranes calling, they also thought the Eastern Jin army was chasing them. Fear made them see enemies in everything.

Key Vocabulary

风声鹤唳
fēng shēng hè lì
panic at wind and cranes
风声
fēngshēng
sound of wind
crane
追兵
zhuībīng
pursuing troops
恐惧
kǒngjù
fear
逃跑
táopǎo
flee

The Moral

Panic amplifies fear! This idiom describes being so terrified that even natural sounds seem threatening.

Cultural Insight

风声鹤唳 is often paired with 草木皆兵, both from the Battle of Fei River in "Book of Jin" (晋书).