Meaning of idiom? (前尘往事)

[lynh0630]

Hello,

I tried to do a search on this forum for "前尘往事" but came up with nothing. Can someone please explain to me the meaning behind the idiom 前尘往事? The dictionary gives me "the past and remembrance (idiom)," but I didn't find that too helpful. Any further insight would be great!

In context, I first ran into the idiom from watching a Wuxia series I love dearly (New Dragon Inn 1994 by the company ATV). Here is the full quote from the series:

"點點在心頭，前塵往事，故人情重。既然你忘不了，我又怎麼能夠放得下呢？"

I like this set of quote lines a lot.

Much appreciated,

Lynh

[Jim]

I think 往事 is pretty straightforward - "things in the past" "past things" etc.

前尘 I assume is derived from the term 红尘 which meant the affairs of the world and so is similar in meaning to 往事 and it's a repetition for effect. 红尘 was used to translate the Buddhist idea of phenomenal existence I believe - not sure if it was a pre-existing Chinese term or it came from the Buddhist idea.

[studentyoung]

前尘

　　qiánchén

　　[the past] 佛教称色、声、香、味、触、法为六尘,认为当前的境界由六尘构成,都是虚幻的,所以称前尘。后来指从前的或过去经历过的事情

In Buddhism, color, sound, smell, taste, touch and feeling are six kind of dusts, which form the illusory world in front of you, i.e. 前尘. Now, 前尘 generally refers to “the past” or “things happened in the past”.

Cheers!

[lynh0630]

Thank you all for your input--very helpful! ^^v