Meaning of 兩世緣

[laopengyou]

Hello everybody,

How would you translate

[laopengyou]

Hello everybody,

How would you translate 兩世緣 please ? This expression is sometimes found in novels and short stories about love between a mortal and a ghost. 緣 refers to a predestined union, but what does 兩世 exactly mean ?

Thanks for your answers.

Best regards.

[jbradfor]

Two worlds? As in mortal world and ghost world?

[Glenn]

That's how I'd interpret it.

[laopengyou]

Yes, the world of mortals and the world of ghosts, that seems obvious tome too. But I've seen 兩世緣 translated as "I am destined to be yours in your next existence" (said by a female ghost to an earthly man). So, 兩世 would mean "second life" and not "two worlds" ? Still, I'm not really convinced : It sounds more like a loose paraphrase than like a literal translation.

Best regards

[skylee]

This is what I think -

a) this phrase is not commonly used;

b) for mortal/ghost relationships, the more commonly used terms/descriptions are 陰陽 or 人鬼 (ref - film names such as 陰陽錯、人鬼情未了, etc);

c) 兩世 looks more likely to refer to two lives (this life plus the next life, involving reincarnation and/or the spirit not forgetting the current experience and / or fate) of one or both parties.

[laopengyou]

Hello Skylee,

thanks for your answer. It's true that 世 in classical Chinese rarely means 世界, but rather means 一生 or 一辈子. So "your next existence" would be a good translation after all.

Best regards !