Miahlee Posted May 4, 2017 at 12:48 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 12:48 AM Hey everyone, I saw this on a Bruce Lee poster and wanted to know if it said what I think it is. I'm a huge Bruce fan and am considering getting a tattoo if it says what I hope it does. Can anyone translate? If it's in the wrong context can someone correct it? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zainajenkins Posted May 4, 2017 at 03:33 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 03:33 AM not sure why it starts out with the character it does, but I believe it says "this water is my friend" 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 03:56 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 03:56 AM It's a bad translation of 'be water, my friend'. Don't get this tattooed. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miahlee Posted May 4, 2017 at 04:10 AM Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 04:10 AM 3 hours ago, Miahlee said: Bruce Imron, what would be the correct translation? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zainajenkins Posted May 4, 2017 at 04:28 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 04:28 AM Thank you for correcting me! I am new to learning mandarin and wasn't sure about the translation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 05:25 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 05:25 AM 1 hour ago, Miahlee said: what would be the correct translation? Have a read of the dozens of posts discussing the exact same subject. The general consensus is that however you phrase it, it doesn't make a good tattoo. If I had to choose, I like Publius' reply here. 兵無常勢，水無常形 is similar in meaning, but is not what Bruce Lee said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somethingfunny Posted May 4, 2017 at 06:05 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 06:05 AM Took me a little while to work out how that meant 'be water, my friend'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 06:24 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 06:24 AM This was my process: Bruce Lee quote.... ✓ Nonsense Chinese.... ✓ Contains Chinese word for 'water'.... ✓ Contains Chinese word for 'friend'... ✓ That narrows it down to more or less one quote. And sure enough, if you visit freetranslation.com (the site in the screenshot) and put in the English for Bruce Lee's quote you'll get the exact same translation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somethingfunny Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:10 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:10 AM I'm not familiar with the quote, so I went through a lot of: Is Imron sure it's not supposed to be 水是我的朋友? Or maybe even 谁是我的朋友? Google translate at least does it a little better with 成为水，我的朋友 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:16 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:16 AM Only if you add a comma after water 'be water, my friend'. Without any commas, it translates 'Be water my friend' to 成为我的朋友 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somethingfunny Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:38 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:38 AM Yeah! That was annoying, especially when I back translated it and it gave "Become my friend". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roddy Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:55 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 08:55 AM 1) Did Bruce Lee actually have any tattoos? 2) Is that an actual Bruce Lee quote or something attributed to him? He must rank up there with Confucius for being misquoted. 3) Where's the source? What language was he speaking at the time? Why translate out of it? Because Chinese is pretty? So are flowers. Do you have a bunch of posies tattooed on your bicep? Maybe you should. That would be more sensible. "I'm getting a tattoo of a Bruce Lee quote I saw on a poster and have translated into Chinese" is a sentence which just gets less advisable as it goes on. At the very least, sleep on it for six months. As the man himself said, "Think extensively, act reluctantly." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 09:27 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 09:27 AM 1) Don't think so. 2) Yes. An actual quote. 3) See here. He was speaking English, hence all the problems surrounding this quote because people are trying to find an exact equivalent in Chinese, but the Chinese looks/sounds silly as a tattoo. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 10:40 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 10:40 AM Hah, well, after investigating this a bit further, it turns out that in that interview I linked to above, he was just quoting a line of his from a TV show he was in. To be fair, the part he played in the show was based on himself, and the main actor was also one of his students, but I think many people take that black and white clip as off the cuff expression of his fighting philosophy when it was anything but off the cuff. I mean that quote is everywhere, and the source referenced is always that clip, but it's just a line of dialog from a TV show and the 'my friend' is specifically referring to the other actor. Anyway, after some hunting, I tracked down the original scene from the series - Longstreet, episode - "Way of the intercepting fist". For Bruce Lee aficionados there are a number of other scenes in the same episode, with Bruce Lee fighting and teaching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roddy Posted May 4, 2017 at 10:56 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 10:56 AM Ha, after watching the first clip I almost posted to say he was really playing up the mystical Oriental sage thing but didn't for fear of angering his fans. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imron Posted May 4, 2017 at 11:29 AM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 11:29 AM That's exactly it. The first clip appears to be him playing up that 'mystical Oriental sage' but he's literally just dropping in to acting mode and replaying the role of the character he played on that show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miahlee Posted May 4, 2017 at 01:46 PM Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 01:46 PM If there isn't a good translation, is there a good one for "be like water"? I appreciate the feedback, made me think twice about the tattoo haha 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lu Posted May 4, 2017 at 02:48 PM Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 at 02:48 PM Glad you're thinking twice :-) Bruce Lee said this phrase in English, so you could just get it in English, in a nice font. That way, you're sure you get the correct quote. Or is there a specific reason you want it in Chinese, even when the original isn't? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miahlee Posted May 5, 2017 at 12:26 AM Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2017 at 12:26 AM Great question, I want it in Chinese for a couple reasons. 1. I love Chinese culture, I've always been a huge fan and respect their history. 2. I find calligraphy pretty fascinating and love the art. I want to get a phrase as close as I can to that quote because it has a deeper meaning to me from my experiences in life and also want it in Chinese calligraphy. Would this pic be a good translation for "Be like water"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flickserve Posted May 5, 2017 at 04:31 AM Report Share Posted May 5, 2017 at 04:31 AM 4 hours ago, Miahlee said: I want to get a phrase as close as I can to that quote because it has a deeper meaning to me from my experiences in life and also want it in Chinese calligraphy Probably quite difficult and won't sound poetic. If you really like it and do the tattoo, just don't show it to somebody who knows Chinese. There is an actress who has tatooed on her back something to do with 'lemon water'...OK, yeah well.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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