In the Jin Dynasty (jìn cháo 晉朝,265-420), a man called Yue Guang (yuè guǎng 樂廣) once invited a friend to have a drink at his home. When the friend lifted his cup, he saw a small snake in the wine, yet he forced himself to drink. Back home, the friend recalled the incident, and felt so disgusted that he fell ill. Hearing about this, Yue Guang invited his friend again. He asked him to sit in the same place and drink. Then his friend saw that the image of the snake in the cup was actually the reflection of a bow hung on the wall. Realizing this, the friend recovered quickly.
樂廣有一位親密的朋友,分別很久不見再來了。問到原因時(shí),友人告訴說:“前些日子他來你家做客,承蒙你的厚意,正端起酒杯要喝酒的時(shí)候,仿佛看見杯中有一條"小蛇"在晃動(dòng)。心里雖然十分厭惡它,可還是喝了那杯酒?;氐郊依铮蜕淼弥夭?。”當(dāng)時(shí)河南聽事堂的墻壁上掛著一張角弓。樂廣心想,杯中所謂的"小蛇"無疑是角弓的影子了。于是,他便在原來的地方再次請那位朋友飲酒。問道:“今天的杯中還能看到'小蛇'嗎?”朋友回答說:“所看到的跟上次一樣。”樂廣指著墻壁上的角弓,向他說明了原因,客人恍然大悟,積久難愈的重病一下子全好了。
杯弓蛇影 【翻譯】Mistaking the Reflection of a Bow for a Snake.