‘The Grandmaster’ — Phrase of the Week #101
‘The Grandmaster’ — Phrase of the Week #101
The passing of one of China's most successful entrepreneurs.
Our phrase of the week is: The Grandmaster (一代宗师 yídài zōngshī).
Context
Zong Qinghou, a self-made entrepreneur and founder of China’s largest beverage company, died on Sunday.
His death was announced by his company, Wahaha Group (娃哈哈集团) confirming he passed away on February 25 due to illness at the age of 79.
Born into poverty in 1945, Zong founded Wahaha Group at the age of 42. That was in 1987, at a time when China’s economy had just begun to open up.
Wahaha became China’s largest drinks company, and Zong was named China’s richest man in 2008 and again in 2012.
With the news of Zong's death, social media feeds and media outlets were filled with tributes to the entrepreneur.
China Entrepreneur Magazine (中国企业家杂志), a business publication, looked back on the entrepreneurial journey of Mr Zong. The title of that piece brings us our Phrase of the Week:
What a tragedy! The Grandmaster’s last moment.
痛惜！一代“宗”师在最后时刻
Tòngxī! Yídài “zōng” shī zài zuìhòu shíkè.
And with that we have our Sinica Phrase of the Week!
What it means
The Grandmaster is a four-character phrase, which directly translates as “of a generation” (一代), and “grandmaster” (宗师).
“Grandmaster” (宗师) is an ancient term. Its earliest appearance in Chinese literature is in the Zhuāngzǐ 庄子, a foundational text of Taoism. Written during the late Warring States period (476–221 BC), it is named after the author, Zhuang Zhou 庄周, one of the most influential Chinese philosophers.
The Zhuangzi is a 33-chapter text. The Grandmaster is the title of the sixth:
The Grandmaster, Chapter Six of Inner Chapters, The Zhuangzi.
庄子·内篇·大宗师第六
Zhuāngzi nèipiān dàzōngshī dì liù
The modern-day phrase, and this week's Phrase of the Week, is a pun and play on words.
The play on words is on the family name of Zong Qinghou, which is the same as the first character of the word "grandmaster," zōng (宗), hinting at how Zong is perceived in China’s entrepreneurial world.
The pun is a nod to the title of the 2013 martial arts movie, The Grandmaster (一代宗师), which is the same four character phrase. Based on the life story of a real martial arts grandmaster, the movie was highly-acclaimed in China and the wider Chinese-speaking world.
Using the title of the movie to characterise the life and achievements of Zong Qinghou is high praise: He is seen as one of the most important figures in the early years of China's reform and opening.
So, with that in mind, we translate this four-character Phrase of the Week as: "Zong Qinghou, one of the true greats among first-generation Chinese entrepreneurs."
Andrew Methven is the author of RealTime Mandarin, a resource to helping you learn contemporary Chinese in context, and stay on top of the latest language trends in China.