Probe on the Differences of Religious Culture between English and Chinese Idioms

【Abstract】Idioms are an important reflection of the culture of a language. English and Chinese are both rich in idioms. However， owing to different religious culture， the religious messages embodied in their respective idioms naturally display substantial differences. Idioms are meanwhile the communication barrier to English learners in China who have different religious culture background. This paper mainly talks about the cultural differences of religions embodied in English and Chinese idioms to remind English learners of the strong cultural characteristics of idioms for better understanding and smooth communication.

【Key words】Religious culture； Idioms

【作者簡介】蘇琴（1983-），女，漢族，陜西榆林人，英語語言文學(xué)碩士，延安大學(xué)西安創(chuàng)新學(xué)院外語系講師；仵寧，延安大學(xué)西安創(chuàng)新學(xué)院；孫瑞，延安大學(xué)西安創(chuàng)新學(xué)院。

1. Introduction

As a cultural phenomenon， religion， which is the manifestation of different cultures， is the vital part of human thought. It penetrates into every possible aspect of people’s life， which consequently causes great cultural difference between people with different religious beliefs. The Chinese culture is deeply affected by Confucianism， Buddhism， Taoism， among which the effect of Buddhism is the most significant. Chinese idioms reflect obvious1y the influence of Buddhism， whereas Christianity is closely related to English idioms.

2. Differences of Religious culture in both Idioms

Owing to their different religions， the Chinese and English people used different figures in their own idioms with religious allusions. “God”， “Heaven”， “Devil”，”Hell”， “Church” etc. are often used in Christianity， whereas“佛”（Buddha）， “廟”（temple）， “和尚”（monk）， etc. in Buddhism.

China is a multi-religious country， yet comparatively speaking， Buddhism has a greater influence in Chinese culture. It was first introduced into China in the 1st century AD， and has shaped the Chinese language， diet， arts， etc.， and greatly stimulated the development of Chinese literature. The large number of words and idioms derived from Buddhism is one of the manifestation of its influence， e.g. 放下屠刀，立地成佛（A butcher becomes a Buddha the moment he drops his cleaver； a wrongdoer achieves salvation as soon as he gives up evil），一人得道，雞犬升天（when one becomes a high official， even his fowls and dogs will get promoted）. （Yu， 1998）

Most of the western people are Christians， who believe that the world was created by God， and that everything in the world is arranged and disposed of according to god’s will. The teachings and beliefs concerning Christianity are recorded in the Bible， which has contributed a great deal to English idioms. It is often used in their oral conversation， for they believe that god is so justice， merciful and powerful that he is capable of helping the needy and relieving the distressed， For example， “Oh， my god”， “Thank god”， “God bless me”， etc.

In both China and the west， The word “heaven” can refer to The domination of everything in the universe. To some extent， “天” is similar to the “god” of western people. The British and Americans say “God never shuts one door but opens another”， “God helps those who help themselves”， “Man proposes，god disposes”， while Chinese also say “天無絕人之路”， “自助者天助”， “謀事在人，成事在天”.

For Chinese idioms， although we often translate “天” into “God”， the meaning of “God” in Christianity is different from that in Chinese culture. The western god of heaven is transcendent and god is independent of all his creation. The transcendence of religion guides people to explore the origin and existence of the world， while “天” not only has transcendence， but also has internality， which is not independent of its phenomena combined in Chinese culture. The heaven in Chinese culture is a personified god， who is the highest legislator of world’s political ethics. In Chinese people’s eyes， “天” is the symbol of equality and justice， e.g. “Rank and riches determined by heaven ”（生死有命，富貴在天）.

3. Conclusion

As an English learner， it is useful and helpfu1 to understand and learn about the differences of religious culture between English idioms and Chinese idioms. It can help us to get rid of the big barrier to understanding the original English and Chinese literature. The analysis can provide a way for us to understand idioms correctly and use them in cross-cultural communication precisely and accurately.

References：

[1]江瑞.從文化視角看英漢習(xí)語的差異[J].山西教育學(xué)院學(xué)報(bào)， 2000：l10.

[2]喻家樓.漢語成語英譯詞典[M].合肥：中國科學(xué)技術(shù)大學(xué)出版社， 1998：126.