This proverb can also be taken to mean 'to talk philosophy to a fool.'
对牛弹琴
Duì niú tán qín
to play the lute to a cow
Duì niú tán qín
to play the lute to a cow
Proverb Story :
Long ago there lived a musician named Gong Mingyi. He was a master of the Zheng zither, a plucked string instrument.
One day, he saw a cow grazing in a field near his house. He was inspired by the scene and ran outside to play a tune for the cow. Gong Mingyi played beautifully, finding himself intoxicated by the music. But the cow paid no heed to the elegant sounds, simply focusing its attention on eating the grass.
Gong Mingyi was surprised at this and could not comprehend the cow’s flippant indifference. Gong Mingyi picked up the zither and played a second song with much less skillful grace. This time the cow swings its tail instantly and begins to relish the music with erect ears.
Gong Mingyi smiles and understands that, obviously, the cow doesn't respond to his music not because he plays it badly, but because it does not understand the masterful first performance. Therefore it is unable to appreciate it which means that the cow neither understood nor appreciated his elegant music!
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