ChinesePod

1 The sea of bitterness has no bounds, turn your head to see the shore (idiom). Only Buddhist enlightenment can allow one to shed off the abyss of worldly suffering.
2 Repent and ye shall be saved!

隔岸观火

gé àn guān huǒ

1 to watch the fires burning across the river
2 to delay entering the fray until all others have been exhausted by fighting amongst themselves (idiom)

高岸深谷

gāo àn shēn gǔ

1 high bank, deep valley (idiom); secluded location

Sample Sentences

对啊，二零一五年十一月七日下午，两岸领导人习近平、马英九在新加坡香格里拉大酒店会面。这是一九四九年以来两岸最高领导人首次会面，我有幸亲眼见证了这一历史性的时刻。

duìa ，èrlíngyīwǔnián shí yīyuè qīrì xiàwǔ ，liǎngàn lǐngdǎorén Xí jìnpíng 、Mǎ yīngjiǔ zài Xīnjiāpō xiāng dà jiǔdiàn huìmiàn 。zhè shì yījiǔsìjiǔnián yǐlái liǎngàn zuì gāo lǐngdǎorén shǒucì huìmiàn ，wǒ yǒuxìng qīnyǎn jiànzhèng le zhè yī lìshǐxìng de shíkè 。

Yes, on the afternoon of 7th November, 2015, leaders from both sides of the strait, Xi Jinping and Ma Ying-jeou, met at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore. This was the first meeting between the top leadership across the strait since 1949 and I was fortunate to get to see this historic moment first hand.

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在习马会上，两岸的领导人都谈了些什么呢？

zài xí mǎ huì shàng ，liǎngàn de lǐngdǎorén dōu tán le xiē shénme ne ？

What did the cross-strait leaders talk about at the meeting between Ma and Xi?

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你说的没错，两岸对立对双方都没有好处，只会带来政治、经济等多方面的不利局面，协同合作，共同发展确是百利而无一害的做法。

nǐshuōde méicuò ，liǎngàn duìlì duì shuāngfāng dōu méiyǒu hǎochu ，zhī huì dàilái zhèngzhì 、jīngjì děng duō fāngmiàn de bùlì júmiàn ，xiétóng to collaborate ，gòngtóng fāzhǎn què shì bǎilìérwúyīhài de zuòfǎ 。

You're right, the opposition across the strait was of no advantage to either side, it only brought disadvantages in terms of politics, economics and others aspects. There is much to gain from working together towards joint development and nothing to lose.

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虽然说两岸因为历史和政治体制的原因，还会出现这样那样不和谐的声音，但总体来说，在马英九上台的这几年中，台湾和大陆保持了较好的和平发展的状态。

suīránshuō liǎngàn yīnwèi lìshǐ hé zhèngzhì tǐzhì de yuányīn ，hái huì chūxiàn zhèyàng nàyàng bùhéxié de shēngyīn ，dàn zǒngtǐ láishuō ，zài Mǎ yīngjǐn shàngtái de zhèjǐnián zhōng ，Táiwān hé dàlù bǎochí le jiào hǎo de hépíng fāzhǎn de zhuàngtài 。

Although, due to reasons relating to history and the political system, dissenting voices can still be heard on both sides of the strait, overall, during the years since Ma Ying-jeou took office, Taiwan and Mainland China have maintained a state of reasonably good peaceful development.

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两岸的交流与合作，让台湾可以依托大陆巨大的市场，走出经济疲软的颓势，而大陆则可以在双方的交流中，学习更加先进科学的制度，提升人文素质修养。

liǎngàn de jiāoliú yǔ to collaborate ，ràng Táiwān kěyǐ yītuō dàlù jùdà de shìchǎng ，zǒuchū jīngjì píruǎn de tuíshì ，ér dàlù zé kěyǐ zài shuāngfāng de jiāoliú zhōng ，xuéxí gèngjiā xiānjìn kēxué de zhìdù ，tíshēng rénwén sùzhì xiūyǎng 。

Exchange and cooperation across the strait has made Taiwan dependent upon the massive Chinese market and rise out of sluggish economic decline, while China was able to learn about more advanced scientific systems and to raise its level of cultural cultivation through cross-strait exchange.

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尼罗河每年都会泛滥。洪水到来时，会淹没河两岸的农田。洪水退去后，又会留下一层厚厚的河泥，形成肥沃的土壤。

Níluóhé měinián dōu huì fànlàn 。hóngshuǐ dàolái shí ，huì yānmò hé liǎng\'àn de nóngtián 。hóngshuǐ tuìqù hòu ，yòu huì liúxià yī céng hòuhòu de héní ，xíngchéng féiwò de tǔrǎng 。

The Nile floods every year. When flood waters arrive, they cover the fields on both banks of the river. When the flood waters recede, they leave a layer of thick river mud, resulting in fertile soil.

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我们要看的就是你们原汁原味的生活。像你们这种建在河边的房子就很有特色，外面看起来是传统的吊脚楼。晚上睡在里面，听着潺潺的流水声，看着河两岸的灯火，这感觉真棒。

wǒmen yào kàn de jiùshì nǐmen yuánzhīyuánwèi de shēnghuó 。xiàng nǐmen zhèzhǒng jiàn zài hébiān de fángzi jiù hěn yǒu tèsè ，wàimian kàn qǐlai shì chuántǒng de diàojiǎolóu 。wǎnshang shuì zài lǐmiàn ，tīng zhe chánchán de liúshuǐshēng ，kàn zhe hé liǎng\'àn de dēnghuǒ ，zhè gǎnjué zhēn bàng 。

What we want to see is what your lives were really like. Like these buildings that you build on the riverside – they're so distinctive. From the outside, they look like the traditional stilt-houses. Sleeping inside at night, listening to the babbling sounds of flowing water, watching the lights on both sides of the river – it's such a great feeling.

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