📖 Meaning
Based on the legend of Jiang Yan of the Southern Liang dynasty, who dreamed of returning a five-colored brush and thereafter lost his literary talent. The idiom metaphorically describes the decline or exhaustion of one's creative and literary abilities.
📜 Origin Story
During the Southern Dynasties, Jiang Yan (江淹) was a renowned literary figure of the Southern Qi and Liang period. Legend says he once dreamed that the Jin dynasty poet Guo Pu (郭璞) came to reclaim a five-colored brush previously lent to him. After this dream, Jiang Yan's compositions deteriorated sharply and he could no longer produce fine poetry. This episode gave rise to both the idiom '江郎才尽' and the more specific '江淹梦笔,' which references the dream of the brush itself.
💡 Example Usage
他近年创作匮乏，颇有江淹梦笔之叹。
In recent years his writing has dried up, as if lamenting the same fate as Jiang Yan's dreamt-away brush.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 江淹梦笔
- Pinyin: jiāng yān mèng bǐ
- Literal Translation: Jiang, Yan, dream, brush
- Category: Skill
- Characters: 4