trời xanh quen với má hồng đánh ghen
Idiom (Thành ngữ): - The blue sky is accustomed to being jealous of rosy cheeks: A classical Vietnamese literary idiom describing the concept that a woman of great beauty often encounters misfortune or an unhappy fate, as if nature or fate itself is jealous of her. - The jealousy of heaven towards mortal beauty: Expresses the idea that extraordinary human beauty provokes envy from the heavens, leading to a tragic destiny for the beautiful woman.
This is a fixed literary idiom originating from classical Vietnamese poetry, often used to comment on the tragic fate of beautiful women. The phrase personifies "trời xanh" (the blue sky/heaven/fate) as an entity that is "quen với" (accustomed to) being jealous—"đánh ghen"—of "má hồng" (rosy cheeks, a metaphor for a beautiful young woman). The underlying belief is that such supreme beauty disrupts the natural order, causing destiny to become hostile and leading to suffering, early death, or great sorrow in the woman's life. It reflects a fatalistic view of beauty and fortune.
- Literary/Commentary:
- Đời cô ấy khổ như thể ứng vào câu "trời xanh quen với má hồng đánh ghen". (Her life was so hard, as if exemplifying the idiom "the blue sky is accustomed to being jealous of rosy cheeks.")
- Nhân vật chính trong truyện, với sắc đẹp nghiêng nước, rồi cũng gặp cảnh lênh đênh, đúng là "trời xanh quen với má hồng đánh ghen". (The main character in the story, with devastating beauty, ended up with a turbulent life, truly a case of "the jealousy of heaven towards mortal beauty.")
- This idiom is almost exclusively used in written or formal spoken language, particularly in literary analysis, historical commentary, or poetic descriptions. It is not used in everyday conversation.
- It is frequently referenced when discussing tragic heroines in Vietnamese classics like (The Tale of Kieu) by Nguyễn Du, where the protagonist's beauty leads to a life of misery.
- The idiom encapsulates a specific cultural trope: the "hoa nhường nguyệt thẹn" (flowers yield, the moon is ashamed) beauty that is doomed by fate.
- Hồng nhan bạc mệnh (Idiom): "Rosy cheeks, pale fate." A closely related and more commonly used Chinese-origin idiom with the same essential meaning: beautiful women often have unlucky, short lives.
- Tạo hóa đố kỵ (Phrase): "The creator is envious." A modern paraphrase of the core idea behind the idiom.
- The jealousy of fate: Envy from destiny leading to misfortune.
- A tragic beauty: A beautiful person doomed to suffer.
- Star-crossed beauty: Beauty that is ill-fated (Western equivalent concept).
This is a fixed idiom. Its words cannot be separated or rearranged without destroying its meaning. It functions as a complete metaphorical statement.