He had a habit of cutting off his sleeves.(斷袖之癖)
During the Western Han dynasty in China,
there was a king named Liu Xin. His story is recorded in history books.
He became king at the age of 19 and died at
26. During his reign, he introduced many reforms. He fell in love with Dong
Xian, a man two years his junior. An incident that occurred during their
relationship became the origin of this idiom.
Dong Xian's father was a high-ranking
official in the central government of the Han Dynasty. Thanks to his father's
connections, Dong Xian entered the imperial palace as a teenager to serve as an
attendant in the crown prince's quarters, alongside other noble sons.
After Liu Xin ascended the throne, Dong
Xian and the other noble sons became official members of the imperial palace.
Their duties primarily involved guarding the palace and performing various
household tasks.
One day, when Dong Xian was 18 years old,
he was working in the palace. Liu Xin suddenly saw him as he passed by.
Thinking he looked handsome and familiar, he approached him and asked with a
hint of uncertainty, 'Are you Dong Xian? Have I recognised the wrong
person?"
Dong Xian replied, 'I am Dong Xian. When
you were the crown prince, I served as your attendant.'
Now an adult, Dong Xian was remarkably
handsome and gentle. That day, Liu Xin and Dong Xian chatted happily for hours.
After that, Liu Xin took the initiative to promote Dong Xian, and from then on,
he became his most important and closest staff member.
Their relationship quickly blossomed. They
spent every day together, deeply attracted to each other. Liu Xin was not shy
about it and took the initiative to make their relationship public. Dong Xian
became his lover and began frequently taking naps and staying overnight in his
bedroom.
One day, after their relationship had been
confirmed, Dong Xian and Liu Xin took a nap together in Liu Xin's bedroom.
About an hour later, Liu Xin woke up and tried to get up to attend to official
business, but found that Dong Xian's body was pressing against his sleeve.
Looking at Dong Xian's sleeping face, Liu Xin couldn't bear to wake him. He
quietly instructed a servant to bring him a pair of scissors. He then cut off
his sleeve, being extremely careful not to wake Dong Xian. His movements were
gentle and cautious.
After getting up, he quickly changed into
fresh clothes and went to attend to his business. Before leaving, he instructed
the servant not to wake Dong Xian.
This incident later spread, and the phrase
"sleeve-cutting habit" came to be used to describe a man whose lover
is also a man.
The idiom literally means 'he has a
sleeve-cutting habit'.
It is used to describe a man whose lover is
also a man.
Dear friends, what insights or thoughts
have you gained from this story?
What is the most heartwarming thing that
your loved one has ever done for you? Who is the person you love most deeply in
your life?
I hope this story brings you new insights.
斷袖之癖(He had a habit of cutting off his
sleeves.)
中國的西漢王朝有一任國王的名字叫做劉欣，歷史書上記載了一個他的故事。
劉欣19歲成為國王，他在26歲就過世。他在他擔任國王的期間推動了很多改革，他愛上的一個年紀比他小兩歲名字叫做(董賢)的男子，他與董賢在一起的過程中發生了一件事，這件事成為這句成語的由來。
(董賢)的父親是一個漢王朝的中央政府的官員，因為他的父親的關係，所以(董賢)在還是青少年的時候就跟著其他的貴族的子弟們一起進入的皇宮內的太子住的地方擔任侍從。
(劉欣)登基成為國王之後，(董賢)與其他的貴族的子弟們也跟著成為皇宮的正式人員。他與這些貴族的子弟們負責擔任的工作內容主要是負責守衛皇宮與處理皇宮中的各種庶務性工作。
董賢18歲那一年的某一天，他正在皇宮中工作，劉欣經過的時候突然看到他，劉欣覺得董賢的容貌俊美又十分眼熟，他就主動走到董賢身邊，帶著些許不確定的語氣問。
你是董賢嗎?我是否有認錯人呢?
董賢回答。
我就是董賢，你以前還是太子的時候，我曾經擔任你的隨從。
成年後的董賢非常的英俊，而且說話非常的溫柔，那一天，劉欣與董賢兩個人開心地聊了好幾個小時的天，那一天之後，劉欣就主動調動董賢的職務，董賢從那一天開始成為劉欣的最重要且親近的幕僚人員。
劉欣與董賢兩個人的感情快速的加溫，他們兩個人每天在一起，他們兩個人彼此都很喜歡對方，劉欣也不避諱，他主動公開兩個人的關係，董賢從此成了劉欣的愛人，董賢開始經常性的在劉欣的臥室內午休或是過夜。
他們兩個人的關係確定後，有一天，董賢與劉欣兩個人一起在劉欣的臥室內午睡，睡了大約一個小時後劉欣醒了，他想要起床處理公事，但他發現董賢的身體壓住了他的衣袖，劉欣看著董賢熟睡的臉，他不忍心叫醒董賢，他悄悄的命令一個臥室內的僕人拿一把剪刀過來，劉欣拿到剪刀之後就把自己的衣袖剪斷，剪斷自己的衣袖這個過程劉欣都非常的小心與謹慎，他的動作非常的輕柔，他沒有吵醒董賢。
劉欣起床之後，他趕緊換了一件新的衣服去處理公事，他臨走前還吩咐臥室內的僕人不要吵醒董賢。
這件事情後來傳開了，人們就用剪斷衣袖的癖好來形容一個愛人是男人的男人。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是他有剪斷衣袖的癖好。
這句成語被用來形容一個愛人是男人的男人。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有怎樣的啟發或有怎樣的想法呢。
你的愛人曾經對你做過最令你覺得暖心的事情為何呢?你這輩子最深愛的人是誰呢?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為漢書-佞幸傳27條
https://ctext.org/han-shu/ning-xing-zhuan/zh