cuòzōng
(cuò·zōng
{[is] interlocked and jagged → [[is] intricate]} · {[is] combined → [[is] composite]} → [[is] intricate; complex; tangled]
错综
錯綜)‐fùzá
(fù·zá
{[is] turned around → [[is] compound; complex]} · {[is] mixed} → [[is] complicated; complex]
复杂
複雜)
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[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]
The
Shēngmìng Láizì Chuàngzào Ma?
((Shēngmìng
Life
生命)
(Lái·zì
Came · From
来自
來自)
(Chuàng·zào
Initiating · {Making, Creating} → [Creating]
创造
創造)
(Ma
[? ptcl for “yes/no” questions]
吗
嗎)?
→ [Was Life Created? (lc)])
(Was Life Created? (lc)) brochure and the
Shēngmìng de Qǐyuán—Zhíde Sīkǎo de Wǔ Ge Wèntí
((Shēngmìng
Life
生命)
(de
’s
的)
(Qǐ·yuán
{Rising → [Starting]} · Source → [Origin]
起源/原)—(Zhí·de
Worth · Getting → [Worth]
值得)
(Sī·kǎo
{Thinking About} · Examining
思考)
(de
’s
的)
(Wǔ
Five
五)
(Ge
[mw]
个
個/个)
(Wèn·tí
Asking · Subjects → [Questions]
问题
問題)
→ [The Origin of Life—Five Questions Worth Asking (lf)])
(The Origin of Life—Five Questions Worth Asking (lf)) brochure were originally published back in 2010, but relatively recently, the English version of the Was Life Created? brochure was updated to the December 2022 Printing, and the Mandarin version of it was updated to the February 2023 Printing. Also, the Was Life Created? brochure and the Origin of Life brochure are now in the Teaching Toolbox section in the JW Library app. So, it would be good to consider some of the expressions used in the Mandarin versions of these publications that can be so helpful when discussing whether life was created.
It’s Complicated
This week’s MEotW, “cuòzōng
(cuò·zōng
{[is] interlocked and jagged → [[is] intricate]} · {[is] combined → [[is] composite]} → [[is] intricate; complex; tangled]
错综
錯綜)‐fùzá
(fù·zá
{[is] turned around → [[is] compound; complex]} · {[is] mixed} → [[is] complicated; complex]
复杂
複雜)”, occurs in the box at the end of the QUESTION 1 section of the Origin of Life brochure, which section is entitled, in English, “How Did Life Begin?”:
English:
Question: What takes greater faith—to believe that the millions of intricately coordinated parts of a cell arose by chance or to believe that the cell is the product of an intelligent mind?
Mandarin (WOL, Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) Plus):
📖 📄 📘
Qǐng
(please
请
請)
xiǎngxiang
(xiǎng·xiang
{think about} · {think about}
想想):
Xìbāo
(Xì·bāo
tiny · womb → [cell]
细胞
細胞)
de
(’s
的)
wúshù
(wú·shù
without · number
无数
無數)
bùfen
(parts
部分)
cuòzōng
(cuò·zōng
{are interlocked → [are intricate]} · {are combined → [are composite]} → [are intricate]
错综
錯綜)‐fùzá
(fù·zá
{are turned around → [are compound]} · {are mixed} → [are complex]
复杂
複雜),
xiānghù
({with each other}
相互)
xiétiáo
(xié·tiáo
{assisting → [coordinatedly]} · {are regulated → [fit in perfectly]} → [coordinate]
协调
協調),
nǐ
(you
你)
rènwéi
(rèn·wéi
{do identify} · {(it) to be} (that)
认为
認為)
xìbāo
(xì·bāo
tiny · womb → [cell]
细胞
細胞)
shì
(is
是)
pèngqiǎo
(pèng·qiǎo
{having bumped into} · {being coincidental} → [by chance]
碰巧)
chǎnshēng
(chǎn·shēng
{given birth to → [produced]} · {given birth to → [caused to exist]} → [brought into being]
产生
產生)
de
({’s (thing)}
的),
háishi
(hái·shi
{still more → [or]} · {is (it)}
还是
還是)
zhìhuì
(zhì·huì
wisdom · intelligence → [wisdom]
智慧)
de
(’s
的)
jiéjīng
(jié·jīng
{tied (into a knot) → [formed]} · crystal → [crystallization]
结晶
結晶)
ne
([? ptcl]
呢)?
Nǎ
(which
哪)
yí
(one
一)
yàng
(form → [way]
样
樣)
cái
({only then}
才
才/纔)
shì
(is
是)
bùkě
(bù·kě
(one) not · can → [(one) cannot]
不可)
zhìxìn
(zhì·xìn
place · {believing in} → [believe (usually used in the negative)]
置信)
de
({’s (way)}
的)
ne
([? ptcl]
呢)?
It’s Really Complicated
In “cuòzōng
(cuò·zōng
{[being] interlocked and jagged → [[being] intricate]} · {[being] combined → [[being] composite]} → [[being] intricate; complex; tangled | (mental) complex (n)]
错综
錯綜)”, “cuò
({[is] alternating; staggered} [→ [[is] wrong; mistaken; incorrect; erroneous | missed | grinding; rubbing | moving to the side | mistake; error; blunder [→ [fault]]]] | {[is] interlocked and jagged} [→ [intricate]]
错
錯)” literally means “interlocked and jagged”, and it effectively means “intricate”. Interestingly, this “cuò
({[is] alternating; staggered} [→ [[is] wrong; mistaken; incorrect; erroneous | missed | grinding; rubbing | moving to the side | mistake; error; blunder [→ [fault]]]] | {[is] interlocked and jagged} [→ [intricate]]
错
錯)” is used in other contexts to literally mean “alternating; staggered”, and to effectively mean “wrong; mistaken; incorrect; erroneous”. For example, it is used this way in “cuòwù
(cuò·wù
{[being] alternating; staggered → [[being] wrong; mistaken; incorrect; erroneous]} · {[being] mistaken; in error; wrong; false; inaccurate} [→ [error; blunder; mistake]]
错误
錯誤)”, as in “cuòwù
(cuò·wù
{staggered → [erroneous]} · false
错误
錯誤)
de
(’s
的)
zōngjiào
(zōng·jiào
{schools of thought} · teachings → [religion]
宗教)” (false religion). As for “zōng
({[is] put together; combined} [→ [[is] aggregate; composite]]
综
綜)”, it literally means “put together; combined”, and effectively means “aggregate; composite”. As a whole, “cuòzōng
(cuò·zōng
{[being] interlocked and jagged → [[being] intricate]} · {[being] combined → [[being] composite]} → [[being] intricate; complex; tangled | (mental) complex (n)]
错综
錯綜)” effectively means “intricate; complex”, even “tangled”.
“Fùzá
(Fù·zá
{[is] turned around → [[is] compound; complex]} · {[is] mixed} → [[is] complicated; complex]
复杂
複雜)” is a well-known expression meaning “complicated” or “complex”. However, many probably don’t know that its first morpheme “fù
({turn around/over} [→ [recover; restore; return; resume | duplicate; repeat | again; repeatedly | [is] compound; complex; composite | reply; answer | avenge; retaliate]]
复
復)” literally means “turn around/over”, and that while it effectively means “compound; complex” in “fùzá
(fù·zá
{[is] turned around → [[is] compound; complex]} · {[is] mixed} → [[is] complicated; complex]
复杂
複雜)”, in other expressions such as “fùhuó
(fù·huó
{being turned around → [being restored]} · {to be living} → [resurrection]
复活
復活)”, it effectively means “recover; restore; return; resume”. Many may also be unaware that this expression’s other morpheme “zá
(miscellaneous; mixed; composite; various; blended; assorted | mix; mingle
杂
雜/襍)”, which basically means “mixed”, also appears in “zázhì
(zá·zhì
miscellaneous; mixed · records (publication) → [magazine; journal; periodical]
杂志
雜志/誌)”.
When they’re all put together, the morphemes in “cuòzōng
(cuò·zōng
{[is] interlocked and jagged → [[is] intricate]} · {[is] combined → [[is] composite]} → [[is] intricate; complex; tangled]
错综
錯綜)‐fùzá
(fù·zá
{[is] turned around → [[is] compound; complex]} · {[is] mixed} → [[is] complicated; complex]
复杂
複雜)” repeatedly tell us that this expression refers to things that are really, emphatically complicated.
It’s Really, Really Complicated
It’s appropriate then, that the Mandarin Origin of Life brochure uses this expression to refer to the “millions of intricately coordinated parts of a cell”. Truly, most who have not specifically looked into the matter have no idea how fantastically complex even a single living cell is, never mind living organisms like us humans that are each made up of tens of trillions of cells, of which there are hundreds of different types. The Mandarin Origin of Life brochure can help Mandarin-speaking people to more deeply appreciate this astronomical complexity that’s present in our very own bodies. I personally have been helped this way as I have been working on producing Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) Plus material for it. Let us not hesitate to make good use of the Origin of Life brochure in the Mandarin field!
For convenience:
The direct link for the current-generation Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) Plus resource for the Origin of Life brochure is:
The short link for Chinese field language-learning links for the Origin of Life brochure is:
More Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) and Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) Plus web material based on the Mandarin Origin of Life brochure will be made available in the Pīnyīn
(Pīn·yīn
{Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin]
拼音) Plus web resource as time allows.
