Tag: Pīnyīn Plus

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shēngjī‐bóbó

shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[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.

“Living”

This week’s MEotW, which appears in the title of one of the sections of the Mandarin Was Life Created? brochure, is “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)”:

English:

The Living Planet

Mandarin (WOL; Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus)

📖 📄 📘 Shēngjī (Shēng·jī Life · {Mechanism → [Being Organic]} → [Life] 生机 生機)‐Bóbó (Bó·bó Flourishing · Flourishing 勃勃) de (’s 的) Dìqiú (Dì·qiú Earth · Globe 地球)

As can be seen from the above quotes, the Mandarin Was Life Created? brochure uses “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)” to effectively mean “living”. Considering the morphemes in it, this expression could also be translated as “brimming with life”, or something similar.

Mechanisms, Organisms, and Crises

The “jī ({machine; mechanism [→ [airplane; aircraft | being organic]]} | {incipient moment; crucial point} | chance; opportunity; occasion | intention; idea 机 機/机)” in “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)” is a particularly polysemous morpheme, meaning that it has many possible related meanings. For example, it can literally mean “mechanism”, and it can effectively mean “organic”. This seems to indicate that worldly Chinese culture recognizes that living things contain what are effectively mechanisms. Indeed, scientists (and Jehovah’s organization) speak of the molecular machines inside living cells.

A computer-animated visualization of how tiny molecular machines inside our cells copy DNA

The “jī ({machine; mechanism [→ [airplane; aircraft | being organic]]} | {incipient moment; crucial point} | chance; opportunity; occasion | intention; idea 机 機/机)” in “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)” also appears in the Mandarin expression for “crisis”, “wēijī (wēi·jī {ridge of a roof → [dangerous | endangering]} · {incipient moment; crucial point | occasion} | {(for) ridge of a roof → [(for) danger]} · occasion; opportunity → [crisis] 危机 危機)”, which some have misconstrued as meaning that there is positive opportunity in danger. For more information about that, check out the MEotW post discussing that expression.

Reduplications and Idioms

The latter half of “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)” is an example of reduplication, which is quite common in Mandarin. Another expression which features reduplication is past MEotW “rénxīn (rén·xīn people’s · hearts → [popular/public feeling] 人心)‐huánghuáng (huáng·huáng {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} · {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} 惶惶)”, which has a similar structure to that of “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)”.

Speaking of structure, the MEotW post on “rénxīn (rén·xīn people’s · hearts → [popular/public feeling] 人心)‐huánghuáng (huáng·huáng {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} · {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} 惶惶)” said the following about whether expressions like “rénxīn (rén·xīn people’s · hearts → [popular/public feeling] 人心)‐huánghuáng (huáng·huáng {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} · {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} 惶惶)” and “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)” qualify as chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(things that) have become} · sayings → [set phrases (typically of 4 characters)] 成语 成語):

Considering its structure, we can say that “rénxīn (rén·xīn people’s · hearts → [popular/public feeling] 人心)‐huánghuáng (huáng·huáng {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} · {being afraid; fearful; scared; frightened [→ [being anxious; uneasy; nervous]]} 惶惶)” is an idiom. However, it does not seem to be a chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(sth. that) has become} · saying → [set phrase (typically of 4 characters); idiom] 成语 成語). This excerpt from the MEotW post on “chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(sth. that) has become} · saying → [set phrase (typically of 4 characters); idiom] 成语 成語)” discusses the difference:

So, it appears that while chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(things that) have become} · sayings → [set phrases (typically of 4 characters); idioms] 成语 成語) can be called idioms in English, not all Chinese idioms are chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(things that) have become} · sayings → [set phrases (typically of 4 characters); idioms] 成语 成語). It seems that “chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(things that) have become} · sayings → [set phrases (typically of 4 characters); idioms] 成语 成語)” specifically refers to Chinese idioms that originated in Classical Chinese, or Literary Chinese. This writing style has largely been replaced by written vernacular Chinese, which has been the standard style of writing for Modern Standard Mandarin for about a century now.

Since they originated in Classical Chinese, which hasn’t been current for about a century, chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(things that) have become} · sayings → [set phrases (typically of 4 characters); idioms] 成语 成語) often cannot be fully understood by modern speakers and readers of Mandarin, since knowledge about the source material for chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(things that) have become} · sayings → [set phrases (typically of 4 characters); idioms] 成语 成語) has naturally been fading with the passing of time.

Lots and Lots of Life

Whether or not “shēngjī (shēng·jī life · {mechanism → [being organic]} → [life] 生机 生機)‐bóbó (bó·bó flourishing; thriving; vigorous · flourishing; thriving; vigorous 勃勃)” is a chéngyǔ (chéng·yǔ {(sth. that) has become} · saying → [set phrase (typically of 4 characters); idiom] 成语 成語), it’s certainly appropriate for describing an earth that is well-suited for, and that is filled with, a huge variety of exquisitely designed living things. It is fitting that the Was Life Created? brochure quotes Psalm 104:24 in this regard:

How many your works are, O Jehovah!
You have made all of them in wisdom.
The earth is full of what you have made.

For convenience:

The direct link for the current-generation Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus resource for the Was Life Created? brochure is:

The short link for Chinese field language-learning links for the Was Life Created? 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 Was Life Created? brochure will be made available in the Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus web resource as time allows.

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Culture Current Events Names Science Theocratic

Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán

Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights]) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[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.]

Recently, the No. 1 2025 issue of The Watchtower, entitled “An End to War—How?”, became available on jw.org. This week’s MEotW, “Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights])”, appears in the first paragraph of the introduction of the Mandarin version of this issue:

English:

Do you long to live in a world without war or violent conflict? For many, that idea sounds appealing but unrealistic.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Nǐ (you 你) shì (are 是) bu (not 不) shì (are 是) hěn ({very much} 很) xiǎng (wanting 想) shēnghuó ({to live} 生活) zài (in 在) yí (one 一) ge ([mw] 个 個/个) méiyǒu (méi·yǒu not · having 没有 沒有) zhànzhēng (zhàn·zhēng war · contending → [war] 战争 戰爭) de (’s 的) shìjiè (shì·jiè {generation → [world]} · extent → [world] 世界) li (inside 里 裡/裏) ne ([? ptcl] 呢)? Duì (towards → [to] 对 對) hěn (very 很) duō (many 多) rén (people 人) lái (coming 来 來) shuō ({to be saying} 说 說/説), zhè (this 这 這) jiǎnzhí (jiǎn·zhí {being simple} · {being straight} → [simply] 简直 簡直) shì (is 是) Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights]).

The Tale of the Morphemes

In “Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights])”, “Tiānfāng (Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabia | Arabian] 天方)”, meaning “Heaven’s Region”, is a Mandarin expression used to refer to “Arabia” or “Arabian”. “Yè (night; evening 夜 夜/亱)” here means “Night”, and “Tán ({talk; speak; converse; chat; discuss [about]} 谭 譚)” here means “Chats”.

When these morphemes are put together in “Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights])”, they on one level of literalness mean “Arabian Night Chats”, and they are used to refer to the collection of Middle Eastern folktales known in English as Arabian Nights, or One Thousand and One Nights.

In the context of the above quote from the Mandarin version of The Watchtower, saying that the idea of a world without war “jiǎnzhí (jiǎn·zhí {being simple} · {being straight} → [simply] 简直 簡直) shì (is 是) Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights])” is kind of like saying in English that this idea is “just a fairy tale”.

Just a Fairy Tale?

Considering mankind’s ongoing failure to bring about a world without war, it may indeed seem reasonable to doubt how realistic such an idea is. However, the paragraph of The Watchtower quoted above goes on to say:

English:

The Bible reveals why mankind’s efforts to end war have failed. It also explains how you can be sure that worldwide peace is possible and will soon become a reality.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) gàosu (tells 告诉 告訴) wǒmen (wǒ·men us · [pl] 我们 我們), wèi‐shénme ((wèi for 为 為)‐(shén·me what · [suf] 什么 什/甚麼) → [why]) rén (humans 人) bù (not 不) kěnéng ({are able} 可能) kào ({to lean on} → [to rely on] 靠) zìjǐ (selves 自己) de (’ 的) lìliang (lì·liang strength · quantity 力量) ràng ({to make} 让 讓) shìjiè (shì·jiè {generation → [world]} · extent → [world] 世界) hépíng (hé·píng {be (together) with (one another)} · {be flat, level, even} → [be peaceful (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict)] 和平). Búguò (Bú·guò not · {do pass} → [however] 不过 不過) Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) yě (also 也) shuō (says 说 說/説), tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [the whole world] 天下) yídìng (yí·dìng {(with) one} · {setting fixedly} → [definitely] 一定) huì (will 会 會) tàipíng (tài·píng supremely · {be flat, level, even → [be peaceful]} 太平), érqiě (ér·qiě and · moreover 而且) zhè (this 这 這) yi (one 一) tiān (sky → [day] 天) yǐjing (yǐ·jing already · {has gone through} 已经 已經) lí ({being apart from} 离 離/离) wǒmen (wǒ·men us · [pl] 我们 我們) bù (not 不) yuǎn (far 远 遠) le ([(at the end of a phrase/sentence) indicates a change] 了)!

So, let us take advantage of whatever opportunities we have to make good use of the above-mentioned issue of The Watchtower (and its Mandarin version’s available Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音)) in the Mandarin field. Let us do what we can to help Mandarin-speaking sheeplike ones to know that despite the wars now raging in Ukraine and elsewhere, and despite the conflicts threatening to break out, including a possible conflict between China and the USA over Taiwan, “tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [the whole world] 天下) (a past MEotW) yídìng (yí·dìng {(with) one} · {setting fixedly} → [definitely] 一定) huì (will 会 會) tàipíng (tài·píng supremely · {be flat, level, even → [be peaceful]} 太平)”—there will definitely be worldwide peace—because of what Jehovah God, our loving Almighty Creator, will accomplish through his own very real Kingdom government.

Evidently an Actual Fairy Tale

In contrast to what the above-mentioned issue of The Watchtower says about the realistic hope of seeing God’s Kingdom make the earth into a peaceful paradise, I recently came across an interesting article entitled “Statistically Speaking, We Should Have Heard from Aliens by Now”, which says:

The paper presents a model to explore the Fermi Paradox and assess the value of SETI in the search for intelligent life. Despite its limitations, the model suggests that the absence of detected electromagnetic signals from alien civilizations can place limits on how many such civilizations exist. Under certain assumptions, the model predicts a 99% chance of detecting at least one signal if the estimated number of civilizations (based on the Drake equation) is around 1.

[For reference, here are the links to the Wikipedia articles regarding some of the terms mentioned above: Fermi paradox; SETI; Drake equation.]

So, while some people these days hope to make contact with space aliens who could maybe help us solve our problems, it seems that scientific evidence is starting to accumulate that shows that such a hope actually is just Tiānfāng‐Yè‐Tán ((Tiān·fāng Heaven’s · {Direction → [Region]} → [Arabian] 天方)‐(Yè Night 夜 夜/亱)‐(Tán Chats 谭 譚) → [Arabian Nights; One Thousand and One Nights]), like a story out of Arabian Nights.

Rather than looking to space aliens out of science fiction, how much better it would be for people, including those in the Mandarin field, to look to the true God Jehovah, the Extraterrestrial Superintelligence who, as shown by much evidence, created us and has already made contact with us through his Word the Bible and his organization!

Categories
Culture Experiences History Language Learning Technology Theocratic

zìxué‐chéngcái

zìxué‐chéngcái ((zì·xué self · learned; studied 自学 自學)‐(chéng·cái became · {capable person} 成才) → [[be] self-taught]) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[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.]

Recently, jw.org featured the video “Benjamin Boothroyd—A Self-Taught Bible Scholar”. Where the English title of this video uses the expression “self-taught”, the title of the Mandarin version uses this week’s MEotW, “zìxué‐chéngcái ((zì·xué self · learned; studied 自学 自學)‐(chéng·cái became · {capable person} 成才) → [[be] self-taught])”:

English:

Benjamin Boothroyd—A Self-Taught Bible Scholar

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Běnjiémíng (Benjamin 本杰明 本傑明) Bùsīluóyīdé (Boothroyd 布思罗伊德 布思羅伊德): Zìxué‐Chéngcái ((Zì·xué Self · Learned 自学 自學)‐(Chéng·cái Became · {Capable Person} 成才) → [Self-Taught]) de (’s 的) Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng Holy · Scriptures → [Bible] 圣经 聖經) Xuézhě (Xué·zhě Studying · Person → [Scholar] 学者 學者)

The Morphemes

The first morpheme in this week’s MEotW, “zì (self | from; since 自)”, here means “self”, as it does in “zìjǐ (self[’s] 自己)”. The next morpheme, “xué (learn/learning | study [→ [imitate]] 学 學)”, here means “learned; studied”. Another expression in which it appears is “xuésheng (xué·sheng learning · {growing (one) → [student]} → [student; pupil] 学生 學生)”, which means “student”. These first two morphemes, when put together to form “zìxué (zì·xué self · learn; study 自学 自學)”, refer to learning or studying by oneself.

The third morpheme in this week’s MEotW, “chéng (become; {come to be}; {to turn into}; {to complete}; accomplish; succeed; {fully developed/grown}; {assume [the shape of]}; {to fill} | {to completion} 成)”, here means “became”. It also appears in many other expressions, including “chéngwéi (chéng·wéi become · {to be} 成为 成為)” and “chénggōng (chéng·gōng {becoming [of]}; {accomplishing [of]} · {meritorious service/deed}; achievement → [succeed | success | successful[ly]] 成功)”. The final morpheme “cái ({only then} | {only (before a number)} | actually; really; very | talent; ability; gift | {capable person} | {person of a certain type} 才 才/纔)” in this context means “capable person”. So, “chéngcái (chéng·cái become · {capable person} 成才)” here means “became capable person”, and the entire expression “zìxué‐chéngcái ((zì·xué self · learned; studied 自学 自學)‐(chéng·cái became · {capable person} 成才) → [[be] self-taught])” literally means “self-learned/studied, became capable person”, and effectively means “self-taught”.

Being Self-Taught in the Mandarin Field

Apart from the introductory organization-sponsored language classes that many of us took, we Mandarin field language learners are pretty much all self-taught with regard to Mandarin, especially when it comes to the somewhat specialized Mandarin that we must use in the Mandarin field. But does being largely self-taught mean that none of us can really be any good at Mandarin? Are we doomed to plateau at a mediocre level at best?

One thing I appreciated from the video mentioned above is that Benjamin Boothroyd, who was self-taught but became a world-class Bible scholar and translator, was motivated only to pursue the truth. As he wrote (as mentioned in the English video starting at the 6:38 mark):

I have no interest to serve but that of truth.

Regarding those with such a focus on the truth, at John 18:37, Jesus said:

For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is on the side of the truth listens to my voice.

Those who are “on the side of the truth” and who listen to Jesus’ voice open themselves up to receiving the most important education we can get. This best possible education comes from Jehovah God himself, not any worldly or human source. As Isaiah 54:13 says:

And all your sons will be taught by Jehovah,
And the peace of your sons will be abundant.

Even when it comes to nontrivial technical matters, Jehovah can help certain ones develop the technical knowledge, skills, and expertise that are needed to accomplish his will. For example, as Exodus 35:30–35 tells us, he did so when some specialized technical work needed to be done when Moses and the Israelites were in the wilderness:

30 Then Moses said to the Israelites: “See, Jehovah has chosen Bezʹal·el the son of Uʹri the son of Hur of the tribe of Judah. 31 He has filled him with the spirit of God, giving him wisdom, understanding, and knowledge of every sort of craftsmanship 32 for making artistic designs, for working with gold, silver, and copper, 33 for cutting and setting stones, and for making all kinds of artistic wood products. 34 And he has put it into his heart to teach, he and O·hoʹli·ab the son of A·hisʹa·mach of the tribe of Dan. 35 He has filled them with skill to do all the work of a craftsman, an embroiderer, and a weaver using blue thread, purple wool, scarlet material, and fine linen, and of a loom worker. These men will do every sort of work and prepare every sort of design.

Yes, if we focus on the truth and stay open to Jehovah’s direction, we can make “self-taught” also mean “taught by Jehovah”! And since Jehovah created this universe that human scientists, technicians, artists, musicians, etc. are just trying to figure out and work in, he can, if he wants to, even potentially teach us to become more knowledgeable and skilled in certain fields than many worldly humans are, as he may have done with Bezʹal·el and O·hoʹli·ab.—Psalm 119:98–100.

Modern Resources for Mandarin Self-Learning

In support of our efforts to be successfully self-taught in effectively using Mandarin to praise and serve Jehovah, we today are blessed with many available resources, the likes of which Bezʹal·el, O·hoʹli·ab, and Mr. Boothroyd would undoubtedly have loved to have had access to. For example, one of the basic things that teaching and learning require is the transfer of information to those seeking to learn, and in that regard, we humans today generally have access to, at reasonable cost, computing—i.e., information-processing—devices that can easily be carried by hand, but that are, in some ways, millions of times more capable than the Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) that guided the Apollo 11 spacecraft to the moon.

In addition to these mobile devices themselves, we should also consider the apps and the text, audio, video, etc. content that they enable us to use to help us learn Mandarin. These include the JW Language app, as well as the JW Library app that now allows for content that displays Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音). Here are a couple of short links listing some of the resources available for Mandarin field language learners:

No Need to Have Impostor Syndrome in the Mandarin Field

In view of the above, if Jehovah has guided us to serve in the Mandarin field, we need not allow ourselves to be burdened with impostor syndrome, even if we haven’t received extensive worldly training in the Mandarin language. If we let ourselves be “taught by Jehovah” instead of just relying on our own talent or abilities or on mere worldly knowledge or human traditions, and if we resolutely make good use of the available resources and apply ourselves to learn whatever we need to learn in order to do Jehovah’s work well, Jehovah can and will bless our efforts and help us succeed. Also, if we follow Boothroyd’s example and pursue truth rather than “glory from men”, then the truth will be able to set us free from the unnecessary burdens imposed by proud but fallacious human traditions such as those involving Chinese characters. (John 5:41–44; 8:32) As the apostle Paul said at 1 Corinthians 1:26–31:

26 For you see his calling of you, brothers, that there are not many wise in a fleshly way, not many powerful, not many of noble birth, 27 but God chose the foolish things of the world to put the wise men to shame; and God chose the weak things of the world to put the strong things to shame; 28 and God chose the insignificant things of the world and the things looked down on, the things that are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 so that no one might boast in the sight of God. 30 But it is due to him that you are in union with Christ Jesus, who has become to us wisdom from God, also righteousness and sanctification and release by ransom, 31 so that it may be just as it is written: “The one who boasts, let him boast in Jehovah.”