Manman | The Classic of Mountains and Seas

22nd illustration of 山海经 (The Classic of Mountains and Seas) - 蛮蛮（Mánmán)
🪿🪽The Classic of Mountains and Seas: Classic of Western Mountains records, in the Chongwu Mountains lives a bird called Manman, also known as 比翼鸟 (Bǐyì niǎo/kind of Lovebirds). It looks like a wild duck, but has only one wing and one eye. Therefore, it can't fly alone and must fly in pairs. It is said that if it appears, floods will occur throughout the world.
🪿🪽Manman is like a pair of lovebirds. Two birds cannot fly unless they are together, so the ancients regarded them as a symbol of the unity of a couple.
🪿🪽Guo Pu's annotation explains "Its symbiotic nature of 'not being able to fly without being together'. They resemble ducks and have blue-red in color." Later, literature often uses it as a metaphor for love, such as the literary masterpiece from the Tang dynasty by the famous Chinese poet Bai Juyi, "長恨歌/Song of Everlasting Regret" using the "比翼鸟" to metaphorically represent Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his favorite concubine Yang Guifei.
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在天願做比翼鳥，
In the sky, may we be birds flying side by side，
在地願為連理枝。
On earth, may we be branches entwined.
-白居易《長恨歌》
Bái Jūyì 《Chǎng hèn gē》
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Speed Painting:
https://youtube.com/shorts/9DOhu0jwRo0