对牛弹琴 – Dui Niu Tan Qin – The Stubborn Cow

Chengyu

对牛弹琴 – duì niú tán qín

Chinese Character Break Down

对 – in front of, to
牛 – cow
弹 – pluck, play
琴 – stringed instrument

对牛弹琴: Play the lute to a cow

Idiom Meaning

Like the English “cast pearls before swine”. It means reasoning with stubborn people; picking the wrong audience, that doesn’t appreciate what you’re saying.

German: Perlen vor die Säue werfen

Chengyu Examples

不管我说什么，跟他讨论这个问题就像对牛弹琴。
bùguǎn wǒ shuō shénme, gēn tā tǎolùn zhège wèntí jiùxiàng duìniútánqín.
No matter what I say, discussing this issue with him is just like casting pearls before swine.

对我外婆讲电脑简直就是对牛弹琴。
duì wǒ wàipó jiǎng diànnǎo jiǎnzhí jiùshì duìniútánqín.
Talking about computers with my grandma is simply useless.

Chengyu Story and Background

In ancient times, there was a master of the Zheng (a Chinese instrument) called Gong Mingyi. One day he saw a cow grazing in a field. Inspired by the beautiful scenery, he sat down next to the cow and started playing.

He played with virtuosity, but the cow didn’t seem to care at all and just kept chewing grass. Gong Mingyi understood, that since he played so masterly and the cow didn’t care, she probably just couldn’t understand the beauty of his music.

Related Chengyu

I find that a somewhat related Chengyu is the narrow-minded frog at the bottom of a well – Jing Di Zhi Wa.