Bei Dao, "Language", in The August Sleepwalker, trans. Bonnie S. McDougall (New York: New Directions, 1990), p. 121
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Many languages fly around the world producing sparks when they collide sometimes of hate sometimes of love

— Bei Dao on Language

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Many languages fly around the world producing sparks when they collide sometimes of hate sometimes of love" in the context of "Bei Dao, "Language", in The August Sleepwalker, trans. Bonnie S. McDougall (New York: New Directions, 1990), p. 121" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Language" (Quotes: Quotes are arranged alphabetically by author, A - D) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Bei Dao

About Bei Dao

Bei Dao (simplified Chinese: 北岛; traditional Chinese: 北島; pinyin: Běidǎo; literally: "Northern Island", August 2, 1949 - ) is the pen name of Chinese poet Zhao Zhenkai (S: 赵振开, T: 趙振開, P: Zhào Zhènkāi). Bei Dao is the most notable representative of the Misty Poets, a group of Chinese poets who reacted against the restrictions of the Cultural Revolution.