桃園結義
The Peach Garden Oath
Meaning
From the sworn brotherhood sealed in a peach orchard — a solemn pledge to share one purpose, through everything.
Origin story
As the Yellow Turban rebellion threw the realm into chaos, three strangers met: Liu Bei the sandal-weaver, Guan Yu the fugitive, Zhang Fei the butcher. Finding their hearts aligned, they gathered in the peach orchard behind Zhang Fei’s house, in full blossom. Sacrificing a black ox and a white horse to Heaven, they swore: "We could not be born on the same day — but we ask to die on the same day." The oath is the novel’s invention (the histories say only that their bond was "like brothers"), yet it became the emblem of loyalty running through the whole saga, and the opening scene of the book.
Source: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, ch. 1 (a fictional scene, not in the histories)
People
Modern examples
- The three of them founded the company like a peach-garden oath — one purpose, all in.
- On the eve of the finals, the squad renewed their sworn-brothers resolve.