The Butterfly Lovers or Liang Zhu is a Chinese legend about the tragic romance between two lovers, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, from whom the name of the legend is known in Chinese (梁山伯與祝英台, pinyin: Liáng Shānbó yǔ Zhù Yīngtái, often abbreviated as “梁祝”, Liáng-Zhù). The legend is sometimes regarded as the Chinese equivalent to Romeo and Juliet.^[1][2]

Six cities within the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have collaborated since 2004 on a formal application for the Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity ([1]) on the legend at UNESCO ^[3], submitted in 2006 through the Chinese Ministry of Culture.

The legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai is a beautiful, doleful, and moving love story .The story is set in the Eastern Jin Dynasty.

A young woman named Zhu Yingtai from Shangyu, Zhejiang, disguised herself as a man traveling to Hangzhou to study. During her journey, she encountered Liang Shanbo, a scholar from Kuaiji (會稽, Kuàijī, now known as Shaoxing), in the same province. They felt like old friends at the first meeting. Therefore, they gathered some soil as incense and took vows of brotherhood in the pavilion of a thatched bridge.

For the three years in school, they shared the same room where there was only one bed and two quilts. Yingtai slowly fell in love with Shanbo, but Shanbo, being a bookworm, did not see any traces of female characteristics in Yingtai.

Time flew by quickly. Three years passed, and one day Yingtai received a letter from her father asking her to return home as quickly as possible. Yingtai had no alternative but to pack her belongings immediately and bid farewell. In Yingtai’s heart, she had decided that even if heaven and earth passed away, her love for Liang Shanbo would never change, and she wanted to be with him for all eternity. Hence, before her departure, Yingtai revealed her true identity to her headmaster’s wife and requested the headmaster’s wife to hand her jade pendant as a betrothal gift to Shanbo.

Liang Shanbo, being Yingtai’s sworn brother, accompanied Yingtai for 18 miles to send her off. During the journey, Yingtai hinted to Shanbo that she was a girl. For example, she compared themselves to a pair of mandarin ducks, but Shanbo did not catch onto her hidden meaning and did not even have the slightest suspicion that she was a girl. Finally Yingtai thought of an idea: she told Shanbo that she would be a matchmaker and match make Shanbo with her sister. Before the two parted, Yingtai reminded Shanbo to pay a visit to her house so that he can propose a marriage to her sister. Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai reluctantly took leave of each other at the pavilion where they had first met.

When Shanbo arrived at Yingtai’s home, he discovered her true gender. They were devoted to and passionate about each other, and the lovers vowed that if they cannot live together, they will die together. The joy of the reunion of the two came to an end when Yingtai told Shanbo that her parents had forced her to marry Ma Wencai (馬文才, Mǎ Wéncái), a rich and spoiled gentleman.

Liang Shanbo was heartbroken. His health slowly deteriorated until he became seriously ill and later died in his office as a county magistrate.

On the day Yingtai was to be married to Ma Wencai, whirlwinds prevented the wedding procession from escorting Yingtai beyond Shanbo’s tomb. Yingtai left the procession to pay her respects for Shanbo. Yingtai descended in bitter despair and begged the grave to open up. Suddenly there was a clap of thunder, and the tomb opened as Yingtai had wished. Without hesitation, Yingtai leapt into the grave to join her beloved Shanbo. A pair of beautiful butterflies emerged (the spirits of Zhu Yingtai and Liang Shanbo) from the tomb and flew away, which symbolized the union of their long-awaited love.

 Now, this movie is being shown on VTV1 in Vietnam, 1PM everyday. Enjoy!

Here are some pictures: