#93 Contradiction: A Chinese tale of swords and shields
Swords, shields and a Chinese contradictionMaodun, the Chinese word for ‘contradiction’, is an unusual compound word that brings together two ancient weapons from the battlefields of China and even has its own etymological story.
Once upon a time, a salesman in the State of Chu (c.1030-223 BCE) sold both spears and shields. One day, he came to the market and introduced his goods.
First, he held up his shield, known as dun in Chinese, and declared: “My shield couldn’t be harder. No matter how sharp the weapon, it can’t penetrate my shield.”
He lowered the shield and then raised his spear, known as mao in Chinese. “My spear is extremely sharp. No matter how hard a thing is, it can penetrate it,” affirmed the Chu salesman laughing with pride.
Just then a man stepped forward from the crowd. Grinning, he asked the confident salesman, “If you attack your shield with your spear, what will happen?” The seller gasped and stood there speechless with the crowd’s laughter ringing in his ears.
The seller’s contradictory claim led to the creation of the Chinese term maodun to describe any relationship between objects or ideas in opposite positions.
Gradually, Chinese people began using zixiang maodum to refer to the inconsistency of a person’s words or deeds and the story remains as a warning against making contradictory statements.