헬렌 @elenstr - Tumblr Blog

Hello :) Can you explain what Xie Lian's famous words "body in abyss, heart in paradise" mean?

I certainly can for you!

Essentially, what this phrase means is maintaining a virtuous heart (“heart in paradise”) even when experiencing overwhelming hardships (“body in abyss”). It’s a stance that’s very much inspired by Taoism and also Stoic philosophy, which both promote living in accordance to nature in all its unpredictability (go with the flow) while holding onto basic values such as compassion and modesty. In the face of overwhelming suffering where all your attempts to do good end up meaningless, holding onto hope and morals can be incredibly difficult. It would be so much easier to give up and simply externalize that pain by lashing out at the unfair world around us. That’s exactly what happened with Jun Wu, whose despair led him to become the first Supreme Demon. And it nearly happened with Xie Lian as well.

But Xie Lian was able to recover from his downward spiral because he was reminded that human kindness still exists. While he was in the “abyss” (figurative and literal since he stayed down in that self-made hole), he had someone pull him out. That simple act of compassion was enough to uplift his whole attitude towards his banished life, and let him break free of White No-Face’s corruption.

What’s highlighted from this is that your suffering doesn’t define you, and no matter how bleak your circumstances seem, it is possible to rise above despair if you have so much as one meaningful connection to support you. Life can be chaotic, and the topic of luck is explored repeatedly to illustrate the reality that some things are beyond one’s control in life. However, what is always within an individual’s control is how they decide to face whatever life throws at them. Jun Wu was unable to move on from his past suffering, and grew monstrous from his resentment and loneliness. That’s why he could not stand to hear Xie Lian’s vow to stay moral no matter how tough life gets.

Xie Lian’s life during his second banishment wasn’t physically easier than his life during his first banishment in any way. But he still lived in a way that embodied “body in abyss, heart in paradise” because he learned to accept hardships as an inevitable part of life without losing sight of the simple kindness and connections that still makes life meaningful. Maturing in his worldview is what enabled him to let go of his past grievances and go forth cheerfully in life with compassion, frugality and humility, AKA the three fundamental values of Taoism.

One more point I wanna touch on is that while this phrase is understood to be Xie Lian’s life motto, the two people who imo best exemplify this notion are actually Yu Shi Huang and Xiao Ying, two ladies who are distinct Xie Lian parallels.

Both Yu Shi Huang and Xiao Ying have had their share of misfortunes and died untimely deaths as mortals, but neither have ever been embittered by that. They never thought to have revenge against those who’ve wronged them, only wanting to help those they care for. Particularly in Xiao Ying’s case, even though she never accomplished anything, Xie Lian still shows great deference towards her as someone he sees as much stronger than him due to how kind and caring she managed to stay no matter what.

Moreover, Yin Yu, as another, even more striking Xie Lian parallel, would be another person who can be said to embody “body in abyss, heart in paradise” because he also managed to hold onto his principles even though he was filled with resentment against Quan Yi Zhen. But even so, the connection that remained between Yin Yu and Quan Yi Zhen still proved to be meaningful enough that it let Yin Yu recover the pride and glory of his youth during a decisive moment and deliver one hell of a “F*ck you” speech to Jun Wu for trying to drag him down to his level.

I honestly think Yin Yu said it best here: “I DO RESENT HIM! I DO HATE HIM!!! BUT, SO WHAT?”

It’s quite reminiscent of Xie Lian when he said “I haven’t forgotten! But–IT’S NONE OF YOUR SHITTY BUSINESS!!!”

Both of them have experienced the pain and humiliation of failure, just like Jun Wu. But unlike the latter, they both pulled themselves out of despair and regained their pride by no longer letting past suffering define them. And it’s noteworthy that Jun Wu, who stayed stuck to his past, is always noticeably perplexed by Xie Lian and Yin Yu being like “who cares?” when he tries to corrupt them by bringing up their past hardships.

What happened in the past can’t change, but it is possible to gain a new outlook and move on from that ✌

dramawisdom

pranpat

—Nikka Ursula

badowwwl

“That’s our story.”

mateo torrez & rufus emeterio (they both die at the end by adam silvera) arts by @oblivionsdream, @jensuisdraws, @the-purple-elephant

jwyunwoo

me reading a book literally entitled ‘they both die at the end’

they: both die

me:

evilsanlang

tgcf quotes that make u inhale

“only after having met you did I rediscover that it’s such a simple thing to be happy.”

“to some, the mere existence of a certain person in this world is, in itself, hope.”

“there was a period of time in my life that wasn’t easy, and during that time, I’d constantly think that, should someone witness the me who rolled in the dirt, unable to get up, yet still love me for who I was, that’d be great.”

“If I could, I would have you use me as your stepping stone, the bridge you burn after crossing, the corpse bones you need to trample to climb up, the sinner who deserved the butchering of a million knives. but I know you wouldn’t allow it.”

“something like a genuine heart is made to be trampled.”

“to watch with your own eyes your beloved be trampled and ridiculed while unable to do anything - that’s the worst suffering in the world.”

“to me, the one basking in infinite glory is you; the one fallen from grace is also you. what matters is you, and not the state of you.”

“those who have known each other for decades can become strangers in a day. we met by chance and we may part by chance. if we like each other, then we shall continue to meet; if we don’t, then we shall part. there’s no banquet in the world that doesn’t come to an end, so I’ll say what I want to say.”

“I will fight for what I don’t have. I will change fates I don’t possess. my fate is up to me, not the heavens!”

“I might not be able to decide whether the road is easy or not, but whether I walk it is entirely up to me.”

“I do not worship gods - I am God!”

needtherapy

Those are good but consider:

And furthermore:

thisworldgodonlyknows-deactivat

when did xia lian first noticed that he had feelings for hua cheng?

Hello Anon!

I would say it was when Hua Cheng was being roused by Mount Tonglu’s reopening and Xie Lian began kissing Hua Cheng (and uh possibly more) that he got his love epipheny:

Borrowing spiritual power is a nice excuse and all but at the end of the day, Xie Lian had to confront the truth that he actually really likes to kiss Hua Hua (´ ε ` )♡

And that it’s not true that he can’t get erect.

There were of course some other moments before where the realization that he loves Hua Cheng romantically was just hanging on the tip of his sharp mind.

Like for instance when he got jealous over Hua Cheng’s “special, noble, gracious” person.

Or in the aftermath of their first kiss, when Xie Lian knew that had anyone else done that to him, he would not be so forgiving...much less so flustered.

That he already thought like that indicates that he was already aware, on some level, that Hua Cheng occupied a special, unique position in his life. He just needed a bit more time before he fully recognized it as romantic love. Given his centuries-old trauma that crippled his self-esteem on top of his innocence/inexperience as someone who was on a cultivation path requiring abstinence it’s no wonder it took so long for him to recognize his own feelings :’)

Thanks for the ask!

huaflor13

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thank you to y'all :)

hualian

Heaven Official’s Blessing donghua OP art 🦋

qochita-remade-deactivated20230

its so much how leorio made that huge racket about a photo of killua being worth tens of millions during the testing gate arc, and we’re meant to think he wants a photo to sell it, but in when we actually see him in possession of one its a semi-canon photo of his friends from the hunter exam that he puts in an expensive frame. and how its the only personal item we see him with beyond his phone which hes been using primarily to spam kurapika with calls because hes worried about him

hydranjeas

Killua said that Gon is the light. But he didn't realize how, in that moment where Gon was filled by cruel anger, he gives that warm light that was fading from Gon.

and here how he was so concerned at seeing Gon, the person who helped him to get away from the pain, falling down in that exact darkness.

Also, it's meaningful how Gon and Killua were put into the respective white/black side, because their roles seemed obvious, but then into the hiyori hittai end they switched. Killua turned into the white side as it represents his development and Gon turned into black one as it represents his falling in that destructive behavior of him.

Because of their currently situation, we can see Killua as the Yang now and Gon as the Yin, or still Gon as the Yang and Killua as the Yin as always, but after all the Yin/Yang theory says that there's a piece of Yang into Yin and viceversa. And this fits quite well for them.

allukay

the way nagareboshi kirari is a song all about killua and gon. the way it is about entrusting wishes to the stars, unanswered thoughts and unspoken feelings. the way they are thinking about each other even when apart, believing that one day their hearts would connect. the way they are in each other’s dreams.

“Our meeting, crossing time, is like a dream

Feelings, so many that I can’t hide them, dance in the wind

If only I had a little bit more courage”

“Sparkle, shooting star, you are in my dreams

Its guidance of today will lead us to a different tomorrow

One instant of light, please convey these feelings,

I’ll find things I can do for your sake

Far into the distance

Let’s go on a journey”

And finally, this part:

“On my cheeks I can feel the warmth

of these tears I shed in sorrow

From this place, where I'm looking up at the sky

I'll be calling out your name forever”

dean-colette-deactivated2026050

Honestly cried when Killua said this because it’s like he was saying “I’m not good enough to be your friend but will you still let me be beside you?” and “Despite the odds and our differences my only wish is to lean on you for you to lean on me.” and “I want to be selfish when it comes to you.”

and..

“I don’t want to leave you. Ever.”

I can feel his doubt. To himself, not to Gon. Doubting his relevance and his character and his worth when it comes to his dear friend. “Am I worth it to be Gon’s friend?”, “ Do I deserve to be with him?”

Save this child.

blogginghxh

Friend: How are you?

Me: Here, still thinking about my sons and how we didn’t get a proper closure or farewell. Have you seen Killua’s face while he was turning his back to Gon? He looked so broken. He was like ‘bye’ with a smiling face and all but the second Gon couldn’t see his expression, he just looked so…lonely. And Gon? Now as contrast to Killua, he didn’t look sad all throughout. Gon was seen to have this face of determination, however you can still see the underlying sadness on it. It made- or makes me wonder what he could be thinking during that time. Gon has always looked so simple. “What you see is what you get”, but to be honest, characters like that are the most complex. Their actions are unpredictable, but when they did do something you’d be like ‘fuck, why didn’t I think of that?’. Sometimes I wonder how they are, you know? Do they see a thing and stop on their tracks and just remember each other? Yes, I’m sure yes. Do the events on the Chimera Ant Arc still hunt them? How many times did they wake up in cold sweat because they dreamt of the time where tears were shed, relationships were broken and morals were tested?

Friend: …..

Me: Just peachy