Why is zhuge liang called the sleeping dragon

Even beforehand, when they were not even allied, Zhou Yu utilized a plan to kill Zhuge Liang. He demanded that Zhuge Liang find out a way to produce one hundred thousand arrows in ten days counting or face execution. Zhuge Liang, to prove a point, proposed that he would be able to do make that amount of arrows in only three days.

In order to achieve this, he ordered twenty large boats filled with what seemed to be scarecrows, then allowed the soldiers to beat war drums and faux war cries near the Wei territory.

A couple years later, after all his plans to kill Liu Bei was foiled by Zhuge Liang, he was driven to his very limit and died choking on his own blood. Zhuge Liang was able to capture and release the Nanman King seven times before he finally gave up and allowed the Shu-Han Empire to capture the Nanman territory; the idea was to not only damage them militarily but psychologically.

In turn, Zhuge Liang still allowed the Nanman people to keep their land. After he had completed his southern campaigns, the Sleeping Dragon decided that it was the time to move his expedition up north. Meanwhile, Zhuge Liang worked on a series of inventions. One of the well-known inventions is now known as the hot-air balloon, often used for military signaling. He was also dubbed the creator of Chinese steamed buns called mantou although not too likely , landmines, and the Zhuge Nu — or repeating crossbows, wherein one would be able to repeatedly shoot arrows at their enemy.

Another would be Thirty-Six Stratagems , which is a collection of thirty-six Chinese proverbs aligned to stratagems. All else vanished along with time, concealing the brilliance of Zhuge Liang in its full potential.

The Northern Expeditions were the primary beginning and cause of his eventual restlessness. Similarly to Zhuge Liang, Sima Yi is exceedingly meticulous, although much more temperamental and at times impulsive.

During the final battle of the Wu Chang Plains, Zhuge Liang, having been overworked, went for desperate measures; he went as far as sending Sima Yi women clothing and accessories, suggesting that he was a woman for not daring to attack, aware of his temperamental nature. However, seemingly unfazed, Sima Yi knew then that Zhuge Liang was not going to last too long due to his desperation for an attack.

As Zhuge Liang grew more restless, he made plans to make sure that, should he die soon, Jiang Wei shall take his place as prime minister and strategist of Shu-Han. It is said that upon his death, a shooting star flew across the sky, marking the death of the premier for Shu-Han. From far away, he thought it was really Zhuge Liang and forced a retreat — a close call for the Shu-Han Empire.

Even in death, he serves his state. It is true that Zhuge Liang, who died at such an early age as fifty-four, was rather short-lived, his legacy still carries own up until today. He was chancellor and later regent of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. He is recognised as the most accomplished strategist of his era, and has been compared to Sun Tzu, the author of The Art of War. His reputation as an intelligent and learned scholar grew even while he was living in relative seclusion, earning him the nickname "Wolong" or "Fulong", meaning "Crouching Dragon" or "Sleeping Dragon".

Open Document. Essay Sample Check Writing Quality. Zhuge Liang, also known as Kongming, was the chief strategist and advisor to the kingdom of Shu who lived the era of Three Kingdoms. His surname, Kongming, translates to sleeping dragon, and it was given to him because his talents were hidden from the world until the leader of the Kingdom of Shu requested his aid. Zhuge Liang mastered both domestic and foreign policies in addition to his unique technique of blending his knowledge of weather and astronomy using nature to defeat the enemy with armies of fewer men.

He was also a great inventor who attributed inventions such as the repeating crossbow and the flying lantern. Furthermore, he is also considered to be a true confusion follower and a tragic hero because of the destiny that fate brought upon him. Due to his accomplishments, historians regard him as a versatile man, an inventor, a feared strategist, a true Confucian follower, and to some extent a tragic hero. It was not until he agreed to help Liu Bei achieve his goal of unifying China that his talents were brought to light.

His intervention in the war created allies and new technological advances such as the invention of new weapons and wear. Three Kingdoms , A Historical Novel. Moss Roberts. Berkeley: University of California, September Sivananda, Sri Swami.

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