Listen to this articlehuà ɡānɡē wéi yùbó 化干戈为玉帛
Beat Swords into Plowshares / Turn War into Peace
消除仇怨，变战争为和平，变冲突为友好。“干”“戈”是用于防御和进攻的两种武器，借指战争、武力冲突；“玉”“帛”指圭、璋等玉器和束帛，是古代诸侯会盟、诸侯与天子朝聘时互赠的礼物，后来用于表示和平共处之意。它反映了华夏民族自古崇尚和平、愿意化解暴力冲突的美好期待。
The term means to eliminate animosity in order to turn war into peace and turn conflicts into amity. Gan (干) and ge (戈) are two weapons of war which were used for defense and attack respectively. Yu (玉) and bo (帛) mean jades (such as jade tablets and jade ornaments) which were gifts exchanged between feudal lords and tribute paid to monarchs. In time, yu and bo acquired the meaning of peace and co-existence. This term reflects the Chinese people’s long-standing aspiration for peace and goodwill to dissolve conflict and violence.
引例 Citation：
◎上天降灾，使我两君匪以玉帛相见，而以兴戎。（《左传·僖公十五年》）
（上天降下灾祸，使我[秦、晋]两国国君没有带着玉帛会面，却发动了战争。）
Heaven has struck disaster, bringing our two sovereign lords (of the states of Qin and Jin) to face each other, not with jades and silks, but with the instruments of war. (Zuo’s Commentary on The Spring and Autumn Annals)
