Laijon Liu - Zhou Dunyi: Ode to Lotus

Flowers upon our earth, many kinds we do like.
Tao Chien of Jing, loves chrysanthemum alone,
And after Tang Dynasty, the world adores peony,
But I am a person that admires a lotus in pond.

For it comes out of the mire earth, yet not defiled,
And cleansed by the pure ripples, but never flirty;
Humbleness fills its stem, and upright toward sky;
It’s never entangled, never branched to the side;
Its fragrance spreads far, yet its pureness does not fade,
Straight, lofty and clean, stands such character of its kind,
That world can only behold it afar, yet never tamper it.

I believe, chrysanthemum is a hermit among flowers,
And peony, it ranks as the rich and noble plant,
But lotus is a gentleman among the bloom kind.

Ah! There’re only a few people love chrysanthemum,
And are there anyone admires lotus nowadays?
No. Most of all people in the world admire peony!

Laijon Liu

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