Chinese poetry

Green Mountain ~ A Poem by Li Po

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A World Apart: Finding Peace in Li Po’s Poetic Solitude

What if true peace isn’t found in answers—but in silence?

Green Mountain

Li Po

You ask me why I dwell in the green mountain;
I smile and make no reply for my heart is free of care.
As the peach-blossom flows down stream
and is gone into the unknown,
I have a world apart that is not among men.

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Reflection

Li Po’s Green Mountain whispers of a serene freedom only found in solitude. His choice to dwell in nature is not escape—it is arrival. The poet’s silence in response to the question reveals an answer that transcends words: a heart unburdened, untethered to the noise of the world. The flowing peach blossoms represent impermanence, while his presence in the mountains suggests timelessness. It is a gentle rebellion against worldly ambition, choosing inner peace over outer praise.

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As you read this poem, ask yourself:

What does “a world apart” mean to you—and where do you find that freedom?

Gazing at Spring ~ A Poem by Xue Tao

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When Flowers Bloom and Fall: Reflections on Love and Longing

Do our hearts ache more in moments of beauty or in moments of loss? Xue Tao’s words invite us to sit with that question.

Gazing at Spring

Xue Tao

Flowers bloom:
no one
to enjoy them with.

Flowers fall:
no one
with whom to grieve.

I wonder when love’s
longings
stir us most –

when flowers bloom,
or when flowers fall?

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Reflection

Xue Tao’s Gazing at Spring offers a haunting simplicity. She contrasts the beauty of flowers blooming with the sorrow of their fall, weaving love and longing into both seasons. The poem speaks to the universal ache of solitude—joy feels incomplete without someone to share it, and grief grows heavier without a companion to hold it. Her final question pierces: do we yearn more in life’s blossoms or in its endings? Perhaps the answer is not either/or. Love stirs most whenever we stand at the threshold—of beauty or of loss—reminded of our need for connection. The poem lingers like petals in the wind, urging us to notice how love is bound to both presence and absence, both the blooming and the falling.

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