Beneath the blossoms with a pot of wine, No friends at hand, so I poured alone; I raised my cup to invite the moon, Turned to my shadow, and we became three.
Li BaiRead
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.
Interpretation
This quote reflects a sense of tranquility and detachment from the chaos of the world, emphasizing personal peace and an internal world of one's own.
Li Bai's quote speaks to the beauty of solitude and the serenity found in nature, where the speaker finds joy and freedom away from societal pressures. The imagery of the peach-blossom flowing downstream suggests the transient nature of life and how one can find solace in the realization that true contentment comes from within, rather than from external validation or the company of others.
In practice
This quote can be used in a mindfulness workshop to emphasize the importance of inner peace.
Beneath the blossoms with a pot of wine, No friends at hand, so I poured alone; I raised my cup to invite the moon, Turned to my shadow, and we became three.
Since Life is but a Dream, Why toil to no avail?
The paired butterflies are already yellow with August Over the grass in the West garden; They hurt me. I grow older.
From some home a jade flute sends dark notes drifting,_x000D_ _x000D_ Scattering on the spring wind that fills Lo-yang._x000D_ _x000D_ Tonight, if we should hear the willow-breaking song,_x000D_ _x000D_ Who could help but long for the gardens of home?
It's ironic that those who till the soil, cultivate and harvest the fruits, vegetables, and other foods that fill your tables with abundance have nothing left for themselves.
You have nice manners for a thief and a liar," said the dragon.
Compassion doesn't, of course, mean feeling sorry for people, or pity, which is how the word has become emasculated in a way.
When Israelis in the occupied territories now claim that they have to defend themselves, they are defending themselves in the sense that any military occupier has to defend itself against the population they are crushing. You can't defend yourself when you're militarily occupying someone else's land. That's not defense. Call it what you like, it's not defense.
Modern liberalism, for most liberals is not a consciously understood set of rational beliefs, but a bundle of unexamined prejudices and conjoined sentiments. The basic ideas and beliefs seem more satisfactory when they are not made fully explicit, when they merely lurk rather obscurely in the background, coloring the rhetoric and adding a certain emotive glow.
O suffering, sad humanity! O ye afflicted ones, who lie Steeped to the lips in misery, Longing, yet afraid to die, Patient, though sorely tried!
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.