踏雪寻梅 (Tàxué Xúnméi)

「忽如一夜春风来，千树万树梨花开」

As if a spring breeze swept through the night, ten thousand pear trees burst into bloom

— Cen Shen, 'Song of White Snow in Farewell to Secretary Wu'

As if overnight a spring breeze arrived and ten thousand pear trees blossomed — the immortal verse comparing winter snow to spring flowers.

「孤舟蓑笠翁，独钓寒江雪」

An old man in a straw raincoat and bamboo hat in a lone boat, fishing alone on the cold snowy river

— Liu Zongyuan, 'River Snow'

A lone boat, an old man in a rain hat, fishing alone on a freezing river — an image of noble solitude.

「梅须逊雪三分白，雪却输梅一段香」

The plum blossom yields to the snow in whiteness, but the snow falls short of the plum's fragrance

— Lu Meipo, 'Snow and Plum'

The plum blossom cannot match the snow's pure white, and the snow lacks the plum's sweet fragrance — each has its own strengths.

「宝剑锋从磨砺出，梅花香自苦寒来」

The edge of a treasured sword comes from sharpening; the fragrance of plum blossoms rises from bitter cold

— Admonitions for the Wise

A sword's keen edge is forged through grinding; the plum blossom's fragrance is born of bitter cold — without enduring the deepest chill, how could the plum's scent captivate us?

「疏影横斜水清浅，暗香浮动月黄昏」

Sparse shadows slant across the clear shallow water; a subtle fragrance drifts in the moonlit dusk

— Lin Bu, 'Plum Blossoms in the Mountain Garden'

Sparse plum branches cast slanting shadows on the clear shallow water, while a hidden fragrance drifts through the twilight moonlight — the supreme verse on plum blossoms.