It means: I think chrysanthemum is a hermit in flowers; Peony is a rich person in flowers; Lotus is a gentleman among flowers.
Excerpts from the original text:
Want to call chrysanthemum, the hermit of flowers; Peony, blooming with wealth; Lotus, the gentleman of flowers. Hey! The love of chrysanthemum flowers is rarely heard after Tao; Who gave the lotus love? Peony love is suitable for many people.
Translation:
In my opinion, chrysanthemum is a hermit in flowers; Peony is a rich person in flowers; Lotus is a gentleman among flowers. Alas! The love for chrysanthemums was rarely heard by Tao Yuanming after that. Who else loves lotus flowers as much as I do? Of course, there are many people who love peony.
Extended data
Creative background:
This article was written in the 6th year of Jiayou in Northern Song Dynasty (106 1) to Zhiping 1 year (1064), and Zhou Dunyi was the chief judge of Qianzhou. At this time, Lianchi was built, and Jiayou wrote "On Ailian" here in May 8.
About the author:
Zhou Dunyi (10 17-1073), also known as Zhou Yuanhao, was originally named Zhou Dunshi, whose name was Mao Shu, and his name was Yuan Gong. Born in Tianbao, Yingdaolou, Daozhou (now Daoxian County, Hunan Province) in the Northern Song Dynasty, he was called Mr. Lian. Zhou Dunyi, one of the five sons of the Northern Song Dynasty, was the founder of Confucianism in the Song Dynasty. He is a writer and philosopher. He wrote Zhu Yuanzhang's Gong Ji, Ailian's Theory, Tai Chi's Illustration and Shu Tong.
Zhou Dunyi raised many new questions and made new conclusions in his research, which promoted the development of Confucianism. The basic concepts of Neo-Confucianism put forward by him, such as infinity, Tai Chi, yin and yang, five elements, movement, honesty, no desire, hue, etc., have been repeatedly discussed and developed by later Neo-Confucians, and constitute an important content in the category system of Neo-Confucianism. Become the founder of Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasties.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Ailian said