"Painting" is a five-character quatrain composed by an unknown poet in the Song Dynasty (some say Wang Wei of the Tang Dynasty or Zen Master Chuan of the Southern Song Dynasty). This poem describes natural scenery, but admires a painting. The first two sentences describe the clear colors of the mountains and the silent flowing water; the second two sentences describe the flowers blooming in all seasons and the birds not afraid of people. Four lines of poetry constitute a complete picture of landscapes, flowers and birds. The whole poem is neatly contrasted, especially the use of multiple sets of antonyms in the poem, which makes it clear in rhythm, distinct in tone, and full of charm, making it catchy to read.
Vernacular translation
You can see the green color of the mountains in the distance, but you can't hear the sound of running water nearby.
Spring has passed, but the flowers are still blooming and the birds on the branches are not afraid when people come closer.
Creative background
This poem is a work of praise by the poet. There are many theories about the author of this poem. One theory is that it was written by Wang Wei of the Tang Dynasty, but this poem is not found in Wang Wei's works or in the "Complete Poems of the Tang Dynasty"; another theory is that it was originally a verse poem written by Zen Master Chuan in the Southern Song Dynasty to annotate the Buddhist classic "Diamond Sutra" Part of it; one is said to have been written by an unknown poet of the Song Dynasty. For example, when this poem was included in Shanghai first-grade primary school Chinese textbooks, the author was listed as "Song·Anonymous".