At a Mansion in the South of the Capital
Fantastic China | 2023-03-06 | Views:288
At a Mansion in the South of the Capital
Author: Cui Hu (birth and death years unknown)
Exactly a year ago behind this gate,
Peach blossoms were as pink as her face.
Today I wonder where she is;
Still, peach blossoms smile at the spring winds they embrace.
Cui was a Tang Dynasty (618—907) government official. His political career was lacklustre compared with the brilliance of his poetry. Six of his poems are included in A Complete Anthology of Tang Dynasty Poetry.
One of the reasons why this poem is so widely known may be that it actually illustrates a universal experience of life: we might encounter something beautiful without expectation, and if we deliberately look for it, we may never find it.