Praise for plum blossoms

The poet's praise for plum blossoms continues quietly, subtly but steadily showing the virtues of plum blossoms without exaggerating or showing off prominent features. It must be because of the tenacity of the flower that cannot be matched that it blooms without fear through the cold alone before spring arrives.

The unusual scent that spreads dimly across the white cloth as if snow had fallen all over the world was emitted by plum blossoms. The blooming of the flower is truly humble enough to be noticed only then. The flower and its fragrance bloom over and over again on the stems of the country house. This is possible because the flower embraces a solitary, neither arrogant nor conceited section. The generous heart that does not discriminate between the rich and the poor should be read as the elegant grace of a nobleman in snow.

The metaphor of snow and fragrance is often introduced in Chinese poetry that sang plum blossoms. Lu Meipo wrote in one of his poems, ‘The white color of plum blossoms is slightly inferior to snow, but when it comes to fragrance, snow can’t beat plum blossoms’ (‘Snow and Plum Blossom’). Another example is Wang An-shi’s poem, ‘The reason why you can tell that plum blossoms are not snow even from a distance is because of their subtle fragrance’ (‘Plum Blossoms’). However, the poet paid attention to the fair flowering motif among the many virtues of plum blossoms, so it cannot be a unique idea. ‘Zhaojun Yuan' is a song title that is Song Ci and has nothing to do with the previous content.