happiness is a butterfly

Only when humbled does one realize the danger of climbing. 
Only when obscured does one know about the pain of being in the limelight. 
In tranquility, you would realize the stress of exercise. 
Keep your lips sealed, and you shall know how foolish verbosity is. 

The music of rustling pines.  The tinkling of spring water over rocks.
Everything entering your ears is part of Nature's chimes. 
The haze over tall grasses. The cloud's shadow amidst water. 
Watching them at leisure is like reading the best  essay of the Universe.

The music of rustling pines.  The tinkling of spring water over rocks.
Everything entering your ears is part of Nature's chimes. 
The haze over tall grasses. The cloud's shadow amidst water. 
Watching them at leisure is like reading the best  essay of the Universe.

Be a little unwitting and stay away from astuteness, 
save some righteousness for the world. 
Rid of extravagance and lead a simple life, 
save an untainted name in history. 

Music, books, poems, and paintings cultivate a scholar's mind, 
whilst a common fellow only enjoys the superficiality. 
Mountains, rivers, clouds, and  scenery enrich an intellectual's knowledge, yet an ordinary person only appreciates the image. 
Nothing defines anything. It is all subject to one's comprehension. 
So, to pursue knowledge, one needs to have insights.

People know how to read a book with words but not a book without words.  People know how to play a stringed instrument, but not one without strings. 
If you only know how to recognize something practical and nothing spiritual, how can you appreciate the wonders of music and books.

Over the little BaLing Bridge where people waved farewell, 
my poetic thoughts flows while watching the woods and caves. 
Alone by the bend of the mirror lake, where courtiers used to retire, 
My outreaching spirit is stimulated by the mountain and the river. 

The world affairs are like a chess game. 
An expert will see that there is no more move necessary. 
Life is like a clay pot, 
Revealing true emptiness when shattered. 

The world affairs are like a chess game. 
An expert will see that there is no more move necessary. 
Life is like a clay pot, 
Revealing true emptiness when shattered. 

The peasants and villagers are contented with white wine and chicken,
while ignorant of gourmet feasts. 
They are happy with plain clothes and brown shorts. 
When asked about emperor's  garments, they are lost. 
Their desires are so minimal and natural, it is the highest life. 

Without materialistic desires, 
the mind is like the autumn sky and an open ocean. 
Just sit down with good music and a book, 
I can be a Saint in a hideaway. 

A vessel  topples because it is too full. 
A piggy bank is saved from being shattered for its emptiness. 
So a true person prefers "have-not" than "have".
Rather be incomplete than to be complete

True emptiness is not empty. 
Holding on to an image is not real,  nor is abandoning it. 
Sir, please let me know what to do? 
While you may exist in this world, you can reach out beyond. 
Indulging in desire is a pain, so is abstention. 
My Friend, it is up to you to cultivate your own virtues. 

True emptiness is not empty. 
Holding on to an image is not real, nor is abandoning it. 
Sir, please let me know what to do? 
While you may exist in this world, you can reach out beyond. 
Indulging in desire is a pain, so is abstention. 
My Friend, it is up to you to cultivate your own virtues. 

Bells and drums are beaten because they make noise. 
The deer is encaged for its wild behavior and desire to be fed. 
Thus, fame invites troubles. 
Desire causes the loss of perspective. 
A scholar must strive to rid of such desires. 

Bells and drums are beaten because they make noise. 
The deer is encaged for its wild behavior and desire to be fed. 
Thus, fame invites troubles. 
Desire causes the loss of perspective. 
A scholar must strive to rid of such desires.