The Translation of the Lotus Poem

The poem on the side of the tea cup is a very beautiful poem describing the flower and leaves of the lotus. It is a beautiful poem and difficult to translate exactly, but this is the approximate meaning of the poem:

"The leaves break the bandage of the green stem, stretch themselves and form a green pool with untidy edges. Now the flower comes from out of the vast surface of the water, just like a very beautiful woman coming gracefully from her bath."

In China, there are allot of poems describing the lotus flower, for they come out of the dirty mud under the water, yet they still keep their pureness, freshness and beauty. Chinese poets often use them to inspire the people to keep on doing what they must do, and to show their best part to the outside world, just like the lotus flower, no matter how bad the situation or circumstance may be.

Lotus has another characteristic. The plant's stalk is easy to bend in two, but it is very hard to break, or separate the two parts completely because they have many strong sinuous fibers that tenaciously hold on to keep the plant together. Poets use this scenario to point to the tight relationship of the members in a family, or two lovers for example, showing that no matter how far away they might live, nothing can really separate them in heart.

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(The above text is an Interpretation of a translation of the lotus poem and supporting comments, originally provided by Dr. Tao Song, MD Director, China Division, World Consortium of Companies.)