Lotuses grow out of mud pure and clean. Chinese poets often draw their analogies from this flower, inspiring others to strive hard and persist in the most difficult of circumstances, just as how the lotus flower brings beauty and sweet scents from the murky depths of the pond.
Understandably, lotus designs were introduced into tea ware designs and gained popularity in the Yuan Dynasty. In Buddhism, the flower symbolizes faithfulness. The golden lotus on the other hand, symbolizes enlightenment.
The sage of tea, Lu Yu, greatly respected for his contribution to Chinese tea culture, once dreamed of the mirror lake fairy who entrusted him with the responsibility of protecting the lotuses in that lake. A very beutiful dream indeed.
I will conclude with a poem by Tang dynasty poet, Wang Chang Ling, who bade farewell to his friend at the Lotus Inn:
The sage of tea, Lu Yu, greatly respected for his contribution to Chinese tea culture, once dreamed of the mirror lake fairy who entrusted him with the responsibility of protecting the lotuses in that lake. A very beutiful dream indeed.
I will conclude with a poem by Tang dynasty poet, Wang Chang Ling, who bade farewell to his friend at the Lotus Inn:
寒雨連江夜入吳
平明送客楚山孤
洛陽親友如相問
一片冰心在玉壺
A copy of the English translation of this poem can be found here.
