One Thought, a Mortal Life · Above and Below, All Connected · 95 / 102
· The Primal Beginning
I am an unfettered wanderer under heaven; in idle hours I rise above worldly cares and journey through the . Grass and trees sustain my life, with wind and water in abundance; all things have spirit, and the morning dew is kin.
The overturns the common order. Rustling bamboo leaves murmur a low song; I have never looked back at the shoreless sea—the earth is wide, the mountains high, and I let them be my neighbors.
Glosses—
Taichu, the Primal Beginning: it stands for what is without form or substance, holding only the prior-heaven single breath of qi, a state of the cosmos more original than chaos itself;
Morning dew [zhāo lù]: dew at daybreak, a figure for what is clear and pure;
Neighbors [bǐ lín]: to dwell side by side.
*This is an original work. If you reprint it, please credit the original author Shixi Lin; any infringement, once discovered, will be pursued for legal liability. In addition, the accompanying image comes from the internet and belongs to the original illustrator Yichui Wuyue.