My heart in middle age found the Way.
And I came to dwell at the foot of this mountain.
When the spirit moves, I wander alone
Amid beauty that is all for me....
I will walk till the water checks my path,
Then sit and watch the rising clouds --
And some day meet an old wood-cutter
And talk and laugh and never return.
Original Poem
「终南别业」
王维
中岁颇好道，晚家南山陲。
兴来美独往，胜事空自知。
行到水穷处，坐看云起时。
偶然值林叟，谈笑无还期。
Interpretation
Composed during Wang Wei's middle to late years of reclusion at Mount Zhongnan, this landscape poem reflects his spiritual transformation after the upheavals of the An Lushan Rebellion. Having withdrawn from political turbulence, the poet found solace in nature, cultivating an aesthetic ideal where "poetry embodies painting, and painting conveys Zen." The verses crystallize his transcendental mindset as a recluse—content in solitude and spiritual fulfillment.
First Couplet: "中岁颇好道，晚家南山陲。"
Zhōng suì pō hào dào, wǎn jiā Nánshān chuí.
Midlife awakened to the Way's art; Now dwelling where Zhongnan's foothills part.
The plainspoken opening traces Wang Wei's evolution from official career to spiritual pursuit. "Awakened" (好道) suggests epiphany rather than gradual change, while "foothills" (陲) geographically marks his conscious withdrawal from worldly centers to nature's margins.
Second Couplet: "兴来每独往，胜事空自知。"
Xìng lái měi dú wǎng, shèng shì kōng zì zhī.
Impulse moves me to solitary roam; Landscape joys mine alone to own.
"Solitary roam" (独往) and "mine alone" (自知) construct a self-contained spiritual ecology where the poet becomes both observer and sole beneficiary of nature's revelations—a hallmark of reclusive transcendence.
Third Couplet: "行到水穷处，坐看云起时。"
Xíng dào shuǐ qióng chù, zuò kàn yún qǐ shí.
Walk till stream-ends prescribe rest; Sit watching clouds birth from crest.
This philosophical zenith transforms physical limits ("stream-ends") into spiritual openings. The shift from walking to sitting mirrors the mind's journey from seeking to being, while rising clouds symbolize endless creative potential emerging from apparent dead-ends.
Fourth Couplet: "偶然值林叟，谈笑无还期。"
Ǒurán zhí lín sǒu, tánxiào wú huán qī.
Chancing on woodsman gray— Our laughter melts time away.
The closing captures spontaneous communion beyond social conventions. "Melts time" (无还期) reflects Zen-like immersion where clock-time dissolves into experiential eternity.
Holistic Appreciation
Deceptively simple in structure, the poem maps Wang Wei's spiritual topography through four progressions: commitment (couplet 1), self-sufficiency (2), enlightenment (3), and communion (4). Its power derives from understatement—using elemental actions (walking, sitting) to signify metaphysical transformations. The "stream-ends/clouds" couplet particularly achieves what Tang aesthetics termed "limitless meaning within apparent boundaries," compressing the universe's rhythms into ten characters.
Artistic Merits
Wang Wei's genius manifests in his ability to distill profound spirituality into seemingly casual observations. The poem's apparent artlessness—with its unadorned language and everyday activities—belies meticulous craftsmanship. Each couplet builds upon the last like ink washes in a landscape scroll, moving from declaration of intent to ultimate transcendence. The work exemplifies his signature synthesis of Daoist spontaneity and Buddhist mindfulness, where physical landscapes become mirrors of inner states.
Insights
Beyond celebrating reclusive life, the poem offers a timeless method for navigating modernity's frenzies. Wang Wei's "stream-ends" teach us to reinterpret dead-ends as vantage points for new perspectives. His woodsman encounter reminds us that profound connection often arises unexpectedly when we're fully present. Ultimately, the poem suggests that true freedom lies not in geographic withdrawal but in cultivating the ability to "sit watching clouds"—to transform any circumstance into spiritual opportunity through mindful presence.
Poem translator
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet
Wang Wei (王维), 701 - 761 A.D., was a native of Yuncheng, Shanxi Province. Wang Wei was a poet of landscape and idylls. His poems of landscape and idylls, with far-reaching images and mysterious meanings, were widely loved by readers in later generations, but Wang Wei never really became a man of landscape and idylls.
