梅林悠思

梅花映雪遍青山，
白红粉妆溢芬芳，
杏月花开满林社，
游客觅香赏花来。

兰竹菊梅四君子，
幽坚淡傲，各具风雅——
春兰幽谷吐清芬，
夏竹虚心正气节，
秋菊隐逸淡名利，
冬梅傲雪露中宵。
——文人雅士吟千古，
翰墨丹青入画联。

游子悠步，
访幽寻梅，
踏径花深，
轻枝摇曳，
花影风颤。

梅季游林，
神社花下，
花放千树，
几度芳华。

注笔

1. 杏月：农历二月；林社指梅林与神社，即梅花种植在林中或神社旁。
2. 兰、竹、菊、梅：雅称“花中四君子”。春、夏、秋、冬，各有风格，清雅自成。历来为文人雅士吟诗作对、题咏山水、书法、绘画的常用题材。
3. 翰墨与丹青：
   • 翰墨：毛笔与墨水，指书法创作
   • 丹青：红、青色彩，指绘画创作
   • 翰墨丹青入画联：将四君子的风格写入书画对联或绘画

c.h.e.f andy

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published on 8.3.2026

梅林悠思 Quiet Reflections in the Plum Grove

Plum blossoms glimmer amid the snowy green hills,
White, red, and pink adorn the land with fragrant grace.
In the second lunar month, the blossoms fill the plum grove and shrines;
Visitors come, seeking their scent and beauty.

The Four Gentlemen — Orchid, Bamboo, Chrysanthemum, Plum:
Refined, steadfast, unassuming, and proud — each with its own elegance.

Spring orchids breathe pure fragrance in secluded valleys;
Summer bamboo stands upright, with a humble heart and noble spirit.
Autumn chrysanthemums live in quiet retreat, indifferent to fame;
Winter plums defy the snow, standing through the night and chill.

Scholars and poets have sung of them through the ages;
Brush and ink have brought them into paintings and couplets.

A wanderer walks leisurely,
Seeking quiet places for plum blossoms.
Along the path, where flowers grow deep,
Tender branches sway,
Shadows of blossoms quiver in the breeze.

Roaming the grove in plum season,
Beneath shrine-side blossoms,
A thousand trees burst into bloom—
How many times does such beauty return?

Notes

1. 杏月: Refers to the second month of the lunar calendar.
   林社: Refers to plum groves and shrines, i.e., the plum trees are planted in groves or beside shrines.
2. Orchid, Bamboo, Chrysanthemum, and Plum (兰竹菊梅): Known as the “Four Gentlemen of Flowers.” Each represents a season—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—and embodies a distinct elegance. These motifs have long been favored by scholars and literati for composing poetry, writing couplets, and depicting in landscape painting and calligraphy.
3. 翰墨与丹青:
   • 翰墨: Brush and ink, representing calligraphy
   • 丹青: Red and blue pigments, representing painting
   • 翰墨丹青入画联: The elegance of the Four Gentlemen is expressed in calligraphy and paintings, often incorporated into couplets or visual artworks.