— Huang Chao
In soughing western wind you blossom far and nigh;
Your fragrance is too cold to invite butterfly.
Some day if I as Lord of Spring come into power,
I’d order you to bloom together with peach flower.
Note
Huang Chao (c. 820–884) was a rebel leader and failed scholar who led a massive uprising against the Tang Dynasty. Though primarily known for his military revolt, he also left behind a few powerful poems that reveal his ambition, frustration with social injustice, and desire to overturn the established order.
Similar to the “Chrysanthemum After Failing the Imperial Exams”, this poem “Inscribed on Chrysanthemums” (Ti Ju Hua or To the Chrisanthemum) reimagines the traditional symbol of the chrysanthemum – not as a quiet emblem of reclusion, but as a wronged hero of nature. The poem opens with chrysanthemums blooming bravely in the courtyard amid biting autumn winds, their fragrance cold and unwelcoming to butterflies – a metaphor for how virtue goes unappreciated in harsh times.
Then comes Huang Chao’s bold declaration: “If one day I become the Green Emperor (Qing Di) – the mythic ruler of spring – I will decree that chrysanthemums bloom together with peach blossoms.” In Chinese culture, peach blossoms represent spring, joy, and favor, while chrysanthemums are tied to autumn, solitude, and resilience. By vowing to rewrite nature’s laws, Huang Chao expresses his revolutionary dream: to overturn hierarchy, grant dignity to the marginalized, and place the overlooked on equal footing with the privileged.
The poem blends poetic imagination with political aspiration – gentle imagery masking fierce intent.
题菊花
— 黄巢
飒飒西风满院栽，
蕊寒香冷蝶难来。
他年我若为青帝，
报与桃花一处开。
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