–Mao Zedong, 1935 Heaven-piercing, primeval, vast Kunlun stands,Bearing all the springs of mortal lands.Three million jade dragons soar on high,Chilling all the sky to ice and sky.Summer thaws; floods o’er rivers swell,Men to fishes’ prey in depths may dwell.Who has dared judge, through ages old,Thy good and ill, thy story untold?
A frog inhabiting a crumbling well boasted to an ocean turtle: “Behold my paradise! I leap upon mossy ledges, bathe in sun-warmed waters, rest in crevices — no creature rivals my joy! Would you not enter my domain?”