social criticism

  • Bai Juyi

    Bai Juyi (772–846 CE) was a renowned poet of the Tang dynasty, with the courtesy name Letian. His ancestral home was Taiyuan (in present-day Shanxi), but his family later moved to Xiagui (modern-day Weinan, Shaanxi). 

  • To the Coinlike Golden Flower [Tang Poems]

    — Luo Yin You grow around a tree with a name bright, You cling together steeped in autumn light. If your flowers could be stored up like gold, The rich would pluck you down since days of old.

  • To the Cloud [Tang Poems]

    — Lai Hu You have a thousand shapes in flakes or piles in vain; Hidden in mountains or on water you remain. The drought is so severe that all seedlings would die. Why won’t you come down but leisurely tower high?

  • The Young Pine [Tang Poems]

    — Du Xunhe While young, the pine tree thrusts its head amid tall grass; Now by and by we find it outgrow weed in mass. People don’t realize it will grow to scrape the sky; Seeing it tower in cloud, then they know it’s high.

  • The Analects – Chapter 15.17

    The Master said, “They spend the whole day together in groups, yet their conversation never touches upon righteousness; they delight in displaying petty cleverness – how difficult they are!”

  • Caigentan 71. Asymmetrical judgment

    If out of ten utterances, nine are correct others will not necessarily call you a genius. They will, however, throw all the blame on you for the one utterance that proved incorrect.