{"id":11495,"date":"2025-05-16T21:05:04","date_gmt":"2025-05-16T13:05:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bukitbrown.com\/main\/?page_id=11495"},"modified":"2025-09-28T13:21:03","modified_gmt":"2025-09-28T05:21:03","slug":"02-chia-wan-neo","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/bukitbrown.com\/main\/wayfinder\/02-chia-wan-neo\/","title":{"rendered":"02 CHIA WAN NEO \u8c22\u5706\u5a18"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Four Loves<\/b><\/h3>\n

CHIA WAN NEO \u8c22\u5706\u5a18 1864\u20131932 Place of Ancestry Leong Khay (\u9f99\u6eaa)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The intricate carvings on Chia Wan Neo\u2019s tomb befit her stature as a matriarch with three generations of descendants at her wake. The panels on the tomb shoulders depict two out of <\/span>The Four Loves <\/span><\/i>in Chinese culture: four poets and their favourite flowers, each representing a season. On the left shoulder (from the viewer\u2019s point of view) is the lotus growing out of a container in summer.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Lotus (<\/span>\u84ee)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u81ea\u674e\u5510\u4f86\uff0c\u4e16\u4eba\u751a\u611b\u7261\u4e39\u3002\u4e88\u7368\u611b\u84ee\u4e4b\u51fa\u65bc\u6ce5\u800c\u4e0d\u67d3\uff0c\u6fef\u6e05\u6f23\u800c\u4e0d\u5996\u3002<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cSince the Tang Dynasty, many have loved the peony. My fondness is solely for the lotus as it stays untainted even though it grows in mud. After cleansing with water, it does not become bewitching\u201d.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cOde to a Lotus\u201d <\/span><\/i>by Song Dynasty\u2019s Zhou Dunyi (\u5468\u6566\u9824) is also an allegory<\/span> of how a gentleman should behave \u2013 true to his principles while navigating the treacherous paths of the world.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Peony (<\/span>\u7261\u4e39)<\/span><\/p>\n

The peony <\/span>(\u7261\u4e39) <\/span>\u00a0was the favourite flower of Emperor Xuanzong (\u5510\u7384\u5b97) of the Tang Dynasty. During his reign, the Tang Dynasty reached its height of power for the country and the capital city Chang’an (\u957f\u5b89) was renowned for its opulence with residents leading luxurious lives. At a palace banquet celebrating the full bloom of peonies, Emperor Xuanzong requested the poet Li Bai <\/span>(\u674e\u767d)<\/span> to compose a poem appropriate for the occasion. Li Bai promptly created a verse that compared the beauty of the flower to that of Lady Yang Guifei <\/span>(\u694a\u8cb4\u5983),<\/span> the Emperor\u2019s favoured consort and one of the four classical beauties of ancient China. Unfortunately, Yang Guifei met a tragic end when she was accused of bringing down the empire, though to this day, the vibrant peony continues to symbolise wealth and prosperity.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Plum Blossom <\/span>(<\/span>\u6885<\/span>)<\/span><\/p>\n

In contrast to the celebration of material life during the Tang Dynasty, the Song (960\u20131279) scholars focused on cultivating the inner spirit. <\/span>Weak administration and defeats abroad led many to shun official positions and opt for reclusive lives to uphold their principles. The era’s favoured flower was the plum blossom (<\/span>\u6885<\/span>), admired for its delicate beauty and resilience in winter. Poet Lin Bu (<\/span>\u6797\u900b<\/span>) epitomised this trend \u2013 a bachelor who lived simply, uninterested in fame or wealth. He devoted himself to cultivating plum trees and raising cranes <\/span>to such an extent that his contemporaries made an apt comparison: <\/span>\u201cThe plum tree is as his wife and the cranes his children\u201d.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/i>The Chrysanthemum<\/span> (\u83ca)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Unlike the plum blossom with its lofty attributes, the chrysanthemum is a much simpler flower symbolising a carefree life. Tao Yuanming (<\/span>\u9676\u6df5\u660e<\/span>), a Song Dynasty poet who chose to stay away from court intrigues, retired to spend his days with his beloved chrysanthemum flowers<\/span>, <\/span>capturing his tranquil state of mind in his poetry.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u63a1\u83ca\u6771\u7c6c\u4e0b \u60a0\u7136\u898b\u5357\u5c71<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cWhile picking chrysanthemums \u2019neath the Eastern fence\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

My gaze upon the Southern mountain rests\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

(Adapted from translation by Yang Xianyi and Gladys Taylor)<\/span><\/p>\n

Only the lotus and plum blossom appear on Chia\u2019s tomb. You can see the full set of flowers below.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The Four Flowers depicted in grave carvings (photo credit Ang Yik Han)<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

by Catherine Lim<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Four Loves CHIA WAN NEO \u8c22\u5706\u5a18 1864\u20131932 Place of Ancestry Leong Khay (\u9f99\u6eaa)\u00a0 The intricate carvings on Chia Wan Neo\u2019s tomb befit her stature as a matriarch with three generations of descendants at her wake. The panels on the tomb shoulders depict two out of The Four Loves in Chinese culture: four poets and their favourite flowers, each representing a season. On the left shoulder (from the viewer\u2019s point of view) is the lotus growing out of a container […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1489,"featured_media":0,"parent":11412,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-11495","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n02 CHIA WAN NEO \u8c22\u5706\u5a18 - Bukit Brown: A World Monuments Watch Site in 2014<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bukitbrown.com\/main\/wayfinder\/02-chia-wan-neo\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"02 CHIA WAN NEO \u8c22\u5706\u5a18 - Bukit Brown: A World Monuments Watch Site in 2014\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Four Loves CHIA WAN NEO \u8c22\u5706\u5a18 1864\u20131932 Place of Ancestry Leong Khay (\u9f99\u6eaa)\u00a0 The intricate carvings on Chia Wan Neo\u2019s tomb befit her stature as a matriarch with three generations of descendants at her wake. 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