What is the symbolic meaning and flower language of plum blossoms?
The plum blossom is a traditional Chinese flower, and through the ages countless people have praised its character. The plum blossom is elegant and refined, braving the cold and defying the frost, inspiring people with a spirit of striving upward and facing adversity without fear. There are countless legends and stories about plum blossoms, so what is the symbolic meaning of the plum blossom?
1. The plum blossom symbolizes a hermit of noble character
"Sparse shadows slant across the clear shallow water, secret fragrance drifts in the dusk of the moon" - this is Lin Hejing's most famous verse, in which he captured a vivid portrait of the plum blossom. The plum blossom is a noble hermit, tranquil and refined, yet also possessing a firm and upright character. Moreover, in the Song Dynasty patriotic poet Lu Fangweng's ci poem "Bu Suan Zi" about the plum blossom, he wrote: “With no mind to strive for spring, letting the other flowers envy as they will; scattered and fallen, ground into dust, only the fragrance remains as before.” Through praising the plum blossom, the poet expressed his loneliness at having talent but no recognition, and his resolve to maintain noble integrity no matter how many setbacks he suffered.
2. The plum blossom symbolizes a beauty who outshines the frost and snow
The ancients very often compared beauties to plum blossoms. The plum blossom defies the frost and scorns the snow, symbolizing a beauty's loveliness and proud spirit. For example, Fan Chengda's "After the Snow, the Plum in the Keeper's Home Has Not Yet Bloomed, Presented to Zongwei": “Auspicious snow falls white again and again, the southern branch still holds its feeling. Surely the flower-maiden knows, she will not yet marry off this graceful one.” According to the legend recorded in "Jin Ling Zhi": “Princess Shouyang, daughter of Emperor Wu of Liu Song, was lying one day beneath the eaves of the Hanzhang Hall when a plum blossom fell upon her forehead, forming a five-petaled flower that could not be brushed away; it was called the plum blossom makeup, and all the palace ladies imitated it.” This merges the beauty and the plum blossom into one, displaying the beauty's heroic grace.
3. The plum blossom symbolizes the Five Blessings
The plum blossom has five petals, and the five petals each represent one of five meanings: “happiness, luck, longevity, smoothness, and peace.” This uses the plum blossom to express people's hopes for a better life. Using the plum blossom to carry so many different sentiments is unique among the family of nations in the world.
4. The plum blossom symbolizes elegant temperament
The plum blossom's bearing is rich yet not garish, cool yet not bland; its charm of sparse shadows slanting across and its clear, pleasant, subtle fragrance cannot be matched by other flowers. In people's minds, comparing a person to a plum blossom means that their speech, bearing and so on appear elegant, noble and not vulgar - an outward manifestation of inner temperament.
5. The plum blossom symbolizes the precious spirit of the Chinese nation
The plum blossom still blooms unyieldingly in the cold winter, symbolizing the Chinese nation's precious spiritual qualities of indomitability, tenacious struggle and fearlessness of hardship. Facing the frost and battling the snow, unyielding and steadfast, the plum blossom is also regarded as the flower of the greatest integrity and proud spirit; although its growing environment is harsh, it still blooms strongly and joyfully, expressing a dauntless spirit of forging ahead and welcoming hope, along with an optimistic character.