After waking up one morning recently, I was drawn to the garden. The grass was still wet with dew and glistened where the sun touched it. A light breeze lifted through the leaves and gently swung the slender branches of a tall willow. I turned the cool soil with my fingertips and planted a row of seeds. Birdsong filled the air. All was at peace, in that quiet little morning world within the larger world, and I was reminded of a story I had come across recently, which I will share with you today.

Peach Blossom Shangri-La

by Tao Yuan Ming, 421 AD

(As translated and proofed by Rick Davis and David Steelman)

Foreword and ending comments by Cardinale Montano

During the Taiyuan era of the Jin Dynasty there was a

man of Wuling who made his living as a fisherman.  Once

while following a stream he forgot how far he had gone. He

suddenly came to a grove of blossoming peach trees. It lined

both banks for several hundred paces and included not a

single other kind of tree. Petals of the dazzling and

fragrant blossoms were falling everywhere in profusion.

Thinking this place highly unusual, the fisherman advanced

once again in wanting to see how far it went.

The peach trees stopped at the stream's source, where the

fisherman came to a mountain with a small opening through

which it seemed he could see light.  Leaving his boat, he

entered the opening.  At first it was so narrow that he could

barely pass, but after advancing a short distance it suddenly

opened up to reveal a broad, flat area with imposing houses,

good fields, beautiful ponds, mulberry trees, bamboo, and the

like.  The fisherman saw paths extending among the fields in

all directions, and could hear the sounds of chickens and

dogs.  Men and women working in the fields all wore clothing

that looked like that of foreign lands.  The elderly and

children all seemed to be happy and enjoying themselves. 

The people were amazed to see the fisherman, and they asked

him from where he had come.  He told them in detail, then the

people invited him to their home, set out wine, butchered a

chicken , and prepared a meal.  Other villagers heard

about the fisherman, and they all came to ask him questions. 

Then the villagers told him, "To avoid the chaos of war

during the Qin Dynasty our ancestors brought their

families and villagers to this isolated place and never left

it, so we've had no contact with the outside world."  They

asked the fisherman what the present reign was.  They were

not even aware of the Han Dynasty , let alone the Wei

and Jin.  The fisherman told them everything he knew in great

detail, and the villagers were amazed and heaved sighs.  Then

other villagers also invited the fisherman to their homes,

where they gave him food and drink. 

After several days

there, the fisherman bid farewell, at which time some

villagers told him, "It's not worth telling people on the outside about us."

The fisherman exited through the opening, found his boat, and

retraced his route while leaving markers to find this place

again.  Upon his arrival at the prefecture town he went to

the prefect and told him what had happened.  The prefect

immediately sent a person to follow the fisherman and look

for the trail markers, but they got lost and never found the way.

Liu Ziji of Nanyang was a person of noble

character.  When he heard this story he was happy and planned

to visit the Shangri-la, but he died of illness before he

could accomplish it.  After that no one else ever looked for

the place.

Peach Blossom Shangri-La was written in 421 AD  in China, during a time of great political instability and national disunity. It touched the hearts of a people yearning for simpler, more peaceful times of the past, while being pulled through dark tides of upheaval.

In Yuan Ming’s story, the place itself was never found again. Many attempted in vain, looking outward for markers, to set them in the right direction. Perhaps instead, this Shangri-La lies hidden deep within the human heart. Where it remains untouched and pure, at the end of a trail unspoiled by the complexities of a troubled world.  

Thank you so much to Susan, Becky’s dear mum for the beautiful art work of the peach blossom.

Here is another version of this story I recently came across which you might like to see ‘A poetic take on an old story by Tao Yuangming - an idyllic rural utopia separated from the world.’ on a YouTube channel by a gentleman called Manuel do Rio -