SHIH-FU:

Poets, through their artistic vision, look at the world and attempt to convey what it inspires within them. Readers, through poets' words, can then enter the world described by them. If poets succeed in this, that is good. That is the function of art. It is vexation too, but there are different levels of vexation.

Buddhism sometimes speaks of three levels of emotion. The first or lowest level contains the coarse, abrupt and often violent moods that arise arbitrarily in people's minds. It is an immediate response to different stimuli and so it is abrupt and uneven. The second level contains the more stable and refined emotions, and usually refers to the more positive emotions, such as enduring love. However, this level is still subject to fluctuation. The third and highest level contains emotions which are highly refined. There is little attachment. It is a kind of aspiration toward something good, beautiful, noble. Sometimes it is called an artist's enlightenment or an artist's vision. To attain such a level is indeed very good.

Poetry and painting are similar in that, if they are good, the reader or observer can enter the world and feel the emotion sought to be conveyed by the artist. Wang Wei is this caliber of poet. It can be very useful for people who have an affinity for art. It can also help those people who cannot practice sitting meditation in that it can ease their vexations while they are engrossed in the work.

STUDENT:

Here is perhaps the most famous of Wang Wei's poems: