Long after we’re gone, peace remains.
The Poem
The deep peace
Found on mountaintops
As night arrives
Another in the endless cycle
Of dark and light.
Long before I came here to sit
And long, long after we’re gone
The deep peace of mountaintops remains.
- Li Po (701-762), Heron Dance translation.This poem belongs to the tradition of Chinese shan shui (mountain-water) verse — poetry that does not describe nature so much as dissolve into it, leaving the reader in the presence of something older than thought.
Li Po, one of China's greatest poets, wandered the mountains and rivers of Tang Dynasty China, writing verses infused with Taoist reverence for nature's quiet and the fleeting beauty of human life. His poetry invites us to sit with the eternal peace that mountains hold—a peace indifferent to our coming and going.
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Related Work
There are still a few copies of the first edition of Nurturing the Song Within available. This is a premium art book with a Smyth-sewn lay flat binding. It explores the inner work underlying creative work.
Each two-page spread includes a painting and observations on living a creative, meaningful life.
Hardcover first edition with dust jacket. $95 including shipping and taxes. Order here.
PDF $9.99 including tax. Order here.
More information here.
The Tao Te Ching Journal: A Path To Inner Quiet
Zen Mountain Journal blends Taoist hermit poetry, contemplative art, and reflections drawn from a lifetime shaped by wilderness, solitude, and decades doing creative work on the outer boundaries of our culture. These journals are companions for seekers — guides in the reconnection with inner quiet, beauty, and the “soundless music” of a life lived with simplicity and meaning.
• Size: 9.25 × 8.5 inches — convenient size for desk or lap.
• Hardcover — the book can be written in without a table or desk.
• Double wire-o bound to lay flat.
• Printed on Mohawk Superfine, a premium uncoated paper for a beautiful writing surface.
• 160 pages.
