| Hibiscus only exists in the Land of Hibiscus and the Land of Abundance. If you see an old ficus tree, you must have been in the Land of Abundance. The sound of a shepherd boy’s flute under the ficus tree seemed to linger around the old tree, leaves swaying in the breeze, glittering in the sun, like melodious notes or dancing butterflies. What we really saw were blooming hibiscus flowers. | 
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Lin Ran is a photographer based in Cheng-Du, Si-Chuan, China.
Courtesy of the artist.
Hibiscus only exists in the Land of Hibiscus and the Land of Abundance. If you see an old ficus tree, you must have been in the Land of Abundance.
The sound of a shepherd boy’s flute under the ficus tree seemed to linger around the old tree, leaves swaying in the breeze, glittering in the sun, like melodious notes or dancing butterflies. What we really saw were blooming hibiscus flowers.
Flowers in the bamboo forest, jasmine tea in the cup, tender leaves in the genial wind, fallen pear blossoms in the spring rain, rape buds in the field, pea flowers under the pear tree, and the fan of Zhu-Ge Liang, were all embraced by the unique fragrance of hibiscus flowers, as if they were hibiscus themselves. The aroma, mixed with the dust of life, was reminiscent of the smell of home in a dream.
Following “Jiang Wei’s umbrella on the yellow fruit tree,” I walked along a long ancient street. The archway and temple became the gate to my home, where gorals and kylins were my pets. In an old opera house, I scrutinized the family history engraved in wood. I saw the hibiscus, from its blooming to its withering, from the Kingdom of Shu to the Kingdom of Qin, from past to present. “Meng Huo’s old fishing rod” leaning by the ancient roadside, like the hands of time, symbolized a long history.
Every ancient village was a hibiscus flower blooming in a basin and fading in a valley.A picture was a falling petal of the hibiscus flower in the rain that would be embedded in the dust of life.
As long as there is the fragrance of soil, there must be blooming hibiscus flowers.
As long as life continues, the hibiscus would keep blooming.
Blooming hibiscus flowers are everywhere in the Land of Abundance.
Hibiscus, unlike peony or chrysanthemum, is a budding image, giving birth to an end of a “vision” and a start of an “impression.”
Like a figure walking out of a shabby barbershop in an ancient village.
In the dreamy smoke puffed out by an old man, I saw several coir raincoats for children. When I tried to climb over the wooden walls to pursue the lights afar, I suddenly realized that there were only the “visitor” in the Land of Abundance and the “gardener” in the Land of Hibiscus.Editorial note: This article was previously published as a preface for The Hibiscus Flower, a photography compilation of 100 5×7” Azo contact print works by Lin Ran.
