River-snow
- Poetry of Liu Zongyuan

Five-character-quatrain

River Snow ( 江 jiāng 雪 xuě), which deals with the general idea of man’s loneliness and the specific theme of the philosopher-poet’s isolation in a bitterly cold world. The simple title conveys indescribable but real meaning to anyone who has experienced the sensation of whirling snow and a moving river.

Composed during the Yuanhe era of Emperor Xianzong's reign, this poem was written when Liu Zongyuan, having supported the failed Yongzhen Reforms, was exiled to serve as Sima of Yongzhou. With political ideals shattered in this desolate frontier, the poem uses the imagery of fishing in snow to express the poet's solitary yet resilient spiritual state.