Now, let us travel to China, during the Song dynasty—one of the golden ages of this ancient civilization. Here we see one of the finest paintings in the Metropolitan's collection, Summer Mountains, which was painted in the mid-eleventh century and was once the treasured possession of several Chinese emperors.

We know, from writings of the period that we are meant to enter with our imaginations into this world created solely of ink and pale pigments on silk.

Here we travel along incredibly detailed rivers and pathways as we sense the moisture of the evening mist, hear the voices of the fishermen returning home from their day's labors and feel humbled by the majesty of the towering silent mountains. This experience richly rewards our senses and nourishes our spirits, brings us closer to the Dao, or the Way of Nature.