Preparatory sketch

According to a Chinese legend, the Buddhist monk Huiyuan was a recluse on Mount Lu. Though he had vowed not to venture outside the valley, one day as he was saying goodbye to his friends the Confucian poet Tao Yuanming and the Daoist Lu Xiujing, he absentmindedly crossed the bridge that took him outside the valley. On realising what he had done all three burst out laughing. The image represents the ideal harmonious relationship among Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism.