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The Eight Immortals, figures in the mythology of Taoism, have been the subject of stories, poems and artwork in China for over 1,000 years. Each of them is credited with possessing marvelous qualities and mystic powers. That is to say, each possesses a unique talent. A symbol also is assigned to each of them, the significance of which will gradually become evident to the student through reflection. This piece of artwork represents the historic importance of talent and its transcendence beyond cultural bounds.

The Eight Immortals are:

1. Chung-li K'uan. He is often depicted carrying a fan with which he could revive the dead. He also represents the military man. His symbol is the peach, an emblem of longevity.
2. Chung Kwoh-Lao. The emblem of old men, he is a recluse with mystic powers. He is said to have had a donkey that could carry him a thousand miles in a day, which he could fold up like a piece of paper and put in his wallet. When again required, he had simply to sprinkle it with water and it resumed its normal proportions. His symbols are a musical instrument made of bamboo, called the Yu Ku, and the feather of the Phoenix, the bird of immortality.
3. Lu Tung-pin. A Taoist scholar and recluse, he received the secret of immortality from Chung-li K'uan. He possesses a magic sword possessing supernatural powers. With this he traveled the land for over 400 years to rid the country of dragons and other monsters. His symbols are the sword and the Taoist fly-brush.
4. Ts'ao Kuo-chiu. A military commander who turned hermit. Once when meditating, the wall of his cave was rent asunder, disclosing a casket of jade containing a scroll upon which were written the secrets of immortality and of the transmutation of metals. As he followed the instructions given therein, the cave became filled with luminous clouds out of which came a stork, upon whose back he was transported to the Happy Land of Immortality. He is the patron saint of the drama, and his symbols are a pair of castanets and a feather fan.
5. Li T'ieh-Kuai. A beggar with a crutch, he is said to have been a disciple of Lao-Tzu, who summoned him to Heaven, instructing him to leave his body in the care of a pupil. During his absence the pupil was summoned to the bedside of his dying mother, and the body in his charge, being considered dead, was consigned to the flames. Li T'ieh-Kuai, on returning, found only a heap of ashes, so he entered the body of a beggar who had just died and in this continued his life. His symbols are a pilgrim's gourd, containing magical medicines with which he healed many of the sick, and a crab. He is sometimes represented as accompanied by a deer. He is the patron saint of apothecaries.
6. Han Hsang-Tzu. Scholar, poet and student of transcendental lore. He is said to have been able to make flowers grow before the eyes of the beholders. He was a pupil of Lu Tung-pin, and was instructed by him to climb a peach tree, whereupon he fell from its  branches and became immortal. He is the patron saint of musicians, and his symbol is the flute, which he is usually represented as playing.
7. Lan Ts'ai-ho. A woman, who was a strolling singer, whose songs told about the unreality of this fleeting life and the elusiveness of earthly pleasures. She was dressed in a blue robe and wore only one shoe. At the end of her earthly life she disappeared into a cloud. Her symbol is a basket of flowers, and she is the patron saint of florists.
8. Ho Hsien-Ku. Called the Immortal Maiden. In a vision she was instructed that if she ate mother-of-pearl she would gradually become immortal. She lived in the mountains and became more and more ethereal, floating from peak to peak. At last, dispensing with earthly food, she attained her quest. Her symbol is the lotus, the flower of open-heartedness.