A vintage Japanese shikishi (色紙) original artwork featuring the auspicious phrase together with a playful painting of two oxen / cows rendered in expressive brushwork.
The composition is both lively and warm: two small cattle are painted in soft pink, black, and pale tones, enclosed within a broad circular brushstroke that gives the piece a spontaneous, almost Zen-like feeling.
“The cow drinks water and turns it into milk.”
This is a well-known Buddhist / Zen-style expression, often understood as a metaphor: although the cow drinks nothing more than plain water, it transforms it into nourishing milk. The saying suggests the idea of turning something simple into something beneficial and life-giving.
More broadly, it can express themes such as: inner virtue transforming the ordinary into something precious purity and good nature producing good results humble beginnings leading to nourishing or meaningful outcomes
It is sometimes appreciated as part of a wider moral contrast found in Buddhist thought: the same source may lead to very different results depending on the nature of the one receiving it. In this case, the cow becomes a symbol of gentleness, abundance, and positive transformation.
