The stone on the lower right of the painting is known as a "Mani", it is an abbreviation of the Sutra of Six Truest Word. In Tibetan Buddhism, the Sutra of Six Truest Words is regarded as the root of all sutras. Followers of Tibetan Buddhism engrave various sacred or propitious images on small or large stones. Wealthy people believe that buying and donating these Mani stones will lead to an accumulation of prosperous karma to their lives. Whilst the poor walk around these Mani stones in the belief that it will bring them ultimate happiness. Over time, these stones can be found piled up forming a mound.

The red tassel tied on the smiling baby yak's horn marks the yak as a dowry for the girl when she gets married some day in the future. Until the wedding, the yak is considered to be the girl's pet, a companion and cannot be sold or killed. The playfulness of the two, as they fly through the air symbolises their great friendship.

The title of the painting is taken from the flower held by the girl as she plays with her yak on the high altitude of the mountain.

The girl depicted in the painting is from the Miao minority, which is one of the 56 minorities of China. They mainly inhabit in the Guizhou Province. The girl is leaping over the Nanpan River in the Yungui Plateau, which is between 1,000 to 2,000 meters above sea level and is the fourth largest plateau in China, stretching over the Yunnan and Guizhou provinces. Subtly reflected in the river is the railway stretching across the Nanpan River.

In the foreground of the Huangtu Plateau, the grandparents are excited about the newly laid railway, whilst in contrast, the girl is innocent and almost indifferent to its arrival as she is used to the constant changes around her in modern life. Unlike her grandparents, she has never suffered from a harsh life and is clueless about the kind of changes that may be brought along with the railway, which will later have an effect on her.

Spring is coming, and the migrant birds on the lower left of the painting have returned.

The river depicted in the painting is called the Tongtian River, which literally translates into English as "the river up to the sky or paradise", hence the name of the painting. With a total width of 800 kilometers, the Tongtian River winds through the valleys between the Tanggula Mountains and the Kunlun Mountains. Relatively inaccessible, the upper reaches of the Tongtian River have remained virtually unperturbed by human activities and are still the most un-spoilt regions of the Yangtze areas. However, recent years have seen a worsening degeneration and desertification of the grassland. A sand dune strip of nearly 40 km has been spotted in the upper reaches of the Tongtian River. From Tongtian River estuary to Qidukou in Qumalar, the river flows for 400 km at an elevation of above 4,000 meters. Until fifty years ago, this area had had no human habitation and had been called an uninhabited area of 800 kilometer.

The Tongtian River is also often associated with the classical Chinese fairytale the Monkey King.

The background of the painting is the Huangtu Plateau, which spans over 500,000 km². The Huangtu Plateau is the third largest plateau in China with an altitude between 1,000 to 2,000 meters.

The backdrop of the painting is the Tanggula Mountain. The Tanggula Mountain Range traverses horizontally across the heart of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and stretches over 500 km. The Galadandong Snow Peak is the highest peak of the Tanggula Mountains. Galadandong (which means "Sharp Hill" in the Tibetan language) has an altitude of 6,621 meters and is snow-capped in all seasons. Around Geladandong there are 21 mountain peaks that exceed 6,000 meters in height.

During his time in Tibet, the artist had often seen children playing and balancing their feet one in front of the other as they walked along the narrow railway track. Inspired by their lightheartedness, he depicts the same movement and nimbleness with the baby yak that the girl is riding.

The girl desperately tries to stop the two strong male yaks as they fight each other, competing to enter another world or the Sun in a Distant Place, which the artist has craftily painted in between two tracks of the Railway.