Gaugin created this painting during his second trip to Tahiti. There are different interpretations of the title: “Don’t do that” (meaning “Don’t smoke”) or “Don’t work”. Some researchers believe that Gauguin wanted to depict Tahitians doing nothing but daydream. He understood this as bliss and calmness in some sacred sense. The artist had brought pictures of a bas-relief from the Borobudur temple with him to Tahiti, and he used those motifs while working on this painting. The self-contained interior is in opposition to the immensity of nature, which can be seen through the open door in the background. The artist used this method many times, interpreting a landscape as a daydream.