Li Shangyin (813–858) was a poet from the late-Tang era famous for his dense and cryptic poetic imagery.
龙池
龙池[1]赐酒敞云屏，
羯鼓[2]声高众乐停。
夜半宴归宫漏永[3]，
薛王[4]沉醉寿王[5]醒。
这是一首咏史诗，表达了作者对封建帝王骄奢淫逸的不满和嘲讽。
注释：
[1]龙池：既是地名，也是舞曲名。这里指皇帝的宫殿。
[2]羯鼓：一种出自外夷的乐器，据说来源于羯族。
[3]漏永：形容漫漫长夜。漏，古代的计时器。
[4]薛王：唐玄宗弟弟李业之子。
[5]寿王：唐玄宗的儿子李瑁。
Dragon Pool Feast
At Dragon Pool feast spread screens embroidered with cloud,
All music drowned in the emperor’s drumbeats loud.
Come back at midnight to hear the waterclock’s song,
The prince not drunken lay awake all the night long.
Note:Lady Yang（杨贵妃）,former wife of the prince（寿王）became the emperor’s（唐玄宗）favorite concubine,so the prince could not fall asleep after the emperor’s feast.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
日日
日日春光斗日光，
山城斜路杏花香。
几时心绪浑无事，
得及游丝[1]百尺长。
这是一首描绘春天的诗，自然之景与诗人的心绪似乎有着千丝万缕的关系。
注释：
[1]游丝：指春天时虫类吐在空中而四处飞扬的细丝。
From Day to Day
From day to day in splendor spring with sunlight vies,
The sloping hillside way sweet with apricot bloom.
When could my heart-string be as free from worldly ties
As the hundred-foot-long gossamer in the gloom?
Note:The poet asks why men and things should vie in splendor and flagrance,and whether it is worthwhile or not to be flee as the gossamer.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
天涯
春日在天涯[1]，
天涯日又斜。
莺啼如有泪，
为湿最高花[2]。
春天到了，但诗人并没有感到春机盎然和充满希望的美景，只觉得春日遥远，表现了诗人孤寂和悲愁的心境。
注释：
[1]天涯：此处泛指家乡以外的极远之地。
[2]最高花：树梢顶上的花。
The End of the Sky
Spring is far,far away
Where the sun slants its ray.
If orioles have tear,
Wet highest flowers here!
Note:This quatrain may be said to be an elegy of spring,of the poet’s life and of his era.The place is far away and the time is late,even a happy bird would be saddened to shed tears on beautiful flowers.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
And a famed scholar roamed in the spring of his years.
I can’t forget white-haired General on the lake floating
After changing the face of the world he went boating.
An owl might feed on dead rats with good appetite,
But a phoenix would perch on trees of lofty height.
Note:The poet compares himself with two unsuccessful scholars,regrets his failure to realize his ideal like the general and shows his disdain for those who seek fortune and fame.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
Li Shangyin 李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn (812-858) is the love poet par excellence in the Chinese tradition. His poems, particularly his ‘Untitled Poems’, set a trend for later Chinese love poetry.
