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.

 

夕阳楼[1]

花明柳暗绕天愁,

上尽重城[2]更上楼。

欲问孤鸿向何处,

不知身世自悠悠。

李商隐以夕阳楼为题作此诗,寓意是以物思人,表达他对曾经帮助引荐过他的萧澣遭贬的同情之心,抒发自己的怀念和愁苦抑郁的心情。“孤鸿”能飞向何处呢?又联想想起自己不也是处处皆为客,生计毫无着落,长时间漂泊四方吗?

注释:

[1]夕阳楼:旧郑州之名胜,始建于北魏,为中国唐宋八大名楼之一,曾与黄鹤楼、鹳雀楼、岳阳楼等齐名。

[2]重城:即“层楼”,指高高的城楼。

The Sunset Tower

Flowers and willows exhale sorrow to the sky,

I mount the tower higher and higher stage by stage.

I try to ask the lonely swan where he will fly.

Forgetting my own loneliness is in lonely age.