813 – 858 · The Poet of Ambiguity
Li Shangyin
李商隐
Master of the untranslatable mood, his love poems are gorgeous puzzles that readers have argued over for a thousand years.
In this edition
4 poems
35Seven-character quatrain
夜雨寄北
Written in Night Rain for the North
Li Shangyin 李商隐
君问归期未有期·巴山夜雨涨秋池
You ask when I will come; I have no date.
36Seven-character regulated verse
无题
Untitled
Li Shangyin 李商隐
相见时难别亦难·东风无力百花残
To meet is hard; to part is hard too.
37Five-character quatrain
乐游原
The Pleasure Garden Plateau
Li Shangyin 李商隐
向晚意不适·驱车登古原
Toward evening I felt out of sorts;
38Seven-character regulated verse
锦瑟
The Brocade Zither
Li Shangyin 李商隐
锦瑟无端五十弦·一弦一柱思华年
The brocade zither, for no reason, has fifty strings;