To One Unnamed V

Poetry of Li Shangyin 《无题·重帏深下莫愁堂》

English Rendering

There are many curtains in your care-free house,

Where rapture lasts the whole night long.

...What are the lives of angels but dreams

If they take no lovers into their rooms?

...Storms are ravishing the nut-horns,

Moon- dew sweetening cinnamon-leaves

I know well enough naught can come of this union,

Yet how it serves to ease my heart!

To One Unnamed V by Li Shangyin -
"To One Unnamed V" by Li Shangyin

Original Text (中文原文)

重帷深下莫愁堂,卧后清宵细细长。

神女生涯原是梦,小姑居处本无郎。

风波不信菱枝弱,月露谁教桂叶香?

直道相思了无益,未妨惆怅是清狂。

Meaning & Analysis

Seven-character-regular-verse

Related Themes

Reader's Companion

The Essence of the Verse

Classical Chinese poetry thrives on Concision and Ambiguity. Without tense or number, the words create a timeless space where the reader becomes the co-creator of the poem's meaning.

Reading Between the Lines

Look for Contrasts: light and shadow, movement and stillness. Don't just translate the words; feel the Yijing (artistic conception) that lingers long after the last character.

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