author
Shangyin Li
813–858
A late Tang poet whose verses are famous for their beauty, mystery, and emotional depth. His work rewards rereading, blending vivid imagery with feelings that are often intimate, elusive, and unforgettable.
1 Audiobook
李義山詩集
by Shangyin Li
About the author
Born around 813 in what is now Henan, Li Shangyin lived during the later years of the Tang dynasty and also served in government. His official career was uneven, shaped in part by the political struggles of his time, but his reputation as a poet only grew.
He is especially remembered for richly musical poems full of suggestion, symbolism, and allusion. Many readers know him for his untitled poems, which can feel at once romantic, melancholic, and hard to pin down; that openness is part of what has kept his poetry alive for centuries.
Nearly six hundred of his poems survive, and they have been widely anthologized and translated. Even today, he stands out as one of the most distinctive voices of classical Chinese poetry: elegant, emotionally charged, and wonderfully mysterious.