錦瑟 — 李商隱
錦瑟無端五十弦 一弦一柱思華年 莊生曉夢迷蝴蝶 望帝春心託杜鵑 滄海月明珠有淚 藍田日暖玉生煙 此情可待成追憶 只是當時已惘然
Nobody can quite agree on what one of Li Shangyin's most famously enigmatic poems really means. Some see it as a lament for a lover or partner, others, a meditation on art or life, or perhaps anecdotal philosophy snippets.
Perhaps it is because the poet's rich combination of allegory and emotions, his skillful weaving of sorrow and beauty. Li's references span beauty (jade from Lantian), philosophy (Zhuangzi dreams he is a butterfly), and grief (King Wang of Shu); giving the reader many different specific images to parse through.
In her translation of 唐詩三百首, Innes Herdan wonders if the Jin Se, or inlaid zither, was a name or sobriquet of one of Li's friends or acquaintances. More specifically, a woman who died young, whom he may have loved. She goes on to suppose that the poem, as it is believed to be written to or about this woman, is composed almost entirely of obscure personal allusions.
It could be said that since the historical context and personal significance may be lost to time or interpretation, the poem is doomed to a fate of heavily debated nonsense. Alternatively, I would like to raise a different point: The poem's relevance and emotional message is not dampened by the loss of the poet's intention. Rather, it is elevated by the poem's ambiguity, by its allowing for many different readings or interpretations --- by people who look into the soul of the poem hoping to find a part of themselves, and see a moment that ought to have lasted for ever has come and gone before they knew.