Song Dynasty
长相思·长相思
晏几道
长相思，长相思。
若问相思甚了期。
除非相见时。
长相思，长相思。
欲把相思说似谁。
浅情人不知。
Translation
Longing, long longing. If you ask when this longing will ever end, only when I see you again. Longing, long longing. To whom could I speak of such longing? Those of shallow feeling would never understand.
Analysis
This is a very short lyric, but it expresses longing with remarkable directness and purity. The repeated phrase "long longing" works like a sigh, or like an echo that cannot stop returning inside the heart. There is no elaborate scenery and no complicated narrative; the emotion itself becomes the entire poem. The line "If you ask when this longing will end, only when I see you again" is simple, almost conversational, but that simplicity gives it force. This is not a feeling that time can easily dissolve. Only reunion can bring it to an end. The final line, "Those of shallow feeling would never understand," adds another layer: the loneliness of deep feeling. True longing cannot always be explained, because not everyone has the emotional depth to receive it. Yan Jidao relies here not on ornate language, but on repetition, pause, and emotional clarity, making a small lyric feel intensely personal.
About the Author
Yan Jidao, courtesy name Shuyuan and literary name Xiaoshan, was a ci poet of the Northern Song dynasty and the son of Yan Shu. Father and son are often known together as the "Two Yans." His poetry frequently explores love, separation, remembrance, and personal disappointment. Compared with Yan Shu's graceful and composed style, Yan Jidao's work is more intimate and emotionally delicate, often evoking the melancholy that remains after beauty, youth, and love have passed.