Song Dynasty
临江仙·梦后楼台高锁
晏几道
梦后楼台高锁，酒醒帘幕低垂。
去年春恨却来时。
落花人独立，微雨燕双飞。
记得小蘋初见，两重心字罗衣。
琵琶弦上说相思。
当时明月在，曾照彩云归。
Translation
After the dream, the towers are locked high; after the wine, the curtains hang low. The sorrow of last spring returns again to my heart. Among falling blossoms I stand alone; in the fine rain, swallows fly in pairs. I remember the first time I saw Xiaoping, dressed in layered gauze patterned with the character for "heart." On the strings of the pipa, she seemed to speak of longing. The moon of that night is still there, the same moon that once shone on her as she vanished like a colored cloud.
Analysis
This ci poem is one of Yan Jidao's finest works of remembrance and longing. It begins after a dream and after wine: the moment when illusion fades and reality returns. The locked tower and lowered curtains create a closed, quiet space, while the sorrow of last spring rises again. The emotion is not shouted; it is released through atmosphere. The line "Among falling blossoms I stand alone; in the fine rain, swallows fly in pairs" is the emotional center of the poem. Falling blossoms suggest beauty passing away. The solitary figure reveals loneliness, while the paired swallows quietly intensify that loneliness by contrast. The sadness is restrained, but it cuts deeply. The second half turns to memory: the first meeting with Xiaoping, her delicate dress, the sound of the pipa, the moon, and the image of a colored cloud. These images are beautiful precisely because they belong to the past. The final couplet contrasts the moon that still remains with the woman who has vanished, leaving a lingering sense of tenderness, loss, and irretrievable time.
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 using dreams, wine, old encounters, singers, and moonlight to evoke the melancholy that remains after beauty and youth have passed.