A New Li Shangyin Translation

POEMS FOR SOMEONE II


Sighs of the east wind bringing fine rain.
Faint thunder from beyond the lotus pond.
Incense seeps through the jaw of the golden toad lock.
Water comes up on the silk of the jade tiger winch.
Jia's daughter peeped through the screen at Han the young clerk.
Princess Mi left her pillow for the poet prince of Wei.
Spring heart, don't contend with flowers for opening.
One inch of passion shared becomes one inch of ash.

Alt.:  One inch of burning passion makes one inch of ash.

A few comments on interpretation:  Some say the "faint thunder" should be taken as the sound of carriage wheels--a lover leaving or not stopping.  Possible, but I don't see any evidence in the text for it.  The lock is an ornamental one that latches by closing the toad's mouth.  The jade tiger is a decoration on a pulley or winch over a well.  For clarity, I was going to go with "rope" rather than "silk," but I read that "silk" in conjunction with the "incense" of the preceding line is suggestive of sex or romance.
And then the 5th and 6th lines each refer to a story of illicit love.  The image in the last line is probably of an incense stick that does not diminish in length as the incense burns away.