贾生
宣室求贤访逐臣
贾生才调更无伦
可怜夜半虚前席
不问苍生问鬼神
The royal hall sought worthies; the exiled man was brought.
Jia Yi's genius far surpassed all talents that were sought.
Alas, at midnight, he leaned forward to converse,
Not asking of the people's fate, but spirits and their curse.
逐句注释
宣室求贤访逐臣
宣室指汉代未央宫前殿正室，汉文帝在此召见被贬的贾谊。“访”是咨询，“逐臣”指被贬谪的臣子。此句表面写皇帝求贤若渴，为后文的反转埋下伏笔。
The 'Xuan Chamber' was the main hall in the Weiyang Palace of the Han dynasty. Emperor Wen summoned the exiled official Jia Yi here. '访' means to consult, and '逐臣' denotes a banished minister. This line superficially portrays the emperor as eager to seek talent, setting up the later twist.
贾生才调更无伦
贾谊的才华和风度无人能比。‘无伦’意为无与伦比。此句极力赞美贾谊，突出其才高，为后文皇帝不问苍生而问鬼神形成强烈反差。
Jia Yi's talent and bearing were absolutely unmatched. '无伦' means peerless. This line lavishly praises Jia Yi's brilliance, creating a sharp contrast with the emperor's later questions about ghosts rather than governance.
可怜夜半虚前席
“可怜”是可叹、可惜之意，“虚”是白白地、徒然，“前席”指古人席地而坐，听得入神时不自觉地向前挪动坐席。皇帝半夜听得入神，却只是为问鬼神，枉费了贾谊的经世之才。
'可怜' means lamentable, '虚' means in vain, and '前席' refers to the ancient custom of sitting on mats; when deeply absorbed, one unconsciously moves forward. The emperor listened intently at midnight, but only to ask about the supernatural, wasting Jia Yi's practical statesmanship.
不问苍生问鬼神
“苍生”指百姓。皇帝不问民生疾苦，却问鬼神之事。此句一语道破全诗主旨，既讽刺汉文帝的迷信昏庸，也暗含诗人对自身怀才不遇、不被重用的感慨。
'苍生' means the common people. The emperor asked not about the people's suffering but about the supernatural. This line reveals the poem's core meaning, satirizing Emperor Wen's superstition and folly, while also implying the poet's own feelings of having his talents overlooked.
今日赏析
这首诗约作于唐宣宗大中二年（848年），李商隐当时政治上受排挤，借古讽今。据《史记·屈原贾生列传》记载，汉文帝曾召见贾谊，倾谈至半夜，却只问鬼神之事。诗人以此讽刺当权者不重人才、不忧民生，而沉迷于虚妄之事，同时寄托了自己怀才不遇的愤慨。
This poem was likely written around 848 AD, during the Dazhong reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, when Li Shangyin was politically marginalized and used the past to criticize the present. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (biography of Qu Yuan and Jia Yi), Emperor Wen of Han once summoned Jia Yi for a midnight conversation but asked only about the supernatural. The poet uses this to satirize rulers who neglected worthy talent and the welfare of the people, indulging instead in vain superstitions, while also conveying his own grievance of unrecognized genius.
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