All poems

汉 Han · 古诗 Ancient poem

西北有高楼

A Tall Tower in the Northwest

古诗十九首（无名氏）

Anonymous (Nineteen Old Poems)

隐逸/忧愤reclusion / indignation 爱情/相思love / longing

西北有高楼，上与浮云齐。
交疏结绮窗，阿阁三重阶。
上有弦歌声，音响一何悲！
谁能为此曲，无乃杞梁妻。
清商随风发，中曲正徘徊。
一弹再三叹，慷慨有馀哀。
不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀。
愿为双鸿鹄，奋翅起高飞。

In the northwest stands a tall tower, rising level with the floating clouds. Its latticed windows are finely wrought; the curved pavilion has a threefold stair. From above comes the sound of strings and song—how grievous the music! Who could play such a tune, if not the wife of Qi Liang? The clear shang-mode drifts on the wind; mid-melody it lingers and turns. One strike, then thrice a sigh—vehement, with sorrow to spare. I grudge not the singer's pain, but grieve that true listeners are so few. Would I were a pair of swans, beating wings to soar on high.

Listen

Meaning

One of the 'Nineteen Old Poems' of the late Eastern Han. In a dark age when scholars found no way forward and met no true friend, the poet hears a grieving song from a high tower and makes it his own unmet sorrow. 'I grudge not the singer's pain, but grieve that true listeners are so few' lifts personal grief into a timeless sigh for the rare kindred spirit.

西北有一座高楼，高高耸立与浮云相齐。交错镂空的绮丽窗棂，曲阁有三重台阶。楼上传来弦歌之声，音响是何等悲戚！谁能奏出这样的曲子，莫非是杞梁妻那样悲苦的女子。清商调随风飘发，曲中正徘徊缠绵。一弹之下再三叹息，慷慨之中余哀不尽。不吝惜歌者内心的悲苦，只伤叹知音的稀少。愿化作一双鸿鹄，振翅高高飞起。

Appreciation

The poem has three layers: the first four lines 'a tall tower in the northwest… threefold stair' paint the tower's height and splendor in fine brush, setting the scene for the sad song; 'from above comes the sound of strings… how grievous' turns sharply, from object to sound, from sound to feeling. The middle lines 'the clear shang-mode drifts on the wind' picture the tune's plaintive lingering; 'one strike, then thrice a sigh' writes the singer's unbearable sorrow. The last lines 'I grudge not the singer's pain, but grieve that true listeners are so few' let the listener speak for the singer, raising personal grief to a thousand-year sigh at 'few true listeners'; it closes with 'would I were a pair of swans, beating wings to soar'—a will to rise even in despair. Turning layer by layer, implicit and deep, it shows the five-character line's 'a word worth a thousand in gold.'

【白话串讲】西北有座高楼，上接浮云，楼里传来悲凉的琴声。诗人说：“不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀”——唱歌的人苦我不心疼，我心疼的是知音太少。孤独，从汉代就写到了骨子里。【意象与手法】诗分三层：前四句「西北有高楼……三重阶」以工笔写楼之高峻华美，为悲歌设境；「上有弦歌声，音响一何悲」陡转，由物及声、由声及情。中四句「清商随风发」状曲调之哀婉，「一弹再三叹，慷慨有余哀」写歌者之悲不自胜。末四句「不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀」由听者代歌者立言，将个人悲苦升华为对「知音稀」的千古一叹；结以「愿为双鸿鹄，奋翅起高飞」，于绝望中见奋飞之志。【情感与主旨】《西北有高楼》为《古诗十九首》之一，约产生于东汉末年的文人五言诗。汉末政治黑暗、党锢频仍，士人功名无路、知音难遇。诗中「西北有高楼」所歌之悲曲，实是诗人自身不遇之悲的投射，他以听歌者身份代楼上诉说者发声，典型反映了汉末失意文人对知音与出路的热望。【名句点睛】「不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀」为千古名句，道尽知音难遇之痛；「愿为双鸿鹄，奋翅起高飞」于绝望中见奋飞之志，为常考之句。

Background

'A Tall Tower in the Northwest' is one of the 'Nineteen Old Poems,' a literati five-character poem of the late Eastern Han. In that dark age, with frequent partisan prohibitions, scholars found no road to office and met no true friend. The grieving tune sung in the 'tall tower' is really a projection of the poet's own unmet sorrow—he speaks, as a listener, for the one singing above. 'If not the wife of Qi Liang' uses the Spring and Autumn tale of Qi Liang's wife wailing so her husband's city fell, to figure the singer's bitterness. The poem typically reflects the lost scholar's longing for a kindred spirit and a way forward; it is a mature work of five-character lyric.

《西北有高楼》为《古诗十九首》之一。《古诗十九首》是东汉末年下层文人创作的一组五言抒情诗，最早见于梁萧统《文选》，约产生于桓灵之世至建安之前。汉末政治黑暗，宦官外戚专权，党锢之祸频仍，士人仕进无门，功名无路，知音难遇，遂将身世之感、人生之叹寄于诗篇。《西北有高楼》正是这一背景下的产物：诗中那座「上与浮云齐」的高楼，实为可望而不可即的象征；楼上弦歌的悲音，正是诗人自身不遇之悲的投射。诗人以听歌者身份出现，代楼上诉说者发声，「不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀」道尽天下失意文人的共同悲慨。此诗典型反映了汉末失意文人对知音与出路的热望，是五言抒情诗由叙事走向抒情、由民间走向文人的成熟之作，也是理解汉末士人精神世界的重要文本。又，此诗「西北有高楼」的意象亦有所本：汉代长安未央宫等宫殿皆在城西北，其楼观之高，为士人仰望之所，诗中高楼或暗指宫阙，弦歌或暗指宫中佳人之怨，然诗人以听歌者自居，其深意仍在「知音」二字，楼之高即士人理想之高，歌之悲即士人怀才之悲，虚实之间，寄意遥深。

Art

Three layers: the first four lines paint the tower's height and splendor in fine brush, setting the scene; 'from above comes the sound… how grievous' turns sharply, from object to sound to feeling. The middle lines picture the tune's plaintive lingering, 'one strike, then thrice a sigh' writing the singer's unbearable sorrow. The last lines let the listener speak for the singer, raising personal grief to a sigh at 'few true listeners'; it closes with 'would I were a pair of swans'—a will to rise even in despair. Turning layer by layer, implicit and deep, it shows the five-character line's 'a word worth a thousand in gold.'

诗分三层，章法层层转折，含蓄深婉。前四句「西北有高楼，上与浮云齐。交疏结绮窗，阿阁三重阶」以工笔写楼之高峻华美，「上与浮云齐」写楼之高，「交疏结绮窗」「阿阁三重阶」写楼之精，极写楼之华美，为悲歌设境；「上有弦歌声，音响一何悲」陡转，由物及声、由声及情，华楼与悲音的反差令人一震。中四句「清商随风发，中曲正徘徊。一弹再三叹，慷慨有馀哀」以听觉写曲调之哀婉徘徊，「一弹再三叹」写歌者之悲不自胜，声情并茂。末四句「不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀」由听者代歌者立言，将个人悲苦升华为对「知音稀」的千古一叹；结以「愿为双鸿鹄，奋翅起高飞」，于绝望中见奋飞之志，虚想作结，余韵悠长。全诗由景入声、由声入情、由情入志，层层递进，尽显五言「一字千金」之妙。全诗最动人的手法是「借听写心」：诗人不直接抒怀，而是虚构一个听歌的场景，让楼上的歌者与楼下的听者隔着空间呼应，歌者之悲即听者之悲，听者之叹即作者之叹，三层情感叠为一层，正是「代人立言」而「实为自道」的高明手法，与《古诗十九首》「以他人口吻写我之怀」的传统一脉相承。

Allusions

'If not the wife of Qi Liang' uses the Spring and Autumn tale: Qi Liang died in war, his wife wailed below the city wall and it fell (Liu Xiang's 'Biographies of Women'); later it figures the uttermost grieving woman—here pointing to the singer's anguish above. 'Clear shang' is a Han-Wei yuefu mode name, plaintive, setting off 'few true listeners.' 'Swans' figures a high, pure will to rise (carrying 'how can the sparrow know the swan's will' from the 'Shi Ji'). 'True listener' uses the Boya and Ziqi story, pointing to the poem's core grief of 'no kindred spirit in the world.' The allusions fit and deepen the unmet theme.

诗中用典皆贴切而深化主题。「无乃杞梁妻」用春秋典故：杞梁战死，其妻哭夫于城下，城为之崩（见刘向《列女传》），后人以杞梁妻喻极悲之妇，此处借指楼上歌者之哀切，以「无乃」的揣测语气写悲声之令人惊疑。「清商」为汉魏乐府曲调名，声情哀怨，与「知音稀」相映。「知音」用伯牙子期故实：《吕氏春秋》载伯牙鼓琴，钟子期听而知其志在高山流水，子期死，伯牙破琴绝弦，终身不复鼓琴，后世遂以知音喻理解自己的人，「知音稀」三字正点出全诗「世无知音」的核心悲慨。「鸿鹄」喻高洁远举之志，承《史记·陈涉世家》「燕雀安知鸿鹄之志」而来。数典皆融化于抒情之中，不露痕迹，深化了怀才不遇、知音难求的主题。另，「杞梁妻」之典亦有多重意涵：杞梁妻哭夫崩城，本为贞烈之妇的传说，此处「无乃杞梁妻」以揣测之辞写歌者之悲，既写其哀之极，又暗含「唯有极端之悲方能奏此悲曲」之意，与下文的「知音稀」相映，悲上加悲，正是汉诗用典「取其神而不泥其迹」的范例。

Commentary

Zhong Rong's 'Gradings of Poetry' ranks the 'Nineteen Old Poems' as 'a word worth a thousand in gold.' Hu Yinglin (Ming): 'A Tall Tower in the Northwest… feeling moves within and takes form in words, truly the crown of five-character.' Shen Deqian (Qing): 'the three words “few true listeners”—the same grief for a thousand years.' Modern readers read it as 'writing the unmet through listening,' praising how with the finest tower and the most plaintive song it writes the deepest sigh for a kindred spirit—a peak of late-Han five-character lyric.

历代论者对此诗评价极高。南朝钟嵘《诗品》推《古诗十九首》为「一字千金」，以为其语言凝练、情感深挚，冠绝古今。明人胡应麟《诗薮》评：「『西北有高楼』……情动于中，而形于言，固五言之冠」，推为五言诗的冠冕之作。清人沈德潜《古诗源》谓「『知音稀』三字，千古同感」，以为道出了天下人共同的孤独。近人朱自清、马茂元等亦盛赞此诗「听歌写不遇」的结构与含蓄深婉的风格，以为其以极工致之楼、极悲切之歌，写极深沉之知音之叹，为汉末五言抒情诗巅峰之一。此诗的价值，一在它是《古诗十九首》中艺术成就最高的篇章之一，二在它典型地反映了汉末士人的精神困境，三在其「知音」主题跨越千年，至今仍能引起共鸣，是中国诗歌史上写孤独感最深刻的篇章之一。又，此诗对后世影响深远：「不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀」成为千古名句，为历代失意文人反复引用，李白「知音稀」之叹、黄庭坚「知音少，弦断有谁听」之咏皆祖此意；「愿为双鸿鹄」的结尾亦为后世「比翼齐飞」意象所本，可见此诗在中国文学「知音」母题中的源头地位。

Prosody

Form Old poem · five-character (Nineteen Old Poems)古诗·五言古诗（《古诗十九首》之一）

Rhyme Five-character ancient poem; qi/jie/bei/qi/hui/ai/xi/fei roughly in the zhi/wei groups, slant rhyme齐、阶、悲、妻、徊、哀、稀、飞，大致押脂微部韵，隔句押韵，句句可韵

Tone pattern Not datable (Han five-character does not follow Tang rules)汉五言古诗，不依唐人平仄格律，以自然声调节奏为主

Reading note Five-character lyric, writing the heart through listening, layered and deep此诗为五言古诗，属《古诗十九首》之一。用韵上，全诗十六句，韵脚「齐」「阶」「悲」「妻」「徊」「哀」「稀」「飞」大致属上古脂微部韵，隔句押韵而句句可韵，韵脚密集，读来流转自然。汉五言古诗不依唐人的平仄格律，而以自然声调与句式的节奏感取胜：全诗皆为五言句，二二一或二三的节奏整齐而富有变化，如「西北/有/高楼」「音响/一何/悲」，节奏明快中见顿挫。章法上，十六句分为三层，前四句写楼、中八句写歌、后四句写情，层层推进，句式随内容而变：写楼时用「交疏结绮窗，阿阁三重阶」的铺排句，写歌时用「一弹再三叹，慷慨有馀哀」的感叹句，写情时用「不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀」的对举句，声情与辞情相凑。此诗代表了汉五言古诗由乐府民歌走向文人化的成熟形态，是五言诗史上承上启下的重要作品。

Line by line

西北有高楼，上与浮云齐

In the northwest stands a tall tower, rising level with the floating clouds.

西北有一座高楼，高高耸立与浮云相齐。

In the northwest there is a high tower, its top level with the drifting clouds.

起句以高楼意象开篇，是全诗立象之基。「西北」点出方位，暗含汉代「西北为乾、乾为天」的观念，楼在西北，似与天相连，暗示其高不可及；「上与浮云齐」极写楼之高，高到与浮云齐平，视觉上直插云霄，令人仰望而不可企及。此楼既是实写的高楼，更是虚写的象征：它象征诗人所仰望而不可得的理想境界、可望而难即的知音与出路，高不可攀正是其悲剧性的根源。两句以白描起笔，而象征之意已寓其中，为全诗定下仰望与怅惘的基调，也为后文「弦歌声」「知音稀」的悲慨预设了空间与心理的双重距离，起笔之高，正见诗人立意之高。

The tower. In the northwest there is a high tower, its top level with the drifting clouds. The tower's height (to the clouds) is the distance between the listener below and the singer above. The northwest direction adds the uncanny. To have described a tall tower would be scenery; the northwest tower level with the clouds is the scenery.

音响一何悲

From above comes the sound of strings and song—how grievous the music!

音响是何等悲戚！

How mournful the sound of its strings!

此句是全诗由楼及歌、由物及情的关键转折。「音响」指楼上飘下的弦歌之声，「一何」为汉乐府习见的感叹词，意为「多么」，如《古诗十九首》中「上有弦歌声，音响一何悲」即其例，「一何」二字以感叹语气直写悲之程度；「悲」字是全句的诗眼，以一字点破弦歌的情感性质。华美的高楼之上，竟飘出如此悲戚的歌声，楼之高华与声之悲切形成强烈反差，令人顿生惊疑：这样华贵的楼中，何人会有如此深悲？此句承上启下，由写楼转入写声，由写景转入写情，一句五字，将全诗的注意力从视觉引向听觉、从外景引向内心，是全诗情感启动的枢纽，其以感叹句直抒的写法，也尽显汉五言质朴直挚的本色。

The music. How mournful the sound of its strings! The exclamation how is the listener's startled grief. The high tower's expected wealth does not prepare for the mourning song. To have said the music was sad would be a sound; the how-mournful string-sound is the sound.

不惜歌者苦，但伤知音稀

I grudge not the singer's pain, but grieve that true listeners are so few.

不吝惜歌者内心的悲苦，只伤叹知音的稀少。

I do not grudge the singer's pain; I grieve only that so few understand the song.

此二句是全诗的诗眼，道尽千古同感的孤独。「不惜歌者苦」故作放达：歌者之苦，尚不足惜；「但伤知音稀」陡然一转：所悲者，唯在世无知音。「不惜」与「但伤」的对举，将悲慨层层推进：肉体之苦可以忍受，精神上的孤独才是真正的创伤。此句妙在以听歌者代歌者立言，听者与歌者虽隔高楼，心却相通，歌者之苦即听者之苦，知音之稀是二者的共同命运，于是个人之悲升华为天下失意文人的普遍之叹。此二句语言平易而意蕴深长，上承伯牙子期知音之典，下启后世无数「知音难求」的咏叹，是《古诗十九首》中最具概括力与穿透力的句子之一，千载之下，仍能击中人心。

The fellow feeling. I do not grudge the singer's pain; I grieve only that so few understand the song. The listener turns the song's grief into his own: the singer's suffering is his, and the rarity of those who understand is the common fate. To have said he grieved that so few understood music would be a feeling; the not-grudging-the-singer's-pain against the grieving-that-few-understand is the feeling.

愿为双鸿鹄，奋翅起高飞

Would I were a pair of swans, beating wings to soar on high.

愿化作一双鸿鹄，振翅高高飞起。

Would we were two swans, beating our wings and soaring high away!

结句以虚想收束全诗，于绝望中见奋飞之志。「鸿鹄」即天鹅，古来喻高洁远举之志，承《史记·陈涉世家》「燕雀安知鸿鹄之志」而来；「愿为双鸿鹄」写愿与楼中歌者化作一双鸿鹄，比翼齐飞，「双」字写出对知音的渴求——不仅求一人之飞，更求与知音同飞；「奋翅起高飞」写振翅高飞、远举万里，「奋」字写奋力振翅的姿态，昂扬有力。此句由「知音稀」的绝望陡然翻起奋飞的愿望，以想象突破现实的阻隔：既然人间无知音，便愿化作鸿鹄，与那弦歌之人一同飞离这令人窒息的尘世。全诗至此由悲转壮，于绝望中见希望，余韵悠长，正见汉末文人在困境中犹不失理想的精神品格，也使全诗的格调由沉郁升华为超拔。

The wish. Would we were two swans, beating our wings and soaring high away! The wish to fly off together with the unseen singer is the poem's ascent: unable to meet on earth, they would be birds. To have said he wished to fly away with the singer would be a wish; the two swans beating their wings high away are the wish.

Study

Word focus

交疏结绮窗 'jiao shu' means a hollow, latticed pattern; it writes the window's fine, ornate beauty, using the tower's splendor to set off the song's grief. 「交疏结绮窗」五字，以工笔写楼窗之华美，是写楼之精的炼字典范。「交疏」指窗棂交错镂空的花纹，「疏」为镂空之意，写窗棂之精巧剔透；「结绮」写窗上织结绮罗般的华丽纹饰，与「交疏」相对，「绮」字点出窗饰之华美；「窗」字点物。五字之中，「交」「疏」「结」「绮」四字皆锤炼精工，写出楼窗交相错镂、华美剔透的形态。此句与「阿阁三重阶」并写楼之精、楼之高，极尽铺陈之能事。唯其楼越高华，楼中悲歌越显凄凉，以华楼写悲声，反差愈大，感染力愈强，此五字正是为「音响一何悲」的悲慨蓄势的工笔之笔，也是汉五言以华辞写哀情的典型例证。

徘徊 Describes the shang tune's winding, unending turn; also figures the listener's circling sorrow. 「中曲正徘徊」之「徘徊」，状清商曲调纡回不尽之态，是全诗以声写情的关键词。「徘徊」本指人行步往复、流连不去，此处移以写曲调，写出乐曲奏至中段时回环往复、缠绵不尽的情态，仿佛歌者心中千回百转的悲思都凝在这迂回的旋律之中。此词兼有双关之妙：既是曲调之徘徊，亦是歌者心绪之徘徊，更是听者听曲时的凝神与怅惘，一曲之中，歌者与听者的情感在「徘徊」中交汇。若换作「纡回」「回旋」则止于写声，「徘徊」以人的动作写乐声的流动，赋予抽象的旋律以具象的姿态与深沉的情感，是汉五言以虚写实、声情并茂的佳例，也为下文「一弹再三叹」的悲慨作了听觉上的铺垫。

知音稀 Three-word key phrase, transforming the Boya-Ziqi allusion; it speaks the pain of the literate man sunk and friendless. 「但伤知音稀」之「知音稀」三字，是全诗的诗眼，道尽文人沦落无侣之痛。「知音」用伯牙子期典：伯牙鼓琴，唯钟子期能知其志，子期死，伯牙破琴绝弦，知音之难得可见一斑；「稀」字写知音之稀少，一个「稀」字，将天下之大而无人可语的孤独尽数写出。「不惜歌者苦」故作放达，将肉体之苦轻轻带过；「但伤知音稀」陡然一沉，将精神上的孤独推到前台——歌者之苦不足惜，知音之稀方是可悲，这正是全诗情感的凝结点。此三字语言平易而意蕴无穷，上承「一弹再三叹」的悲音，下启「愿为双鸿鹄」的飞想，是全诗由悲入壮的枢纽，其概括力之强，使「知音稀」成为后世文人反复咏叹的母题，千载之下，犹能引起深深的共鸣。