近现代 近现代 · 词 Ci lyric
念奴娇·昆仑
Niannujiao: Kunlun
横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色。
飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻。
夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖。
千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说？
而今我谓昆仑：不要这高，不要这多雪。
安得倚天抽宝剑，把汝裁为三截？
一截遗欧，一截赠美，一截还东国。
太平世界，环球同此凉热。
Now I say to Kunlun: be not so high, and have not so much snow. How could I lean on heaven and draw my precious sword, and cut you into three pieces? One piece I leave to Europe, one I give to America, one I return to the Eastern land. A peaceful world, where all the globe shares this same cool and warm.
Meaning
This lyric addresses the majestic Kunlun Mountains, contrasting their awesome, destructive power with the poet's vision of remaking nature for the benefit of all humanity. It moves from awe at the mountain's grandeur to a defiant call to cut it down and share its coolness and warmth across the globe, expressing a utopian ideal of universal equality.
横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色。飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻。夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖。千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说？而今我谓昆仑：不要这高，不要这多雪。安得倚天抽宝剑，把汝裁为三截？一截遗欧，一截赠美，一截还东国。太平世界，环球同此凉热。
Appreciation
Mao Zedong's 'Niannujiao: Kunlun' is a lyric of epic scale that transforms a natural landmark into a symbol of cosmic power and historical judgment. [Plain Paraphrase] The opening lines present Kunlun as a primordial giant who has 'witnessed all the spring hues of the mortal world,' while 'three million jade dragons'—a metaphor for snow-clad peaks—freeze the very heavens. The poet then recalls the mountain's menace in summer floods before asking who has ever weighed its 'merit and guilt through a thousand autumns.' [Structure] The turn comes with 'Now I say to Kunlun,' shifting from description to address, and the ensuing fantasy of slicing the mountain into three gifts for Europe, America, and the East inverts nature's threat into a shared blessing. [Imagery] The 'jade dragon' and 'heaven-leaning sword' are bold, mythic images that fuse natural spectacle with revolutionary will. The closing vision—'a peaceful world where all the globe shares this same cool and warm'—elevates the poem from landscape to political eschatology. Few modern lyrics match its sweep of imagination and confidence of tone.
【白话串讲】 毛泽东写《念奴娇·昆仑》：“横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色”——“飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻”——“千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说”——“而今我谓昆仑：不要这高，不要这多雪”——“安得倚天抽宝剑，把汝裁为三截”——他写昆仑——千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说。 【意象与手法】 “横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色”以“横空出世”写昆仑之雄；“飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻”以玉龙喻雪山；“千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说”以设问写历史评判；“安得倚天抽宝剑，把汝裁为三截”以想象写改造自然；结以“太平世界，环球同此凉热”寄寓大同理想。气势磅礴、想象奇伟。 【情感与主旨】 借咏昆仑山抒写改造山河、消灭剥削的宏伟抱负，寄寓“环球同此凉热”的共产主义大同理想，是毛泽东词中气魄最为恢宏的篇章之一。 【名句点睛】 常考“飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻”以玉龙喻雪山写气势；“安得倚天抽宝剑，把汝裁为三截”以倚天宝剑写改造自然。
Background
Mao Zedong (1893–1976), styled Runzhi, was a Chinese revolutionary, military strategist, and statesman who also wrote accomplished classical-style poetry. 'Niannujiao: Kunlun' was composed in October 1935 after the Red Army completed the Long March and reached northern Shaanxi; the Kunlun range in Qinghai and Xinjiang symbolized both natural grandeur and the harsh obstacles the revolution had overcome. Written in the regulated 'Niannujiao' lyric meter, the poem belongs to Mao's body of works that adapt traditional forms to revolutionary themes. Its cosmic perspective and redistributive fantasy reflect his belief in mastering nature and history for the people's welfare.
《念奴娇·昆仑》为毛泽东所作词。毛泽东（1893—1976），字润之，湖南湘潭人，中国无产阶级革命家、军事家，也是杰出的诗人。此词写景咏物，为咏昆仑之作。词中「横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色」写横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色；「飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻」写飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻；「夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖」写夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖；「千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说」写千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说；「太平世界，环球同此凉热」写太平世界，环球同此凉热。毛泽东此词以写景咏物、环球同此凉热写其咏物之情，豪迈壮阔，是毛泽东词中的名篇。此篇《念奴娇·昆仑》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。此篇《念奴娇·昆仑》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。
Art
The poem's art lies in its majestic, image-driven expansiveness and its sudden pivot from objective description to direct apostrophe. [Imagery and Symbol] The 'jade dragon' metaphor compresses snowy peaks into a single luminous figure, while 'leaning on heaven to draw the precious sword' literalizes the act of rewriting geography. [Structure] The lyric divides cleanly into a contemplative first half—Kunlun's timeless majesty and peril—and a commanding second half in which the speaker talks back to the mountain, demoting it from awe-inspiring force to a resource to be divided among continents. [Tone] The register shifts from reverent ('you have witnessed all the spring hues') to imperious ('be not so high'), mirroring the poet's confidence. The final couplet resolves the tension between nature's indifference and human aspiration, turning a towering obstacle into a token of universal kinship—an economy of image, voice, and idea rare in modern ci poetry.
此词艺术上以「豪迈壮阔、以景写情」见长。全词共两句，由横空出世而飞起玉龙三百万而夏日消溶。起「横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色」写横空出世：横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色；「飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻」写飞起玉龙三百万：飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻；「夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖」写夏日消溶：夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖；「千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说」写千秋功罪：千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说；结「太平世界，环球同此凉热」写环球同此凉热：太平世界，环球同此凉热。全词以景写情，由横空出世而环球同此凉热，豪迈壮阔，是毛泽东词中的名篇。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。
Allusions
The poem is steeped in classical allusion even as it breaks with tradition. The 'jade dragon' (玉龙) evokes the long-standing trope of snow-covered mountains compared to coiling dragons, a figure found in Tang landscape poetry. The 'heaven-leaning sword' (倚天剑) recalls the mythic sword that 'leans against heaven,' associated with the divine weapon of the founder of Han and with Daoist lore of celestial blades. Kunlun itself is the mythic axis-mountain of Chinese cosmology, home of immortals and the Queen Mother of the West, lending the poem a resonance far older than its 1935 occasion. By addressing this sacred peak directly and 'cutting' it, Mao provocatively appropriates mythic geography for a modern, egalitarian vision. The rhyme scheme follows the 'Niannujiao' pattern using entering-tone rhymes, lending the line a clipped, forceful music suited to its martial confidence.
词中「横空出世莽昆仑阅尽人间春色」「飞起玉龙三百万搅得周天寒彻」「夏日消溶江河横溢人或为鱼鳖」「千秋功罪谁人曾与评说」「而今我谓昆仑不要这高不要这多雪」「安得倚天抽宝剑把汝裁为三截」「一截遗欧一截赠美一截还东国」「太平世界环球同此凉热」等语，皆含典故故实。「横空出世莽昆仑阅尽人间春色」写横空出世莽昆仑阅尽人间春色；「飞起玉龙三百万搅得周天寒彻」用玉龙之典（玉龙写雪山如龙），写飞起玉龙三百万搅得周天寒彻；「夏日消溶江河横溢人或为鱼鳖」写夏日消溶江河横溢人或为鱼鳖；「千秋功罪谁人曾与评说」写千秋功罪谁人曾与评说；「而今我谓昆仑不要这高不要这多雪」写而今我谓昆仑不要这高不要这多雪；「安得倚天抽宝剑把汝裁为三截」用倚天之典（倚天写宝剑倚天），写安得倚天抽宝剑把汝裁为三截；「一截遗欧一截赠美一截还东国」写一截遗欧一截赠美一截还东国；「太平世界环球同此凉热」写太平世界环球同此凉热。词人以玉龙、倚天等语入词，不着痕迹，而把写景咏物之情写得真切可感，是善于熔铸典故的体现。
Commentary
Since its circulation, 'Niannujiao: Kunlun' has been celebrated as one of Mao Zedong's most ambitious lyrics, praised for its cosmic imagination and rhetorical daring. Critics note how it reconciles two impulses—reverence for natural sublimity and a Promethean urge to remake the world—within a single coherent voice. The closing ideal of a globe sharing 'the same cool and warm' is repeatedly read as an early statement of Mao's internationalist, utopian politics. Within the ci tradition, the poem is notable for bending a song form historically used for love and leisure toward epic, public themes. Its bold personification of Kunlun and sweeping gift-giving to Europe, America, and the East mark a distinctly modern sensibility. The work remains a standard anthology piece, studied for both its literary craft and its ideological horizons.
这首《念奴娇·昆仑》，是毛泽东写写景咏物之作，写横空出世、飞起玉龙三百万、夏日消溶、千秋功罪、环球同此凉热之情，豪迈壮阔。起「横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色」——横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色。写横空出世：横空出世、莽昆仑、阅尽人间春色——出世、昆仑、人间春色；「飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻」——飞起玉龙三百万（用玉龙之典），搅得周天寒彻。写飞起玉龙三百万：飞起玉龙三百万、搅得周天寒彻——玉龙三百万、周天寒彻；「夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖」——夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖。写夏日消溶：夏日消溶、江河横溢、人或为鱼鳖——消溶、横溢、为鱼鳖；「千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说」——千秋功罪，谁人曾与评说。写千秋功罪：千秋功罪、谁人曾与评说——功罪、评说；结「太平世界，环球同此凉热」——太平世界，环球同此凉热。写环球同此凉热：太平世界、环球同此凉热——太平世界、同此凉热。这「太平世界，环球同此凉热」，是全词之结：以环球同此凉热写其咏物。全词豪迈壮阔，以景写情，正是毛泽东词中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色。
Rising across the sky, majestic Kunlun, you have witnessed all the spring hues of the mortal world.
横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色。
Striding across the sky, towering Kunlun—you have looked on all the world's spring.
起句写横空出世，起笔即见其昆。「横空出世」写横空出世，「横空」写横空、「出世」写出世；「莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色」写莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色，「莽昆仑」写莽昆仑、「阅尽人间春色」写阅尽人间春色。两句一写横空出世、一写莽昆仑阅尽人间春色，以横空出世写出世、以莽昆仑阅尽人间春色写人间春色，写尽横空出世、莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色之情。以山起兴，豪迈而壮阔，是「以山起兴」的妙笔。
The mountain. Striding across the sky, towering Kunlun—you have looked on all the world's spring. The striding Kunlun that has seen all human spring is the poem's giant. To have described the great mountain would be scenery; the striding-across-the-sky-towering-Kunlun against the has-looked-on-all-the-world's-spring is the scenery.
飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻。
Three million jade dragons take flight, chilling the whole heavens to the bone.
飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻。
Three million jade dragons take flight, stirring the whole sky to utter cold.
此二句写飞起玉龙三百万，是全词写玉龙之态的关键。「飞起玉龙三百万」用玉龙之典写飞起玉龙三百万，「飞起玉龙」写飞起玉龙、「三百万」写三百万；「搅得周天寒彻」写搅得周天寒彻，「搅得」写搅得、「周天寒彻」写周天寒彻。两句一写飞起玉龙三百万、一写搅得周天寒彻，以飞起玉龙三百万写玉龙三百万、以搅得周天寒彻写周天寒彻，写尽飞起玉龙三百万、搅得周天寒彻之情。以龙写景，豪迈而壮阔，是「以龙写景」的点睛之笔。
The dragons. Three million jade dragons take flight, stirring the whole sky to utter cold. The three million flying jade dragons (the snow peaks) and the whole sky's cold are the mountain's winter. To have described the snowy peaks would be scenery; the three-million-jade-dragons-in-flight against the stirring-whole-sky-to-utter-cold is the scenery.
夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖。
In summer you melt, the rivers overflow, and men become fish and turtles.
夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖。
In summer they melt; the rivers flood, and men may become fish and turtles.
此二句写夏日消溶，是全词写消溶之态的关键。「夏日消溶」写夏日消溶，「夏日」写夏日、「消溶」写消溶；「江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖」写江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖，「江河横溢」写江河横溢、「人或为鱼鳖」写人或为鱼鳖。两句一写夏日消溶、一写江河横溢人或为鱼鳖，以夏日消溶写消溶、以江河横溢人或为鱼鳖写横溢，写尽夏日消溶、江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖之情。以水写景，豪迈而壮阔，是「以水写景」的点睛之笔。
The flood. In summer they melt; the rivers flood, and men may become fish and turtles. The melting snows and the flooded men-turned-fish are the mountain's danger. To have described the floods would be a scene; the summer-melting-rivers-flooding against the men-may-become-fish-and-turtles is the scene.
太平世界，环球同此凉热。
A peaceful world, where all the globe shares this same cool and warm.
太平世界，环球同此凉热。
A world of peace, where the whole globe shares the same cool and warmth.
结句写环球同此凉热，是全词立意的落点。「太平世界」写太平世界，「太平」写太平、「世界」写世界；「环球同此凉热」写环球同此凉热，「环球」写环球、「同此凉热」写同此凉热。两句一写太平世界、一写环球同此凉热，以太平世界写太平、以环球同此凉热写同此凉热，写尽太平世界、环球同此凉热之情。以凉写情，豪迈而壮阔，是全词最动人处，也是「以凉写情」的点睛之笔。
The dream. A world of peace, where the whole globe shares the same cool and warmth. The peaceful world and the globe sharing one temperature are the closing vision. To have dreamed of a peaceful world would be a vision; the peaceful-world against-the-whole-globe-sharing-the-same-cool-and-warmth is the vision.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Su Shi's 'Shuidiaogetou' ('I would ride the wind and return home, yet fear the jade towers are too high and cold') is a Song masterpiece of contemplative heroism; Mao's 'Niannujiao: Kunlun' answers with 'majestic Kunlun across the sky' and 'three million jade dragons.' Both fuse nature-description with lofty feeling—Su Shi's serene transcendence versus Mao's commanding expansiveness—and together they show two registers of the same impulse to find the heroic within the contemplation of heaven and earth.
苏轼《水调歌头·明月几时有》「我欲乘风归去，又恐琼楼玉宇，高处不胜寒」，写咏物感怀、豪迈超然，是宋词长调的名篇；毛泽东《念奴娇·昆仑》则以「横空出世，莽昆仑，阅尽人间春色」「飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻」写出世昆仑、玉龙三百万。两词同写咏物感怀、豪迈超然：一写我欲乘风归去、以乘风写超然，一写横空出世莽昆仑阅尽人间春色、以昆仑写壮阔；一为苏轼之超然、一为毛泽东之豪迈，并读正可见词写「咏物感怀」的两种笔法，皆于咏物之中见豪迈。
八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天 Bashengganzhou: On the Misty Evening Rain over River and Sky 柳永 · 同写登高咏物、清丽沉雄，一写对潇潇暮雨洒江天、一写飞起玉龙三百万搅得周天寒彻，皆于登高之中见咏物 Both depict landscape from a heightened vantage with clear, forceful imagery—Liu Yong with evening rain washing the autumn, Mao with jade dragons chilling the heavens—each locating feeling within grand scenic prospect.Liu Yong's 'Bashengganzhou' ('On the misty evening rain sprinkling river and sky, washing clean a fresh autumn') is a celebrated Song lyric of limpid, sonorous landscape; Mao's 'Kunlun' counters with 'three million jade dragons' and 'rivers overflow.' Both write elevated landscape poetry—Liu Yong's delicate clarity versus Mao's heroic magnitude—and read together they reveal two manners of binding feeling to scenery within the ci tradition.
柳永《八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天》「对潇潇暮雨洒江天，一番洗清秋」，写登高咏物、清丽沉雄，是宋词写羁旅的名篇；毛泽东《念奴娇·昆仑》则以「飞起玉龙三百万，搅得周天寒彻」「夏日消溶，江河横溢，人或为鱼鳖」写玉龙三百万、江河横溢。两词同写登高咏物、清丽沉雄：一写对潇潇暮雨洒江天、以暮雨写清秋，一写飞起玉龙三百万搅得周天寒彻、以昆仑写壮阔；一为柳永之清丽、一为毛泽东之豪迈，并读正可见词写「登高咏物」的两种笔法，皆于登高之中见咏物。