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明 Ming · 诗 Poem

柯敬仲墨竹

Ke Jingzhong's Ink Bamboo

李东阳

Li Dongyang

咏物object-chant 题画Theme 哲理Philosophy 品格character

柯敬仲墨竹莫将画竹论难易，刚道繁难简更难。
君看萧萧只数叶，满堂风雨不胜寒。

Speak not of painting bamboo as light or hard to do;
We say the dense is hard--the spare is harder yet.
See but a few leaves, rustling, sparse and low--
A hallful of wind and rain, too cold to forget.

Listen

Meaning

Do not lightly debate whether painting bamboo is easy or hard; one should say the elaborate is difficult, yet the simple is harder still. See how he sets down only a few leaves, so spare--and calls up a whole hall of wind and rain, a cold beyond bearing.

不要随意地谈论画竹的难与易，偏要说工笔繁多容易、简淡写意更难。您看那萧疏的几片竹叶，便渲染出满堂风雨、寒气凛然的气象。诗人借题柯九思墨竹图，阐发画道繁易简难之理，赞许文人画以少胜多、遗貌取神的写意境界，是一首兼有画论意味的题画诗。

Appreciation

The first couplet, 'Speak not of painting bamboo as light or hard to do; we say the dense is hard--the spare is harder yet,' argues by overturning, breaking the common view that 'the dense is hard' to set the new view that 'the simple is harder,' esteeming the literati ideal of leaving likeness behind for sheer suggestion. The second couplet, 'See but a few leaves, rustling, sparse and low--a hallful of wind and rain, too cold to forget,' proves with the painting, from a few leaves' spareness conjuring the abundance of wind and rain. Argument first, proof after, the reason rising from the image; the closing uses synesthesia, joining sight to hearing (wind) and touch (cold), writing the painting's spareness and wonder, its form simple yet meaning far, holding the dialectic of 'few defeating many.'

【白话串讲】 “莫将画竹论难易，刚道繁难简更难。君看萧萧只数叶，满堂风雨不胜寒”——李东阳说：画竹最难的不是繁，是简。你看柯敬仲只画几片竹叶，满堂都像是风雨来了。【意象与手法】首联以议论翻案起笔，破繁难之常论而立简更难之新见，推崇脱去形似、力追写意的文人画境界；后联君看萧萧只数叶，满堂风雨不胜寒以画境为证，由数叶之简想见风雨之盛。前议后证，理从象出；末句以视觉通于听觉、肤觉之通感，写画之简而妙，形简意远，含蕴以少胜多之辩证。【情感与主旨】李东阳为明中叶茶陵派领袖，论诗主张格调法度。此诗为题元画家柯九思墨竹图之作，借画竹繁简难易之辨，阐发文人士大夫以简驭繁、遗貌取神的审美理想，亦可当一篇精短的画论来读，体现其尚理趣、重法度的文艺观。【名句点睛】高频考点：一、首联翻案议论的思辨，繁难与简更难的关系；二、末句以虚写实、以少胜多之法；三、通感手法，由视觉通于听觉与肤觉；四、题画诗前议后证的章法。作答时须点出文人画写意传统与苏轼论画以神似为高的渊源。

Background

Li Dongyang (1447-1516), courtesy Binzhi, style Xiya, was a mid-Ming cabinet minister and man of letters, leader of the Chaling school. Ke Jingzhong, named Jiusi, style Danqiusheng, was a Yuan-dynasty painter of Taizhou, famous for ink bamboo, author of a 'Bamboo Manual.' This poem is written on Ke Jiusi's ink-bamboo painting, and can be read as a treatise on painting bamboo's dense-versus-simple difficulty--a painting-poem--likely written when Li felt moved before the painting, showing his literati-painting taste.

李东阳（一四四七至一五一六），字宾之，号西涯，湖广茶陵人，明中叶内阁首辅、文坛领袖，为茶陵诗派的开派宗主。他历仕英宗至武宗五朝，居官五十余年，诗文主张宗法杜甫，讲求格调法度，力矫台阁体之空廓，领袖文坛数十年。柯敬仲即元代书画家柯九思，字敬仲，号丹丘生，台州仙居人，官奎章阁鉴书博士，以诗文书画名世，尤擅墨竹，师法北宋文同、苏轼一路，著有《竹谱》论画竹之法，主张写干用篆法、枝用草书法、叶用八分法，以书入画，是文人画以书法写画的理论代表。此诗为李东阳题柯九思墨竹图的题画之作，当作于其观画有感之际。题画诗在明代蔚为大观，文人以诗论画、以画证诗，诗画交融，李东阳此篇正是其中以议论见长的代表，借柯氏数叶墨竹阐发繁易简难、以少胜多的画理，体现茶陵派尚理趣、重法度的审美取向，也可作一篇精短的画论来读，在中国题画诗传统中别具一格。

Art

The first couplet, 'Speak not of painting bamboo as light or hard to do; we say the dense is hard--the spare is harder yet,' argues by overturning, breaking the common 'the dense is hard' to set the new 'the simple is harder,' esteeming the literati ideal of leaving form for suggestion. The second couplet, 'See but a few leaves, rustling, sparse and low--a hallful of wind and rain, too cold to forget,' proves with the painting, from a few leaves' spareness conjuring wind and rain's abundance. Argument then proof, reason from image; the closing uses synesthesia--sight joined to hearing (wind) and touch (cold)--to write the painting's spare wonder, its form simple, meaning far, holding the 'few defeating many' dialectic.

此诗仅四句二十八字，章法却极谨严，前议后证，理象相生。首二句以议论翻案起笔，莫将画竹论难易，刚道繁难简更难，破繁难之常论而立简更难之新见，一个刚道写出世人习惯性的成见，一个更字层层推进，把写意之难推到极致，议论斩截有力，先声夺人。后二句以画境为证，君看萧萧只数叶，满堂风雨不胜寒，君看二字呼告式地引读者观画，只数叶点出画面之简，萧萧二字既状竹叶稀疏之形，又兼风雨萧飒之声，满堂风雨不胜寒则从观画者的感受落笔，以虚写实，由视觉通于听觉、肤觉，写出数叶墨竹所生发出的满堂风雨、寒气逼人的艺术效果。前两句立论，后两句证论，理从象出，象以理明，把画论之理融入诗境之中，议论而不空洞，写景而不浮泛，正是题画诗的上乘写法，也是茶陵派以理入诗、格调谨严风格的典型体现。全诗二十八字而议理证象俱全，语约义丰，是题画诗中以议论立骨的典范。

Allusions

'Ke Jingzhong' uses the Yuan painter Ke Jiusi's given name, naming the painting; 'rustling' originally describes wind or falling leaves, here borrowed for the bamboo leaves' sparse look; 'too cold to forget' turns Su Shi's 'on high, too cold to bear' to write the painting's pressing cold. Though no deep, obscure allusion, the poem brings painting theory into poem method--argument then proof, reason from image--making its own strain of painting-poem, fully gaining the literati painting's 'few defeating many' essence.

此诗虽短，却熔铸了画史典故与诗语传统。柯敬仲即元画家柯九思，诗题直呼其人，点明所题之画，暗含对这位以书入画、写竹名家的推崇；柯氏《竹谱》论竹干枝叶分别用篆草八分诸笔法，是文人画以书法写画的经典理论，李东阳诗中简更难之论正与之一脉相通。萧萧一词本状风声或叶落声，《诗经·小雅·车攻》有萧萧马鸣之句，《楚辞》亦以萧萧写秋风落叶，此处借以写竹叶稀疏之态，形声兼具，一字双关。不胜寒三字，化用苏轼《水调歌头》高处不胜寒的成句，反其意而用之，以寒意逼人写画境之妙，把竹的劲节与画的生气融为一体。通篇虽无明显深僻典故，却将画理、诗语、前人意象熔于一炉，出以明白晓畅的语言，正是明代题画诗融化典实、以意取胜的特点，也是茶陵派不炫博而尚理趣的体现。又，此诗以竹论艺，正承东坡宁可食无肉，不可居无竹及文同、苏轼文人竹画的传统，柯九思写竹而李东阳论竹，一画一诗，前后辉映。

Commentary

The Poetry Talks from the Huailu Hall records this poem; a modern reader says 'the first couplet argues, on painting bamboo's dense-simple difficulty; the last two find an artistic case to prove the first two.' Also: 'between a few rustling leaves can arise wind-blown, cold-pressing artistic effect--thus the simple is not easy,' praising it for 'writing the real through the empty, form simple yet meaning far, the literati painting's spirit fully between the brush lines.'

《怀麓堂诗话》为李东阳论诗之作，主张诗贵格调、言有尽而意无穷，此诗正可与其诗论互证。近人评此诗首联以议论出之，谈画竹难易繁简，后两句为前两句寻找艺术个案证明，点出其前议后证的章法特点；又谓萧萧数叶之间却能产生风雨飘飒、寒气袭人的艺术效果，可见简便非易，赞其以虚写实、形简而意远，把文人画的神妙尽收笔端。此诗在题画诗传统中的地位，可与苏轼论画诗形神之辩并观，苏轼提出论画以形似，见与儿童邻，主张遗貌取神；李东阳则就墨竹的具体题材，把形似与神似之争落实为繁与简的辩证，繁易简难四字，正与苏轼写意之论一脉相承而更趋凝练。作为茶陵派领袖的题画名篇，此诗影响了明代中后期文人题画的风气，吴门画派沈周、文徵明辈的题画诗，多在其议论风神中汲取养分，其以少胜多的画理更成为后世中国画论的常识。

Prosody

Form Poem · seven-character quatrain七言绝句（题画诗）

Rhyme Ping-shui rhyme, upper-level fourteenth han (hard, cold)押平水韵上平十四寒韵，难、寒二字一韵到底，韵字皆开口洪亮之音。

Tone pattern First line not entering rhyme, level onset and level close首句不入韵，平起平收，基本合律。

Reading note A painting-poem; argument then proof, reason and image breeding.此诗为七言绝句，属近体格律诗，押上平十四寒韵，难、寒为韵脚，皆平声，音调舒展悠长。首句莫将画竹论难易以仄声收，不入韵；次句刚道繁难简更难入韵；三四句君看萧萧只数叶，满堂风雨不胜寒，平仄大体合律，唯数叶、不胜寒等处略有变通，仍属七绝正格。就声情而言，全诗多用去声与入声字相间，音节顿挫，与议论的斩截语气相配；韵脚难、寒皆洪亮舒展，又给斩截的议论添了悠长的余味。题画诗以诗论画，本易流于说理枯燥，此诗却因前议后证、以象证理的章法而理趣盎然，且在严格的七绝格律中挥洒自如，见出李东阳作为馆阁重臣兼诗坛领袖的深厚功力。其格调说在短章中的体现，正是以谨严的格律承载深沉的理趣，为明代题画诗树立了以议论立骨而意象不枯的典范。

Line by line

莫将画竹论难易，刚道繁难简更难。

Do not talk of painting bamboo as easy or hard; you say the many are hard, but the few are harder.

不要随意地谈论画竹的难与易，偏要说工笔繁多容易、简淡写意更难。

Do not discuss painting bamboo in terms of easy or hard; you say the detailed is hard, but the spare is harder.

首二句以议论翻案立论，是全诗的眼目。莫将二字劝人勿以常情论画，刚道写世人对繁难的迷信，更字把简推到繁之上，一层高过一层，立论斩截有力。画竹之难不在枝叶繁多、用工繁密，而在以极简之笔传达极深之神，简不是偷工减料，而是删繁就简、以少胜多的更高境界。此二句把画理讲得透彻，也为后两句观画的证据预作铺垫，议论与写景前后呼应，章法谨严，正是茶陵派以议论入诗、格调高古的典型笔法，读来有理趣而不失诗味。

The paradox. Do not talk of painting bamboo as easy or hard; you say the many are hard, but the few are harder. The spare-is-harder thesis is the opening argument. To have argued that the spare is harder would be an argument; the do-not-talk-of-painting-bamboo-as-easy-or-hard-you-say-the-many-are-hard-but-the-few-are-harder is the argument.

君看萧萧只数叶，满堂风雨不胜寒。

Look—only a few sparse leaves, yet the whole hall is filled with wind and rain, too chill to bear.

您看那萧疏的几片竹叶，便渲染出满堂风雨、寒气凛然的气象。

See—only a few sparse leaves, yet wind and rain fill the hall, and the chill is more than one can bear.

后二句以画境证成前论，是全诗最见功力处。君看以呼告之语引读者入画，只数叶极言画面之简，萧萧二字既写竹叶稀疏摇落之形，又兼风雨萧飒之声，形声兼备；满堂风雨不胜寒不写竹而写观画者的感受，以虚写实，由视觉通于听觉、肤觉，数片墨叶竟生出满堂风雨、寒气逼人的气象，正是以少胜多的艺术效果。两句把简与妙的辩证关系落到具体画境，理从象出，象以理明，读者于诗境中亲见文人写意画的无穷神韵，也亲证了首联简更难的论断。

The leaves. Look—only a few sparse leaves, yet the whole hall is filled with wind and rain, too chill to bear. The few sparse leaves and the wind-and-rain-filled hall are the proof. To have proved the few leaves make the storm would be a proof; the look-only-a-few-sparse-leaves-yet-the-whole-hall-is-filled-with-wind-and-rain-too-chill-to-bear is the proof.

满堂风雨不胜寒。

The whole hall is filled with wind and rain, too chill to bear.

满堂风雨、寒气凛然的气象。

Wind and rain fill the hall, and the chill is more than one can bear.

此句是全诗的收束，也是以少胜多的点睛之笔。满堂写竹之气弥漫全室，风雨由静叶生出动态，不胜寒则直写观者的生理感受，层层递进，把数叶墨竹的感染力推向极致。寒字尤为精妙，竹本清寒之物，画家以水墨写之，墨色浓淡之间自有一股清气逼人，观者不觉置身风雨之中、寒意侵肤，这正是写意画遗貌取神、气韵生动的证明。一句之中，视、听、肤三觉交融，虚实相生，把简更难、简更妙的画理化为可感的审美体验，余味悠长，也是全诗议论得以成立的最终证据。

The chill. The whole hall is filled with wind and rain, too chill to bear. The hall filled with wind and rain and the unbearable chill are the close. To have closed on the chill would be an image; the whole-hall-is-filled-with-wind-and-rain-too-chill-to-bear is the image.

Study

Word focus

刚道 The 'we say' in 'we say the dense is hard' first sets the common view as ground for the overturning, showing the cleverness of the argument. 刚道之刚，意为偏要、硬说，是首句翻案的关键字眼。世人论画，辄谓繁工细密为难，刚道二字摹写这种根深蒂固的成见，不是理性判断，而是习惯性的固执己见，偏要如此说。先立常论以为翻案之靶，再以更字递进翻新，正是议论修辞中先破后立的妙法。一个刚字，把世人之见写得活灵活现，也为下句简更难的立论蓄足张力。若易以皆道、常说则平淡无奇，刚道则语含讥讽而锋芒内敛，见出李东阳锤炼虚字的功力，也是茶陵派讲究字法、句法、格调的诗学主张在创作中的落实，一字之易，议论风神顿出。

萧萧 Describes the bamboo leaves' sparseness, and also carries the wind's sound--one word giving both form and sound, aiding the sense of wind and rain. 萧萧是全诗最富神韵的词，兼写形声两端。本义状风声、雨声或马鸣声，《诗经》萧萧马鸣、《楚辞》风飒飒兮木萧萧，皆以萧萧写声；此处移以写竹叶，既见竹叶稀疏、临风摇落之形，又令人仿佛听见风吹竹叶的飒飒之声，形声俱出，一字双关。萧萧还与只数叶相映，愈见画面之简，寥寥几叶，却因笔意萧散而自具风神。此词更在听觉上为下文满堂风雨作铺垫，由叶声而风声，由风声而满堂风雨，感官层层打通，把静态的水墨画写出动态的风雨声，正是以少胜多的文字注脚，也是全诗通感手法得以成立的关键一环。

寒 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 不胜寒之寒，是全诗艺术效果的收束点。寒既是竹之本性，竹生清寒之境，墨写其韵，墨色浓淡之间自然透出一股清冽之气；又是观画者的真实感受，满堂风雨扑面而来，寒意侵肤，令人瑟缩。一个寒字，把视觉的画面转化为触觉的体验，通感运用精妙绝伦；不胜二字更极言寒之逼人，写画境之真、感染力之强。若作不胜清、不胜幽则偏于雅致而乏力，寒字以生理感受写审美体验，质实而警策，把数叶墨竹的气韵写得可触可感，正是以少胜多的画理在诗中的最终落实，也可见李东阳炼字贵实而不贵空的取向。