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南北朝 Northern and Southern Dynasties · 民歌 Folk song

陇头歌辞

Songs of Long Ridge

北朝民歌

Anonymous (Northern Dynasties folk song)

离别Parting 思乡Homesickness 羁旅Theme

陇头流水，流离山下。
念吾一身，飘然旷野。
陇头流水，鸣声幽咽。
遥望秦川，心肝断绝。
陇上流水，流离山中。
念吾一身，飘然西东。

Water at the head of Long Ridge,
streaming and scattering below the hill.
I think of myself, one man alone,
blown adrift across the open waste.

Water at the head of Long Ridge,
its voice a stifled, choking cry.
I gaze far off toward the plain of Qin,
and heart and liver break in two.

Water on Long Ridge,
streaming and scattering among the hills.
I think of myself, one man alone,
blown adrift now west, now east.

Listen

Meaning

The water at the head of Long Ridge drifts down and scatters below the mountain. I think of myself, one man alone, blown adrift across the open waste. The water at the head of Long Ridge sounds with a stifled, choking cry. I gaze far off toward the plain of Qin, and heart and liver break within me. The water on Long Ridge drifts and scatters among the hills. I think of myself, one man alone, blown adrift now west, now east.

陇山头上的流水，漂流在山下。想念我孤单一身，飘零在空阔的旷野。陇山头上的流水，鸣声幽咽凄凉。遥望秦川故土，教人心肝碎断。陇山上的流水，漂流在山中。想念我孤单一身，飘零在西东。

Appreciation

The three stanzas repeat with variation, each beginning by evoking the water of Long Ridge, so that the structure turns back upon itself. The first writes the drifting over open wastes, the second the choking sound of the water and the heart broken by the sight of the Qin plain, the third the scattering among the hills and the man carried now west, now east; the piece advances by degrees from scene into feeling. The language is direct as speech yet heavy with force, and the scattering of the water puns on the scattering of a life, while the final breaking of heart and liver states the misery at its extreme, the true colour of northern folk song, hard and desolate.

【白话串讲】 “陇头流水，流离山下。念吾一身，飘然旷野”——北朝民歌写征人：陇头的流水，流离山下；我一个人，飘在旷野。“遥望秦川，心肝断绝”——望着故乡的方向，心都断了。【意象与手法】全篇三章重章复沓，皆以「陇头流水」起兴，结构回环。首章写飘然旷野，次章写水声幽咽、望秦川断肠，末章写流离山中、一身西东，由景及情层层递进。语言质直如话而力度沉雄，以流水之「流离」双关人身之漂泊，末以「心肝断绝」极写悲苦，具北民歌刚健苍凉之本色。【情感与主旨】《陇头歌辞》属《乐府诗集·横吹曲辞·梁鼓角横吹曲》，为北朝陇右（今甘肃一带）民间歌辞。陇山为关中通往西北之要隘，征人戍卒经此多生去国怀乡之悲。此歌当为羁旅陇头者所唱，真实反映了北朝战乱频仍、民夫征人漂泊离散的苦辛，是北歌中苍凉悲壮的代表。【名句点睛】常考重章复沓的章法、以流水起兴并双关身世的比兴手法、「心肝断绝」写思乡之悲的情感力度，以及此歌与《敕勒歌》《木兰诗》并称北歌三绝的地位。

Background

The 'Songs of Long Ridge' belong to the Liang drum-and-horn horizontal-flute pieces in the 'Collection of Yuefu Poetry' and are folk songs from Longyou in the north, in what is now Gansu. Long Ridge was the crucial pass from the region within the passes to the northwest, and soldiers and garrison men who crossed it commonly felt the grief of leaving their country behind. These songs must have been sung by those stranded at Long Ridge; they are not the work of one time or one hand, but were gathered and arranged by the music bureau. They reflect truthfully the hardship of a northern age of constant war, in which labourers and conscripts drifted and were scattered, and they are the representative bleak and stirring piece among the northern songs.

《陇头歌辞》属《乐府诗集·横吹曲辞·梁鼓角横吹曲》，为北朝陇右（今甘肃一带）民间歌辞，作者佚名。陇山即陇坂，在今陕西、甘肃交界处，山势高峻，山路盘曲，是关中通往西北的要隘。古来行人经陇山，多见离乡之悲，故陇山成为离别悲歌之地，《三秦记》载「陇西其坂九回，不知高几里，欲上者七日乃得越」，「陇头流水，鸣声幽咽」即当地流传的歌谣。此歌当为羁旅陇头的征人、戍卒、行役者所唱，非一时一人之作，经乐府采集整理而成。北朝时期战乱频仍，兵役徭役繁重，大量男子被征发戍边、转输粮饷，背井离乡，漂泊无定。此歌三章，反复咏叹「陇头流水」与「念吾一身」，以流水之流离双关人身之漂泊，以「遥望秦川」写故国之思，以「心肝断绝」写断肠之悲，真实反映了北朝民夫征人漂泊离散的苦辛，是北歌中苍凉悲壮的代表，与《敕勒歌》的苍茫、《木兰诗》的豪壮并称北歌三绝。此歌流传既久，历代拟作不绝（梁代徐陵、唐卢照邻皆有《陇头水》），正见其情感之普遍与艺术之生命力，其『陇头流水』的意象更成为后世边塞诗中思乡悲苦的经典符号。

Art

The three stanzas repeat with variation and all begin by evoking the water of Long Ridge, so that the structure runs in a circle. The first writes a man blown across open wastes, the second the choking sound of the water and the heart broken by gazing at the plain of Qin, the third the scattering among the hills and a life carried west and east; the movement advances from scene to feeling stage by stage. The language is plain as speech yet its force is deep and strong, and the scattering of the water puns upon the drifting of a human life, while the final breaking of heart and liver renders the misery to its utmost, the native colour of northern folk song, vigorous and bleak.

全篇三章重章复沓，皆以「陇头流水」起兴，结构回环，是民歌典型章法的运用。首章「陇头流水，流离山下。念吾一身，飘然旷野」写身世之飘零——以流水起兴，流离山下与飘然旷野相映，水之流离即人之漂泊；次章「陇头流水，鸣声幽咽。遥望秦川，心肝断绝」写思乡之悲——水声幽咽与心肝断绝相映，水之悲声即人之悲情，望秦川而断肠，是全歌情感的高潮；末章「陇上流水，流离山中。念吾一身，飘然西东」以复沓收束——「山下」变为「山中」，「旷野」变为「西东」，空间愈转愈深，漂泊愈写愈无定，余悲不尽。三章结构相同而情感递进：由飘零写到断肠，由断肠写到无定，重章叠唱中情感层层加深。语言质直如话而力度沉雄，以流水之「流离」双关人身之漂泊，比兴自然，正是北朝民歌「刚健分明」本色的体现。三章『念吾一身』两见，『一身』之孤与『旷野』『西东』之阔相映，孤身愈孤、天地愈空，正是以空间写孤独的典范笔法，民歌之朴拙中自有千钧之力。

Allusions

Long Ridge is the Long mountains, a place of parting and mournful song from ancient times; the Han music bureau already had the line that the water at the head of Long Ridge divides and falls on every side, and this song inherits the image. The plain of Qin means the plain within the passes, the home country for which the singer longs. The word for scattering describes at once the dispersing of the water and, by pun, a life scattered and homeless. As a folk song it uses almost no learned reference, writing entirely by direct statement, comparison and evocation, which is exactly the natural pathos of song that comes from the people.

「陇头」即陇山，为古来离别悲歌之地，汉乐府已有「陇头流水，分离四下」之句（见《陇头水》），此歌承其意象，以「陇头流水」起兴，正承汉乐府传统。「流离」一词双关：字面上写水流分散、离山而去，骨子里双关「流离失所」——人如流水，流离漂泊，无处安身，一词两意，正是民歌比兴之妙。「秦川」指关中平原，秦之故地，为歌者所念故土——「遥望秦川」写离乡者回望故园，望而不见，故「心肝断绝」，与《三秦记》所载「陇头流水，鸣声幽咽，遥望秦川，肝肠断绝」正相吻合。全诗本为民间歌辞，少用典事，纯以赋比兴抒写，唯「陇头」「秦川」等实指地名承载着地理与历史的悲情，正见民歌天然悲慨之致，不假雕饰而感人至深。又『飘然』一语暗承《庄子》『飘风』之意与汉魏诗中『飘忽若神』的用法，写身如飞蓬、飘忽无定，与『流离』双关相映，一写形之飘、一写神之离，正见民歌炼字之精；通篇以眼前景、口头语写真悲，不假雕饰而自具本色。

Commentary

The 'Collection of Yuefu Poetry' quotes the 'Record of the Three Qin' to the effect that the water at the head of Long Ridge sounds with a stifled cry and that gazing far toward the plain of Qin breaks a man's heart and liver, which agrees exactly with this song. The Ming critic Hu Yinglin said that the yuefu of the Northern Dynasties are vigorous and distinct, and that although their language is rough and rustic they possess a realm of their own. Modern scholars set the 'Songs of Long Ridge' with the 'Song of Chile' and the 'Ballad of Mulan' as the three masterpieces of northern song, granting them a grief at once natural and stirring.

《乐府诗集》引《三秦记》云：「陇西其坂九回……俗歌曰：『陇头流水，鸣声幽咽，遥望秦川，肝肠断绝。』」正与此歌相合，可见其源远流长、传唱久远。明人胡应麟《诗薮》称北朝乐府「刚健分明，语虽质野，自有妙境」，此歌正是注脚——语言质朴近野，而情思沉雄悲壮，自有动人的妙境。近人论北朝民歌，常以《敕勒歌》《木兰诗》《陇头歌辞》并称北歌三绝：敕勒歌写草原之苍茫豪迈，木兰诗写代父从军之豪壮，陇头歌辞写征人行役之悲苦，三首合观，可见北朝民歌题材的多样与风格的刚健。此歌以三章复沓的短章写尽羁旅之悲，篇幅虽短而容量极大，是理解北朝社会征役之苦与民歌抒情艺术的经典文本，对后世边塞诗、羁旅诗影响深远，杜甫「陇右苍茫」的笔意、岑参边塞诗的悲壮，皆可溯源于此。此歌与《敕勒歌》《木兰诗》并为北歌三绝，其短章复沓之体、苍凉悲壮之情，是北朝民歌艺术成就的集中体现，也是理解北朝文学『刚健本色』的首要文本，历代选本无不收录，其影响及于后世边塞诗与羁旅诗。

Prosody

Form Northern Dynasties yuefu folk song (horizontal-flute pieces)北朝乐府民歌（横吹曲辞·梁鼓角横吹曲）

Rhyme Yuefu, changing rhyme freely, not observing strict rhyme三章各押韵，首章押马（下、野），次章押寒山韵（咽、断），末章押东钟韵（中、东），乐府自由换韵，不究严韵。

Tone pattern Mixed and five-character lines, not observing level and oblique patterns四言为主（陇头流水，流离山下），间以五言（念吾一身，飘然旷野），不拘平仄，以重章复沓的节奏见长。

Reading note A northern folk song, repeating with variation across its stanzas, bleak and stirring.此歌为北朝乐府民歌，属《乐府诗集·横吹曲辞·梁鼓角横吹曲》，全歌三章，每章四句。其格律特点有三：一是句式以四言为主，间以五言，四言句（如「陇头流水」「流离山下」）音节短促有力，正合民歌的质朴刚健，五言句（如「念吾一身」「飘然旷野」）舒展悠长，正宜抒情，长短相间，节奏错落有致；二是重章复沓，三章句式结构相同，仅更换少量词语（陇头—陇上、山下—山中、旷野—西东），回环往复、一唱三叹，是《诗经》重章叠句传统在民歌中的延续，其作用在于以复沓强化悲情、以换字推进漂泊之深；三是自由换韵，各章随内容换韵，不拘平仄，不究严韵，正见民歌声律的自由。《陇头歌辞》以三章复沓的短章写尽羁旅之悲，是北朝民歌声律与章法的典型，也是理解乐府民歌「以声传情、以复沓见情」的重要文本。

Line by line

陇头流水，流离山下。

At Longtou the running water scatters down below the hills.

陇山头上的流水，漂流在山下。

The stream at Longtou flows on, scattering below the hills.

起句以「陇头流水」起兴，是全歌比兴之始。「陇头」点明地点——陇山之上，正是离乡背井者必经的关隘，陇山高峻、山路盘曲，行人至此，离乡之悲油然而生；「流水」写陇山上的泉水——山高水急，水流奔泻而下；「流离山下」写水流离山而去——「流离」一词双关：字面写水流分散、离开山下，骨子里双关「流离失所」——水之流离正是人之漂泊的写照，以水起兴而人即在其中。此句的妙处有三：一是以景起兴，陇头流水的意象既点明地点，又暗含悲情，陇山本身即是离别悲歌之地；二是双关传神，「流离」一词两意，水我相融，比兴自然；三是定下基调，流水一去不返，正如行人离家不归，全歌的漂泊之悲自此而生。

The stream. At Longtou the running water scatters down below the hills. The Longtou-running-water and the scatters-below-the-hills are the opening. To have scattered down would be a scattering; the at-longtou-the-running-water-scatters-down-below-the-hills is the scattering.

念吾一身，飘然旷野。

I think of my single self, drifting on the open waste.

想念我孤单一身，飘零在空阔的旷野。

I think of my lone self, adrift on the open wilderness.

此句由景及人，直抒飘零之悲，是全歌情感的直接呈现。「念吾一身」写孤单——「一身」即孑然一身，离家万里，唯我一人，「念」字见其自伤自怜：不是热闹的同行，而是孤零零的一身；「飘然旷野」写飘零——「飘然」写身如飞蓬、飘忽无定，「旷野」写陇山之下空阔无人的原野，一人飘荡其间，天地茫茫，无所依傍。此句的妙处有三：一是以「一身」写孤，「一身」二字，写尽离乡者的孤独无依，与「旷野」的空阔相映，孤身愈孤；二是以「飘然」写无定，「飘然」写身不由己、随风飘转之态，正是行役之人的共同命运；三是质直沉痛，语言如话而悲意自深，正是北歌「语虽质野，自有妙境」的本色。

The self. I think of my single self, drifting on the open waste. The my-single-self and the drifting-on-open-waste are the solitude. To have drifted on the waste would be a drifting; the i-think-of-my-single-self-drifting-on-the-open-waste is the drifting.

陇头流水，鸣声幽咽。

At Longtou the running water's voice is low and choking.

陇山头上的流水，鸣声幽咽凄凉。

The stream at Longtou murmurs, its voice low and choking.

此句复沓起兴，由写水之形转写水之声，情感加深一层。「陇头流水」重复首章起句，重章叠唱，回环往复，正是民歌的典型章法；「鸣声幽咽」写流水之声——「幽咽」本形容低微断续的哭声或水声，此处写陇水奔流之声如泣如诉、幽咽凄凉。此句的妙处有三：一是以声写情，水本无情，而其声「幽咽」，仿佛在为人悲泣——移情于物，水声即心声，写尽行役者胸中的悲苦；二是声情相谐，「幽咽」二字读来如闻哽咽之声，音节与情感相合，正是民歌以声传情的功力；三是为下文蓄势，水声幽咽，引出「遥望秦川」的断肠之悲，由听水而思乡，情感自然过渡，重章之中见出递进之妙。

The voice. At Longtou the running water's voice is low and choking. The Longtou-running-water and the low-and-choking-voice are the sound. To have choked would be a choking; the at-longtou-the-running-water's-voice-is-low-and-choking is the choking.

遥望秦川，心肝断绝。

Gazing toward the Qin River plain, my heart and liver break.

遥望秦川故土，教人心肝碎断。

Gazing far toward the Qin River plain, heart and liver break.

此句是全歌情感的高潮，写思乡之悲的极致，也是千古传诵的名句。「遥望秦川」写回望故土——秦川即关中平原，是歌者离别的家乡，身在陇山而遥望秦川，一东一西，故乡渺远，「遥望」二字写尽望而不见的怅惘；「心肝断绝」写断肠之悲——「断绝」写心肝碎裂，极言悲痛之深，不是「肠断」而是「心肝断绝」，以最重的词语写最深的悲。此句的妙处有三：一是以「遥望」写距离，陇山与秦川相隔千里，望之不及，愈望愈悲，空间的距离正是情感的深度；二是以「断绝」写悲极，「断绝」二字重逾千钧，思乡之痛至于心肝碎裂，正是北歌「刚健」本色的极致；三是与「鸣声幽咽」呼应，水声之幽咽与心肝之断绝，一声一心，内外相感，断肠之悲溢于言表。

The plain. Gazing toward the Qin River plain, my heart and liver break. The gazing-toward-Qin-plain and the heart-and-liver-break are the peak. To have broken would be a breaking; the gazing-toward-the-qin-river-plain-my-heart-and-liver-break is the breaking.

陇上流水，流离山中。

On Longshan the running water scatters through the hills.

陇山上的流水，漂流在山中。

The stream on Longshan flows on, scattering through the hills.

末章复沓起兴而微变，是全歌情感的最后沉淀之始。「陇上流水」由首章「陇头流水」微变而来——「陇头」是陇山之巅，「陇上」亦是陇山之上，同地而换字，正是民歌重章叠句的灵活；「流离山中」由「流离山下」微变而来——「山下」变「山中」，一字之变，水流由山下转入山中，仿佛漂泊愈转愈深、愈转愈僻，离人随之越走越远，越行越无归路。两句复沓旧调而意境加深，以水之流转写人之流转，物我双写，正是民歌『一唱三叹』的章法之力，也为下句「念吾一身，飘然西东」的无定之悲作了最直接的铺垫。

The hills. On Longshan the running water scatters through the hills. The Longshan-running-water and the scatters-through-the-hills are the return. To have scattered through the hills would be a scattering; the on-longshan-the-running-water-scatters-through-the-hills is the scattering.

念吾一身，飘然西东。

I think of my single self, drifting west and east.

想念我孤单一身，飘零在西东。

I think of my lone self, drifting west and east.

末句复沓抒情而更进一层，是全歌的收束，余悲不尽。「念吾一身」重复首章之语——孤身之叹，三章两见，正是行役者念念不忘的自我悲鸣，越念越孤；「飘然西东」由首章「飘然旷野」变来——「旷野」写空间之空阔，「西东」写方位之无定，一字之变，漂泊由空旷变为无定向：不是飘在空阔的旷野，而是忽东忽西、无处可依，无定之苦愈写愈深。此句的妙处有三：一是以换字推进层次，「旷野」而「西东」，空间愈写愈无定，漂泊愈写愈深重，正是重章叠句『以变写进』的典范；二是以「西东」收束，西东二字写尽八方无定、处处无依，如余音袅袅，把征人行役的无限悲苦留在歌外；三是首尾呼应，由首章「飘然旷野」到末章「飘然西东」，全歌于复沓中完成情感的完整回环，正是民歌抒情艺术的最高境界。

The drift. I think of my single self, drifting west and east. The my-single-self and the drifting-west-and-east are the close. To have drifted west and east would be a drifting; the i-think-of-my-single-self-drifting-west-and-east is the drifting.

Study

Word focus

流离 It describes the water dividing and running away, and puns at the same time on a life scattered and homeless; one word carrying two senses is the very marvel of folk-song comparison. 「流离山下」之「流离」二字，是全歌比兴的枢纽，一词两意，妙绝千古。「流离」字面上写水流分散、离山而去——陇山高峻，泉水奔流，随山势分散而下，是眼前实景；骨子里双关「流离失所」——人如流水，离开乡土，漂泊离散，无处安身，是身世写照。此词之妙有三：一是双关传神，以水之流离写人之流离，物我一体，比兴自然，正是民歌「借物起兴」的至高境界；二是涵盖全歌，「流离」二字统摄三章——首章流离山下，次章鸣声幽咽，末章流离山中，皆是「流离」的展开与深化；三是语重千钧，「流离」是离乡者命运的凝练概括，一字一词而漂泊之苦尽在其中，后世「流离失所」成语即由此生发，正见其影响之深。

幽咽 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「鸣声幽咽」之「幽咽」二字，是写水声而兼写人情的传神之笔。「幽咽」本形容低微断续、如泣如诉的声音，多用于哭声与水声——「幽」写其低沉幽微，「咽」写其哽咽断续，二字连用，陇水奔流之声如人之哽咽悲泣。此二字之妙有三：一是移情于物，水本无情，其声本无悲喜，着一「幽咽」，则水声如泣，仿佛陇水也在为离人悲泣——物我相融，正是民歌「以我观物」的深情笔法；二是声情相谐，「幽咽」二字读来如闻哽咽，音节与悲情相合，正见民歌以声传情的功力；三是承上启下，「幽咽」之声引出「遥望秦川」的断肠之悲，由听水而思乡，情由景生、自然过渡，二字是全歌由景入情的枢纽，也是「心肝断绝」的情感先声。

断绝 It says that the pain of longing for home goes so far as to break heart and liver apart; the language is extreme, and shows the bleak, stirring colour of the northern songs. 「心肝断绝」之「断绝」二字，是全歌情感的最强音，用语极重而力透纸背。「断绝」本义为断开、绝灭，此处写心肝碎裂——悲痛之深，至于心肝断绝，是夸张到极致的写法。此二字之妙有三：一是以重语写极悲，思乡之痛不说「肠断」而说「心肝断绝」，以最重的词语写最深的悲，力度沉雄，正是北歌「刚健」本色的极致；二是化虚为实，「断绝」把无形的悲痛写成心肝断裂的实感，悲之深、痛之切，具体可感，触目惊心；三是与前句呼应，「遥望秦川」的望而不见，正是「心肝断绝」的根源，一望一断，因果相生，把思乡之悲推到极点。此二字重逾千钧，与《三秦记》所载俗歌「肝肠断绝」一脉相通，是北朝民歌写悲最经典、最有力的表达之一。