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先秦 Pre-Qin · 诗经 Classic of Poetry

甘棠

The Gan Tang Tree

诗经

Book of Songs

祭祀/颂赞praise and commemoration 民生/讽喻folk life and satire

甘棠蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿伐，召伯所茇。
蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿败，召伯所憩。
蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿拜，召伯所说。

The lush gan tang tree, do not cut, do not fell; it is where the Duke of Shao rested.
The lush gan tang tree, do not cut, do not break; it is where the Duke of Shao paused.
The lush gan tang tree, do not cut, do not bend; it is where the Duke of Shao stopped.

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Meaning

The lush gan tang (wild pear) tree, do not trim it, do not fell it; that is where the Duke of Shao once lodged. The lush gan tang tree, do not trim it, do not ruin it; that is where the Duke of Shao once rested. The lush gan tang tree, do not trim it, do not break it; that is where the Duke of Shao once stayed.

繁茂的甘棠树啊，不要修剪不要砍伐，那是召伯曾息止的地方。繁茂的甘棠啊，不要修剪不要毁坏，那是召伯曾歇息之处。繁茂的甘棠啊，不要修剪不要攀折，那是召伯曾停留之所。

Appreciation

This is a short ode from the 'Shao Nan' section of the Book of Songs, praising the virtuous rule of the Duke of Shao (Shi, also called the Duke of Shao). The poem has three stanzas almost identical, changing only the rhyme-word and the verb (fell, break, bend; lodge, pause, stop), using the typical 'returning stanzas' of the Songs to create a circling, ballad-like rhythm. The opening 'the lush gan tang tree' with its reduplicative adjective writes the tree's fullness; 'do not cut, do not fell' in a forbidding tone shows the cherishing; from the tree to the man, it turns abstract good rule into a tangible love of the wood. Not one word of 'longing' yet the longing is deep; not a word of praise yet the virtue shows, what is called 'not a stroke, yet all grace won'. The language is utterly plain yet the feeling utterly thick; it is the model of the airs' 'writing the deepest feeling in the shallowest words'.

【白话串讲】 “蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿伐，召伯所茇”——一棵甘棠树，不许剪不许砍，因为召伯曾在树下歇息。三千年前，老百姓用一棵树记住一个好官。最好的纪念，不是碑，是树。【意象与手法】全诗三章结构几乎全同，仅换韵脚与动词（伐—败—拜，茇—憩—说），以《诗经》典型的“重章叠句”造成回环往复的歌谣节奏【情感与主旨】《甘棠》为《诗经·召南》篇，约产生于西周至春秋间，颂扬召公奭（史称召伯、召公）的德政【名句点睛】中高考常考：一、重章叠句的形式与作用——三章换字如何深化情感；二、字词，“蔽芾”“勿翦勿伐”的含义

Background

'The Gan Tang' is from the 'Shao Nan' section of the Book of Songs, produced probably between the Western Zhou and the Spring and Autumn, praising the virtuous rule of Shi, the Duke of Shao (also called Shaogong or the Duke of Shao), a pillar of the early Western Zhou with the Duke of Zhou. Tradition holds that the Duke of Shao, on his inspection tours of the south, would not trouble the people but often judged cases and rested beneath a gan tang (wild pear) tree. After his death, the people, mindful of his virtue, loved the tree and could not bear to harm it. The three stanzas change only a few words (fell, break, bend; lodge, pause, stop), chanting in repetition. The Mao preface calls it 'in praise of the Duke of Shao'; Zhu Xi's Commentary follows the 'miss the man, love his tree' reading. The poem is an early model of the 'cherish the thing, remember the man' praise ode, and shows the Zhou people's political ideal of 'revering virtue, protecting the people'.

《甘棠》为《诗经·召南》中的一篇，是周人怀念召伯（召公奭）的诗。召伯为西周初年大臣，辅佐成王，政绩卓著，相传其巡行南方时曾在甘棠树下听讼断案，体恤民情。此诗以甘棠树写对召伯的怀念：蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿伐，召伯所茇；蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿败，召伯所憩；蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿拜，召伯所说。全诗三章复沓，以爱树写爱人，是《诗经》中思贤颂德的代表作。

Art

The three stanzas are almost identical, changing only the rhyme-word and the verb (fell, break, bend; lodge, pause, stop), using the Book of Songs' typical 'returning stanzas' to create a circling, ballad-like rhythm. The opening 'the lush gan tang tree' with its reduplicative adjective writes the tree's fullness; 'do not cut, do not fell' in a forbidding tone shows the cherishing; from the tree to the man, it turns abstract virtue into a tangible love of the wood. Not one word of 'longing' yet the longing is deep; not a word of praise yet the virtue shows, what is called 'not a stroke, yet all grace won'. The language is utterly plain yet the feeling utterly thick; it is the model of the airs' 'writing the deepest feeling in the shallowest words'.

《甘棠》艺术上以复沓的章法与以物写人的手法见长。全诗三章，层层写来：首章写勿伐——“蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿伐，召伯所茇”写其勿伐、召伯所息；次章写勿败——“蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿败，召伯所憩”写其勿败、召伯所憩；末章写勿拜——“蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿拜，召伯所说”写其勿拜、召伯所止。三章复沓，仅易“伐、败、拜”与“茇、憩、说”数字，而爱树之意层层加深，正是《诗经》重章叠句、以物写人的手法。

Allusions

The poem is a folk lyric with no piled allusions; its 'gan tang' image itself is the symbol of the Duke of Shao's lingering love, and later ages took 'gan tang' to stand for a good official's merit (as in the idiom 'the gan tang's lingering love'). 'Lush' (bi fei) enters the poem then the Songs' adjective stock; 'the Duke of Shao' is Ji Shi, a founding minister of the Western Zhou who aided King Cheng with the Duke of Zhou. 'Lodge' (ba, a grass hut, to rest), 'pause', 'stop' (shuo, 'tax', to stay) are all old words. Through the shifting 'do not cut, do not fell, do not break', the poem deepens layer by layer the cherishing of 'cannot bear to harm', and is the origin of the 'entrust the thing, remember the man' tradition in the bi-xing mode.

《甘棠》用典在“召伯”。“召伯”即召公奭，西周初年大臣，辅佐成王，与周公旦分陕而治，政绩卓著；“甘棠”即棠梨树，相传召伯曾在甘棠树下听讼；“茇、憩、说”皆写召伯止息于树下。全诗以甘棠树写对召伯的怀念，不用深典而情意自深，正是《诗经》以物写人、思贤颂德的笔法。

Commentary

The Mao preface: 'The Gan Tang, in praise of the Duke of Shao. The Duke of Shao's teaching shone bright in the south.' Zhu Xi's Commentary on the Songs: 'The people, mindful of the Duke of Shao's rule, loved his tree and could not bear to harm it.' Kong Yingda's sub-commentary notes that the 'three schools' of the Songs all took the gan tang as the tree where the Duke of Shao judged cases. Later ages made 'gan tang' the special term for praising good officials (as 'the grace of the gan tang'); 'The Gan Tang' thus became the source of the 'lingering love' motif in Chinese political culture, influencing the steles for good officials through the ages.

《甘棠》是《诗经·召南》中的名篇，也是中国诗歌中思贤颂德、以物写人的源头。此诗以甘棠树写对召伯的怀念，向为论者称道。论者多赏其复沓的章法——“勿翦勿伐、勿翦勿败、勿翦勿拜”三章复沓，爱树之意层层加深；“召伯所茇、所憩、所说”写召伯止息于树下，爱树正是爱人。此诗首创“爱屋及乌”式的以物写人，为后世“甘棠遗爱”的典故所本，正是《诗经》风诗中思贤颂德的代表作。

Prosody

Form Book of Songs, Shao Nan, folk air (three returning stanzas)四言诗（风诗）

Rhyme Stanza 1: lush/fell/lodge (yue group); stanza 2: lush/break/pause (ji group); stanza 3: lush/bend/stop (yue group)《甘棠》为《诗经·召南》中的四言诗，三章，每章三句，押韵。此诗用韵：伐、茇（月部）、败、憩（月部）、拜、说（月部），三章同韵，音节短促。

Tone pattern Four-character lines, returning stanzas; level-oblique not traceable《诗经》四言诗以音节短促、节奏鲜明见长。此诗三章复沓，首章写勿翦勿伐，音节短促；次章写勿翦勿败，音节加深；末章写勿翦勿拜，音节至切。全诗以四言贯底，声调与思贤颂德的内容相合，是《诗经》风诗中重章叠句的一路。

Reading note Airs' returning-stanza form; word-changes progress, circling chant.《甘棠》为《诗经·召南》中的四言诗，是周人怀念召伯（召公奭）的诗。相传召伯曾在甘棠树下听讼断案，体恤民情，故此诗以甘棠树写对召伯的怀念：三章复沓，仅易“伐、败、拜”与“茇、憩、说”数字，而爱树之意层层加深。此诗首创“爱屋及乌”式的以物写人，为后世“甘棠遗爱”的典故所本，正是《诗经》思贤颂德的代表作。

Line by line

蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿伐，召伯所茇。

The luxuriant sweet pear—do not trim it, do not fell it; here the Earl of Shao once lodged.

枝繁叶茂的甘棠树，不要剪它不要砍它，召伯曾在树下歇息。

The dense, leafy sweet pear—do not cut it, do not fell it; here the Earl of Shao once lodged.

首章写勿伐甘棠，是全诗怀念召伯的起点。“蔽芾甘棠”写甘棠之盛——“蔽芾”写枝叶茂盛，“甘棠”写棠梨树；“勿翦勿伐”写不要剪伐——“勿翦”写不要剪，“勿伐”写不要伐；“召伯所茇”写召伯所息——“召伯”写召公奭，“所茇”写其止息之所。三句写勿伐甘棠：甘棠枝叶茂盛，勿剪勿伐，因为召伯曾在此歇息。以“蔽芾”写树之盛，以“勿翦勿伐”写护树之切，以“召伯所茇”写护树之因，正是《诗经》以物写人的笔法——因召伯所茇，故勿翦勿伐。

The pear tree. The luxuriant sweet pear—do not trim it, do not fell it; here the Earl of Shao once lodged. The luxuriant-sweet-pear and the do-not-trim-fell and the Earl-Shao-lodged are the opening. To have luxuriated would be a luxuriating; the the-luxuriant-sweet-pear-do-not-trim-it-do-not-fell-it-here-the-earl-of-shao-once-lodged is the luxuriating.

蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿败，召伯所憩。

The luxuriant sweet pear—do not trim it, do not break it; here the Earl of Shao once rested.

枝繁叶茂的甘棠树，不要剪它不要折断它，召伯曾在树下休憩。

The dense, leafy sweet pear—do not cut it, do not break it; here the Earl of Shao once rested.

次章写勿败甘棠，是全诗怀念之情的加深。“蔽芾甘棠”写甘棠之盛；“勿翦勿败”写不要剪折——“勿翦”写不要剪，“勿败”写不要折断；“召伯所憩”写召伯所憩——“所憩”写其休憩之处。三句写勿败甘棠：甘棠枝叶茂盛，勿剪勿折，因为召伯曾在此休憩。以“勿败”易“勿伐”，写护树之词加深；以“所憩”写召伯休憩，写思贤之情亦深，正是《诗经》重章叠句的笔法——一章一章，情意层层加深。

The resting. The luxuriant sweet pear—do not trim it, do not break it; here the Earl of Shao once rested. The luxuriant-sweet-pear and the do-not-trim-break and the Earl-Shao-rested are the deepening. To have rested would be a resting; the the-luxuriant-sweet-pear-do-not-trim-it-do-not-break-it-here-the-earl-of-shao-once-rested is the resting.

蔽芾甘棠，勿翦勿拜，召伯所说。

The luxuriant sweet pear—do not trim it, do not bend it; here the Earl of Shao once stayed.

枝繁叶茂的甘棠树，不要剪它不要拔它，召伯曾在树下停驻。

The dense, leafy sweet pear—do not cut it, do not bend it; here the Earl of Shao once stayed.

末章写勿拜甘棠，是全诗怀念之情的归结。“蔽芾甘棠”写甘棠之盛；“勿翦勿拜”写不要剪拔——“勿翦”写不要剪，“勿拜”写不要拔；“召伯所说”写召伯所止——“所说”（说通税）写其停驻之处。三句写勿拜甘棠：甘棠枝叶茂盛，勿剪勿拔，因为召伯曾在此停驻。以“勿拜”写护树之至，以“所说”写召伯停驻，护树之情至此而极，正是《诗经》重章叠句归结的笔法——三章复沓，爱树之意层层加深，思贤之情愈转愈深。

The staying. The luxuriant sweet pear—do not trim it, do not bend it; here the Earl of Shao once stayed. The luxuriant-sweet-pear and the do-not-trim-bend and the Earl-Shao-stayed are the close. To have stayed would be a staying; the the-luxuriant-sweet-pear-do-not-trim-it-do-not-bend-it-here-the-earl-of-shao-once-stayed is the staying.

Study

Word focus

蔽芾 A reduplicative adjective writing the gan tang's leaves lush and lovely. “蔽芾甘棠”之“蔽芾”，写甘棠枝叶茂盛，是全诗写树之盛的关键词。“蔽”写遮蔽，“芾”写茂盛——甘棠蔽芾，枝叶茂盛。这一词写甘棠之盛：不是稀疏之树，而是蔽芾之树；不是寻常之景，而是茂盛可蔽。以“蔽芾”写树之盛，正是《诗经》以树之盛写思贤之深的笔法——树愈盛，愈不忍剪伐。

勿翦勿伐 The forbidding tone shows the people's cherishing of the Duke of Shao's tree. “勿翦勿伐”之“勿翦勿伐”，写不要剪伐甘棠，是全诗写护树之切的关键词。“勿翦”写不要剪，“勿伐”写不要伐——不要剪它，不要砍它。这一词写护树之切：不是不伐其一，而是勿翦勿伐；不是一时之护，而是永禁剪伐。以“勿翦勿伐”写护树之切，正是《诗经》以爱树写爱人的笔法——护树正是护召伯之遗迹。

茇 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “召伯所茇”之“茇”，写召伯止息于树下，是全诗写思贤之因的关键词。“茇”写草舍止息——召伯曾在甘棠树下止息。这一词写召伯之迹：不是虚写其名，而是实写其止息；不是泛称其政，而是记其憩处。以“茇”（及“憩”“说”）写召伯止息，正是《诗经》以具体之迹写思贤之深的笔法——甘棠树下，召伯所茇。

召伯 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “召伯所茇”之“召伯”，写召公奭，是全诗所怀念的对象。“召伯”写召公奭，西周初年大臣，辅佐成王，政绩卓著。这一词写所怀之人：不是虚构之贤，而是实有之召伯；不是泛称之德，而是政绩卓著之贤。以“召伯”写所怀之贤，正是《诗经》思贤颂德的笔法——召伯之德，甘棠之树以传。

甘棠