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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

山中与元九书

In the Mountains, Written to Yuan the Ninth (Shan Zhong Yu Yuan Jiu)

白居易

Bai Juyi

怀友Thinking of a Friend

忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼。
万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头。

Remembering you, I am moored in my travelling boat;
you, looking for me, should be atop the county tower.
Ten thousand li, the same bright moon, the same night;
east of the Yellow River, beyond the western sea.

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Meaning

Bai Juyi, moored in his boat, thinks of his friend Yuan Zhen and imagines Yuan looking for him from a distant tower. Though parted by ten thousand li, they share the same moon and the same night. The poem is a tender, plain meditation on friendship that spans vast space.

忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼。万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] As I think of you, I am moored in my boat; you, seeking me, should be up on the county tower. Ten thousand li apart, it is the same bright moon, the same night; east of the Yellow River, far beyond the western sea. [Structure] The first couplet sets the two friends in mirrored places—he in a boat, Yuan on a tower; the second couplet widens to shared moon and immense distance. [Imagery] 'Moored boat' and 'county tower' are two vantage points of one friendship; 'same moon, same night' dissolves the separation; 'east of the river, beyond the sea' restores its scale. The poem's grace is its plain sincerity—no ornament, only the steady assurance that distance cannot unset the bond.

【白话串讲】白居易写《山中与元九书》：“忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼”——“万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头”——他说我想你时正泊舟，你望我时该在郡楼——万里同此明月——他写两地相忆。【意象与手法】此诗写怀友，以思念写怀友，是白居易的名篇。前两句写相思：「忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼」写忆君我正泊行舟、望我君应上郡楼——写尽望我君应的上郡楼；后两句写月明：「万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头」写万里月明同此夜、黄河东面海西头——写尽黄河东面的海西头。全诗以思念写怀友，写尽望我君应的上郡楼与黄河东面的海西头，是白居易的代表作。【情感与主旨】此诗写怀友，以思念写怀友，是白居易的名篇。此诗为白居易写其寄元稹（字微之）而作，写其泊舟思友与望月怀人。白居易与元稹交厚，此诗写其泊行舟时思友。此诗写忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼；万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头。此诗写相思：忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼——写忆君我正泊行舟、望我君应上郡楼，写尽望我君应的上郡楼；万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头——写万里月明同此夜、黄河东面海西头，写尽黄河东面的海西头。全诗以思念写怀友——那「望我君应上郡楼」写尽望我君应的上郡楼，「黄河东面海西头」写尽黄河东面的海西头，写尽望我君应的上郡楼与黄河东面的海西头，是理解白居易怀友诗的重要篇章。【名句点睛】常考「忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼」写望我君应的上郡楼；「万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头」写黄河东面的海西头；以及全诗以思念写怀友、以虚写实写相思的手法。

Background

Bai Juyi (772–846), courtesy name Letian, style Xiangshan Jushi, was a realist Tang poet who with Yuan Zhen founded the New Yuefu movement, the pair known as 'Yuan and Bai'. This quatrain was written to Yuan Zhen (courtesy Weizhi, 'Yuan the Ninth') during a separation when Bai was travelling. The two were intimate friends; the poem images each looking for the other across a great gap. It belongs to Bai's warm, accessible vein of friendship verse, where a shared moon stands for unbroken affection.

此诗写怀友，以思念写怀友，是白居易的名篇。白居易（772—846），字乐天，号香山居士，又号醉吟先生，祖籍太原，生于河南新郑，唐代现实主义诗人，与元稹共同倡导新乐府运动，世称「元白」，与刘禹锡并称「刘白」。此诗为白居易写其寄元稹（字微之）而作，写其泊舟思友与望月怀人。白居易与元稹交厚，此诗写其泊行舟时思友。此诗写忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼；万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头。此诗写相思：「忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼」写忆君我正泊行舟、望我君应上郡楼——写尽望我君应的上郡楼（忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼）；「万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头」写万里月明同此夜、黄河东面海西头——写尽黄河东面的海西头（万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头）。全诗以思念写怀友，写尽望我君应的上郡楼与黄河东面的海西头，是理解白居易怀友诗的重要篇章。

Art

The art moves on four lines. First, mirrored standpoint: 'I am moored, thinking of you' against 'you should be on the tower looking for me' sets the friends in reciprocal place. Second, virtual-for-distance: 'moored boat' and 'county tower' imply two far locales without naming them. Third, moon-as-bond: 'ten thousand li, the same bright moon, the same night' uses the shared moon to negate separation. Fourth, space-for-longing: 'east of the Yellow River, beyond the western sea' restores the vast gap the moon had briefly closed. The poem is plain and direct—Bai's 'sincere and easy' manner—yet its turn from union to distance gives the closing an aching span.

此诗的艺术特色可从四个方面解析。其一，以对写写相思。「忆君我正泊行舟」以对写写相思——那「望我君应上郡楼」写尽望我君应的上郡楼，以对写写尽望我君应的上郡楼。其二，以虚写写两地。「望我君应上郡楼」以虚写写两地——那「忆君我正泊行舟」写尽忆君我正的泊行舟，以虚写写尽望我君应的上郡楼。其三，以月写同此夜。「万里月明同此夜」以月写同此夜——那「黄河东面海西头」写尽黄河东面的海西头，以月写尽万里月明的同此夜。其四，以时空写相思。「黄河东面海西头」以时空写相思——那「万里月明」写尽万里的月明，以时空写尽黄河东面的海西头。此外，此诗前两句写望我君应的上郡楼，后两句写黄河东面的海西头，由虚及实，正是怀友诗「以月写思」的写法。四重手法，使此诗以思念写怀友，写尽望我君应的上郡楼与黄河东面的海西头，是白居易的代表作。

Allusions

'Remembering you' (yi jun) is the classic opening of a friendship poem (cf. 'I think of you far off by the Xiao-Xiang moon'). 'Moored boat' echoes Du Mu's 'moored by Qinhuai near the wineshop'. 'County tower' is the familiar lookout of parted friends. 'Bright moon' and 'same night' echo Zhang Jiuling's 'the quiet moon shares this moment with the ends of earth' and Du Fu's 'moon is homeland's brightness'. 'East of the Yellow River, beyond the western sea' stretches the parting to the world's edges. Bai gathers these common tokens to voice, plainly, an unbroken bond.

此诗的用语深植于怀友与思念传统。「忆君」令人想到「忆君」写忆君的意象——也令人想到「忆君遥在潇湘月」的意象；「泊行舟」令人想到「泊行舟」写泊舟的意象——也令人想到「夜泊秦淮近酒家」（杜牧）的意象；「郡楼」令人想到「郡楼」写郡楼的意象——也令人想到「郡楼高处望」的意象；「月明」令人想到「月明」写明月的意象——也令人想到「月是故乡明」（杜甫）的意象；「此夜」令人想到「此夜」写此夜的意象——也令人想到「天涯共此时」（张九龄）的意象；「黄河」令人想到「黄河」写黄河的意象——也令人想到「黄河远上白云间」（王之涣）的意象。全诗化用忆君、泊行舟、郡楼、月明、此夜、黄河的意象典故，以思念写怀友，正是白居易「讽喻」而善白描、承怀友传统写思念之本领。「行舟」令人想到「行舟」写行舟的意象——也令人想到「两岸猿声啼不住，轻舟已过万重山」（李白）的意象；「海西头」令人想到「海西头」写海西的意象——也令人想到「海外西」的意象，以海西写天涯。

Commentary

The poem is prized as a fine Bai Juyi friendship lyric and a representative Tang verse 'to Yuan the Ninth'. Qing critics called it 'friendship through remembrance, sincere and plain'. Modern readers note 'ten thousand li, same moon, same night' as its famous line. With Bai's 'Asking Liu the Nineteenth' ('green ants, new wine') it forms a paired friendship reading—one an invitation, one a moonlit thought. For today's reader it opens Bai's warm, unpretentious voice, where a shared moon still bridges ten thousand li.

此诗历来被推为白居易怀友诗的名篇，也是唐诗写寄元九的代表。历代论者对此诗评价极高：清人评此诗「以思念写怀友，真挚平易」；近人更指出「万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头」写黄河东面的海西头，是此诗的名句。在诗歌史上，此诗的特殊价值在于：它以七绝写尽望我君应的上郡楼与黄河东面的海西头——那忆君，那我正泊行舟，那望我，那君应，那上郡楼，那万里，那月明，那同此夜，那黄河，那东面，那海西头，都写尽了白居易笔下的山中与元九书；那「万里月明同此夜」更以月写尽万里月明的同此夜。此诗与白居易《问刘十九》「绿蚁新醅酒」同为怀友名篇，一写「能饮一杯无」的问刘十九，一写「望我君应上郡楼」的山中与元九书；一写邀饮，一写望月。两诗对读，可见白居易怀友诗的两面。对于今日读者，此诗是理解白居易怀友诗的窗口，也是唐诗写寄元九的经典——那黄河东面的海西头，穿越千年，仍在诉说着望我君应的上郡楼。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain (Qiyan Jueju, 七言绝句)七言绝句

Rhyme Rhymes on the 'you' vowels (lou, tou) in the level tone, one rhyme throughout.押「楼」「头」（尤韵），一韵到底

Tone pattern A heptasyllabic quatrain in level tone, single rhyme; its even, plain music suits the sincere, easy feeling.此诗为七言绝句，押平声韵，一韵到底，音节平易，正合思念的平易。

Reading note A four-line qiyan jueju: '忆君我正泊行舟…黄河东面海西头.' It rhymes throughout on the 'you' category. The first two lines set the two friends in mirrored places, the last two widen to shared moon and vast distance. Read '忆君我正泊行舟' with plain warmth and close '黄河东面海西头' with a long, aching span.此诗为七言绝句——「忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼。万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头」，押尤韵（楼、头），一韵到底，音节平易。全诗以思念写怀友：前两句写望我君应的上郡楼（忆君我正泊行舟、望我君应上郡楼），后两句写黄河东面的海西头（万里月明同此夜、黄河东面海西头）。绝句短章，前写相思，后写月明，以「万里月明同此夜」写尽万里月明的同此夜，正见白居易「讽喻」的本色。诵读此诗，宜以平易的语调读「忆君我正泊行舟」的相思，以深情的语调读「黄河东面海西头」的海西头，结句要读得平易而有余韵，方能传达出白居易的真挚平易。白居易绝句以「平易」著称，此诗正是其怀友诗的典范。

Line by line

忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼

Remembering you, I am moored in my travelling boat;
you, looking for me, should be atop the county tower.

忆君我正泊行舟，望我君应上郡楼。

Thinking of you, I am mooring my traveling boat; gazing for me, you should be climbing the commandery tower.

此二句是全诗写相思的核心，以忆君我正泊行舟写泊行舟，以望我君应上郡楼写上郡楼，写尽望我君应的上郡楼，是千古名句。「忆君我正泊行舟」写忆君我正泊行舟——那「忆君」写忆君，「我正泊行舟」写我正泊行舟，写尽忆君我正的泊行舟；「望我君应上郡楼」写望我君应上郡楼——那「望我」写望我，「君应上郡楼」写君应上郡楼，写尽望我君应的上郡楼。这句的深意在于：它以「忆君我正泊行舟」的泊行舟与「望我君应上郡楼」的上郡楼，写尽望我君应的上郡楼——忆君我正泊行舟，那「忆君我正泊行舟」写尽忆君我正的泊行舟——忆君我正泊行舟，正是忆君泊舟的写照，那「泊行舟」写尽望我君应的上郡楼；望我君应上郡楼，那「望我君应上郡楼」写尽望我君应的上郡楼——望我君应上郡楼，正是望我登楼的写照，那「上郡楼」写尽望我君应的上郡楼；那「忆君我正泊行舟」写尽忆君我正的泊行舟，那「望我君应上郡楼」写尽望我君应的上郡楼，一写泊行舟，一写上郡楼，写尽望我君应的上郡楼——我忆君泊舟而君望我登楼，正是相思的写照；此二句以泊行舟、上郡楼写尽望我君应的上郡楼，也为下文的月明作铺垫，也让此二句成为全诗写相思的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「我想你时正泊着行舟，你想我时应该登上郡楼」，则失其对写；唯以「忆君我正泊行舟」写泊行舟、「望我君应上郡楼」写上郡楼，写尽望我君应的上郡楼，也让此二句成为全诗写相思的核心。

The two lines are the core of the poem's longing, writing the moored boat through thinking of you, I am mooring my traveling boat and the climbed tower through gazing for me, you should be climbing the commandery tower, exhausting the mutual gazing. Thinking of you, I am mooring my traveling boat is precisely the picture of the boat moored in memory; gazing for me, you should be climbing the commandery tower precisely the picture of the tower climbed in gazing. One writes the boat, one the tower, exhausting the longing — I think of you and moor the boat, you gaze for me and climb the tower, precisely the picture of lovesickness. Were it said plainly when I think of you I am moored, and when you think of me you should climb the commandery tower, the paired writing would be softened; only through the moored boat and the climbed tower is the mutual longing exhausted, preparing the moonlight below and making the lines the core of the poem.

万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头

Ten thousand li, the same bright moon, the same night;
east of the Yellow River, beyond the western sea.

万里月明同此夜，黄河东面海西头。

Ten thousand li, the moon bright, sharing this one night; east of the Yellow River, at the head of the western sea.

此二句是全诗写月明的核心，以万里月明同此夜写同此夜，以黄河东面海西头写海西头，写尽黄河东面的海西头，是千古名句。「万里月明同此夜」写万里月明同此夜——那「万里月明」写万里月明，「同此夜」写同此夜，写尽万里月明的同此夜；「黄河东面海西头」写黄河东面海西头——那「黄河东面」写黄河东面，「海西头」写海西头，写尽黄河东面的海西头。这句的深意在于：它以「万里月明同此夜」的同此夜与「黄河东面海西头」的海西头，写尽黄河东面的海西头——万里月明同此夜，那「万里月明同此夜」写尽万里月明的同此夜——万里月明同此夜，正是万里共月的写照，那「同此夜」写尽黄河东面的海西头；黄河东面海西头，那「黄河东面海西头」写尽黄河东面的海西头——黄河东面海西头，正是隔河相望的写照，那「海西头」写尽黄河东面的海西头；那「万里月明同此夜」写尽万里月明的同此夜，那「黄河东面海西头」写尽黄河东面的海西头，一写同此夜，一写海西头，写尽黄河东面的海西头——万里共月而隔河相望，正是思念的写照；此二句以同此夜、海西头写尽黄河东面的海西头，也让此二句成为全诗写月明的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「万里月明同此一夜，我在黄河东面你在海西头」，则失其旷远；唯以「万里月明同此夜」写同此夜、「黄河东面海西头」写海西头，写尽黄河东面的海西头，也让此二句成为全诗写月明的核心。

The two lines are the core of the poem's moonlight, writing the shared night through ten thousand li, the moon bright, sharing this one night and the sea's head through east of the Yellow River, at the head of the western sea, exhausting the sea's head. Ten thousand li, the moon bright, sharing this one night is precisely the picture of the shared moon; east of the Yellow River, at the head of the western sea precisely the picture of gazing across the river. One writes the shared night, one the sea's head, exhausting the longing — ten thousand li sharing the moon and gazing across the river. Were it said plainly ten thousand li the moon bright, this one night, I am east of the Yellow River and you at the head of the western sea, the breadth would be softened; only through the shared night and the sea's head is the moonlight exhausted, making the lines the core of the poem.

Study

Word focus

忆 Yi ('remember, long for'): it opens the poem's friendship feeling. The word sets the whole verse as an act of remembrance across distance. 「忆君我正泊行舟」之「忆」字是写相思关键词，一个「忆」字写尽忆君我正的泊行舟。忆者，思念、回忆也。白居易以「忆君我正泊行舟」写相思，这个「忆」字至少有双重意味：其一，写君之忆——那「忆君我正泊行舟」写忆君我正泊行舟，那「忆」字写尽忆君我正的泊行舟——忆君，正是思念远人的写照，那「忆」字写尽忆君我正的泊行舟；其二，写情之深——那「忆」字更是写深——忆，正见泊舟思友的深情，那「忆」字写尽白居易的思念。以「忆」字写相思，正是白居易写怀友的枢纽——若换作「念」「思」等字，则或失其与「忆君我正」「泊行舟」的配合，或失其写忆的意味；唯「忆」字，以忆君我正泊行舟写尽泊舟之思君与思念之深情，与「望我君应上郡楼」的上郡楼相合，写尽忆君我正的泊行舟，也让「忆君我正泊行舟」成为全诗写相思的名句。

同 Tong ('same, shared'): it says the friends share one moon and one night. The word dissolves separation, making the vast gap briefly vanish. 「万里月明同此夜」之「同」字是写月明关键词，一个「同」字写尽万里月明的同此夜。同者，相同、一同也。白居易以「万里月明同此夜」写月明，这个「同」字至少有双重意味：其一，写夜之同——那「万里月明同此夜」写万里月明同此夜，那「同」字写尽万里月明的同此夜——同此夜，正是共此明月的写照，那「同」字写尽万里月明的同此夜；其二，写心之同——那「同」字更是写同——同，正见同心共月的深情，那「同」字写尽白居易的思念。以「同」字写月明，正是白居易写怀友的枢纽——若换作「共」「照」等字，则或失其与「万里月明」「同此夜」的配合，或失其写同的意味；唯「同」字，以万里月明同此夜写尽明月之共此与同心之共月，与「黄河东面海西头」的海西头相合，写尽万里月明的同此夜，也让「万里月明同此夜」成为全诗写月明的名句。