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宋 Song · 诗 Poem

黄庭坚·寄黄几复

To Huang Jifu

黄庭坚

Huang Tingjian

友情Friendship 感怀Reminiscence

寄黄几复我居北海君南海，寄雁传书谢不能。
桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯。
持家但有四立壁，治病不蕲三折肱。
想得读书头已白，隔溪猿哭瘴溪藤。

I dwell by the Northern Sea, you by the Southern.
I ask the wild goose to carry a letter, but it declines.
Peach and plum, spring breeze, a cup of wine—then we parted.
Rivers and lakes, rainy night, ten years of a lamp.
To support your family, you have only four bare walls.
To cure illness, you do not hope for a broken arm thrice.
I imagine you reading till your hair turns white.
Across the creek, apes cry among the miasma vines.

Listen

Meaning

The poet expresses deep longing for his faraway friend, recalling their joyful reunion in the past and lamenting the friend's current poverty and isolation in a remote, miasma-ridden region. The poem contrasts a brief moment of shared happiness with a decade of lonely wandering, and praises the friend's integrity and scholarly dedication.

我住在北海边，你远在南海滨。想托大雁传书，却抱歉它飞不到（谢绝此任）。想当年桃李春风中我们共饮一杯酒。如今江湖落魄，夜雨孤灯已十年。你持家只剩四面立壁（一贫如洗）。你治病不希求“三折肱”的官位。想你读书已熬白了头。隔着溪水，猿猴在瘴气藤蔓中哀啼。

Appreciation

The second couplet is a masterpiece of contrast: 'peach and plum, spring breeze, a cup of wine' evokes a warm, joyful meeting, while 'rivers and lakes, rainy night, ten years of a lamp' paints a bleak picture of nomadic loneliness. The use of numbers ('one cup' vs. 'ten years') amplifies the pain of separation. The poem's language is lean and powerful, with allusions seamlessly woven in.

【白话串讲】 “我居北海君南海，寄雁传书谢不能”——黄庭坚在北方，朋友在南方。“桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯”——当年春风里共饮一杯酒，如今江湖夜雨里各自点着十年的灯。这句，成了写友情的最高境界。【意象与手法】颔联“桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯”为千古名句，以两组意象对举【情感与主旨】黄庭坚（1045—1105）此诗作于元丰八年（1085）知吉州太和县令任上，寄友人黄几复（名介，南昌人）【名句点睛】中高考高频考点：一、名句赏析，“桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯”的对仗、意象对比与时空张力

Background

Written in 1085 when Huang Tingjian was magistrate of Taihe County, the poem is addressed to his old friend Huang Jifu (courtesy name Jifu), who was then magistrate of Sihui (in present-day Guangdong), a remote and disease-ridden area. Both were victims of political faction struggles following the 'Crow Terrace Poetry Case.' The poem reflects their shared hardship and unwavering integrity.

《寄黄几复》为北宋诗人黄庭坚所作。黄庭坚（1045—1105），字鲁直，号山谷道人、涪翁，洪州分宁人，北宋诗人，“江西诗派”创始人，“苏门四学士”之一，“宋四家”之一。此诗为寄怀友人黄几复之作：我居北海君南海，寄雁传书谢不能；桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯；持家但有四立壁，治病不蕲三折肱；想得读书头已白，隔溪猿哭瘴溪藤。全诗写与友人相隔之远、相忆之深，是黄庭坚七律的代表作。

Art

The famous second couplet juxtaposes two starkly contrasting images: the joyous memory of a spring gathering and the desolate reality of a decade spent wandering under rainy nights. The couplet's temporal leap from a single moment to ten years creates profound emotional tension. The poem's syntax is compact and forceful, using allusions like 'four bare walls' (from Sima Xiangru) and 'three broken arms' (from Zuo Zhuan) to depict poverty and medical skill without flattery.

《寄黄几复》艺术上以炼字的精严与用典的贴切见长。全诗八句，层层写来：首联写相隔之远——“我居北海君南海”写两地相隔，“寄雁传书谢不能”写雁不能传书；颔联写相忆之深——“桃李春风一杯酒”写昔时欢会，“江湖夜雨十年灯”写别后相忆；颈联写友人之清贫——“持家但有四立壁”写其贫而清廉，“治病不蕲三折肱”写其练达；尾联写想象之景——“想得读书头已白”写其读书之勤，“隔溪猿哭瘴溪藤”写其地之僻远。全诗以相隔之远写相忆之深，炼字精严，正是黄庭坚“江西诗派”的风格。

Allusions

Three key allusions: 1) 'wild goose refuses'—a twist on the traditional goose message carrier, suggesting the great distance; 2) 'four bare walls' from Sima Xiangru's biography, meaning extreme poverty; 3) 'three broken arms' from Zuo Zhuan, where a good doctor is said to have broken his arm thrice—here indicating that Huang Jifu does not seek official rank through medical fame. These allusions enrich the poem without overwhelming it.

《寄黄几复》用典在“四立壁”“三折肱”。“四立壁”用司马相如“家徒四壁立”之典，写黄几复之家贫；“三折肱”用《左传》“三折肱知为良医”之典，写其多经患难而练达；“寄雁传书”用鸿雁传书之典，而“谢不能”写雁不能传书——雁南飞止于衡阳，故不能北归传书。全诗以这些典故写友人之清贫与练达，用典贴切而意蕴深远，正是黄庭坚“以故为新”的风格。

Commentary

Fang Dongshu in Zhaowei Zhaiyan praised: 'This poem wins purely by imagery; the couplet about peach and plum is an eternal masterpiece.' Chen Yan in Song Shi Jinghua Lu called it 'a Tang tone among Song poems,' admiring its emotion and grace. The couplet alone is considered worthy of Tang masters, yet the firm structure is distinctly Song.

《寄黄几复》是黄庭坚七律的代表作，也是江西诗派的名篇。此诗寄怀友人，炼字精严，向为论者称道。论者多赏其“桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯”一联——以“桃李春风”写昔时欢会之乐，以“江湖夜雨”写别后相忆之苦，十四字写尽聚散，遂成千古名联；“持家但有四立壁，治病不蕲三折肱”写友人之清贫与练达，用典贴切。黄庭坚为江西诗派创始人，其诗讲究炼字用典，此诗正是其代表——炼字精严、用典贴切，正是“无一字无来处”的风格。

Prosody

Form Seven-character regulated verse七言律诗

Rhyme Pingshui rhyme: Lower level tone, tenth rhyme (neng, deng, gong, teng)《寄黄几复》为七言律诗，八句，押平声韵。此诗用韵：南、能、灯、肱、藤（庚青部），一韵到底，音节工整。颔联“桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯”为流水对，颈联“持家但有四立壁，治病不蕲三折肱”为工对。

Tone pattern First line enters rhyme with oblique tone, tonal pattern follows rules七言律诗讲究平仄相间、对仗工整。此诗首联写相隔之远，音节开阔；颔联写聚散，音节流转；颈联写友人品格，音节顿挫；尾联写想象之景，音节低回。全诗一韵到底，声调与寄怀的内容相合，是七律中炼字精严的一路。

Reading note Huang's regulated verse is typically lean and forceful; this one is especially rich in feeling.《寄黄几复》为七言律诗，是黄庭坚七律的代表作。此诗寄怀友人黄几复：首联写相隔之远与传书之难，颔联写昔时欢会与别后相忆，颈联写友人之清贫与练达，尾联写想象之景。炼字精严、用典贴切，正是黄庭坚“江西诗派”“无一字无来处”的风格，也是宋诗中以故为新、讲究法度的代表。

Line by line

我居北海君南海，寄雁传书谢不能。

I dwell by the northern sea, you by the southern sea; I ask the wild goose to carry the letter, and it declines, unable.

我住在北海，你住在南海，想托鸿雁传书，它却说不能。

I live by the Northern Sea and you by the Southern Sea; I ask the wild goose to carry a letter, and it answers that it cannot.

首联写相隔之远与传书之难。“我居北海君南海”写两地相隔——“我居北海”写己之所在，“君南海”写友之所在，一北一南，相隔万里；“寄雁传书谢不能”写传书之难——“寄雁传书”用鸿雁传书之典，“谢不能”写雁推辞不能——相传雁南飞止于衡阳，故不能北归传书。两句写相隔之远：我居北海，君在南海，相隔万里；欲托雁传书，而雁谢不能。以“北海”“南海”写相距之远，以“谢不能”写传书之难，正是黄庭坚写相隔的笔法——想写一封信，都无从传递。

The opening couplet writes the distance between the two and the difficulty of the letter. I dwell by the northern sea, you by the southern sea writes the separation — I by the northern sea, you by the southern, one north one south, ten thousand li apart; I ask the wild goose to carry the letter, and it declines, unable: the entrusted-goose-letter uses the wild-goose letter allusion, the declines-unable the goose's refusal — the goose flying south stops at Hengyang, and so cannot return north with the letter. Two lines write the distance: I by the northern sea, you by the southern, ten thousand li apart; wishing the goose to carry the letter, and the goose declines. The northern and southern seas write the distance, the declines-unable the letter's difficulty, the typical method of Huang Tingjian writing separation — the wish to send a letter, and no road to send it.

桃李春风一杯酒，江湖夜雨十年灯。

Peach and plum in the spring wind, one cup of wine; the rivers and lakes in the night rain, ten years of lamp.

当年桃李春风下共饮一杯酒，如今江湖夜雨中独对十年孤灯。

In those days, peach and plum in the spring breeze, one cup of wine; now, on the rivers and lakes in the night rain, ten years of lonely lamp.

颔联写昔时欢会与别后相忆，是全诗的名联。“桃李春风一杯酒”写昔时欢会——“桃李春风”写春光明媚，“一杯酒”写共饮之欢——想当年桃李春风，共饮一杯；“江湖夜雨十年灯”写别后相忆——“江湖夜雨”写漂泊夜雨，“十年灯”写十年孤灯——而如今江湖夜雨，独对十年孤灯。两句写聚散离合：桃李春风之欢会何其乐，江湖夜雨之相忆何其苦。以“桃李春风”写昔之乐，以“江湖夜雨”写今之苦，以“一杯酒”写欢会之短，以“十年灯”写相忆之长，十四字写尽聚散，正是黄庭坚炼字精严的体现——名词并置而无虚字，境界全出。

The middle couplet writes the old joy and the later longing, the poem's famous couplet. Peach and plum in the spring wind, one cup of wine writes the old joy — the peach and plum, the spring light, the one cup the shared drinking; the rivers and lakes in the night rain, ten years of lamp writes the later longing — the rivers and lakes, the night rain, the ten-year lamp the lone lamp. Two lines write meeting and parting: the peach-and-plum spring-wind joy, what joy; the rivers-and-lakes night-rain longing, what grief. The peach and plum write the old joy, the rivers and lakes the present grief, the one cup the meeting's brevity, the ten-year lamp the longing's length, fourteen characters writing meeting and parting to the full, Huang Tingjian's strict polishing — nouns placed side by side without a function word, the realm complete.

持家但有四立壁，治病不蕲三折肱。

In your housekeeping, only four walls stand; curing men's ills, you need not wait for a thrice-broken arm.

持家只有四壁立着，治病不期望三折肱。

For housekeeping you have only four standing walls; in curing the world's ills, you need not wait for a thrice-broken arm.

颈联写友人之清贫与练达。“持家但有四立壁”写其贫而清廉——“持家”写治家，“但有四立壁”用司马相如“家徒四壁立”之典，写其家徒四壁；“治病不蕲三折肱”写其练达——“治病”写其治事如治病，“不蕲三折肱”用《左传》“三折肱知为良医”之典，写其不待三折肱而自能练达。两句写友人之清贫与练达：持家只有四壁，清廉如此；治病不待三折肱，练达如此。以“四立壁”写其贫，以“三折肱”写其达，用典贴切，正是黄庭坚写友人品格的笔法——贫而清廉，达而练达。

The neck couplet writes the friend's poverty and his seasoned wisdom. In your housekeeping, only four standing walls writes his poverty and honesty — the housekeeping the running of the house, the only-four-standing-walls uses Sima Xiangru's the house has only four walls standing, writing the bare walls; in curing men's ills, you need not wait for a thrice-broken arm writes his seasoned judgment — the curing the handling of affairs as curing, the not-wishing-a-thrice-broken-arm uses the Zuo Zhuan's a thrice-broken arm makes a good physician, writing his seasoned without the thrice breaking. Two lines write the friend's poverty and wisdom: the housekeeping of four walls, honest as this; the curing without the thrice-broken arm, seasoned as this. The four standing walls write the poverty, the thrice-broken arm the wisdom, the allusions exact, Huang Tingjian's method of writing the friend's character — poor and honest, wise and seasoned.

想得读书头已白，隔溪猿哭瘴溪藤。

I picture you reading until your head is white; across the stream, apes cry among the miasmic vines.

想他读书已经读到头发花白，隔着溪水，只有猿在瘴溪边的藤上啼哭。

I picture you reading, your head already white; across the stream, apes crying in the vines of the miasmic water.

尾联写想象之景，是全诗的归结。“想得读书头已白”写其读书之勤——“想得”写想象，“读书头已白”写其读书至白头；“隔溪猿哭瘴溪藤”写其地之僻远——“隔溪猿哭”写溪对岸猿啼，“瘴溪藤”写瘴气弥漫的溪边藤蔓。两句写想象之景：想其读书已至白头，而所居之地，瘴溪隔岸，惟闻猿哭。以“读书头已白”写其勤学之苦，以“猿哭瘴溪藤”写其地之僻远荒凉，正是黄庭坚写相忆之深的归结——念其地之荒凉，益增相忆之情。

The closing couplet writes the imagined scene, the poem's gathering. I picture you reading until your head is white writes his diligence — the picture the imagining, the reading-head-already-white the reading to white hair; across the stream, apes cry among the miasmic vines writes the place's remoteness — the across-the-stream-ape-cry the ape's cry across the water, the miasmic-vines the miasmic vines by the stream. Two lines write the imagined scene: the reading to white hair, and the dwelling where the miasmic stream divides, only the apes' crying heard. The reading-head-already-white writes the diligence's hardship, the apes-cry-miasmic-vines the place's desolation, Huang Tingjian's gathering of the deep longing — thinking of the place's bleakness, the longing the deeper.

Study

Word focus

谢不能 ‘Declines’—personifies the goose, cleverly inverting the usual messenger topos. “寄雁传书谢不能”之“谢不能”，写鸿雁推辞不能，是全诗写相隔之远的关键词。“谢”写推辞，“不能”写不能——想托雁传书，它却说不能。这一词写传书之难：不是雁不能飞，而是雁南飞止于衡阳，不能北归传书；不是不可传书，而是无从传递。以“谢不能”写相隔之远，正是黄庭坚炼字的笔法——一个“谢”字，写尽传书之难。

桃李春风 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “桃李春风一杯酒”之“桃李春风”，写春光明媚，是全诗写昔时欢会之乐的关键词。“桃李”写桃花李花，“春风”写春日和风——桃李春风之下，共饮一杯。这一词以“桃李春风”写昔时欢会之美好：不是萧瑟之景，而是明媚春光；不是愁苦之境，而是欢会之乐。以“桃李春风”写昔之乐，与下句“江湖夜雨”相对，正是黄庭坚以景写情的笔法。

夜雨 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “江湖夜雨十年灯”之“夜雨”，写江湖夜雨，是全诗写别后相忆之苦的关键词。“夜”写深夜，“雨”写夜雨——江湖漂泊，夜雨孤灯。这一词写别后之况味：不是欢乐之景，而是夜雨孤灯；不是相聚之时，而是漂泊之夜。以“夜雨”写今之苦，与“桃李春风”相对，正是黄庭坚炼字精严的体现——一乐一苦，对照分明。

三折肱 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “治病不蕲三折肱”之“三折肱”，用《左传》“三折肱知为良医”之典，写友人之练达，是全诗用典的关键词。“三折肱”写三次折断臂膀——喻多经患难；“不蕲三折肱”写不期望三折肱，即不待多经患难而自能练达。这一词写友人之练达：不是久经患难而后知，而是不待三折肱而自达。以“三折肱”写练达，正是黄庭坚“以故为新”用典的笔法——用典而能出新。