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宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric

清平乐

Pure, Serene Music

王安国

Wang Anguo

留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游。
风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼。
诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休。
从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁。

Spring will not be kept, so I climb the city wall to gaze;
Pitying the night that will not stay, we carry candles and wander together.
Wind and moon over ten thousand homes, the river's two banks;
One song of flutes and strings from the tower west of the prefecture.
Poems are heard — how bitterly the Yue traveler chants;
Wine is pressed on me without cease by the Wu girls.
Say that this whole life is a dream —
Even laughter in a dream is better than sorrow.

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Meaning

A poem on the attempt to enjoy spring to the full. Spring cannot be kept, so the poet climbs the city wall to look; the night will not stay, so he and his companions carry candles and wander abroad. Below, wind and moon over ten thousand homes, the two banks of the river; from the tower west of the prefecture comes one song of flutes and strings. He hears the Yue traveler chanting bitterly, and the Wu girls press wine on him without cease. Then comes the poem's philosophy: say that this whole life is a dream — even the laughter in a dream is better than sorrow. The poem is a celebration of the carpe diem, the resolve to hold the beautiful night fast against the flight of spring.

留春不住，登上城楼而望；惜夜将尽，相携秉烛而游。风月万家，河之两岸；笙歌一曲，在那郡西楼。诗听越客吟得何苦，酒被吴娃劝得不休。纵说人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜于愁。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Spring will not be kept, so I climb the wall to gaze; pitying the night, we carry candles and wander. Wind and moon over ten thousand homes, the two banks of the river; one song of flute and strings from the tower west of the prefecture. I hear the Yue traveler chanting his bitterness; the Wu girls press wine on me without stop. Say that this whole life is a dream — even laughter in a dream surpasses sorrow. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves from the attempt to hold spring (climbing, carrying candles) through the scene of the night (wind and moon, the song) to the pressure of enjoyment (the bitter chant, the pressed wine) and the final philosophy of the dream. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the sharp turn of the last couplet: after the urgent pleasures of the night, the poet suddenly states the ground of them all — life is a dream, so let the dream be glad. [Emotional Tone] Bright, urgent, and philosophical: the poem is the classic Song dynasty statement of the carpe diem, at once festive and reflective.

【白话串讲】王安国写《清平乐》：“留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游”——“风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼”——“从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁”——他写留春——梦中欢笑亦胜愁。【意象与手法】 “留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游”写留春惜夜之态；“风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼”写夜游之景；“诗听越客吟何苦、酒被吴娃劝不休”写宴饮之乐；结以“从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁”写人生如梦而梦中欢笑胜愁。于感伤中见放达。【情感与主旨】王安国写留春惜夜之作，写留春不住、秉烛夜游与人生如梦之慨，以“梦中欢笑亦胜愁”自我宽解，体现其旷达情怀。【名句点睛】常考“留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游”以秉烛游写留春惜夜；“从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁”以梦中欢笑写放达。

Background

Wang Anguo (1028–1074), courtesy name Pingfu, was a Northern Song poet and the younger brother of the reformer Wang Anshi; he was himself a distinguished literary figure, though a less famous one than his brother. This poem, written on a night of spring revelry, is his best-known work. The 'Yue traveler' and 'Wu girls' place the scene in the Jiangnan region — Wu and Yue, the old states of the southeast; the poem's philosophy of the dream as the consolation of life echoes the pervasive Song attitude to pleasure and transience.

《清平乐》为北宋词人王安国所作。王安国（1028—1074），字平甫，临川（今江西抚州）人，王安石之弟，北宋文学家，官至西京国子监教授，词风清丽。此词写留春惜夜。词中「留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游」写留春惜夜之态；「风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼」写夜游之景；「诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休」写宴饮之乐；「从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写人生如梦之慨。王安国一生未得大用，此词以留春惜夜、秉烛夜游写其对人生的感慨，于感伤中见放达，是王安国词中的名篇，也是其「清丽放达」词风的典型体现。此篇《清平乐》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。此篇《清平乐》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。

Art

The poem's art is the art of the sustained pleasure resolved in a sudden philosophy. The first two lines establish the mode of urgency: spring cannot be kept, so climb; the night will not stay, so carry candles — the classical gestures of the pleasure-seeker against time. The middle couplets fill the night with scene and sound: wind and moon over ten thousand homes, the song from the tower, the bitter chant of the Yue traveler, the pressed wine of the Wu girls. The final couplet then gives the ground: life is a dream, and laughter in the dream is better than sorrow. The turn is the poem's signature — the festive scene suddenly seen from the height of the philosophical reflection.

此词艺术上以「对偶精工、于感伤见放达」见长。全词八句，前二句写留春惜夜之态，中四句写夜游宴饮之景，后二句写人生如梦之慨。首二句「留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游」写留春惜夜之态：留春不住，登上城楼而望；惜夜将尽，相携秉烛而游。中四句「风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼」写夜游之景：风月万家，河之两岸；笙歌一曲，在那郡西楼；「诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休」写宴饮之乐：诗听越客吟得何苦，酒被吴娃劝得不休。后二句「从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写人生如梦之慨：纵说人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜于愁。全词对偶精工，于感伤见放达，是王安国词中的名篇。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。

Allusions

'Carrying candles to wander at night' is the ancient gesture of the desperate pleasure-seeker, from the famous saying of the ancient poem — 'day is short and the night is long, why not wander with candles?' — the very type of carpe diem. 'The Yue traveler chanting bitterly' and 'the Wu girls pressing wine' place the scene in the Jiangnan of the old states of Wu and Yue; the Yue accent and the Wu beauties were the conventional furniture of the southern banquet. 'The whole life is a dream' is the old Buddhist and Daoist commonplace, given here a positive twist: since it is a dream, let the dream be glad.

词中「秉烛游」「越客」「吴娃」「人生都是梦」等语，皆含典故故实。「秉烛游」用《古诗十九首》「昼短苦夜长，何不秉烛游」之意，写惜夜游赏；「越客」指越地之客（越人善歌吟），「诗听越客吟何苦」写听越客吟诗；「吴娃」指吴地之女（吴女美而善歌），「酒被吴娃劝不休」写被吴娃劝酒；「人生都是梦」用人生如梦之意（李白「浮生若梦」），「从道人生都是梦」写纵说人生如梦。词人以秉烛游、越客、吴娃、人生如梦等典入词，不着痕迹，而把留春惜夜、宴饮游乐与人生感慨写得真切可感，是善于熔铸典故的体现。此等用典之法，熔铸古今而不着痕迹，既不炫博以示学，亦不拘泥于旧解，正见诗人学养之深与运思之巧。读者于此等处尤当细心玩味，方能领会其言外之旨与味外之味。此等用典之法，熔铸古今而不着痕迹，既不炫博以示学，亦不拘泥于旧解，正见诗人学养之深与运思之巧。读者于此等处尤当细心玩味，方能领会其言外之旨与味外之味。

Commentary

This poem is one of the most famous of the Northern Song celebrations of spring, quoted for the sharp turn of its final couplet. 'Even laughter in a dream is better than sorrow' has become one of the classic statements of the Chinese carpe diem, and the poem as a whole is often cited as the festive counterpart of the great Song meditations on transience — the same philosophy of the dream, resolved toward joy rather than lament.

这首《清平乐》，是王安国写留春惜夜之作，写留春不住、秉烛夜游之情，于感伤中见放达。首二句写留春惜夜之态：「留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游」——留春不住，登上城楼而望；惜夜将尽，相携秉烛而游。写留春不住，登城而望；惜夜将尽，秉烛而游。春留不住、夜惜将尽，一个「登城望」、一个「秉烛游」，写尽惜春惜夜之态——留不住春，便望；惜将尽夜，便游。中四句写夜游宴饮之景：「风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼」——风月万家，河之两岸；笙歌一曲，在那郡西楼。写夜游之景：风月万家、河两岸，笙歌一曲、郡西楼，一片繁华夜景；「诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休」——诗听越客吟得何苦，酒被吴娃劝得不休。写宴饮之乐：听越客吟诗、被吴娃劝酒，诗酒之乐，劝酒不休。这两句对偶精工，写尽夜游宴饮之乐。后二句写人生如梦之慨：「从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁」——纵说人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜于愁。写人生如梦之慨：纵说人生都是梦，而梦中欢笑，亦胜过醒时之愁。这一结，是全词立意的落点：既然人生如梦，何不秉烛夜游、及时行乐？梦中欢笑，亦胜于愁。在感伤之中，以放达出之，正是此词的过人处。全词对偶精工，于感伤见放达，正是王安国「清丽放达」词风的典型，也是其词中的名篇。

Prosody

Form Seven-character regulated verse (qiyan lüshi)词（清平乐，双调，此词为七言句式）

Rhyme The poem rhymes on the level-tone words 'you' (wander), 'lou' (tower), 'xiu' (cease) and 'chou' (sorrow) in the you rhyme group, in the standard regulated-verse pattern.此词题为《清平乐》，然句式全用七言，八句四联。押平声韵：「游」「楼」「休」「愁」押尤部韵。词体句式整齐，音节明快，正与写留春惜夜、秉烛夜游的明丽放达相称，也见其以整饬之体写游乐之趣的自然。

Tone pattern The opening is urgent with the gestures against time; the middle is bright and full with the night scene; the final couplet turns philosophical, ending on the long, level 'chou' (sorrow) — the reflection closing the festivity.句式上，首二句「留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游」写留春惜夜，音节舒缓；「风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼」写夜游之景，音节明快；「诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休」写宴饮之乐，音节流丽；「从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写人生感慨，音节放达。全词音节由舒缓而明快、由流丽而放达，句式整饬、音韵流丽，正合「清平乐」之名，读来如秉烛夜游、及时行乐之音，明丽而动人。

Reading note This is a Pure, Serene Music ci by Wang Anguo, the younger brother of Wang Anshi, here written as a seven-character regulated song. Spring will not be kept; the night is pitied with the carried candles; the wind and moon spread over the river's two banks with the song from the western tower; the Yue traveler chants bitterly and the Wu girls press the wine; and the close resolves in the consolation — say the life is a dream, even the laughter in the dream is better than the sorrow.此词题为《清平乐》，句式全用七言，是王安国词中的名篇，也是其「清丽放达」词风的典型体现。全词的艺术特色在于「对偶精工、于感伤见放达」：首二句「留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游」写留春惜夜之态；中四句「风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼」「诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休」以对偶写夜游宴饮之乐；后二句「从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写人生如梦之慨。全词对偶精工，于感伤见放达。尤为精妙者，是「风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼」与「诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休」两联对偶工整，写尽夜游之景与宴饮之乐；而「从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁」一结，以「梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写人生如梦而放达行乐，于感伤中见放达，正是王安国「清丽放达」词风的典范，为历代词选所常收。

Line by line

留春不住登城望，惜夜相将秉烛游。

Spring will not be kept, so I climb the city wall to gaze; pitying the night that will not stay, we carry candles and wander together.

留春不住，登上城楼而望；惜夜将尽，相携秉烛而游。

Spring cannot be kept; I climb the city wall and gaze. Lamenting the short night, we take the candles and roam together.

首二句写留春惜夜之态，起笔即见其情。「留春不住登城望」写留春不住、登上城楼而望，「留春不住」写春之留不住，「登城望」写其登城而望，望春之去；「惜夜相将秉烛游」写惜夜将尽、相携秉烛而游，「惜夜」写其惜夜之短，「秉烛游」用昼短苦夜长、何不秉烛游之意，写其秉烛夜游。两句一写留春不住而登城望、一写惜夜将尽而秉烛游，以「留不住」「惜」写其对春光与良夜之珍惜，写尽惜春惜夜之态，起笔即见其情，是「以态写情」的妙笔。

The opening two lines write the spring-keeping and night-lamenting state, the feeling present at the first stroke. Spring cannot be kept; I climb the city wall and gaze writes the spring's unkeepable and the climb-and-gaze's gazing at the spring's going; Lamenting the short night, we take the candles and roam together writes the night's shortness and the candle-roaming, using the day's shortness and the night's long, why not take the candles and roam meaning. Two lines, one the spring-unkept climb-and-gaze, one the night-lamented candle-roam, writing the treasuring of the spring and the fair night through the cannot-keep and the lament, exhausting the spring-and-night treasuring state, the feeling present at the first stroke, precisely the wondrous brush of state-writing-feeling.

风月万家河两岸，笙歌一曲郡西楼。

Wind and moon over ten thousand homes, the river's two banks; one song of flutes and strings from the tower west of the prefecture.

风月万家，河之两岸；笙歌一曲，在那郡西楼。

Wind and moon over ten thousand homes on both river banks; one tune of pipes and songs on the commandery's west tower.

此二句写夜游之景，是全词写景的关键。「风月万家河两岸」写风月万家、河之两岸，「风月」写清风明月，「万家」写万家灯火，「河两岸」写其沿河两岸；「笙歌一曲郡西楼」写笙歌一曲、在那郡西楼，「笙歌」写笙管之歌，「一曲」写一曲笙歌，「郡西楼」写其在郡西楼。两句一写万家风月、一写西楼笙歌，写尽夜游所见之繁华夜景——河两岸万家风月，郡西楼一曲笙歌。以景写乐，明丽开阔，是「以景写情」的妙笔，也为后文写宴饮之乐与人生感慨作铺垫。

These two lines write the night-roaming scene, the ci's scenic key. Wind and moon over ten thousand homes on both river banks writes the clear wind and bright moon, the ten thousand homes' lights, the river banks; one tune of pipes and songs on the commandery's west tower writes the pipe-song and the west tower. Two lines, one the ten thousand homes' wind-and-moon, one the west tower's pipe-song, exhausting the night-roaming seen's prosperous night scene — the banks' ten thousand homes' wind-and-moon, the west tower's one tune. Writing joy through scene, bright and broad, precisely the wondrous brush of feeling-through-scene, and storing the ground for the below's feast joy and life sigh.

诗听越客吟何苦，酒被吴娃劝不休。

Poems are heard — how bitterly the Yue traveler chants; wine is pressed on me without cease by the Wu girls.

诗听越客吟得何苦，酒被吴娃劝得不休。

I hear the Yue guest's singing with all his heart; the wine, urged on by the Wu maidens, never ends.

此二句写宴饮之乐，是全词写乐的关键。「诗听越客吟何苦」写诗听越客吟得何苦，「越客」指越地之客，「吟何苦」写其吟诗之投入；「酒被吴娃劝不休」写酒被吴娃劝得不休，「吴娃」指吴地之女，「劝不休」写其劝酒不休。两句一写听越客吟诗、一写被吴娃劝酒，以「吟何苦」写吟诗之投入、以「劝不休」写劝酒之殷勤，写尽夜游宴饮之乐——诗酒之乐，劝酒不休。以对偶写乐，工整而生动，是「以对偶写乐」的点睛之笔。

These two lines write the feast joy, the ci's joy key. I hear the Yue guest's singing with all his heart writes the Yue-region guest and the singing's devotion; the wine, urged on by the Wu maidens, never ends writes the Wu-region women and the unceasing urging. Two lines, one the hearing the Yue guest's song, one the being urged by the Wu maidens, writing the singing's devotion through the singing-with-all-the-heart, the urging's diligence through the never-ending, exhausting the night-roaming feast joy — the poetry-and-wine joy, the urging never ended. Writing joy through the couplet, crafted and vivid, precisely the telling stroke of joy-through-couplet.

从道人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜愁。

Say that this whole life is a dream — even laughter in a dream is better than sorrow.

纵说人生都是梦，梦中欢笑亦胜于愁。

Granted that life is all a dream, yet the laughter in the dream beats the grief awake.

尾二句写人生如梦之慨，是全词立意的落点。「从道人生都是梦」写纵说人生都是梦，「从道」写纵使说，「人生都是梦」写人生如梦；「梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写梦中欢笑亦胜于愁，「梦中欢笑」写梦中之欢，「亦胜愁」写亦胜过醒时之愁。两句一写人生如梦、一写梦中欢笑胜愁，以「从道」写其纵使如此，以「梦中欢笑亦胜愁」写其放达之解——既然人生如梦，何不秉烛夜游、及时行乐，梦中欢笑，亦胜于愁。以理写慨，放达而深沉，是全词最动人处，也是「以理写情」的点睛之笔。

The last two lines write the life-is-a-dream sigh, the landing of the ci's theme. Granted that life is all a dream writes the granted and the life-is-a-dream; yet the laughter in the dream beats the grief awake writes the dream's joy and the beating-the-waking-grief. Two lines, one the life dream, one the dream's laughter beating the grief, writing the granted through the granted, and the detached consolation through the dream's laughter beating the grief — since life is a dream, why not take the candles and roam, enjoy the time, and the dream's laughter beats the grief. Writing the sigh through reason, detached and deep, the ci's most moving place, and the telling stroke of reason-writing-feeling.

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Word focus

惜 'To pity, to treasure' — pitying the night that will not stay, the treasure of the passing hours. 「惜」字写惜夜将尽，是写惜春惜夜之态的关键。「惜夜相将秉烛游」着一「惜」，写惜夜将尽——着一「惜」字，写其对良夜之珍惜，因惜而秉烛夜游。一字写尽惜夜之情，与「留春不住」相对，一写惜春、一写惜夜，是「以一字写情」的点睛之词。「惜」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。

何苦 'How bitterly' — the bitterness of the Yue traveler's chanting, the sorrow in the poem. 「何苦」写越客吟诗之投入，是写宴饮之乐的关键。「诗听越客吟何苦」着一「何苦」，写越客吟诗何等投入——着一「何苦」，以反问写其吟诗之投入专注，见夜宴诗兴之高。两字写尽吟诗之态，是「以问写乐」的妙笔。「何苦」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。

不休 'Without cease' — the wine pressed on without cease by the Wu girls, the refusal of the sorrow. 「不休」写吴娃劝酒不休，是写宴饮之乐的关键。「酒被吴娃劝不休」着一「不休」，写劝酒不休——着一「不休」，写吴娃劝酒之殷勤、劝之不停，见夜宴酒兴之高。两字写尽劝酒之盛，与「吟何苦」相对，写尽夜游宴饮之乐，是「以叠写乐」的点睛之词。「不休」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。

胜 'To surpass, to be better than' — the laughter in the dream surpassing the sorrow, the poem's final consolation. 「胜」字写梦中欢笑胜于愁，是写人生感慨的关键。「梦中欢笑亦胜愁」着一「胜」，写梦中欢笑胜过愁——着一「胜」字，写梦中之欢胜过醒时之愁，见其以放达解人生。一字写尽人生感慨，是「以一字写慨」的点睛之词。「胜」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。

清平乐