宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric
秦观·江城子·西城杨柳弄春柔
Riverside Town · West Town Willows Play with Spring's Softness
江城子·西城杨柳弄春柔西城杨柳弄春柔，动离忧，泪难收。
犹记多情，曾为系归舟。
碧野朱桥当日事，人不见，水空流。
韶华不为少年留，恨悠悠，几时休？
飞絮落花时候、一登楼。
便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁。
They stir my parting sorrow, tears won't stay.
I still recall the tender-hearted one
Who once made fast my homecoming boat.
Green fields, a vermilion bridge—that day's affair;
The one is gone, the water flows on empty.
Youth will not linger for the young man;
My regret stretches long—when will it end?
When catkins drift and blossoms fall, I climb
The tower once more.
Were the whole spring river turned to tears,
It could not spend so vast a sorrow.
Meaning
West town willows sway with spring's tenderness, stirring parting sorrow, tears hard to check. I still remember that tender-hearted one who once moored my homecoming boat for me. Green fields and a vermilion bridge, that day's affair—now the one is gone, the water flows on empty. Youth does not stay for the young; the regret is endless—when will it cease? At the season of flying catkins and fallen blooms, I climb the tower again. Even if the whole spring river were made of tears, it could not drain away so much sorrow.
西城杨柳摇摆着春的柔情，触动离忧，泪水难收。还记得那多情之人，曾为我系住归舟。碧野朱桥，当日情事，如今人已不见，水自空流。青春不为少年停留，恨意悠悠，几时方休？飞絮落花时节，又上高楼。即便化作满江春水也都是泪，也流不尽这许多愁。
Appreciation
The opening 'West town willows play with spring's softness' uses the word 'play' to personify the willows, whose swaying seems to toy with tenderness, secretly hinting at parting sorrow; 'green fields and vermilion bridge' sets the old scene with bright colour. This is an early parting lyric of Qin Guan's, writing a spring send-off at the west town and the longing after. The upper part recalls 'West town willows play with spring's softness', where the beloved once moored his boat, and now 'the one is gone, the water flows on empty'. The close 'even if the whole spring river were tears' merges river and tears, turning formless sorrow into a tangible flow, after Li Yu yet more lingering. Exams often test the wonder of the word 'play' (personification, stirring feeling) and the implicit close of 'the one is gone, the water flows on empty' (ending feeling with scene).
【白话串讲】 “西城杨柳弄春柔，动离忧，泪难收”——秦观在西城看杨柳，想起离别。“韶华不为少年留”——好时光不为少年停留。“便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁”——就算春江全是泪，也流不完这许多愁。 【意象与手法】 起句「西城杨柳弄春柔」以「弄」字拟人，杨柳摇曳如弄柔情，暗逗离忧；「碧野朱桥」以鲜明色彩衬往事；「人不见，水空流」以景结情，空流之水写尽怅惘。下片「便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁」融江水是泪，化无形之愁为有形之流，承李煜而更缠绵。 【情感与主旨】 此词为秦观早期伤别之作，写春日西城送归、别后相思。上片忆「西城杨柳弄春柔」中曾为伊系舟，今「人不见，水空流」；下片叹「韶华不为少年留」，飞絮落花时登楼，以「春江都是泪」写不尽之愁。全词情致缠绵，意象清丽，是淮海词婉约深婉的典型。 【名句点睛】 中高考赏析：①「弄」字的炼字之妙（拟人、逗情）；②「人不见，水空流」以景结情的含蓄；③「便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁」与李煜「一江春水向东流」的承变关系。
Background
This is an early parting lyric of Qin Guan's, writing a spring send-off at the west town and the longing after. The upper part recalls 'West town willows play with spring's softness', where the beloved once moored his boat, and now 'the one is gone, the water flows on empty'; the lower part sighs 'youth does not stay for the young', and at the season of flying catkins and fallen blooms he climbs the tower, writing endless sorrow as 'the whole spring river were tears'. The whole lyric is tender and tangled, its images clear and lovely; it is a typical graceful and deep piece of Huaihai's lyrics, writing a youth's parting sorrow with stirring force.
秦观（1049—1100），字少游，一字太虚，号淮海居士，北宋婉约词宗，与黄庭坚、晁补之、张耒并称「苏门四学士」。此词为早期伤别之作，写春日西城送归、别后相思，具体作年无考。秦观少时即工词，早年词多写男女离愁与春恨，情致缠绵、语言清丽，苏轼尝称其「有屈宋之才」。此词上片追忆西城系舟的旧日情事，下片写登楼远望的无尽愁怀，将少年离愁写得回肠荡气。与柳永「多情自古伤离别」的直露相比，秦观词更以含蓄深婉见长；与周邦彦的富艳精工相比，淮海词以淡雅清丽胜。此词「便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁」之句，承李煜「问君能有几多愁，恰似一江春水向东流」而更翻新境，历来为人传诵，是淮海词婉约深婉的典型代表。秦观早年「强志盛气，好大而见奇」，然科场屡挫、仕途困顿，其词多写「愁」，实与其身世相表里。此词作于早期，写少年离愁，尚是青春心事；然苏轼尝言少游「学柳七作词」，而此词实已脱柳永之俗，融晏欧之雅，以「春江泪」「许多愁」的意象化写愁，开其「淮海词」婉约深婉之格。就词调而言，此词与苏轼《江城子》「十年生死两茫茫」同用《江城子》词调，而一写离愁、一写悼亡，可见此调表情之广，亦可见秦观于苏门中自出手眼。
Art
The opening 'West town willows play with spring's softness' uses the word 'play' to personify the willows, whose swaying seems to toy with tenderness, secretly hinting at parting sorrow; 'green fields and vermilion bridge' sets the old scene with bright colour. 'The one is gone, the water flows on empty' ends feeling with scene, the empty-flowing water writing utter loss. The lower part's 'were the whole spring river turned to tears, it could not drain so much sorrow' melts the river into tears, turning formless sorrow into a tangible flow; it inherits Li Yu's 'a river of spring water' yet is more lingering. Layer upon layer it turns, equal in feeling and charm.
起句「西城杨柳弄春柔」以「弄」字拟人，写杨柳摇曳似弄春情，暗逗离忧，与「何须折杨柳，相见与君欢」的古意相承；「动离忧，泪难收」直写触动离愁、泪不能止。继写旧日情事：「犹记多情，曾为系归舟」回忆当年多情之人曾系归舟，杨柳正是系舟之处，物在人非；「碧野朱桥当日事，人不见，水空流」以碧野朱桥的鲜明色彩衬当日欢会，以「人不见，水空流」写今日之怅惘，以景结情，空流之水写尽人事已非。下片由别情转入时光之叹：「韶华不为少年留，恨悠悠，几时休」写青春不再、离恨无尽，直抒胸臆；「飞絮落花时候、一登楼」点明登楼之节令，飞絮落花正是暮春，愁绪与春景相生；结句「便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁」以江水喻泪、以泪写愁，将无形之愁化为有形的奔流，层递翻进，缠绵悱恻。全词以「愁」为骨，由忆而恨而愁，情致婉转，音律谐美，最见淮海本色。此词在修辞上尤见「层递」之妙：上片由「动离忧」而「泪难收」，由「犹记」而「人不见」，情感一泻而下；下片由「韶华不留」而「恨悠悠」而「几时休」，一层深似一层，至「便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁」，已由「愁」之量推到「泪」之极——愁尚可量，而「流不尽」则无可量，翻空出奇，把抽象的愁写到无可再加。此等层递手法，正是淮海词「如幽花媚春」而「不假雕饰」的根底所在，亦可见其运思之深、下笔之准。
Allusions
The 'willow' carries the old custom of breaking a willow to see someone off (from 'In those days I went, willows were soft'), and 'West town willows play with spring's softness' quietly holds the farewell tradition; 'mooring the homecoming boat' borrows the earlier image of tying a boat to wait for someone. The close 'were the whole spring river turned to tears' clearly inherits Li Yu's 'Can you tell how much sorrow? Just like a river of spring water flowing east', comparing sorrow to a river, excelling the master. The lyric uses few allusions, good at melting earlier images of sorrow, gentle and indirect in feeling—most shows Huaihai's lyric heart.
词中「杨柳」暗含折柳赠别之习（语本《诗经·小雅·采薇》「昔我往矣，杨柳依依」与汉人折柳送别古俗），「弄春柔」的拟人笔法承温庭筠「杨柳又如丝，驿桥春雨时」一脉。「系归舟」化用前人系舟待人之意，写杨柳曾为系舟之凭，兼有「留人」之愿。「飞絮落花」为传统伤春意象，暗用「落花有意，流水无情」的民间俗谚意蕴。结句「便作春江都是泪」显然承李煜《虞美人》「问君能有几多愁，恰似一江春水向东流」，而更进一层——李煜以江水喻愁之广，秦观以春江喻泪之多，化愁为泪、以泪写愁，青出于蓝。全词用典不多，善融化前人写愁意象，婉转见情，最见淮海词心。就写愁传统而言，秦观此句实集前人之大成而别开生面：李煜以「一江春水」喻愁之「多」，贺铸以「一川烟草」喻愁之「广」，秦观更以「春江都是泪」喻愁之「深」，一喻胜一喻，愁的形象由「水」而「泪」而「流不尽」，愈写愈重；此句与《踏莎行》「郴江幸自绕郴山，为谁流下潇湘去」同为淮海写愁名句，皆以水喻愁而各极其妙，足见其「愁」意象经营的自觉与匠心。
Commentary
On this lyric the Song critic Ye Mengde said 'Qin's lyrics prize feeling, with few old allusions'. The modern Feng Xu called 'Huaihai and Xiao-shan the sorrowful men of old'. The line 'the whole spring river were tears' is tender and plaintive, most showing Huaihai's true colour. The Qing critic Chen Tingzhuo praised it as 'desolate and moving', saying Shao-you's lyrics 'are like a secluded flower charming spring, fine without carving', and this piece proves it.
秦观词历代评价极高。宋人叶梦得《避暑录话》谓「秦观少游亦善为乐府，语工而入律，知乐者谓之作家歌」；晁补之称其词「虽不识字人，亦知是天生好言语」。近人冯煦《蒿庵论词》称「淮海、小山，真古之伤心人也」，谓秦观与晏几道皆以伤心人写伤心词。清人陈廷焯《白雨斋词话》评此词「凄婉动人」，谓少游词「如幽花媚春，不假雕饰而自工」，此首足以为证。就词史而言，秦观承晏欧之雅、柳永之俗，去俗取雅而情致过之，为婉约词确立了「情韵兼胜」的标准。此词「春江都是泪」之句，与贺铸「一川烟草，满城风絮，梅子黄时雨」并称宋代写愁双绝，可见其影响之深远。就词史地位而言，此词与《鹊桥仙·纤云弄巧》《踏莎行·郴州旅舍》并为秦观最负盛名的作品：《鹊桥仙》以「金风玉露一相逢」写爱情之至美，此词以「春江都是泪」写离愁之无尽，一乐一哀，恰成淮海词情的两面。近人况周颐《蕙风词话》谓「少游词境，最为凄婉」，此词足以当之；今人选宋词，多录此作，与柳永《雨霖铃》并列为写离愁的双璧，可见其在词史上的经典地位，亦是「婉约正宗」之说的有力佐证。
Prosody
Line by line
西城杨柳弄春柔，动离忧，泪难收。
The willows of the west city toy with spring's softness, stirring the parting grief, and the tears will not cease.
西城杨柳摇摆着春的柔情，触动离忧，泪水难收。
The willows of the west city sway with spring's softness, stirring the parting grief, and the tears are hard to stop.
起句以「弄」字拟人写杨柳，是全词情感的触发点。「西城杨柳弄春柔」写杨柳在春风中摇曳，似有意摆弄那一缕春柔——「弄」字赋柳以情，柳之弄春，实是人心之动春情；「动离忧」点出杨柳触动离愁，杨柳自古为送别之物，见柳而思别；「泪难收」直写情不能抑，泪如泉涌。三句由景入情，由物及人，层层逼近，一个「动」字将杨柳与离忧勾连，起笔即定缠绵哀婉之调，正是淮海词「以景逗情」的典型笔法。
The opening personifies the willow through the word toy, the ci's emotional trigger. The willows of the west city toy with spring's softness writes the willow's swaying in the spring breeze, as if intentionally playing that wisp of spring softness — the word toy endowing the willow with feeling, the willow's playing the spring, in truth the heart's spring feeling stirring; stirring the parting grief naming the willow's moving of the parting grief, the willow by nature the parting thing, the seeing the willow and the thinking of the parting; and the tears will not cease directly writing the feeling's irrepressibility, the tears springing. Three lines from scene to feeling, from thing to person, layer on layer approaching, the one word stirring linking the willow and the parting grief, the opening setting the lingering plaintive tone, precisely Huaihai's typical brush of feeling-touched-by-scene.
犹记多情，曾为系归舟。
I still remember the tender one, who once tied my returning boat.
还记得那多情之人，曾为我系住归舟。
I still remember the tender one, who once tied my returning boat.
由眼前杨柳转入回忆，今昔对照，情致缠绵。「犹记」二字领起追忆，「多情」指那多情之人；「曾为系归舟」写当日杨柳曾系住归舟——舟系柳边，人去舟留，柳是当日欢会的见证。此句妙在双关：杨柳曾系归舟，是写实；而「系归舟」又暗含「留人」之愿——多情之人系舟，亦是系情，盼人归而人不归。物在人非，柳犹在而人已去，回忆愈美，今日愈悲，为下句「人不见，水空流」蓄足情感。
From the present willow turning to memory, the present-past contrast, the grace lingering. The two words I still remember leading the memory, the tender one meaning the tender person; who once tied my returning boat writes that day's willow tying the returning boat — the boat tied by the willow, the person gone and the boat left, the willow that day's joy witness. This line's wonder in the double meaning: the willow once tied the returning boat, the fact; and the tied-the-returning-boat secretly carrying the keeping-the-person wish — the tender person tying the boat, also tying the feeling, hoping for the man's return and the man's non-return. The thing there and the person gone, the willow still there and the person gone, the memory the more beautiful and the present the more grief, storing the emotion for the below's the person gone, the water flows on in vain.
碧野朱桥当日事，人不见，水空流。
The green fields and red bridge, that day's affair; the person is gone, the water flows on in vain.
碧野朱桥，当日情事，如今人已不见，水自空流。
The green fields and red bridge, that day's affair; now the person is gone, the water flows on in vain.
以鲜明色彩写当日欢会，以空流之水写今日怅惘，是全词以景结情的妙笔。「碧野朱桥」以碧、朱两色对举，色彩明丽，写当日欢会之地——碧草连野、朱桥卧波，何等明媚；「当日事」三字一笔收束回忆；「人不见，水空流」转写今日——人已离去，唯见流水空自奔流。「空」字最见怅惘：水本无情，流而不返，恰似逝去的年华与情事。以景结情，不言悲而悲自弥漫，正是淮海词含蓄深婉的本色。
Writing that day's joy in the bright color, writing today's wistfulness through the vainly flowing water, the ci's close-feeling-in-scene wondrous brush. The green fields and red bridge setting the green and red colors side by side, the color bright, writing that day's joy place — the green grass stretching the fields, the red bridge lying on the waves, how bright; that day's affair three words brushing past the memory; the person is gone, the water flows on in vain turning to the present — the person gone, only the flowing water's empty rush. The one word empty the most wistful: the water by nature feelingless, flowing and not returning, precisely like the gone years and love affair. Closing feeling in scene, not saying the grief and the grief self-filling, precisely Huaihai's restrained-deep-grace natural manner.
韶华不为少年留，恨悠悠，几时休？
Youth stays not for the young; the grief stretches on — when will it end?
青春不为少年停留，恨意悠悠，几时方休？
Spring's splendor stays not for the young; the grief stretches on, when will it end?
下片由别情转入时光之叹，直抒胸臆，是全词情感由「愁」转「恨」的枢纽。「韶华不为少年留」写青春不为少年停留，年华逝去不可挽留，是普遍的怅惘，更兼离别之痛——人既去，春又归，双重的流逝令人不堪；「恨悠悠」写离恨悠长无尽，如春水之绵绵；「几时休」以反问写恨无绝期，明知不休而问，愈见其无可奈何。此句由情入理、由理生恨，将个人的离愁上升到对青春的普遍叹惋，境界为之一开。
The second stanza from the parting feeling turning to the time sigh, directly uttering the breast, the ci's feeling-from-grief-to-grief's-turn hinge. Spring's splendor stays not for the young writes the youth's non-remaining for the young, the years' going and the non-keeping, the universal wistfulness, and the parting pain's addition — the person gone, and the spring returned, the double passing unbearable; the grief stretches on writes the parting grief's long endless, like the spring water's lingering; when will it end? in the rhetorical question writing the grief's no-end, the knowing-the-non-end and the asking, the helplessness the clearer. This line from feeling to reason and from reason to grief, raising the personal parting grief to the youth's universal sigh, the realm opening at once.
飞絮落花时候、一登楼。
In the season of flying catkins and fallen flowers, I climb the tower once more.
飞絮落花时节，又上高楼。
In the season of flying catkins and fallen blossoms, I climb the tower.
点明登楼之节令，以景结情，是全词最见画面的句子。「飞絮落花时候」写暮春景象——柳絮纷飞、落花飘零，正是春光将尽的时节，亦是离人断肠之时节；「一登楼」写登楼远望——登楼本为望远怀人，而飞絮落花满目，愁绪与春景相生。「一」字写登楼之决然，明知登楼更愁而不得不登，痴情可见。此句不言愁而愁在景中，飞絮落花既是眼前景，亦是心中愁，景语即是情语，为结句「春江都是泪」的奇想作了铺垫。
Naming the climb's season, closing feeling in scene, the ci's most visual line. In the season of flying catkins and fallen blossoms writes the late-spring scene — the catkins flying and the blossoms falling, precisely the spring's end season, and the parting man's gut-breaking season; I climb the tower writes the climb-and-gaze — the climb by nature the far gazing and the longing, and the flying catkins and fallen blossoms filling the eyes, the grief and the spring scene mutually born. The one word once writing the climb's resolve, the knowing the climb's the more grief and yet the non-avoidable climbing, the craziness visible. This line not saying the grief and the grief within the scene, the flying catkins and fallen blossoms at once the present scene and the heart's grief, the scenic words i.e. the feeling words, storing the ground for the close's the spring river all tears fantasy.
便作春江都是泪，流不尽，许多愁。
Even if the spring river were all tears, it would not flow away all this grief.
即便化作满江春水也都是泪，也流不尽这许多愁。
Even if the whole spring river turned to tears, it could not flow away all this grief.
结句以奇想写愁，是全词最脍炙人口的句子，承李煜而更进一层。「便作春江都是泪」写纵使满江春水都化作泪水——化愁为泪、以泪喻愁，极言愁之多；「流不尽，许多愁」写如此多的泪仍流不尽愁——层递翻进，愁无尽而泪有尽，愁之深广不可计量。李煜以「一江春水向东流」喻愁之广，秦观更进一层，以「春江都是泪」喻愁之深，将无形之愁化为有形的奔流，缠绵悱恻，青出于蓝，千古传诵，正是淮海词「情韵兼胜」的绝唱。
The close writing the grief through the wondrous thought, the ci's most popular line, inheriting Li Yu and yet one layer further. Even if the spring river were all tears writes even if the whole spring river turned to tears — turning grief to tears, figuring grief through tears, the grief's number extreme; it would not flow away all this grief writes such tears and yet the grief's non-flowing — the layer-on-layer turn, the grief's endless and the tears' finite, the grief's depth and vastness beyond measure. Li Yu figuring grief's breadth through a river of spring water flows east, and Qin Guan one layer further, figuring the grief's depth through the spring river all tears, turning the invisible grief into the visible flowing, lingering and plaintive, the pupil outdoing the master, recited through the ages, precisely Huaihai's feeling-and-charm-matched swan song.
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Both by Huaihai: one writes parting sorrow, one spring cold—both graceful and desolate.
《浣溪沙·漠漠轻寒上小楼》「自在飞花轻似梦，无边丝雨细如愁」写春日闲愁，意象空灵、比喻新巧；《江城子·西城杨柳弄春柔》写春日离愁，情致缠绵、以泪喻愁。一为小令、一为双调，一写「闲愁」、一写「离恨」，而皆凄婉幽美，可见淮海词以「愁」为词心的统一风格，也可比较其小令与中调两种体制的写法：小令以意象的含蓄胜，中调以情感的层递胜。
秦观·八六子·倚危亭 Ba Liu Zi · Leaning on the High Pavilion 秦观 · 同写离情，可见淮海词情韵 Same (author / parting feeling)Both write parting feeling; compare Huaihai's lyric charm.
《八六子·倚危亭》「恨如芳草，萋萋刬尽还生」以芳草写离恨之绵绵，《江城子·西城杨柳弄春柔》以春江泪写愁之不尽，同写离愁而以不同意象出之：一以「芳草」写恨之再生，一以「春江」写愁之无尽，皆化无形为有形、化抽象为具体，正是淮海词「以景喻情、以物写心」的典型手法。比较二词，可见秦观写愁意象的丰富与手法的多样，也可见其词风在前后期的一致性。
欧阳修·浪淘沙·把酒祝东风 Wave-Washing Sands · Raising a Cup to Pray to the East Wind 欧阳修 · 同属宋词婉约惜别，可比较深婉与凄婉 Same (Song / graceful / parting)Both write the sigh of meeting and parting; Ouyang deep and gentle, Huaihai desolate and tender—compare.
欧阳修《浪淘沙·把酒祝东风》「今年花胜去年红，可惜明年花更好，知与谁同」写聚散之慨，以花事之盛衰写人事之无常，深婉从容；秦观此词写送归后的离愁，以春江泪写愁之无尽，凄婉缠绵。一为欧公的「深婉」、一为淮海的「凄婉」，风格相近而情味有别：欧词于惋惜中有旷达，秦词于缠绵中有哀伤。比较可见宋词婉约一脉的两种韵致。