宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric
望湘人
Looking to the Lady of the Xiang
厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半。
被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。
几许伤春春晚。
泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖。
记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴。
须信鸾弦易断。
奈云和再鼓，曲终人远。
认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅。
青翰棹舣，白苹洲畔。
尽木临皋飞观。
不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕。
The flower air stirring the curtain,
The drunk soul and the sorrowful dream, half and half.
The quilt begrudges the remaining fragrance,
The girdle startles the remaining eyes.
I must believe the phoenix strings are easily broken,
The best of the tunes, hard to continue.
The night of the drunk, I toss and turn, unable to sleep.
Fortunately there are the returning pair of swallows,
To carry my deep longing,
To the plum blossoms in the east of the river.
For many years,
Why is it that I wander,
In the low bamboo fence, the thatched house by the water.
How many times, in the cold of the night,
Have I stood with the cold lamp, alone,
For the sake of her, quietly deliberating?
Meaning
A lyric of the separation and the longing, written by He Zhu. I weary of the oriole's sound reaching the pillow, the flower air stirring the curtain, the drunk soul and the sorrowful dream, half and half — the wearying spring and the mixed drunk soul and sorrowful dream. The quilt begrudges the remaining fragrance, the girdle startles the remaining eyes — the remaining fragrance and the thin girdle. I must believe the phoenix strings are easily broken, the best of the tunes, hard to continue — the broken strings and the hard continuation. The night of the drunk, he tosses and turns, unable to sleep — the sleepless night. Fortunately there are the returning pair of swallows, to carry my deep longing, to the plum blossoms in the east of the river — the swallows carrying the longing. For many years, why is it that he wanders, in the low bamboo fence, the thatched house by the water — the years of the wandering. How many times, in the cold of the night, he stood with the cold lamp, alone, for the sake of her, quietly deliberating — the close's lone deliberation. The lyric is the separation and the longing: the wearying spring, the broken strings, and the close's lone standing with the cold lamp.
厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半。被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。几许伤春春晚。泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖。记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴。须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远。认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅。青翰棹舣，白苹洲畔。尽木临皋飞观。不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] I weary of the oriole's sound reaching the pillow, the flower air stirring the curtain, the drunk soul and the sorrowful dream, half and half. I must believe the phoenix strings are easily broken, the best of the tunes, hard to continue. Fortunately there are the returning pair of swallows, to carry my deep longing, to the plum blossoms in the east of the river. How many times, in the cold of the night, have I stood with the cold lamp, alone, for the sake of her, quietly deliberating? [Structure and Thought] The lyric moves from the wearying spring and the mixed drunk soul and sorrowful dream, through the broken strings and the sleepless night, and the swallows carrying the longing, to the close's lone standing with the cold lamp, deliberating for the sake of the beloved. [Key Technique] The lyric's art is the image of the longing: the phoenix strings easily broken, the swallows carrying the deep longing, and the close's cold lamp of the lone deliberation — the longing gathered in the strings, the swallows, and the cold lamp. [Emotional Tone] Sorrowful, longing, and lone: the lyric is the separation and the longing, the broken strings and the close's cold lamp.
【白话串讲】 贺铸写《望湘人》：“厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半”——“泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖”——“记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴”——“须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远”——他写怀湘——曲终人远。 【意象与手法】 “厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半”写醉魂愁梦；“泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖”以泪竹佩兰写湘景；“记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴”忆旧日游伴；“须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远”以鸾弦易断写离散；结以“不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕”以归来双燕写希冀。含蓄深婉。 【情感与主旨】 贺铸写伤春怀人之作，写伤春春晚、忆旧日游伴与离散之痛，以“幸有归来双燕”写慰藉，是贺铸词中怀人写情的代表。 【名句点睛】 常考“泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖”以泪竹佩兰写湘景；“须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远”以鸾弦易断写离散。
Background
He Zhu (1052–1125), the lyric master of the Song, wrote this 'Looking to the Lady of the Xiang' of the separation and the longing — the spring and the absent beloved. The wearying oriole and the mixed drunk soul and sorrowful dream, the broken phoenix strings and the sleepless night, the swallows carrying the deep longing to the plum blossoms of the east of the river, and the close's lone standing with the cold lamp — the lyric gathers the longing of the separated one, the strings and the swallows and the cold lamp. The lyric is one of the representative works of the master's longing.
《望湘人》为北宋词人贺铸所作词。贺铸（1052—1125），字方回，号庆湖遗老，卫州（今河南卫辉）人，北宋词人，词风兼婉约豪放，人称「贺梅子」。此词写伤春怀人。词中「厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半」写醉魂愁梦；「被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。几许伤春春晚」写伤春春晚；「记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴」写旧日游伴；「须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远」写鸾弦易断；「认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅」写罗袜无踪；「不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕」写归来双燕。贺铸此词以厌莺声到枕、鸾弦易断写伤春怀人之情，含蓄深婉，是贺铸词中的名篇。此篇《望湘人》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《望湘人》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 lyric's art is the art of the gathered longing. The spring opens: I weary of the oriole's sound reaching the pillow, the flower air stirring the curtain, the drunk soul and the sorrowful dream, half and half — the wearying spring, the mixed drunk soul and sorrowful dream. The remnant follows: the quilt begrudges the remaining fragrance, the girdle startles the remaining eyes — the remaining fragrance and the thin girdle, the wasting of the separation; I must believe the phoenix strings are easily broken, the best of the tunes, hard to continue — the broken strings; the night of the drunk, he tosses and turns, unable to sleep — the sleepless night. The swallows: fortunately there are the returning pair of swallows, to carry my deep longing, to the plum blossoms in the east of the river — the swallows carrying the longing to the plum blossoms of the beloved. The wandering: for many years, why is it that he wanders, in the low bamboo fence, the thatched house by the water — the years of the wandering. And the close gathers the lone deliberation: how many times, in the cold of the night, he stood with the cold lamp, alone, for the sake of her, quietly deliberating — the lone standing with the cold lamp, the deliberation for the beloved — the longing gathered in the close, the strings, the swallows, and the cold lamp.
此词艺术上以「含蓄深婉、以典写情」见长。全词上片写醉魂愁梦与旧日游伴，下片写鸾弦易断与归来双燕。上片「厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半」写醉魂愁梦：厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半；「被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。几许伤春春晚」写伤春春晚：被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼，几许伤春春晚；「泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖」写湘天浓暖：泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖；「记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴」写旧日游伴：记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴。下片「须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远」写鸾弦易断：须信鸾弦易断，奈云和再鼓，曲终人远；「认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅」写罗袜无踪：认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅；「青翰棹舣，白苹洲畔。尽木临皋飞观」写青翰白苹：青翰棹舣，白苹洲畔，尽木临皋飞观；「不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕」写归来双燕：不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕。全词含蓄深婉，以典写情，是贺铸词中的名篇。
Allusions
'The phoenix strings' (luan xian) are the strings of the zither — the easily broken strings of the tune; 'the returning pair of swallows' (gui lai shuang yan) are the returning swallows — the swallows of the spring; 'the plum blossoms in the east of the river' (jiang dong mei) are the plum blossoms of the east of the river — the flowers of the beloved; 'the low bamboo fence, the thatched house by the water' (di li mao she shui bian) are the humble dwellings of the wandering — the places of the years.
词中「莺声到枕」「醉魂愁梦」「馀薰」「剩眼」「泪竹」「佩兰」「湘天」「非烟」「鸾弦」「云和」「曲终人远」「罗袜」「青翰」「白苹洲」「临皋」「双燕」等语，皆含典故故实。「莺声到枕」写莺声传到枕边；「醉魂愁梦相半」写醉与愁梦各半；「馀薰」写被上余香；「带惊剩眼」写腰带渐宽、惊其剩眼（消瘦）；「泪竹」用湘妃泪洒竹成斑之典（斑竹）；「佩兰」用屈原「纫秋兰以为佩」之意；「湘天」写湘地之天；「非烟」用唐传奇步非烟之典（或指轻盈如烟之女子），「屡约非烟游伴」写屡约其游伴；「鸾弦」用汉武帝「鸾胶续弦」之典，写琴弦易断；「云和」为琴瑟名（云和之瑟），「云和再鼓」写再鼓琴瑟；「曲终人远」用「曲终人不见」之意；「罗袜」用曹植《洛神赋》「凌波微步，罗袜生尘」之典，「认罗袜无踪」写认其罗袜已无踪迹；「青翰」为舟名（青翰舟）；「白苹洲」写白苹洲（送别之地）；「临皋」写江边高地；「双燕」写归来之燕。词人以泪竹、佩兰、非烟、鸾弦、云和、罗袜、青翰、白苹洲等典入词，不着痕迹，而把伤春怀人之情写得真切可感，是善于熔铸典故的体现。
Commentary
This lyric is one of the representative works of He Zhu, quoted for the lone deliberation of its close. The broken phoenix strings and the swallows carrying the longing, and the cold lamp of the deliberation, are among the admired passages of the master's lyrics. Critics praise the lyric's longing: the separation gathered from the wearying spring and the broken strings, to the close's lone deliberation.
这首《望湘人》，是贺铸写伤春怀人之作，写厌莺声到枕、几许伤春、鸾弦易断之情，含蓄深婉。上片写醉魂愁梦与旧日游伴：「厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半」——厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半。写醉魂愁梦：厌莺声到枕、花气动帘，醉魂与愁梦相半——莺声花气，本为春光，而其人厌之，正写愁怀；「被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。几许伤春春晚」——被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼，几许伤春春晚。写伤春春晚：惜被上余薰，惊腰带剩眼（人瘦），几许伤春、春晚——惜薰惊瘦，正写别后之况；「泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖」——泪竹痕鲜，佩兰香老，湘天浓暖。写湘天浓暖：泪竹痕鲜、佩兰香老，湘天浓暖——以湘妃泪竹写其地、以佩兰写其雅，湘天浓暖；「记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴」——记小江、风月佳时，屡约非烟游伴。写旧日游伴：记小江风月佳时，屡约非烟之游伴——忆旧日江上风月、屡约游伴。下片写鸾弦易断与归来双燕：「须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远」——须信鸾弦易断，奈云和再鼓，曲终人远。写鸾弦易断：须信鸾弦易断，奈云和再鼓、曲终人远——以鸾弦断写情断、以曲终人远写人远；「认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅」——认罗袜无踪，旧处弄波清浅。写罗袜无踪：认罗袜已无踪，旧处弄波清浅——以罗袜无踪写人去、旧处清波；「青翰棹舣，白苹洲畔。尽木临皋飞观」——青翰棹舣，白苹洲畔，尽木临皋飞观。写青翰白苹：青翰舟舣于白苹洲畔，尽木临皋飞观——舟舣洲畔，临皋飞观；「不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕」——不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕。写归来双燕：不解寄一字相思，幸有归来之双燕——相思无从寄，唯双燕归来。这「幸有归来双燕」，是全词之结：以双燕归来看其相思。全词含蓄深婉，以典写情，正是贺铸词中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半。
I weary of the oriole's sound reaching the pillow, the flower air stirring the curtain, the drunk soul and the sorrowful dream, half and half.
厌莺声到枕，花气动帘，醉魂愁梦相半。
I am weary of the oriole's note on the pillow, the flower scent stirring the curtain; drunken soul and grieving dream are each half.
首三句写醉魂愁梦，起笔即见其愁。「厌莺声到枕」写厌莺声到枕，「厌」写其厌，「莺声到枕」写莺声传至枕边；「花气动帘」写花气动帘，「花气」写花香、「动帘」写吹动帘幕；「醉魂愁梦相半」写醉魂愁梦相半，「醉魂」写醉中之魂、「愁梦」写含愁之梦、「相半」写各占一半。三句一写厌莺声、一写花气动帘、一写醉魂愁梦相半，以「厌」写其于春光之无绪、以醉魂愁梦写其愁，写尽伤春之愁怀。以景写愁，含蓄而深挚，是「以景起兴」的妙笔。
The opening three lines write the drunken-soul-and-grieving-dream, the first stroke at once seeing the grief. The weary-of-the-oriole's-note-on-the-pillow writing the weariness and the pillow-side note; the flower-scent-stirring-the-curtain writing the flower scent and the curtain's motion; drunken-soul-and-grieving-dream-are-each-half writing the drunken soul, the grieving dream, and the equal half. Three lines one writing the oriole's weariness, one the curtain's stirred scent, one the half-and-half dream-soul, using the weariness for the spring's listlessness and the dream-soul for the grief, exhausting the spring-grief heart. Using the scene for the grief-writing, reserved and deep, the scene-uprising wondrous brush.
被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。
The quilt begrudges the remaining fragrance, the girdle startles the remaining eyes.
被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。
The quilt still keeps its old scent; the belt startles me with its loosened holes.
此二句写别后消瘦，是全词写别后之况的关键。「被惜馀薰」写被惜馀薰，「被惜」写其惜被、「馀薰」写被上余香；「带惊剩眼」写带惊剩眼，「带惊」写其惊带、「剩眼」写腰带剩眼（人瘦而带空）。两句一写惜被上余香、一写惊腰带剩眼，以惜薰写其对旧日之眷恋、以剩眼写其人瘦，写尽别后惜薰惊瘦之况。以物写况，含蓄而深挚，是「以物写情」的点睛之笔。
These two lines write the post-parting thinning, the whole ci's post-parting-condition key. The quilt-still-keeps-its-old-scent writing the quilt's cherished old scent; the belt-startles-me-with-its-loosened-holes writing the belt's startled loose holes. Two lines one writing the quilt's old scent, one the belt's remaining holes, using the cherished scent for the old-affair's attachment and the remaining holes for the person's thinning, exhausting the post-parting's scent-cherished-and-thinness-startled condition. Using the thing for the condition-writing, reserved and deep, the thing-writes-feeling telling stroke.
须信鸾弦易断。
I must believe the phoenix strings are easily broken.
须信鸾弦易断。
Know well that the mandarin-string snaps easily.
此句写鸾弦易断，是全词写情断的关键。「须信鸾弦易断」写须信鸾弦易断，「须信」写须知、「鸾弦」用鸾胶续弦之典、「易断」写其易断。一句以「须信」写其须信此理、以「鸾弦易断」写琴弦易断、情易断，写尽其深知其情易断之痛——旧情如鸾弦，易断。以典写情，含蓄而深挚，是「以典写情」的点睛之笔。此句以寥寥数语写尽深意，情韵兼胜，正是全诗点睛之笔。其于字句之间暗藏波澜，于平易之中寄寓曲折，尤当反复涵泳，方能得其三昧。
This line writes the mandarin-string's easy snapping, the whole ci's love-break key. The know-well-that-the-mandarin-string-snaps-easily writing the know-well, the mandarin-glue-string allusion, and the easy snapping. One line using the know-well for the principle's certainty, and the mandarin-string-snaps-easily for the lute-string's easy break and love's easy break, exhausting the deep-knowing love's easy-break pain — the old love like the mandarin string, easy to snap. Using the allusion for the feeling-writing, reserved and deep, the allusion-writes-feeling telling stroke.
幸有归来双燕。
Fortunately there are the returning pair of swallows.
幸有归来双燕。
Happily, there are the returning paired swallows.
尾句写归来双燕，是全词立意的落点。「幸有归来双燕」写幸有归来双燕，「幸有」写所幸有、「归来双燕」写归来的双燕。一句以「幸有」写其慰藉、以「归来双燕」写双燕归来，写其相思无从寄、唯双燕归来为伴——人以双燕归来慰其相思。以燕写情，含蓄而深挚，是全词最动人处，也是「以燕写情」的点睛之笔。此句以寥寥数语写尽深意，情韵兼胜，正是全诗点睛之笔。其于字句之间暗藏波澜，于平易之中寄寓曲折，尤当反复涵泳，方能得其三昧。
The closing line writes the returning paired swallows, the whole ci's intention landing. The happily-there-are-the-returning-paired-swallows writing the happily and the returning pair. One line using the happily for the consolation and the returning-pair for the swallows' return, writing the longing's no-way-to-send and only the returning swallows' company — the person using the returning swallows for the longing's consolation. Using the swallow for the feeling-writing, reserved and deep, the whole ci's most moving place, the swallow-writes-feeling telling stroke.
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Liu Yong's 'Eight Beats of Ganzhou' — 'the clothes of the old days, gradually loosened' — is the longing of the thinness; He Zhu's 'Looking to the Lady of the Xiang' — 'the girdle startles the remaining eyes' — is the longing of the thin girdle — the two thinness of the longing, the one of the clothes, the other of the girdle.
柳永《八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天》「不忍登高临远，望故乡渺邈，归思难收」，写羁旅望乡、归思难收，是宋词写羁旅怀人的名篇；贺铸《望湘人》则以「须信鸾弦易断。奈云和再鼓，曲终人远」「不解寄、一字相思，幸有归来双燕」写鸾弦易断、相思难寄。两词同写羁旅怀人、曲终人远之慨：一写望故乡渺邈归思难收、以登高写愁，一写曲终人远鸾弦易断、以断弦写恨；一为柳永之婉约、一为贺铸之深婉，并读正可见宋词写「羁旅怀人」的两种笔法，皆于别后见怀人之情。
蝶恋花·庭院深深深几许 Butterflies Lingering over Flowers: In the Deep Courtyard, the Depth Unknown 欧阳修 · 同写伤春怀人、深闺之怨，一写庭院深深深几许、一写几许伤春春晚，皆于春深人瘦之中见怀人之怨 Both are the lyrics of the longing and the wine — the tears of the spring of Ouyang Xiu, the drunk soul of He Zhu — the two sorrows of the spring.Ouyang Xiu's 'Butterflies Lingering over Flowers: In the Deep Courtyard' — 'the rain is horizontal, the wind is fierce' — is the longing of the deep courtyard; He Zhu's 'Looking to the Lady of the Xiang' — 'the drunk soul and the sorrowful dream, half and half' — is the longing of the drunk soul — the two sorrows of the spring, the one of the courtyard, the other of the soul.
欧阳修《蝶恋花·庭院深深深几许》「庭院深深深几许」「泪眼问花花不语，乱红飞过秋千去」，写深闺伤春，是宋词写伤春的名篇；贺铸《望湘人》则以「被惜馀薰，带惊剩眼。几许伤春春晚」「须信鸾弦易断」写伤春人瘦、鸾弦易断。两词同写伤春怀人、深闺之怨：一写庭院深深深几许、以泪眼问花写怨，一写几许伤春春晚、以带惊剩眼写瘦；一为欧阳修之深婉、一为贺铸之含蓄，并读正可见宋词写「伤春怀人」的两种笔法，皆于春深人瘦之中见怀人之怨。