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宋 Song · 诗 Poem

赠琅邪智先长老

To Elder Zhixian of Langya Mountain

张方平

Zhang Fangping

山水Landscape 哲理Philosophy 时序Time

山路层层峻，幽栖最上层。
净光悬海月，幻体任春冰。
四句有为法，一心无尽灯。
我来忘所问，相伴久腾腾。

Mountain paths, layer upon layer, steep and high;
Your secluded dwelling is on the topmost tier.
Pure light hangs like a moon above the sea;
The phantom body lets the spring ice be.
Four lines are all conditioned dharmas;
One mind is the lamp without end.
I came and forgot my intended question;
Long with you I tarry, at ease and free.

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Meaning

This poem describes the poet's visit to Elder Zhixian on Langya Mountain. It depicts the steep mountain paths and the elder's lofty hermitage, praises his pure radiance of enlightenment and Buddhist wisdom, and ends with the poet forgetting his intended question and enjoying a long, carefree companionship with the elder.

山路一层层陡峭高峻，你幽居栖息在最上层。清净之光如海月高悬，幻化的色身任凭如春冰般聚散。四句皆是有为法，一心却是无尽灯。我来此间，忘了所要问的话；与你相伴，久久地自在腾腾。

Appreciation

The poem opens with the mountain's steep layers, suggesting both physical height and spiritual ascent. The second couplet uses images of a sea-moon and spring ice to evoke the elder's serene awareness and non-attachment to the phantom body. The third couplet contrasts conditioned dharmas with the endless lamp of the one mind, revealing the core of Buddhist teaching. The closing couplet moves from doctrine to human encounter: the poet forgets his question, and the two sit together in wordless ease, capturing the joy of mutual understanding beyond speech.

【白话串讲】张方平赠琅邪智先长老：“山路层层峻，幽栖最上层”。“净光悬海月，幻体任春冰”——“四句有为法，一心无尽灯”——“我来忘所问，相伴久腾腾”——他写禅僧。【意象与手法】诗以山路、海月、春冰、灯为象，融景、佛理、人事于一炉。海月悬空写静照，春冰任化写无执，无尽灯写传灯，皆以具象写抽象禅理。【情感与主旨】表达对智先长老幽栖悟境的钦敬，及自己忘言相伴、得大自在的体验，寓儒者向佛之会心。【名句点睛】净光悬海月，幻体任春冰以景写禅，静照与无执并见；我来忘所问，相伴久腾腾于忘言中见宾主相忘之趣。

Background

This is a gift poem by Zhang Fangping (1007–1091), a prominent Confucian official of the Northern Song, to Elder Zhixian of Langya Mountain. The mountain is likely Langya in Chuzhou, famous for Ouyang Xiu's 'Old Tippler's Pavilion.' In the Song, it was home to many Buddhist temples. Zhang, like many scholar-officials, was well-versed in Buddhist thought and friendly with Chan monks. The poem incorporates phrases from the Diamond Sutra and the Vimalakirti Sutra, reflecting the era's Confucian-Buddhist confluence.

此诗为张方平赠琅邪山智先长老之作。琅邪山有多处，此或指滁州琅邪山（欧阳修醉翁亭所在），宋时佛刹林立，智先长老其人生平难详，然既称长老，必为禅门尊宿。张方平（1007—1091）虽以儒臣名世，然北宋士大夫多通佛理，与禅僧交游为常，苏轼、王安石皆然，张方平亦不例外，其集中颇多赠僧之作。此诗当作于游琅邪、访智先之时。诗中四句有为法用金刚经「一切有为法，如梦幻泡影」之意，无尽灯用华严及传灯录「一灯传千灯」之喻，可知智先所承为禅宗一脉。北宋禅宗大盛，长老多居名山幽栖，张方平以此诗写其悟境与己之忘言，正见儒释相济的时代风气。了解此背景，方能读懂诗中佛典与士大夫情怀的交融。关于琅邪山与智先长老，可再补数端。滁州琅邪山，欧阳修庆历间知滁州时作《醉翁亭记》，其地环滁皆山、林壑尤美，宋时佛寺道观棋布其间，实为东南禅林之一。智先长老之名，虽于灯录中难详其系，然既居琅邪，当属临济或云门一脉——北宋禅门五家之中，临济、云门最盛，长老多领名山、开堂接众，智先居琅邪绝顶「幽栖最上层」，正合禅僧择幽筑庵、静坐默照的宗风。张方平以「无尽灯」相许，暗用《维摩诘经》「无尽灯者，譬如一灯然百千灯，冥者皆明，明终不尽」之义，既颂智先传灯续焰之德，亦寄禅法不绝之望。合此数端，可知此诗非寻常应酬，而是儒臣对禅门法脉的郑重致意。

Art

Artistically, the poem follows a structure of scene–principle–human encounter. The first couplet is both literal and metaphorical, as steep mountain paths symbolize the stages of spiritual cultivation. The second couplet creates a balanced pair of images: the still moon mirrors the pure mind, while melting spring ice mirrors the impermanent body. The third couplet is a philosophical antithesis drawing on Buddhist scriptures. The final couplet returns to the personal, with the poet forgetting his question and lingering in carefree spontaneity. The language is simple yet charged with meaning—a hallmark of Song-dynasty Chan poetry.

此诗艺术上以「景—理—人」三层结构写禅。首联山路层层峻，幽栖最上层，既是写实景（山高路险、僧居绝顶），亦暗喻修行境界之高、次第之深，景中已含理。颔联净光悬海月，幻体任春冰，以海月之静照写清净心，以春冰之易化写色身无常，是对仗工稳的理境双写。颈联四句有为法，一心无尽灯，以佛典作哲理性对仗，由破（有为皆幻）到立（一心传灯），是全诗佛理核心。尾联我来忘所问，相伴久腾腾，忽从理归人，写宾主相忘、腾腾任运之趣，余韵不尽。全诗不事铺排，以浅近之语运深密之旨，是宋人禅诗「即景即理」的典型笔法。细按章法，「景—理—人」三层之外，尚可更细地析出「登山—观心—忘言」的次第：首联写登山，山路层层、幽栖最上，是「行」；颔联写观心，净光如月、幻体如冰，是「证」；颈联写佛法，四句有为、一心无尽，是「理」；尾联写忘言，忘所问、久腾腾，是「果」。由行而证、由证而理、由理而果，正合禅家「因行入证、因证会理、会理得果」的修证次第，故读来不惟写景，而是一部微型的禅观实践。其对仗尤可味者，在颔联「净光悬海月」对「幻体任春冰」：净对幻、光对体、悬对任、海月对春冰，字字相俪，而「悬」之恒、「任」之化，一静一动、一常一变，把「心常照而身随化」的禅境写得宛然在目。此等以景写理、以对仗明法身的笔法，是宋人禅诗由唐人「境语」转向「理语」的关捩。

Allusions

The 'four lines' allude to the Diamond Sutra's famous gatha: 'All conditioned dharmas are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, shadows, like dew and lightning—thus should you observe them.' The 'endless lamp' alludes to the Vimalakirti Sutra, where a single lamp ignites hundreds of thousands of lamps without dimming, symbolizing the unbroken transmission of the Dharma. The 'sea moon' evokes the mind's pure, luminous nature, while 'spring ice' signifies the fragility of the physical body. Together, these allusions weave the poem's theme of transcending illusion and transmitting enlightenment.

诗中佛典凡三处，皆关「空幻—传灯」之旨。海月：本自然意象，禅诗中常喻清净圆明之心，如月照海而不染，诗中净光悬海月即以海月写长老寂静照了之境。春冰：佛教以春冰喻色身之易灭无常（身如春冰，倏忽消散），幻体任春冰谓长老知身是幻，故能任运而不执。四句有为法：用金刚经偈「一切有为法，如梦幻泡影，如露亦如电，应作如是观」，四句泛指佛说法之方便，皆属有为，终须离相。无尽灯：出维摩诘经及传灯录，谓一灯燃百千灯，灯灯相传，佛法不绝，诗中一心无尽灯写长老以一心传灯、续佛慧命。诸典由景入理，一环扣一环，把禅宗「破相—传心」的宗旨写得具象可感。诸典之中，尚有几处出处须再辨析。「海月」一象，除禅家常用以喻圆明心境外，亦暗合《楞严经》「如海一沤发，如空中之尘」及「当处出生、随处灭尽」的幻化观，与下句「幻体任春冰」的「春冰」之喻同出一辙——春冰本出《论语》「譬如为山，未成一篑」的易亏之义与《庄子》「朝菌不知晦朔」的短暂之义，兼取佛家「身如聚沫」之喻，皆言色身之危脆。「四句有为法」用《金刚经》四句偈「一切有为法，如梦幻泡影，如露亦如电，应作如是观」，此偈本是《金刚》一经之结穴，方平借以总括佛之说法，谓皆属「有为」方便，终须离相。「无尽灯」除《维摩诘经》外，亦见《华严经》「譬如一灯，燃百千灯，其本一灯，无灭无尽」之喻，禅门用以说「以心传心、灯灯相续」。方平合《金刚》《维摩》《华严》三经之典于一诗，可见其佛学之博，而皆能统摄于「破相—传心」一旨之下。

Commentary

Zhang Fangping's poem exemplifies the Northern Song literati's 'outer Confucian, inner Buddhist' outlook. As a Confucian official, he writes of a Chan master with reverence and insight, not as a convert but as one who appreciates the Dharma's power to free the mind. The poem's brevity conceals a profound structure: from climbing the mountain to observing the mind, from doctrinal discrimination to the wordless communion of the last couplet. This is a model of Song poetic art, where principle is made vivid through imagery.

张方平赠僧诗可与此集其他篇章并观，其以儒臣而能写禅境，正见北宋士大夫「外儒内佛」的普遍修养。苏轼谓「八万四千法门，皆以解粘去缚」，张此诗写智先「忘所问」「腾腾」，正是解缚后的自在，与苏诗禅趣相通。方回瀛奎律髓释梵类多选宋人禅诗，重其「不着相」，此诗净光、幻体、无尽灯诸句，正合其选。较之唐人禅诗（如王维「行到水穷处，坐看云起时」）之浑成自然，宋人禅诗更喜以佛典对仗明理，此诗颈联即其例。近人论宋诗「以理为诗」，此诗可为其一证——然其理不枯，以海月春冰之景润之，故能理趣兼具。要之，此诗之佳在儒者写佛而不佞佛，钦敬中自有身份。再深一层，此诗的价值，在于它以一首五律完整呈现了北宋士大夫「外儒内佛」的精神结构。方平以儒臣立身，却能在诗中以「净光」「幻体」「无尽灯」诸佛典从容谈禅，且不堕虚无，正见其「以儒为体、以释为用」的会通。这与王安石晚年「愿我六根常寂静」的禅悦、苏轼「八风吹不动」的机锋，同属北宋士大夫三教调和思潮的不同面向，而方平此作更显「儒者本色」——他写智先，落脚在「钦敬」而非「皈依」，在「会心」而非「逃禅」，故诗中有佛理之深而无佞佛之态。历来评宋诗禅趣者，多举苏轼、黄庭坚，于方平则罕及；然此诗以五律之短，把「破相—传心」的义理写得层折分明，其禅学修养与诗艺功力，实不在苏、黄之下。读此诗，当于「腾腾」「忘所问」的闲适之下，见一位儒臣对禅门法脉的敬重与对自性清净的印证。

Prosody

Form Five-character Regulated Verse (五言律诗)五言律诗

Rhyme Rhymes with the lower even tone '蒸' group: 层, 冰, 灯, 腾. The rhyme is sustained throughout, with an open, leisurely sound suitable for a hermitic and Chan theme.押下平十蒸韵：层、冰、灯、腾。一韵到底，蒸韵开口呼舒徐，宜于写幽栖禅境之体。

Tone pattern The poem follows the level-toned initial pattern without entering rhyme. First couplet: 平仄平平仄 / 平平仄仄平; second: 仄平平仄仄 / 仄仄仄平平; middle couplets obey the rules of adhesion and contrast; the fifth couplet has a slight deviation ('四句有为法' 仄仄仄平仄) but the meaning prevails.五言律诗平起首句不入韵体。首联山路层层峻（平仄平平仄）对幽栖最上层（平平仄仄平），颔联净光悬海月（仄平平仄仄）对幻体任春冰（仄仄仄平平），中二联粘对合律，颈联四句有为法（仄仄仄平仄）对一心无尽灯（仄平仄仄平），偶拗而意足。

Reading note This eight-line poem is arranged in four couplets, moving from scene to principle to human presence. The choice of the '蒸' rhyme gives a clear, remote resonance. The parallel couplets are carefully crafted, and the reduplicated words '层层' and '腾腾' echo at beginning and end, enhancing the poem's unity.此诗为五言律诗，八句四联，章法以「境—理—人」为序：首联写山峻栖高，颔联写净光幻体，前两联由景入理；颈联以佛典明旨，尾联以忘言相伴收束。用韵独取蒸部，声气清远舒徐，与幽栖禅境相协；四韵相贯，读来如闻钟磬之余音。平仄大体合律，偶以拗救（如四句有为法）而不害意，具宋人不为格律所缚之态。整体声情清空闲雅，无唐贤禅诗之浑莽，而有宋调之理趣——以佛典对仗明理，以海月春冰之景润之，故理不枯、境不塞。短短四十言，写尽长老悟境与儒者忘言之会，是投赠禅诗中得体之作。再就声律细说，此诗择蒸韵，其韵字「层、冰、灯、腾」皆属深摄、曾摄之开口，收音在鼻，余响绵长，最宜写「幽栖」「忘言」的静穆与禅悟的悠远；若易以「麻」「歌」之洪亮，或「职」「德」之短促，便与幽栖禅境不合。中二联对仗，「净光悬海月，幻体任春冰」以名词、动词、名词两两相对，节奏为二一二式；「四句有为法，一心无尽灯」以数量词领起，节奏略变，顿挫中见理趣。又，「腾腾」叠字收束，与首联「层层」叠字遥相呼应，一写山势之叠、一写心境之舒，首尾以叠字相映，声情更显整饬。此诗虽仅四十言，而选韵、对仗、叠字处处经营，正见方平于投赠小诗中亦不肯率易。

Line by line

山路层层峻，幽栖最上层。

The mountain path is steep, layer upon layer—this describes the physical climb and also the spiritual ascent.

山路一层层陡峭高峻，你幽居栖息在最上层。

The mountain road rises, tier on tier, steep; your quiet dwelling is on the highest tier.

首联破题，字面写山与水，实写人与境。山路层层峻以叠字「层层」状山之高峻、路之纡回，既是琅邪山实貌，亦暗喻修行次第之难、境界之叠进；幽栖最上层紧接，写智先长老幽居在最高处，既指物理上的绝顶精庐，更指修行所臻的最高一层——如同登山至顶，万法洞然。张方平落笔极省，却景理双关：山峻而喻道峻，层叠而喻阶渐，最上而喻悟极。宋人作诗好以眼前实景寄托义理，此联正是一例。更妙在「最上层」三字，把一座具体的山化作一座精神的峰，长老之「幽栖」遂不止是隐居，而是证境的隐喻，起手便立住了全诗的禅意骨架。

The opening strikes the theme, on the surface writing mountain and water, really writing man and realm. The mountain road rises, tier on tier, steep uses the reduplication tier on tier to write the mountain's height and the road's windings, at once the actual face of Langye Mountain and a metaphor for the difficulty of stages in practice and the layered advance of the realm. Your quiet dwelling is on the highest tier follows, writing the elder Zhixian's quiet dwelling at the highest place, at once the physical peak retreat and the highest level reached in practice - like climbing to the mountain's top, all phenomena transparent. Fangping's brush is most spare, yet scene and reason double: the steep mountain meta-phors the steep Way, the layered tiers the gradual steps, the highest the utmost awakening. Song poets loved to lodge principle in the actual scene before the eyes, and this is one example. The beauty lies in the three words highest tier, turning a concrete mountain into a spiritual peak, so that the elder's quiet dwelling is no mere retirement but a metaphor of the realized realm, standing up the poem's Zen skeleton from the first stroke.

净光悬海月，幻体任春冰。

In seclusion you dwell on the highest tier—the elder lives at the top, symbolizing the highest state of cultivation.

清净之光如海月高悬，幻化的色身任凭如春冰般聚散。

The pure light hangs like the moon over the sea; the illusory body is left to the spring ice.

颔联是全诗最富禅趣的写景理之句。净光悬海月写长老心境如海中之月，澄澈圆明、照而常寂，净光即清净心光，海月即其喻体，悬字写出一种不动不摇的静照；幻体任春冰则翻一层，说色身本是幻化，如春冰之易消，故不执不舍、任运自然。一静一动、一常一幻，对仗工而义相成：心则如月之恒照，身则如冰之暂聚，正是禅宗「即生死而证涅槃」的活写。张方平以两个自然意象承载深密佛理，不须佛书名相而理自显，是宋人禅诗「即景明理」的妙手。读此联，可想见长老危坐峰顶、月照海天、身心两忘之状。

The jaw couplet is the poem's most Zen-rich line of scenery and reason. The pure light hangs like the moon over the sea writes the elder's mind as the moon in the sea, clear, lucid, bright and still, ever illuminating yet ever calm; pure light is the pure mind's light, the sea moon its metaphor, and the word hangs writes a motionless, unshaking quiet illumination. The illusory body is left to the spring ice turns a layer further, saying the physical body is originally illusory, like spring ice easily melting, so no clinging no rejection, left to its natural course. One still one moving, one constant one illusory, the parallel wrought yet the meaning mutual: the mind is like the moon's constant shining, the body like the ice's brief gathering, exactly the Zen writing of attaining nirvana within birth and death. Fangping carries deep Buddhist principle through two natural images, no need of Buddhist terms, the reason showing of itself, the Song Zen poem's fine hand of clarifying principle through the scene. Reading this couplet, one can imagine the elder sitting upright on the peak, moonlight on sea and sky, body and mind both forgotten.

我来忘所问，相伴久腾腾。

Pure radiance hangs like a moon over the sea—the mind's pure light shines steadily, like the moon reflected on the ocean.

我来此间，忘了所要问的话；与你相伴，久久地自在腾腾。

I came and forgot what I meant to ask; keeping you company, long we drift at ease.

尾联由理归人，写宾主相得之趣，是全诗余韵所在。我来忘所问写诗人本有所疑欲问，及见长老悟境，竟至忘言——这「忘」正是禅家「不疑不悟、大疑大悟」之后的无言契合，亦暗合维摩诘「默然不说」的宗风；相伴久腾腾则写二人相对，久久腾腾任运，腾腾形容闲适自得、无拘无碍之态（禅家每言「腾腾任运」）。张方平于此把自己放进诗里，由旁观称美转为亲身参会，使赠僧诗有了真切的交游温度。一联之间，问归于忘、对归于腾，把前面所有的佛理都收进一段无言的相伴里，含蓄不尽，是宋人禅诗「不落言筌」的至高手法。

The closing returns from principle to man, writing the delight of host and guest in accord, the poem's lingering aftertone. I came and forgot what I meant to ask writes that the poet had a doubt to ask, yet on seeing the elder's awakened realm, reached the forgetting of words - this forgetting is exactly the wordless accord after Zen's no doubt no awakening, great doubt great awakening, and secretly matches Vimalakirti's silent teaching. Keeping you company, long we drift at ease writes the two facing each other, long drifting with the course; drifting at ease describes the unhurried, unbound state (the Zen school often speaks of drifting at ease with the course). Fangping here places himself in the poem, turning from onlooking praise to personal participation, giving the monk-poem the warmth of a real friendship. Within one couplet, the question returns to forgetting, the facing to drifting, gathering all the preceding Buddhist principle into a wordless companionship, reserve without end, the Song Zen poem's highest way of not falling into the snare of words.

Study

Word focus

悬 to hang—in 'pure light hangs', this word conveys the steadiness and luminosity of the enlightened mind, like a moon suspended over the sea; static yet illuminating. 悬字在「净光悬海月」中为静照之眼。悬本义挂、高挂，此处写海月之光高悬不动，既状月之物理位置（高挂海天），更写清净心光之常照不昧——如月悬空，寂而能照、照而不染。一字把「净光」的抽象写活，有了空间感与稳定感。若作「照」「映」，则偏于动态而失其恒；「悬」字自带孤高、不动、遍照之意，最宜写禅者之定境。更妙在它与下句「任」字（幻体任春冰）相对：上句以「悬」写心之常，下句以「任」写身之化，一常一变，对仗中见佛理之全。炼一字而能立一境，是此诗炼字见禅处。

任 to let be, to trust—in 'phantom body lets the spring ice be', it expresses non-attachment and acceptance of impermanence. 任字在「幻体任春冰」中为无执之眼。任本义听凭、随顺，此处写色身如春冰之暂聚，长老不拒不留、听其自然，正是禅宗「随缘任运、不执于身」的活写。此字与悬字对照：悬写心光之主动常照，任写幻体之被动随化，一主一宾、一常一变，构成完整的修行姿态。张方平以「任」字写智先对色身的态度，不落「厌身」亦不落「执身」，只是任之，分寸极精。若作「如」「若」，则只成比喻而失其态度；有「任」字，方见长老的主动放下。一字之选，使佛理化为可感的人格气象，是炼字见修行处。

腾腾 carefree, buoyant—a Chan term for the mind's unhindered, spontaneous movement; reduplication gives a leisurely rhythm. 腾腾在「相伴久腾腾」中为全诗收束之韵，叠字极有味道。腾腾本形容升腾、闲适之貌，禅家常用「腾腾任运」指无拘无碍、随缘自在之心境（如禅宗语录「腾腾任运，任运腾腾」）。张方平以此写与长老相伴时的自得状态，把前面所有佛理都收进这团闲适里。叠字本身有舒缓悠长之节奏，与「久」字相佐，写出时间之绵与心境之舒。若作单字「腾」或「从容」，则意味顿减；「腾腾」叠之，声情俱足，且带禅门特有的语录气息。一字（词）之重，使尾联余韵不尽，是炼叠字见风神处。