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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

峨眉山月歌

Song of the Moon on Mount Emei

李白

Li Bai

山水Landscape 离别Farewell

峨眉山月半轮秋，影入平羌江水流。
夜发清溪向三峡，思君不见下渝州。

On Mount Emei the crescent moon shines bright in autumn;
Its shadow in the river flows with the water clear.
At night I leave Qingxi for the Three Gorges;
Missing you unseen, I sail downstream to Yuzhou.

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Meaning

The poem depicts the poet's moonlit journey downriver from Mount Emei. The half-moon hangs overhead, its reflection gliding on the river. Departing Qingxi at night toward the Three Gorges, he feels a longing for someone unseen as he sails to Yuzhou. It is a farewell to his homeland, blending natural beauty with a gentle sorrow.

峨眉山巅挂着半轮秋月，月影映入平羌江，随着江水缓缓流淌。夜晚从清溪出发驶向三峡，思念你却不得相见，顺流而下直过渝州。诗人于离乡远行之际，以山月为伴、以江流写行程，将依依别情融入清空灵动的山水之中，景美情长，余味悠然。

Appreciation

The poem weaves five place names into four lines without awkwardness, thanks to the unifying images of the moon and flowing water. The half-moon symbolizes incompleteness and parting. With a clear, elegant style, Li Bai expresses youthful yearning and a spirit of adventure, avoiding overt sadness.

【白话串讲】峨眉山半轮秋月，倒映在平羌江水里。李白顺江而下，一路想念着朋友。二十八个字里写了五个地名，却一点不堆砌，反而流畅得像月光。【意象与手法】此诗七绝而连用五地名（峨眉山、平羌、清溪、三峡、渝州），却不显堆垛，反觉流转自然，全赖“月”与“流”一线贯穿，景随舟【情感与主旨】此诗约作于唐玄宗开元十二年（724）秋天，李白二十五岁，初次离开蜀地、乘舟东下长江，开启漫游天下、求仕干谒的历程【名句点睛】此诗为唐李白之作，精要赏析详见下方深度赏析。

Background

This poem was written around 724 AD, when Li Bai (age 25) first left his homeland in Shu (Sichuan) to travel east. The places—Mount Emei, Pingqiang River, Qingxi, Three Gorges, Yuzhou—mark his route. It conveys his attachment to the landscapes of Sichuan and his longing for friends and family as he departs.

此诗约作于唐玄宗开元十二年（724）秋，李白二十五岁，初次离开蜀地，乘舟东下长江，开启其「仗剑去国，辞亲远游」的求仕漫游生涯。李白少年时代久居蜀中，峨眉山、平羌江、清溪、渝州，皆是他自幼熟稔的故土山水；此番东下，途经三峡，顺流直趋渝州（今重庆），是他人生中第一次真正意义上的远行。诗中连缀的五处地名，正是他由蜀入楚的水路实程：自峨眉山一带出发，沿平羌江（即青衣江）顺流而下，经清溪驿，夜发入长江，过三峡，直下渝州。此诗所写的，是离乡少年对故土山水与人事的依依回望。关于末句「思君不见」之「君」，历来有两解：一说指月，诗人舟行江上，抬头望月而月为山影所遮，故「思月而不见月」；一说指友人，李白此行或有故人相送，舟行渐远，思之而不得见。两说并存，然就全诗以「月」贯穿的笔法看，以「君」指月、兼寓怀人之意，更为圆融。版本上，此诗见于《李太白文集》，文字稳定，无重要异文。此诗在李白诗歌中别具意义：它是现存李白诗中较早以蜀地山水为题、又兼纪行与抒情的作品，与其后《早发白帝城》《峨眉山月歌送蜀僧晏入中京》等诗前后呼应，构成李白「蜀地情结」的一个序列。李白一生浪迹四方，而峨眉山的秋月始终是他魂牵梦绕的故土意象，晚年「举头望山月」式的乡思，实可溯源于此。可以说，此诗既是李白出蜀的起点之作，也是其终生乡愁的情感原点，在李白诗歌谱系中占有不可替代的位置。

Art

This seven-character quatrain uses five place names without clutter, linked by the moon and the river's flow. The first line sets the scene with a half-moon hinting at parting; the second turns static reflection into motion. The final two lines describe the journey and the poet's longing, covering vast distance and changing mood in a short space.

此诗的艺术奇迹，在于七绝二十八字中连用五处地名，却毫不板滞堆垛，反觉流转自然，这是唐诗绝句中的一个著名佳话。峨眉山、平羌江、清溪、三峡、渝州，五地名依次铺陈，本是舟行的实录，极易流于记帐式的罗列，然而李白以「月」为经、「流」为纬，将五地名一一串起：峨眉山月是所见之景，平羌江水是月影所入之处，清溪是夜发之地，三峡是所向之程，渝州是所下之终点。山月随着舟行而移动，月影随着江流而荡漾，诗人的行程于是与月的行止合而为一，地名遂不再是孤立的地理符号，而成为一段流动的水墨旅程。全诗意象清空，格调飘逸，「半轮秋」的「半轮」与「秋」字，写尽秋夜的清冷与月色的娟秀；「影入」「水流」「夜发」「下」诸字，则赋予静态的山水以流转的动势。清人论此诗，多叹其「浑然天成」，正是对李白以气驭景、化实为虚本领的最高称许。此外，此诗的画面感极强：半轮秋月、一江清影、夜发扁舟、顺流而下，四句如四帧淡墨山水，连缀成一幅流动的夜行图。诗人不作浓墨重彩，纯以「半轮」「秋」「影」「流」等清冷字眼，渲染出秋夜江行的空灵与寂寥。尤为难得的是，二十八字中不着一「离」字、不着一「愁」字，而离愁别绪却已融入江流月色之中，正是绝句「含而不露、意在言外」的最高境界，也是李白「清水出芙蓉」诗风的最佳注脚。

Allusions

The phrase 'half a wheel of autumn' continues the Six Dynasties tradition of moon imagery in parting poems. Pingqiang is an ancient name for the Qingyi River. The dense use of place names follows Xie Tiao's spatial displacement technique, using travel to express emotion, and later influenced many travel poems.

此诗不用显性典故，然其「月—思」的意象链有深厚的传统可溯。谢庄《月赋》「美人迈兮音尘阙，隔千里兮共明月」已将月设定为跨越空间的相思之媒，李白此诗「思君不见下渝州」正是此脉的延续——舟行千里，所共者唯有明月，故望月而思人。而「月随人行」的意象，又可溯至《诗经·陈风·月出》「月出皎兮，佼人僚兮」，以月起兴、牵动怀思。李白将「隔千里兮共明月」的静态相思，化为「影入平羌江水流」的动态追随：月影入江，随舟而行，仿佛故土的明月不舍离人、千里相送，这一层人月相随的深情，是李白对月意象的独到发展。此外，「三峡」一词，自郦道元《水经注》「自三峡七百里中，两岸连山，略无阙处」以来，已成险峻壮阔的固定意象；「渝州」为古地名，隋开皇初改巴郡为渝州，李白此诗亦为渝州留下了一笔诗史的记录。至于「半轮秋」的「半轮」，学界有论者谓其暗合弦月之象，与「秋」字合成清冷之境，虽无出典，却是李白炼字的自得处。还应指出，此诗五地名的连用，本身即是一种「以地记游」的笔法，其源头可上溯《水经注》等地理志书与古人行记的笔意，李白以诗行纪程，将地理的罗列升华为情感的流动，使地名不再是干枯的符号，而成为乡愁的坐标。至于「清溪」一地，历来注家或以为即犍为郡的清溪驿，或以为泛指清冽的溪流，此亦一桩小小的歧说。凡此种种，皆可见此诗在简淡的面貌下，实蕴含着深厚的地理文化与文学传统。

Commentary

Ming critic Wang Shimou said: 'Li Bai’s “Moon on Mount Emei” uses five place names in four lines, unprecedented, yet without any sign of piling them up—this is its beauty.' Qing critic Shen Deqian remarked: 'The moon is between Qingxi and the Three Gorges; the half-moon is no longer visible. The word “you” could refer to the moon or to a person; uncertain, but deep feeling lingers beyond words.'

此诗是李白七绝的代表作之一，历来以「地名入诗而不板滞」著称。宋人早已注意其妙，胡仔《苕溪渔隐丛话》引《诗眼》论此诗，盛称「四句入地名者五，古今以为绝唱」，并详析其「非有刻削之功，乃神运也」的道理。严羽《沧浪诗话》论「太白发句」，亦推此诗为「天马行空」之例。明代高棅《唐诗品汇》列此诗于七绝，李攀龙《唐诗选》录之，胡应麟《诗薮》赞李白七绝「峨眉山月」为「绝句之宗」，与王昌龄、王维分庭抗礼。清代沈德潜《唐诗别裁》评此诗「清气袭人」，王士禛《唐人万首绝句选》亦选入，且以「神韵」论之，谓其「不着一字，尽得风流」。近人论李白山水诗，多以此诗与《早发白帝城》并举，为李白七绝中最见「清水出芙蓉」品格者。此诗在当代教材与选本中亦属常选，其以地名写行程、以月写离思的笔法，成为古典诗歌教学中的经典范本。此诗对后世的影响亦不可小觑：它以地名入诗而不板滞的笔法，启发了后世许多纪行诗的写法；其「月随人行、影入江流」的意象，成为李白乃至整个唐诗中「江月」母题的重要一环，与张若虚《春江花月夜》的江月、杜甫「月是故乡明」的乡思遥相辉映。可以说，此诗虽仅二十八字，却以其清空流转的意境与含蓄悠远的情味，占据了唐诗绝句中不可替代的一席，是李白七绝从盛唐走向永恒的起点之一。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain七言绝句

Rhyme Rhymes on 秋(qiū), 流(liú), 州(zhōu) - level tone in the You rhyme group (Pingshui Yun 11 You); first line rhymes.平水韵下平十一尤韵，押「秋」「流」「州」三韵，首句入韵

Tone pattern Even-tone first-line rhymed pattern; each line contains a place name; unique structure.平起首句入韵式。首句「峨眉山月半轮秋」平平平仄仄平平，次句「影入平羌江水流」仄仄平平平仄平，三句「夜发清溪向三峡」仄仄平平平仄仄，末句「思君不见下渝州」平平仄仄仄平平。除次句第五字「江」外，大体合律，声调清亮流转。

Reading note This poem uses five place names in twenty-eight characters yet flows smoothly—a marvel of Li Bai's quatrains. The reference of 'you' (君) is ambiguous: could be a friend or the moon.此诗为七言绝句平起首句入韵正格，押下平十一尤韵，「秋」「流」「州」三韵皆属尤韵，一韵到底，音色悠扬清远，与诗中江流月色、离思绵长的意境声情相合。首句「峨眉山月半轮秋」中，「秋」字收尾，韵脚一出，清秋之气便定下全篇基调；次句「影入平羌江水流」的「流」字，与「秋」韵相押，音韵的绵延恰似江水的流淌；末句「思君不见下渝州」的「州」字收束全篇，悠长的鼻音余韵，如舟行远去、江声不绝。全诗声律的妙处，在于以平声尤韵的舒缓悠长，配合「半轮」「影入」「夜发」「下」等字的抑扬，读来如闻一叶轻舟在月光下顺流而下，声与景、情与韵浑然一体。清人王士禛论绝句主「神韵」，尝举此诗为「羚羊挂角，无迹可求」之例，正因其声韵之清空流转，与诗意之含蓄悠远达到了高度的统一。就声情而言，「秋」字开口洪亮，定下清秋的基调；「流」字舌音绵柔，如江水的流动；「州」字收于圆唇，如舟行的远去，三韵递转之间，声与景、情与境浑然莫辨，读来但觉一片空明，正是绝句声律与意境相得益彰的极致。

Line by line

峨眉山月半轮秋

Mount Emei's autumn moon is half a wheel (crescent). Sets the place, time, and scene; the half-moon hints at incompleteness and farewell.

峨眉山巅，半轮秋月高悬。

Over Mount Emei, a half wheel of autumn moon;

首句七字，写出地点（峨眉山）、时间（秋夜）、景物（半轮月），三事并置而浑然无迹。「半轮」写月之形，非满月而为半轮，既合秋夜清冷之景，又暗含离人不圆满的心绪；「秋」字置于句末，将节令的凉意直接浇在月色之上。诗人不写「峨眉山上半轮月」，而说「峨眉山月半轮秋」，把「秋」字当名词坐实，仿佛秋意有了形体，高悬于山巅，这是李白以虚为实的炼字妙处。山与月本是蜀中故土的象征，此句既是写景，更是对即将离别的故土的深情一瞥，为全诗定下清空而含思的基调。

The opening seven characters write the place (Mount Emei), the time (autumn night), and the scenery (the half wheel moon), three things set together yet fused without a seam. Half wheel writes the moon's shape, not the full moon but the half wheel, suiting the autumn night's clear cold, and secretly holding the parting man's unrounded mood. The word autumn placed at the line's end pours the season's chill directly on the moonlight. The poet does not write on Mount Emei a half wheel moon, but Mount Emei's moon, a half wheel of autumn, seating the word autumn as a noun, as if the autumn mood had taken shape, hanging high over the peak; this is Li Bai's word-craft of making the void concrete. The hill and the moon are originally the symbols of the Shu homeland; this line is at once scenery, and the loving last look at the homeland about to be left, fixing the whole's clear-void and thoughtful key.

影入平羌江水流

Its shadow enters the Pingqiang River and flows with the water. The verb 'enter' brings the reflection into motion, blending mountain, moon, river, and boat.

月影倒映在平羌江中，随江水流动。

its shadow lies in the Pingqiang River, flowing on the water.

此句写月影入江，是全诗最具动态美的一笔。「影入」二字，写月亮的倒影沉入平羌江中，「入」字轻巧，仿佛月影有意投入江流；「江水流」三字，则让静止的月影随着江水缓缓流动起来。月在天上，影在水中，天月不动而江影自流，一静一动之间，月便仿佛化入了江流，与舟同行。这一句承上启下：上承「峨眉山月」，下启「夜发」「下渝州」的行程——正是这映入江水的月影，成为诗人一路东下的无声旅伴。诗人以「影」写月，以「流」写行，物我交融，故土之月与远行之舟从此合为一体。

This line writes the moon's shadow entering the river, the whole's stroke of most moving motion. The two words the shadow enters write the moon's reflection sinking into the Pingqiang River, the word enters light and deft, as if the moon's shadow purposely plunged into the current; the three words flowing on the water set the still moon-shadow slowly moving with the river. The moon in the sky, the shadow in the water, the sky-moon still yet the river-shadow flowing, between stillness and motion the moon as if melted into the current, traveling with the boat. This line carries above and opens below: carrying above Mount Emei's moon, opening below the night departure and descending Yuzhou's journey - precisely this moon-shadow cast into the river becomes the silent traveling companion all the way down east. The poet writes the moon through the shadow, the journey through the flowing, the thing and self fused, the homeland moon and the far-traveling boat from now on as one.

夜发清溪向三峡

At night I depart from Qingxi toward the Three Gorges. Points out the journey; 'night departure' suggests haste and solitude.

夜间从清溪出发驶向三峡。

At night I leave Qingxi for the Three Gorges,

此句交代行程，是全诗纪行的枢纽。「夜发」点明时间，与首句的「秋」、次句的「月」遥相呼应，构成一个完整的秋夜行舟图。「清溪」为驿名，「向三峡」点明去向，一个「向」字写出舟行的方向与气势，仿佛一叶扁舟在夜色中驶向雄奇的三峡。此句在全诗的结构上承上启下，前两句写月，此句写行，末句写思，由景及行、由行及情。值得注意的是，诗人写「夜发」而不写夜行的孤寂，写「向三峡」而不写三峡的险峻，笔致轻灵，留给读者以广阔的想象空间，正是绝句以少胜多的妙处。

This line tells the journey, the hinge of the whole's record of travel. The words at night I leave point the time, echoing from afar the autumn of the opening and the moon of the second line, forming a complete picture of the autumn night's boat. Qingxi is the post station, for the Three Gorges points the destination, the word toward writing the boat's direction and force, as if a small boat in the night sailing toward the wondrous Three Gorges. This line in the whole's structure carries above and opens below, the first two lines writing the moon, this line the journey, the last line the thought, from scenery to journey, from journey to feeling. It is to note that the poet writes at night I leave yet not the loneliness of the night voyage, writes for the Three Gorges yet not the gorges' peril, the brush light, leaving the reader a broad space of imagination, exactly the quatrain's beauty of winning by the few.

思君不见下渝州

Missing you but not seeing you, I go down to Yuzhou. 'You' may refer to a friend or the moon; 'not seeing' deepens the sorrow as the boat sails away.

思念你却不得相见，船已驶下渝州。

longing for you yet not seeing you, sailing down to Yuzhou.

末句是全诗情感的点睛之笔。「思君不见」四字，点出离别的怅惘——舟行愈远，思之愈切，而故人或故月已不可复见；「下渝州」三字，则写舟行不驻、顺流直下的迅疾，一「下」字既写水势之急，也写离情之迫，仿佛舟已不由自主地滑向远方。关于「君」字，或解为月、或解为友，其实不必执一：诗人此刻所思念的，既是随舟相送的故土明月，也是明月所照的故人，人与月、情与景在「君」字上浑然莫辨。前三句的写景，至此汇成一声低回的叹息，景美而情长，余味悠然，正是李白七绝「语近情遥」的极致。

The closing line is the eye-dotting stroke of the whole's feeling. The four words longing for you yet not seeing you point the parting's wistfulness - the farther the boat goes, the keener the longing, yet the old friend or the old moon can be seen no more; the three words sailing down to Yuzhou write the boat's unstopping, shooting down the current's swiftness, the single word down at once writing the water's urgency and the parting's pressure, as if the boat has slid beyond control toward the distance. As for the word you, some read the moon, some the friend; in truth one need not fix on one: what the poet at this moment longs for is at once the homeland moon that sends him off with the boat, and the old friend on whom the moon shines, man and moon, feeling and scenery fused on the word you, indistinguishable. The first three lines' scenery here gathers into one low sigh, the scenery beautiful and the feeling long, the aftertone leisurely, exactly Li Bai's seven-character quatrain's peak of words near yet feeling far.

Study

Word focus

半轮 Half a wheel (crescent moon). The image of an incomplete moon implies the sadness of separation. 「半轮」二字写月之形，是首句的炼字所在。它不写「圆月」「满月」，而写「半轮」，自有深意：从写景看，半轮之月更见清瘦娟秀，与秋夜的清冷相宜；从抒情看，月缺恰如人离，不圆满的月相暗合离人不圆满的心境，以月之缺写情之缺，不着一字而离愁自见。「半轮」还写出月的立体感——月亮如一轮半圆的玉盘悬于山巅，具象而生动。李白以「半轮」状月，既避开了「月明」「月皎」的陈套，又使全句的意象更为清新，正是其「清水出芙蓉」诗风在字法上的体现。若易为「满月」或「皓月」，则韵味大减。

入 Enter. Brings the moon’s reflection into the river, blending celestial and flowing water, showing Li Bai’s verbal skill. 「入」字用在「影入平羌江水流」，是一个轻灵而传神的动词。它写月影投入江中的过程，仿佛月影不是被动地映在江面，而是主动地「入」了江流，与江水融为一体。一个「入」字，使天上的月与江中的影产生了情感的联系——月不舍离人，故投影入江、随舟相送。此字比「映」「照」「落」都更见情致：「映」是平面的，「入」是立体的；「照」是自上而下的，「入」是月影自身投向江水的。一字之换，全句便由单纯的写景变为含情的动态画面，李白炼字之功力，于此可见一斑。

下 Down. Describes sailing downstream, implying gradual departure and growing distance, deepening the longing. 「下」字收束末句「思君不见下渝州」，是全诗情感的落点。它写舟行顺流而下的迅疾之势，渝州在长江下游，故云「下」；一个「下」字，既有水势之顺、舟行之速，又暗含离人之无奈——舟不由人，顺流而下，与故土、故人愈行愈远。「下」字与「夜发」「向三峡」相呼应，构成「发—向—下」的行程链条，一气贯通，写出江流的浩浩汤汤与行舟的一去不回。若易为「到」「过」，则只见行程，不见情致；着一「下」字，离愁便与江水同流，绵延不绝，而全诗也在这顺流而下的动势中悠然收束，余味无尽。