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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

过华清宫·其二

Passing the Huaqing Palace, No. 2

杜牧

Du Mu

咏史Poem on History 讽喻Satirical Allegory

新丰绿树起黄埃，数骑渔阳探使回。
霓裳一曲千峰上，舞破中原始下来。

Past Xinfeng's green trees a yellow dust cloud rises — a few riders: the scouts from Yuyang are coming back.
One song of the Rainbow Skirt atop a thousand peaks; only when the dance has danced the Central Plains to ruin do they descend.

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Meaning

Du Mu revisits the Huaqing Palace and compresses the An-Shi catastrophe into twenty-eight characters: the bribed scout returns from Yuyang while Xuanzong dances the Rainbow Skirt song on Mount Li. The dance ends only when the empire is danced to ruin — satire of Xuanzong's negligence so compressed it became unforgettable.

新丰的绿树间扬起黄埃，几骑从渔阳探事的使者回来。霓裳一曲，奏响在千峰之上，舞破中原，才肯下来。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Yellow dust rises past Xinfeng's green trees: a few riders, the scouts from Yuyang, return. A Rainbow Skirt song sounds atop a thousand peaks; the dance does not end until the Central Plains are danced to ruin. [Contrast] The scout's return (danger arriving) is set against the Rainbow Skirt dance (pleasure continuing): the poem's irony lives entirely in the juxtaposition. [Compression] 'Danced the Central Plains to ruin' welds the lightest word (dance) to the heaviest (ruin), and 'only then' registers the emperor's numbness — the dancing stops not at the alarm but after the catastrophe.

【白话串讲】杜牧写《过华清宫·其二》：“新丰绿树起黄埃，数骑渔阳探使回”——“霓裳一曲千峰上，舞破中原始下来”——霓裳舞曲响彻千峰，舞到中原被攻破才停下来——他讽唐玄宗。【意象与手法】此诗是杜牧《过华清宫绝句三首》之二，写玄宗在骊山纵乐、安禄山渔阳探事的历史，是杜牧咏史诗的名篇。前两句写探使的归来：「新丰绿树起黄埃，数骑渔阳探使回」写渔阳（安禄山驻地）探使的飞骑归来，扬起黄埃。后两句写骊山的纵乐：「霓裳一曲千峰上，舞破中原始下来」写霓裳羽衣曲在千峰之上奏响，舞破中原才肯下来，是千古名句。全诗以探使与霓裳对照，写边患的逼近与玄宗的纵乐，讽刺辛辣，是杜牧「以史为鉴」的典范。【情感与主旨】此诗约作于唐文宗大和年间（827-835）或之后，是杜牧《过华清宫绝句三首》之二。唐玄宗晚年沉溺声色，宠杨贵妃，与贵妃在华清宫（骊山温泉宫）纵乐；安禄山在渔阳（范阳）拥兵自重，蓄谋叛乱。据《旧唐书》等载，玄宗曾派宦官辅璆琳到渔阳探视安禄山，辅璆琳受贿，回报安禄山「无异志」，玄宗遂不设防；而玄宗在骊山与杨贵妃歌舞纵乐，霓裳羽衣曲彻夜不休，终于安史之乱爆发，「渔阳鼙鼓动地来」，中原沦陷。诗中「新丰绿树起黄埃，数骑渔阳探使回」写探使的归来——那从渔阳探事归来的飞骑，扬起黄埃，正是边患逼近的预兆；「霓裳一曲千峰上，舞破中原始下来」写骊山的纵乐——那霓裳羽衣曲在骊山千峰之上奏响，玄宗与贵妃纵情歌舞，「舞破中原」四字，以极重的笔法写极轻的「舞」，写尽玄宗纵乐误国的悲剧——中原都「舞破」了，那霓裳才肯停下来。全诗以「探使回」与「舞破中原」的对照，写尽边患的逼近与玄宗的麻木，讽刺辛辣而意味深长，是杜牧咏史诗中写安史之乱的名篇。【名句点睛】常考“霓裳一曲千峰上，舞破中原始下来”写玄宗纵乐误国，是千古名句；“新丰绿树起黄埃，数骑渔阳探使回”写边患的逼近。

Background

Du Mu (803–c. 852), courtesy name Muzhi, was the leading late-Tang poet and, with Li Shangyin, one of the 'Little Li-Du'. Visiting the ruins of the Huaqing Palace on Mount Li, he wrote three quatrains on Xuanzong's folly. The second alludes to a recorded event: Xuanzong sent the eunuch Fu Qiulin to spy on An Lushan at Yuyang; Fu, bribed, reported that An had no rebel intent, and the emperor dropped his guard while feasting and dancing with Yang Guifei at the hot-spring palace. In 755 An Lushan revolted from Yuyang, and the Central Plains were lost.

此诗约作于唐文宗大和年间（827-835）或其后，是杜牧《过华清宫绝句三首》之二。杜牧过华清宫遗址（在陕西临潼骊山），追怀玄宗与杨贵妃的历史，写下《过华清宫绝句三首》（其一「长安回望绣成堆，山顶千门次第开。一骑红尘妃子笑，无人知是荔枝来」、其二、其三）。此诗写安史之乱前夜的史实：唐玄宗晚年沉溺声色，宠杨贵妃，在华清宫纵乐；安禄山在渔阳（今北京一带）拥兵自重，蓄谋叛乱。据《旧唐书·安禄山传》等载，玄宗曾派宦官辅璆琳到渔阳探视安禄山，辅璆琳收受安禄山重贿，回报玄宗「禄山无异志」，玄宗遂不设防；天宝十四载（755），安禄山在渔阳起兵，「渔阳鼙鼓动地来」（白居易《长恨歌》），安史之乱爆发，玄宗仓皇奔蜀，中原沦陷。诗中「新丰绿树起黄埃」写探使归来之景——新丰（今临潼东北）的绿树间扬起黄埃，那是探使飞骑归来扬起的尘土；「数骑渔阳探使回」写探使之归——那从渔阳探事归来的数骑，正是辅璆琳之流的探使（其回报「无异志」，正是蒙蔽玄宗的开始）；「霓裳一曲千峰上」写骊山的纵乐——霓裳羽衣曲在骊山千峰之上奏响，玄宗与贵妃纵情歌舞；「舞破中原始下来」写纵乐误国——那霓裳舞得「中原都破了」（安史之乱，中原沦陷），才肯停下来。「舞破中原」四字，以极重的笔法写极轻的「舞」，把玄宗的纵乐与国破的悲剧浓缩在四个字中，讽刺辛辣。此诗是杜牧咏史诗中写安史之乱的名篇，与《过华清宫绝句》其他两首共同构成对玄宗误国的讽刺。

Art

Four techniques carry the poem. First, contrast: the scout's return and the Rainbow Skirt dance are placed side by side, so the satire completes itself. Second, the compression of 'danced to ruin' — the lightest of words welded to the heaviest of events. Third, smallness showing greatness: in twenty-eight characters, only a dust cloud and a dance, yet the whole cause of the An-Shi catastrophe is present. Fourth, coldness: not a word of comment; the poet merely stages the scene, and the reader judges.

此诗的艺术特色可从四个层面解析。其一，探使与霓裳的对照。全诗前两句写探使的归来（新丰黄埃、渔阳探使回），后两句写骊山的纵乐（霓裳一曲、舞破中原），以探使的「回」与霓裳的「舞」对照——边患的探报正飞驰而来，玄宗却仍在纵情歌舞，对照之中，讽刺自明。其二，「舞破中原」的炼字。末句「舞破中原始下来」以「舞破中原」四字写纵乐误国——那极轻的「舞」与极重的「破中原」组合，把玄宗以歌舞误国的悲剧浓缩在四字中，是杜牧炼字的巅峰；「舞破」二字，既写霓裳之舞的痴迷，也写中原之破的惨剧，一轻一重、一乐一悲。其三，以小见大的笔法。全诗二十八字，只写探使归来与霓裳歌舞两个细节，却写出了安史之乱的因果——那探使的回报（蒙蔽）、霓裳的纵乐（误国），正是安史之乱的两个根源，以小见大、以简驭繁。其四，冷峻的讽刺。全诗不发一句议论，只写探使归、霓裳舞、中原破，以冷峻的笔法写玄宗纵乐误国的悲剧，讽刺而不露声色，正是杜牧「以史为鉴」的本领。四重手法层层推进，使此诗成为杜牧咏史诗中讽刺最辛辣的名篇。

Allusions

Xinfeng, near Chang'an, was built by Han Gaozu to cure his father's homesickness — here simply the roadside of the capital. Yuyang (modern Beijing) was An Lushan's base as military governor of Fanyang; the 'scout' alludes to the eunuch Fu Qiulin, whose bribed report lulled Xuanzong. The 'Rainbow Skirt' is the famous musical piece associated with Xuanzong and Yang Guifei, whose dance accompanied the feasts on Mount Li. Bai Juyi's Song of Everlasting Sorrow ('War drums came shaking the earth from Yuyang, breaking off the Rainbow Skirt song') provides the immediate literary echo: Du Mu turns Bai's drums breaking the skirt-song into 'the dance dancing the Central Plains to ruin'.

此诗的意象与典故深植于安史之乱与咏史传统。「新丰绿树起黄埃」写探使归来之景——新丰（今临潼东北）是长安近郊之地（汉高祖因太上皇思乡而建新丰），「绿树」「黄埃」写绿树间扬起的黄尘，那「黄埃」正是探使飞骑扬起的尘土，也是边患逼近的预兆；「数骑渔阳探使回」写探使之归——渔阳（今北京一带）是安禄山驻地（范阳节度使治所），「探使」写玄宗所派的探子（辅璆琳之流），「数骑」写其数骑归来，令人想到「一骑红尘妃子笑」的骑使意象（杜牧《过华清宫绝句·其一》），那渔阳探使的归来，正是安禄山谋叛的隐忧。渔阳与霓裳的对照，令人想到白居易《长恨歌》「渔阳鼙鼓动地来，惊破霓裳羽衣曲」——白诗写「渔阳鼙鼓」惊破「霓裳」，杜牧写「霓裳舞破中原」，异曲同工，都以渔阳（边患）与霓裳（纵乐）的对照写玄宗的误国。「霓裳一曲千峰上」写骊山的纵乐——「霓裳」即《霓裳羽衣曲》（玄宗所作、贵妃所舞的著名舞曲），「千峰上」写骊山华清宫（在骊山之上，宫殿在千峰之间），令人想到「山顶千门次第开」（杜牧《过华清宫绝句·其一》）写骊山宫殿的壮丽；「舞破中原始下来」写纵乐误国——「舞破中原」以「舞」写「破」，把霓裳之舞与中原之破浓缩一体，令人想到李商隐《马嵬》「此日六军同驻马」写马嵬之变与历代咏玄宗误国的诗篇。全诗化用白居易《长恨歌》、杜牧《过华清宫》组诗的传统，以对照写讽刺、以小见大写历史，正是杜牧「以史为鉴」的本领。

Commentary

This is the most famous of Du Mu's Huaqing Palace quatrains. Shen Deqian of the Qing dynasty called it utterly cold and severe, satire to the bone. Critics emphasize that the poem's twenty-eight characters contain the entire cause and effect of the An-Shi Rebellion — the bribed scout and the Rainbow Skirt dance are its two roots — and that 'danced the Central Plains to ruin' became a proverb for self-destruction through pleasure. It is routinely compared with the first quatrain ('One rider's red dust; the consort smiles — no one knows it is the lychees') as a pair of masterpieces of historical satire.

此诗历来被推为杜牧《过华清宫绝句》中的名篇，也是「舞破中原始下来」这一千古名句的出处。历代论者对此诗评价极高：清人沈德潜评此诗「语极冷峻，讽刺入骨」，近人更指出此诗以探使归来与霓裳歌舞的对照，写出了玄宗纵乐误国的悲剧，是杜牧咏史诗「以史为鉴」的典范。在文学史上，此诗的特殊价值在于：它以二十八字的小诗，写出了安史之乱的因果——那「渔阳探使回」的探报（被蒙蔽的隐忧）、那「霓裳一曲千峰上」的纵乐（误国的根源），正是安史之乱的两个前提；而「舞破中原始下来」四字，更是把玄宗的纵乐与中原的沦陷浓缩一体，成为咏玄宗误国的千古名句。此诗与《过华清宫绝句·其一》（「一骑红尘妃子笑，无人知是荔枝来」）同为杜牧咏玄宗的名篇：其一写「荔枝」的荒淫，其二写「霓裳」的误国，一写贵妃的宠幸、一写玄宗的纵乐，共同构成对盛唐衰亡的讽刺。此诗与白居易《长恨歌》「渔阳鼙鼓动地来，惊破霓裳羽衣曲」异曲同工，都以渔阳与霓裳的对照写玄宗的误国，但杜牧更凝练、更冷峻。对于今日读者，此诗是理解安史之乱与杜牧咏史传统的窗口，也是感受中国诗歌「以史为鉴」传统的典范——那探使的黄埃、千峰上的霓裳、舞破的中原，穿越千年，仍在警醒着后人「纵乐误国」的教训。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain (qijue), oblique-start with first line rhyming七言绝句（平起首句入韵）

Rhyme Four lines rhyming on ai (dust), hui (return), and lai (descend) of the hui group; the first line rhymes, and the long, low, dragging music suits the weight of historical satire.押上平十灰韵，韵脚为「埃」「回」「来」。首句「埃」字平声入韵，属首句入韵之格。韵脚「埃」「回」「来」皆属灰部，韵音悠长低回，正合其咏史讽刺的沉郁风格。

Tone pattern The standard seven-character quatrain pattern — oblique, level, oblique, level — gives a firm, forward-driving rhythm; the first couplet moves in haste (the scout's return), the second slows and sinks (the dance and the ruin).新丰绿树起黄埃，平平仄仄仄平平；数骑渔阳探使回，仄仄平平仄仄平；霓裳一曲千峰上，平平仄仄平平仄；舞破中原始下来，仄仄平平仄仄平。全诗平仄合于七绝格律，音节流畅沉郁。

Reading note The quatrain's compactness is essential to the poem: twenty-eight characters must hold the whole An-Shi catastrophe, so every word works double. Reading the first couplet fast and the second slowly, with weight on 'danced to ruin', conveys Du Mu's intent.此诗是平起首句入韵的七言绝句，押平声灰韵，格律简洁，音节流畅，是杜牧咏史诗中讽刺玄宗的名篇。全诗两联结构分明：前两句写探使的归来（新丰黄埃、渔阳探使回），后两句写骊山的纵乐（霓裳千峰、舞破中原），由边患到纵乐、对照成章。声调上，全诗以平声灰韵为韵脚，韵音悠长低回，配合「渔阳探使回」的紧迫与「舞破中原」的沉痛，全篇音节流畅而不失沉郁。诵读此诗，宜以急促的语调读前两句的探使归来，以沉重的语调读后两句的纵乐误国，尤其「舞破中原始下来」一句，要读得字字千钧，方能传达出杜牧讽刺的深意。杜牧绝句以「咏史论政」著称，此诗正是其《过华清宫绝句》中讽刺最辛辣的名篇。

Line by line

新丰绿树起黄埃，数骑渔阳探使回。

Past Xinfeng's green trees a yellow dust cloud rises — a few riders: the scouts from Yuyang are coming back.

新丰的绿树间扬起黄埃，几骑从渔阳探事的使者回来。

Green trees at Xinfeng raise yellow dust; a few riders return, scouts from Yuyang.

这两句是写边患逼近的名句，以「起黄埃」写探使的飞驰归来，以「渔阳探使回」写隐忧的预兆，含蓄而紧迫。「新丰绿树起黄埃」写归来之景——新丰（长安近郊）的绿树间扬起黄埃，「绿树」写春日的长安近郊，「起黄埃」写探使飞骑扬起的黄尘——那黄埃在绿树间扬起，正是数骑急驰而来的迹象，以「绿树」与「黄埃」的对照，写尽探使归来的急切；「数骑渔阳探使回」写探使之归——那从渔阳（安禄山驻地）探事归来的数骑使者，「数骑」写其寥寥数骑，「渔阳探使」写其探事的来源——那从渔阳归来的探使，正是安禄山谋叛的隐忧所在。这两句的深意在于：它以「探使回」写边患的逼近——渔阳的探报，正是安禄山谋叛的隐忧；而那「数骑」的归来，本应引起玄宗的警觉，却成了后文「霓裳一曲」纵乐的对照——探报与纵乐，正是玄宗误国的写照。以「起黄埃」写急驰、以「渔阳探使回」写隐忧，正是杜牧「以史为鉴」的含蓄笔法。

These two lines write the approaching frontier danger, 'raising yellow dust' the scouts' galloping return, 'scouts from Yuyang' the omen of hidden trouble, restrained yet urgent. Green trees of spring on the outskirts of Chang'an, the yellow dust of the scouts' horses — the contrast of green and dust writes the urgency of their return; the few riders from Yuyang, An Lushan's base, are the hidden worry of his revolt. The depth: the scouts' return should have roused the emperor's warning, yet it becomes the foil to the 'Rainbow-skirt' revelry below — the warning and the revel, the picture of Xuanzong's betraying the state.

霓裳一曲千峰上，舞破中原始下来。

One song of the Rainbow Skirt atop a thousand peaks; only when the dance has danced the Central Plains to ruin do they descend.

霓裳一曲，奏响在千峰之上，舞破中原，才肯下来。

The Rainbow-skirt dance, a tune, on a thousand peaks; only when the Central Plain is broken does the dance come down.

这两句是全诗的点睛之笔，也是千古名句，以「舞破中原」四字写玄宗纵乐误国的悲剧，讽刺入骨。「霓裳一曲千峰上」写骊山的纵乐——霓裳羽衣曲在骊山千峰之上奏响，「霓裳」是玄宗所作、贵妃所舞的著名舞曲，「千峰上」写骊山华清宫的高峻——那歌舞在千峰之上举行，写尽玄宗与贵妃纵情声色的沉迷；「舞破中原始下来」写纵乐误国——那霓裳舞得「中原都破了」，才肯停下来，「舞破中原」四字，以极重的笔法写极轻的「舞」——一个「舞」字，写尽玄宗的纵乐；一个「破」字，写尽中原的沦陷，那「舞」与「破」的组合，把玄宗以歌舞误国的悲剧浓缩在四字中，触目惊心。这两句的深意在于：它以「千峰上」与「中原」的对照写纵乐误国——玄宗在千峰之上纵情歌舞，中原却在烽火中沦陷；那「舞破中原始下来」的「始」字，更写尽玄宗的麻木——不是听到警报就停，而是「舞破中原」才肯停，那「始」字写尽纵乐的痴迷与误国的深沉。以「千峰上」写纵乐之地、以「舞破中原」写误国之深，正是杜牧炼字的巅峰，也让这两句成为咏玄宗误国的千古名句。

These two lines are the poem's eye, a famous one, the words 'the dance breaks the Central Plain' writing the tragedy of Xuanzong's indulgence, the satire biting to the bone. 'The Rainbow-skirt dance, a tune, on a thousand peaks' writes the revelry on Li Mountain — the Rainbow Feather Dress dance, composed by Xuanzong and danced by Guifei, performed on the high peaks; 'only when the Central Plain is broken does the dance come down' — the dance goes on until the Central Plain is broken, and then it stops. The word 'dance' writes all his indulgence; the word 'broken' writes the fall of the central land; the four words compress the tragedy of dancing the state away. The word 'only when' writes his numbness — not stopping at the alarm, but only when the plain is broken; the obsession and the ruin.

Study

Word focus

破 To break or ruin; the poem's key word. 'Danced to ruin' welds the lightest act (dance) to the heaviest event (the loss of the Central Plains), compressing Xuanzong's self-destruction into one character. 「破」字是写玄宗误国的关键字，一个「破」字写尽中原沦陷的惨剧，力重千钧。破者，攻破、沦陷也。杜牧以「舞破中原始下来」写玄宗的纵乐，一个「破」字，至少有双重意味：其一，写中原之沦陷——「舞破中原」写那霓裳舞着舞着，中原就「破」了——安史之乱，两京沦陷、山河破碎，「破」字写尽中原沦陷的惨剧——不是「乱」，不是「危」，而是「破」，那「破」字写尽山河破碎的彻底；其二，写纵乐之误国——「舞破」的「破」，是「舞」出来的「破」——玄宗在千峰上纵情歌舞，歌舞之时，中原已破，那「舞」与「破」的组合，写尽纵乐与误国的因果——正是那霓裳之舞，误了中原之破。以「破」写误国，正是杜牧炼字的巅峰：一个「破」字，既是写中原沦陷的事实，也是写玄宗纵乐的后果，与「舞」字组合，一轻一重、一乐一悲，把「纵乐误国」的悲剧浓缩在四字中。若换作「乱」「陷」等字，则或失其「破」的彻底，或失其与「舞」的对照；唯「破」字，以一字写尽中原沦陷的惨剧与玄宗纵乐的后果，也让「舞破中原始下来」成为千古名句。

始 Only then; it registers the emperor's numbness: the dancing does not stop at the warning but only after the empire is ruined, the single word exposing the depth of the negligence. 「始」字是写玄宗麻木的关键字，一个「始」字写尽纵乐的痴迷与误国的深沉，含蓄而辛辣。始者，方才、才也。杜牧以「舞破中原始下来」写玄宗的纵乐，一个「始」字，至少有双重意味：其一，写停舞之迟——「始下来」写那霓裳舞到「舞破中原」，玄宗才肯停下来，「始」字写尽停舞之迟——不是听到渔阳的警报就停，而是「舞破中原」才停，那「始」字写尽纵乐的痴迷；其二，写麻木之深——「始下来」的「始」，暗含「终于、到头来」的意味——那纵乐直到国破才停，正写尽玄宗的麻木——他沉溺声色，对边患的警报浑然不觉，直到中原沦陷、大厦将倾，才如梦初醒，「始」字写尽误国的深沉。以「始」写停舞，正是杜牧对玄宗心理的深刻把握：那「舞破中原始下来」的「始」，写尽了纵乐者的痴迷与麻木——不是及时收手，而是国破才停；不是知错能改，而是覆水难收。若换作「才」「方」等字，则或失其「终于」的意味，或失其「直到国破」的沉痛；唯「始」字，以一字写尽纵乐的痴迷与误国的深沉，也让「舞破中原始下来」成为讽刺玄宗的千古名句。