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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

送柴侍御

Seeing Off Attendant Chai

王昌龄

Wang Changling

离别Parting 友情Friendship

沅水通波接武冈，送君不觉有离伤。
青山一道同云雨，明月何曾是两乡。

The Yuan’s waves reach Wugang from afar;
I feel no parting sorrow where you are.
The same green hills share clouds and rain;
The same bright moon—how can two lands remain?

Listen

Meaning

The Yuan River’s waves connect all the way to Wugang; seeing you off, I hardly feel the sadness of parting. We share the same green hills with their clouds and rain, and the same bright moon—how could we ever be in two different places?

沅水连通着波流，一直通到武冈；送别你远去，我竟不觉得有离别的悲伤。你我同在一片青山之下，共沐同一场云雨；同顶一轮明月，又何曾分作两地两乡。全诗以理遣情、豁达明快，将离愁化解于山水云月的共在之中。

Appreciation

Unlike typical farewell poems that dwell on sorrow, this poem expresses a broad-minded, rational consolation. The poet confidently declares he feels no sadness because the friend and he share the same landscape and moon, dissolving the distance between them.

【白话串讲】 “青山一道同云雨，明月何曾是两乡”——王昌龄送别朋友：我们淋同一场雨，看同一个月亮，哪里算两个地方？一千年前就写好的温柔，今天仍在刷屏。【意象与手法】一反送别诗黯然销魂的常调，以理遣情，豁达明快。首句写水脉相连伏下地近，次句直说不觉离伤翻出新意；后二句以青山同云雨、明月非两乡申足，以风物之共破空间之隔。对仗工丽，构思新颖，语浅而情深【情感与主旨】此诗为王昌龄贬为龙标尉期间，送友人柴侍御前往武冈（今湖南武冈）之作。时诗人自身亦在迁谪流落之中，却不以衰飒语写别，反以旷达乐观之笔宽慰友人，体现了其身处逆境而襟怀洒脱的人生态度与友情观【名句点睛】常考「明月何曾是两乡」化用谢庄《月赋》「隔千里兮共明月」而翻进一层的共情手法；「不觉有离伤」的翻案之新；以景（青山明月）破隔的构思

Background

This poem was written when Wang Changling, demoted to Longbiao, saw off his friend Chai Shiyu to Wugang. Despite his own exile, the poet writes with optimism and composure, reflecting his resilient character and view of friendship.

此诗为王昌龄贬为龙标尉（今湖南黔阳一带）期间，送友人柴侍御前往武冈（今湖南武冈）之作，约作于天宝年间诗人谪居湘西之时。龙标与武冈皆在湖南西部，沅水一脉相连。时诗人自身亦在迁谪流落之中，远离长安、身世飘零，却不以衰飒语写别，反以旷达乐观之笔宽慰友人、自慰自解，体现了其身处逆境而襟怀洒脱、深情而不悲切的人生态度与友情观。唐人送别诗多写黯然销魂、执手相看之悲，此诗却独标新境，以「不觉有离伤」翻案，以「青山同云雨、明月非两乡」破空间之隔，将离愁化解于自然的共在之中，是王昌龄贬谪时期诗风由激昂转沉郁、由沉郁转旷达的典型见证，亦是唐人命途多舛而胸次自开的最好写照。此诗于历代送别名篇中独以「旷」字取胜，其「以理遣情」的构思，实开盛唐送别诗旷达一派的先声，与《送杜少府之任蜀州》等作共同拓展了送别诗的抒情空间，影响及于后世。

Art

The poem breaks from the conventional melancholy of parting poems by using reason to dispel emotion. The first line establishes geographical connection; the second directly states no sorrow. The couplet uses shared green hills and moon to bridge the spatial gap. The language is simple but profound.

此诗一反送别诗黯然销魂的常调，以理遣情，豁达明快，构思新颖。首句「沅水通波接武冈」据实写地理：沅水连通、波流相接，武冈在龙标上游，水脉相连暗示两地不远、情谊相接，为全诗定下通达的基调。次句「送君不觉有离伤」直说胸臆，翻案起笔，异于寻常伤别之语，旷达之中见出对友情的自信。后二句「青山一道同云雨，明月何曾是两乡」以景申理：青山共此一道、云雨共此一场，明月同照两地，故身虽分处两乡，心实未分。全诗前实后虚、由近及远，对仗工丽而不板滞，语浅而情深，以「同」破「隔」，将空间的遥远化为情感的通达，举重若轻，是唐人送别诗中旷达一派的代表作。尤须注意者，此诗通篇不见「愁」「泪」等字，而友情之深、离情之重自在言外，正合唐人「不着一字，尽得风流」之旨，亦可见诗人举重若轻的大家手笔。全诗语浅而旨远，读之令人心胸豁然，正是「以理遣情」的典范。

Allusions

The Yuan River is a major river in Hunan, and Wugang is upstream; the connection implies emotional bond. The moon shared across distance echoes Xie Zhuang’s ‘Though separated by a thousand li, we share the same moon’ and Wang Bo’s ‘If you have friends who know your heart, the ends of the earth seem like next door.’ The green hills and clouds rain use natural imagery to emphasize unity.

此诗用典不多而化用自然。沅水为湖南境内大江，源出贵州，流经黔阳、武冈一带入洞庭，诗人据实写两水通波，以地理之相连暗喻情谊之相通，是为即景即典。「明月」之共照，本谢庄《月赋》「隔千里兮共明月」之意，写两地相思以明月为媒介的传统，王勃「海内存知己，天涯若比邻」亦同此理；王昌龄以「何曾是两乡」翻进一层，谓明月之下本无分别，比「天涯若比邻」更饶画意与理趣。「青山一道同云雨」则以云雨之共沐写山水相连的亲近想象，以自然之物消弭离别之远。全诗句句有出处而不见典故痕迹，熔铸谢庄、王勃一脉的明月传统而自出新意，正是盛唐诗人善用典而浑化无迹的本色。此外，「云雨」一词自宋玉《高唐赋》以来兼含男女情事之联想，此处用之而不落艳俗，反以山水之共写情谊之亲，正见诗人熔铸典故而自出机杼的功力，亦为其遣词之妙处。其用典之浑化，正见盛唐诗人「腹有诗书」而「出之以淡」的功力。

Commentary

Shen Deqian in Tangshi Biecai praised this poem alongside Wang’s ‘Furonglou’ as masterpieces of farewell—one sorrowful, one broad-minded, each reaching its peak. Modern critics note that ‘How could the bright moon be two lands’ surpasses Wang Bo’s ‘end of the earth’ in picturesque quality, showing deep friendship through understatement.

清人沈德潜《唐诗别裁》评此诗与前《芙蓉楼送辛渐》「俱送别妙境，一悲一旷，各极其致」，道出王昌龄送别诗的两种面目：芙蓉楼一首写「一片冰心在玉壶」之自明心志，沉挚悲凉；此首写「明月何曾是两乡」之宽慰友人，旷达明快。近人论此诗，多赏「明月何曾是两乡」翻王勃「天涯若比邻」而更饶画意，谓其于疏淡中见深厚交情。此诗在文学史上的意义，在于为送别诗提供了「以理遣情」的新范式：不写泪、不写悲，而写山水之共、明月之同，将离愁升华为对友情普遍性的确认，情深而辞旷，故能历久弥新，与《送元二使安西》《芙蓉楼送辛渐》并列为唐人送别名篇。其流传之广，不仅见于历代选本，更成为后世书信、赠别文字中常引的名句，足证其以情动人、历久弥新的艺术生命力。其价值不在辞采，而在胸次，故能于千年之后仍感动读者，为送别诗中的千古名篇。其艺术生命力，历久弥新。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain (七言绝句)七言绝句

Rhyme Pingshui Rhyme: 下平七阳 (冈, 伤, 乡)平水韵·下平七阳（冈、伤、乡），首句入韵，一韵到底

Tone pattern Entering rhyme, first line entering rhyme pattern首句入韵，平起平收式，四句均七言，音节开阔

Reading note The last two lines form a couplet; a broad-minded departure in farewell poetry.此诗为七言绝句，押平水韵下平七阳韵，「冈」「伤」「乡」三字一韵到底，首句入韵，阳韵韵腹洪亮开阔，与全诗旷达乐观之情相得益彰。格律为平起首句入韵式，平仄和谐流转，朗读时音节舒展，如流水行云。绝句章法上，此诗有两大特点：一是前二句一实一虚——「沅水通波」写地理之实，「不觉离伤」写情感之虚，虚实相生；二是后二句对仗工丽——「青山一道同云雨，明月何曾是两乡」以山水对明月、以云雨对两乡，天然成对而不见斧凿，是绝句中少见的中联对仗。全诗以「通」字领起、以「何曾」反诘收束，一意贯穿，情理圆融，语浅情深，是唐人七绝旷达一路的典范，与《芙蓉楼送辛渐》一悲一旷，各极其致。

Line by line

沅水通波接武冈

The Yuan River’s waves connect to Wugang—establishing physical connection and implying closeness.

沅水连通着波流，一直通到武冈

The Yuan waters, their flowing waves, reach to Wugang.

首句据实写地理，点出送别之地与友人前往之地：「沅水」为湖南大江，「武冈」在沅水上游，水脉一脉相连。「通波」二字写水路无阻、波流相接，「接」字将两地的距离消弭于水道的贯通之中，为全诗「不觉有离伤」预作张本。此句看似纯写地理，实含三层意味：一是写地近，龙标与武冈本相去不远；二是写情通，水脉相连暗喻情谊相接，为后文「同云雨」「非两乡」立下事实与情感的根据；三是定基调，以开阔通达之景起笔，为全诗旷达乐观的情感定调，唐人送别诗多从景入手，而此句之景独见开阔明朗，无一丝衰飒之气。

The opening line writes the geography from fact, naming the parting place and the friend's destination: 'the Yuan waters' a great river of Hunan, 'Wugang' on the upper Yuan, the waters one vein. The words 'flowing waves' write the waterway unobstructed, the waves joined; the word 'reaches' dissolves the distance between the two places in the waterway's running through, the groundwork for the poem's 'feel not the grief of parting'. This line, seemingly pure geography, holds three meanings: first, the nearness of the places, Longbiao and Wugang not far apart; second, the joining of feeling, the linked waters secretly figuring the joined friendship, the factual and emotional ground for the later 'same cloud and rain' and 'not two homelands'; third, the tuning of the keynote, the open, unobstructed scene opening the poem's broad, optimistic feeling. The Tang farewell poems mostly open in scene, and this scene alone is open and bright, not a trace of the bleak.

送君不觉有离伤

Seeing you off, I feel no parting sorrow—an unconventional start, bold and fresh.

送别你远去，我竟不觉得有离别的悲伤

Seeing you off, I feel not the grief of parting.

此句翻案起笔，是全诗立意的关键，异于寻常送别诗的伤悲口吻。「不觉」二字以否定写出新境：不是没有离情，而是不觉有离伤——离情已被旷达化解，被对重逢的信心消解。「不觉」的背后，是对友情的深厚自信：正因为相信情谊不因空间而隔断，故不悲伤；正因为自己也曾身经迁谪、深知愁苦无益，故以旷达自解并慰人。此句直说胸臆而毫无叫嚣之态，语似平淡而襟怀自见，见出王昌龄身处逆境而洒脱不羁的人生态度，亦为此诗「以理遣情」的纲领，后二句的山水云月皆为此句作注。

This line opens by reversing the case, the key of the poem's theme, unlike the ordinary farewell's grieving tone. The words 'feel not' write the new realm through negation: not that there is no parting feeling, but that I feel not the grief of parting — the parting feeling has been resolved through breadth, dissolved through the confidence of meeting again. Behind 'feel not' is the deep confidence in the friendship: precisely because he believes the bond is not cut by space, he grieves not; precisely because he himself has known exile and demotion, and knows grief is of no use, he resolves himself through breadth and comforts the other. This line speaks the breast directly, without a trace of clamor, the words plain and the heart of itself, showing Wang Changling's free, unbowed spirit in adversity, and the keynote of this poem's 'resolving feeling through reason', the later two lines' hills, waters, clouds, and moon all annotating this line.

青山一道同云雨

We share the same green hills with clouds and rain—using shared scenery to break spatial separation.

你我同在一片青山之下，共沐同一场云雨

Beneath the same green hills, we share the same cloud and rain.

此句以景申理，写空间之共，是全诗旷达之情的形象化。青山连绵，何止一道；云雨之兴，何分两乡——诗人抓住山水云雨的自然共在，将「离」的实存化为「同」的想象：你我看同一片青山、沐同一场云雨，则虽分处两地，而天地并未将我们隔开。此句的妙处在于以实景写虚情：青山、云雨皆眼前实见之物，随手拈来，不假雕饰，而「一道」二字炼得平淡而新巧，将空间之共写足；与下句「明月」之共互为表里，一写白昼山水之同，一写夜晚明月之共，昼夜相续，情谊无间，是「不觉有离伤」最有力的注脚。

This line declares the reason through scene, writing the sharing of space, the image of the poem's broad feeling. The green hills stretch, more than one line; the cloud and rain rise, how could they divide two homelands — the poet seizes the natural co-presence of hills, waters, clouds, and rain, turning the reality of 'parting' into the imagination of 'same': you and I look on the same green hills, bathe in the same cloud and rain, and though we are in two places, heaven and earth have not parted us. The beauty of the line is writing the unreal feeling through the real scene: the green hills and the cloud and rain are the things before the eyes, picked up at hand, no adornment, and the words 'one line' crafted plain and new, writing the space's sharing to the full; set as inside and outside with the next line's 'bright moon', one the daylight hills and waters, one the night's bright moon, day and night continuing, the friendship without seam, the strongest footnote to 'feel not the grief of parting'.

明月何曾是两乡

The same bright moon—how can there be two lands?—rhetorically reinforces unity, simple language deep feeling.

同顶一轮明月，又何曾分作两地两乡

The bright moon — how could it ever be two homelands?

结句以反问收束，是全诗情感的高潮与点睛之笔。「何曾」二字以反诘语气强化「同」意：明月之下，本无两乡之分，则离伤从何而来？此句化用谢庄《月赋》「隔千里兮共明月」而翻进一层——谢庄写月之共照以慰相思，王昌龄更进一步，谓月光既共，则两乡之说本不能成立。以明月为证，以反诘出之，峭劲而情深，将全诗的旷达推到极致。此句亦暗含对离别的否定：身可以分处两乡，心与明月则无乡可分，故「不觉有离伤」至此获得最圆满的论证，全诗以「不觉」起、以「何曾」结，首尾呼应，情理圆融，语浅而味永，遂成千古名句。

The closing line ends in counter-question, the emotional climax and eye of the poem. The words 'how could it ever' strengthen the meaning of 'same' through the questioning tone: beneath the bright moon, there is no division of two homelands, then whence the grief of parting? This line adapts and advances a layer on Xie Zhuang's 'Moon Rhapsody', 'though parted by a thousand li, we share the bright moon' — Xie Zhuang writes the moon's shared light to comfort the longing, and Wang Changling goes further, saying since the moonlight is shared, the talk of two homelands cannot hold. With the bright moon as witness, in the counter-question, the keen and deep feeling, pushing the poem's breadth to the extreme. This line also secretly denies the parting: the body may be in two homelands, but the heart and the bright moon have no homeland to divide, hence 'feel not the grief of parting' here gains its fullest proof; the poem opens with 'feel not' and closes with 'how could it ever', head and tail answering, reason and feeling rounded, the words plain and the flavor lasting, becoming a famous line through the ages.

Study

Word focus

不觉 ‘unconsciously’ or ‘not feel’—negation creates a novel farewell sentiment, showing the poet’s broad-mindedness and confidence in friendship. 「不觉有离伤」之「不觉」，是全诗立意的关键词。以否定翻出送别新境：离别而不觉伤，非无情，而是情已升华——对友情之深厚自信、对重逢之殷切期盼，使离愁让位于旷达。「不觉」的妙处在于分寸感：若说「无离伤」，则显无情、失之生硬；「不觉」则言其自然、不经意，离情自在而不觉其伤，见出诗人胸襟之洒脱、对友人用心之体贴。二字看似寻常，实为全诗「以理遣情」的枢纽，后二句青山云雨、明月同照，皆为此「不觉」张本作注，炼字平淡而构思新巧，是王昌龄七绝中于虚处见工的典范。

何曾 ‘how could it ever’—a rhetorical question that strengthens the idea of ‘sameness,’ vigorous and affectionate. 「明月何曾是两乡」之「何曾」，以反问语气否定「两乡」之说，是全诗情感的总爆发。何曾者，何尝、哪里曾经之意，语气峭劲，不容置辩：明月共照，则两乡之谓本不成立，离伤从何而来？此二字妙在以问作结，比直陈「不是两乡」更见力量——直陈是陈述，反问是逼问，将读者带入诗人旷达自信的语境中，一同接受「非两乡」的结论。与首句「通波接武冈」遥相呼应，以「通」起、以「何曾」结，全诗的乐观基调至此圆合。炼字之精，在化陈述为反诘，一字之转，境界全出，情深而语峭，为千古警句添上点睛之笔。

一道 ‘one path’ or ‘the same’—‘one stretch of green hills’ expresses emotional closeness through spatial sharing, plain wording but clever conception. 「青山一道同云雨」之「一道」，写空间之共，炼字平淡而构思新巧。「一道」本指山之一脉，诗人拈此常语，写青山连绵如一道屏障，你我共此一道青山、共沐一场云雨，则空间的分隔被自然的共在消解。「一道」的妙处在于以少总多：不言「同山」「共雨」的抽象，而以「一道」这一具体可感的量词，将山水云雨的共在写得亲切如画，青山一道、云雨一场，天地俨然一体的温馨扑面而来。与「同」字配合，「一道同云雨」五字之中，空间之共、情谊之同、景致之美三者合一，语极平淡而意极深长，见出盛唐诗人以常语造奇境的功力，是「不觉有离伤」最诗意的注脚。