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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

无题·昨夜星辰昨夜风

Untitled (Last night's stars and last night's breeze)

李商隐

Li Shangyin

爱情Love 无题Untitled 愁思sorrow

昨夜星辰昨夜风，画楼西畔桂堂东。
身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通。
隔座送钩春酒暖，分曹射覆蜡灯红。
嗟余听鼓应官去，走马兰台类转蓬。

Last night's stars and last night's breeze,
West of the painted bower, east of cassia hall.
I have no colored phoenix's wings to fly,
But our hearts are linked by the magic horn's single thread.
Across the seats, passing the hook, warm spring wine,
Divided into sides, guessing the hidden, candlelight red.
Alas! Hearing the drum, I must go to my office,
Riding to the Orchid Terrace, like a tumbleweed blown.

Listen

Meaning

The poet recalls a secret meeting last night: separated by physical distance yet emotionally connected. He describes the joyful feast games, but suddenly must leave for his official duties, feeling as rootless as a tumbleweed.

昨夜的星辰，昨夜的清风，画楼的西畔，桂堂的东边。我身无彩凤那双飞的双翼，心却像灵犀一样息息相通。隔着座位传送弯钩，春酒正暖；分作两队射覆为戏，蜡灯通红。可叹我听着更鼓该去应卯为官，骑马奔向兰台，恰如飘转的飞蓬。

Appreciation

The poem is famous for the couplet 'I have no colored phoenix's wings to fly, / But our hearts are linked by the magic horn's single thread,' which contrasts physical separation with spiritual union. The structure shifts from nostalgic joy to the sorrow of parting and a life of drifting, showcasing Li Shangyin's characteristic blend of sensual imagery and deep emotion.

【白话串讲】 “身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通”——李商隐在宴会上遇到心仪的人，不能靠近，心却相通。这首《无题》，把一段说不出口的爱情写成了千古绝唱。【意象与手法】「身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通」一联，以否定与肯定对举，工巧深至，成千古名句。全诗由追忆之乐跌入应官之悲，乐极哀来，章法跌宕。彩凤、灵犀、蜡灯、转蓬诸意象秾丽而凄清，于华丽中见飘零，是典型的义山风调。【情感与主旨】此诗约作于李商隐任职秘书省（兰台）时期，写一次宴席上与所爱之人咫尺相值却不得相近的惆怅，并寄身世飘泊之慨。具体本事已难确指，历来或以为艳情、或以为托寓，是义山无题诗中最为明丽深情的一篇。【名句点睛】常考「身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通」的警策与情感；乐景写哀、由乐转悲的章法；无题诗朦胧多义的特点。

Background

Written during Li Shangyin's service at the Imperial Secretariat (Orchid Terrace), this poem is believed to describe a brief encounter with a beloved at a feast. The specific circumstances are lost, but the poem may also allegorically express the poet's own feelings of powerlessness and transience in his career.

李商隐（约813—858），字义山，号玉溪生，怀州河内人，晚唐诗歌大家，其无题诗以意象深微、情致绵邈著称。此诗约作于唐文宗开成四年（839）前后，诗人以宏词科落选后入秘书省（兰台）为校书郎时期。写一次宴席上与所爱之人咫尺相值却不得相近的惆怅，并寄身世飘泊之慨。具体本事已难确指，历来或以为艳情、或以为托寓：纪昀以为「追忆昨夜之景，而叹身世之飘零」，冯浩注则以为兼寓身世沦落之感。李商隐一生陷于牛李党争的夹缝之中，仕途蹭蹬，婚姻与仕宦纠缠，其无题诗多借男女之情写身世之悲，此篇亦然。全诗于秾丽明艳的宴饮画面中暗藏寒凉，是义山无题诗中最为明丽深情的一篇，与《锦瑟》之迷离、《相见时难》之沉痛并列为无题诗的代表作。就生平而言，李商隐早年受知于令狐楚，后娶王茂元之女，陷于牛李党争的夹缝，一生潦倒，其诗多借男女之情寄身世之感，此诗亦然。诗中「画楼」「桂堂」之富丽，正与「兰台」「转蓬」之飘零相对照，繁华之景愈明，身世之悲愈深，故历来解此诗者，或主艳情，或主寄托，而皆不能尽其意，正见其朦胧多义、意在言外的特质，也是义山无题诗魅力所在。

Art

The second couplet uses negation and affirmation in parallel construction, a masterful display of verbal dexterity and deep feeling. The entire poem moves from the warmth of reminiscence to the chill of official duty, creating a dramatic contrast. Images like the phoenix, rhinoceros horn, candlelight, and tumbleweed are both opulent and desolate, typical of Li Shangyin's intricate style.

「身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通」一联，以否定与肯定对举，工巧深至，成千古名句：上句以「无」写身隔，下句以「有」写心通，一抑一扬，将爱而不能近、近而心相印的复杂情愫写得深婉入骨。全诗章法跌宕：首联以「昨夜」叠语追忆欢会之地，低回怅惘；颔联名句写身隔心通，是情感的凝点；颈联以「送钩」「射覆」「春酒暖」「蜡灯红」铺写宴饮之乐，秾丽欢洽；尾联陡转，「嗟余听鼓应官去，走马兰台类转蓬」，由追忆之乐跌入应官之悲，乐极哀来，收束于身世飘零之慨。彩凤、灵犀、蜡灯、转蓬诸意象秾丽而凄清，于华丽中见飘零，典型义山风调：以最秾艳之笔写最沉痛之情，愈华丽愈见其哀，是李商隐区别于温庭筠等晚唐诗人的独得之境。全诗八句，前六句极写欢会之盛，后二句陡写应官之悲，乐与哀之间不作过渡，而转折处尤见力度，正是「乐极哀来」的典范章法。又诗中「身无」「心有」「隔座」「分曹」「嗟余」「走马」等词，虚字实字相间，流转自如，读来如行云流水，而情感之跌宕、境界之开合，皆藏于流利的音节之中，故能于秾丽之中见沉郁，于流利之中见顿挫，为义山七律中最见章法经营的一首。

Allusions

The 'magic horn' (lingxi) refers to the rhinoceros horn, believed to have a white line running through it that enables telepathic communication, symbolizing a heart-to-heart connection. 'Passing the hook' (songgou) and 'guessing the hidden' (shefu) are drinking games from the Han and Tang dynasties. 'Orchid Terrace' (Lantai) refers to the Imperial Library or Secretariat. 'Tumbleweed' (zhuanpeng) is an image from Cao Zhi's poem, symbolizing a wandering life.

灵犀用《南州异物志》之典：犀角中有白纹如线，直通两头，感应灵异，故称灵犀，喻两心相通，是此诗最著之名典。送钩、射覆皆汉唐宴饮中的行酒游戏：「送钩」即藏钩之戏，相传起于汉武帝钩弋夫人事，唐人段成式《酉阳杂俎》载其俗；「射覆」为先覆盖一物令人猜度之戏，《汉书·东方朔传》已有记载，《红楼梦》亦承此俗。兰台本指藏书之秘阁，汉以御史中丞居之，掌图籍秘书，唐高宗时改秘书省为兰台，此处即指秘书省，切合诗人校书郎之身份。「转蓬」本曹植《杂诗》「转蓬离本根，飘飖随长风」之典，喻身世飘转。数典皆融化于辞情之中，不见堆垛，足见义山「獭祭鱼」用事而能运化入妙的本领。又「彩凤」之象，本出《山海经》凤凰之属，古以凤凰双飞喻伉俪之合，《左传》「凤凰于飞，和鸣锵锵」已开其端，义山以「彩凤双飞翼」写身不能飞越之憾，正以凤之能飞反衬己之不能飞，意象愈美，憾恨愈深。「送钩」「射覆」之戏，唐人诗文中屡见，如《酉阳杂俎》详载其法，义山取以写宴乐之欢，皆以切近之俗事写深沉之情思，用典而不隔，正见其化俗为雅的功力。

Commentary

Yuan Haowen in 'On Poetry' remarked, 'Poets all love the Xi Kun style, but regret there is no Zheng Xuan to annotate them,' referring to the obscurity of Li Shangyin's untitled poems. He Shang in 'Zai Jiu Yuan Shi Hua' called the 'heart linked' couplet 'words of emotion that feel timeless.' Feng Hao's annotation suggests the poem also implies the poet's own sense of displacement.

金元好问《论诗三十首》谓「诗家总爱西昆好，独恨无人作郑笺」，正指义山无题之难解——宋初西昆体诗人专学义山，而无人能为其诗作注，可见其旨意朦胧、众说纷纭。此诗「心有灵犀」一联，清贺裳《载酒园诗话》称为「写情至语，千古如新」；冯浩《玉溪生诗集笺注》以为兼寓身世沦落之感；纪昀《玉溪生诗说》评「二联已妙，尾联更妙」，赏其由乐转悲之跌宕。自唐末至今，此联已脱离原诗而独立流行，成为描写心灵相通的习用成语，足见其艺术生命力。历代论者多推此诗为义山无题中情辞双美之作，其朦胧多义、意在言外的特质，正代表中国抒情诗的最高美学。清人纪昀《玉溪生诗说》评此诗：「二联已妙，尾联更妙，结句以『转蓬』收，尤见身世之感。」今人论义山无题，或析其朦胧多义之美学，或考其本事之实，而此诗「心有灵犀」一联，早已超越考证而成为民族语言中的习用成语，正见其艺术生命力之强。纵观义山无题诸作，此诗以明丽之笔写深婉之情，是其深情绵邈风格的代表，亦为晚唐爱情诗的巅峰，其影响及于宋初西昆体与后世言情文学，千年不衰。

Prosody

Form Seven-character regulated verse (七言律诗)七言律诗

Rhyme Pingshui rhyme: Upper level 1 dong (风、东、通、红、蓬)风、东、通、红、蓬，押平水韵上平一东韵，首句入韵，一韵到底。

Tone pattern First couplet rhymes, level tone pattern with initial rhyme平起首句入韵式；颔联流水对、颈联工对，皆对仗精工，平仄合律。

Reading note The second couplet is a flowing parallel couplet, skillfully expressing deep emotion, representative of Li Shangyin's untitled poems.此诗为七言律诗，首句入韵，平起首句入韵式：首句「昨夜星辰昨夜风」以平声「风」字入韵，二、四、六、八句「东」「通」「红」「蓬」同押平水韵上平一东韵，一韵到底，音调响亮而流转。中二联对仗精工：颔联「身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通」为流水对，上下句一气贯注，否肯相生，是律诗对仗中难得的情理兼胜之作；颈联「隔座送钩春酒暖，分曹射覆蜡灯红」为工对，「隔座」对「分曹」、「送钩」对「射覆」、「春酒」对「蜡灯」、「暖」对「红」，四层相对，色彩秾丽，音节流丽。全诗平仄合律，声情并茂：前六句以平韵写欢会之乐，音节舒缓明快；尾联「嗟余」「应官」「转蓬」连用平仄顿挫之字，声调转为沉郁，与辞情由乐转悲的章法相应。故沈德潜称义山七律「寄托深而措辞婉」，此诗声律与情感浑然一体，为义山无题诗中最为明丽深情的代表作。

Line by line

昨夜星辰昨夜风，画楼西畔桂堂东

Recall last night's stars and wind, the setting at the painted bower and cassia hall. The repetition of 'last night' creates a nostalgic, lingering tone.

昨夜的星辰，昨夜的清风，画楼西畔，桂堂之东。

Last night's stars, last night's breeze; west of the painted tower, east of the cassia hall.

追忆起笔，以「昨夜」叠用领起全篇，低回怅惘之调立现。「星辰」「风」是昨夜之景，「昨夜」两见，一唱三叹，写出诗人对那一夜刻骨铭心的记忆——越是反复强调，越见追怀之深。「画楼西畔桂堂东」以方位词写欢会之地，画楼与桂堂对举，富丽精致，暗示主人公非寻常人家；「西畔」「东」两个方位词精微地点出两人相隔不远、近在咫尺的位置关系，为下文「身无彩凤双飞翼」的咫尺天涯之叹埋下伏笔。全句无一字写人写情，而那一夜的风月、楼堂、人影已宛然在目，情味自在言外，是典型的以虚写实、含蓄见长的义山笔法。

The opening begins in recollection, repeating last night to lead the poem, the low, wistful tone at once present. Stars and breeze are last night's scenery; last night appears twice, one chant three sighs, writing the poet's searing memory of that night - the more he repeats, the deeper the recollection. West of the painted tower, east of the cassia hall uses directions to name the tryst place; painted tower and cassia hall set against, luxurious and refined, hinting the protagonists are no common households; west and east precisely fix the closeness of the two, near at hand - the伏笔 for the body lacks wings yet hearts touch below. The whole line not one word of person or feeling, yet that night's wind and stars, towers and halls, figures are vivid before the eyes, feeling between the lines - the typical Li Shangyin method of writing the solid through the void, reserved and refined.

身无彩凤双飞翼，心有灵犀一点通

Though my body lacks the paired wings of a colorful phoenix, my heart is connected by a single thread from the magic rhinoceros horn. Contrasts physical separation with spiritual union, a famous couplet.

我身无双翅不能飞到你身边，心却像灵犀一样彼此相通。

My body lacks the wings of a colored phoenix to fly to you; yet our hearts, like the spirit rhinoceros, touch at one point.

此联为千古名句，以否定与肯定对举写身隔心通。上句「身无彩凤双飞翼」言身不能飞越，以「彩凤」双飞之翼为喻，写形体阻隔之无奈；下句「心有灵犀一点通」以犀角中白纹相通的神异之典，写心灵契合之默契。一否一肯，先抑后扬，身之愈隔，心之愈通，形成强烈对照，将爱而不能近、近而心相印的复杂情愫写得深婉入骨。对仗工巧而自然，「彩凤」对「灵犀」、「双飞翼」对「一点通」，色彩秾丽而意致空灵。此联之妙尤在「一点通」三字：相通只在方寸之间、灵光一闪，无须言语而心心相印，是义山七律中情辞双美的典范，历来被推为写情人语之最。

This couplet is the immortal line, using negation and affirmation set against to write body apart, hearts as one. My body lacks the wings of a colored phoenix to fly to you: the body cannot cross, using the colored phoenix's paired wings for metaphor, writing the helplessness of bodily barrier. Yet our hearts, like the spirit rhinoceros, touch at one point uses the marvelous allusion of the white line through the rhinoceros horn connecting, writing the soul's默契. One negation one affirmation, first depreciating then exalting: the more the body apart, the more the hearts touch, a strong contrast, writing the complex feeling of loving yet unable to be near, near yet heart-to-heart, deep to the bone. The parallel is refined yet natural - colored phoenix with spirit rhinoceros, paired wings with one point touch - color gorgeous yet meaning airy. The couplet's art lies especially in one point touch: the connection only in the smallest space, a flash of light, heart to heart without words - the model of beauty in both feeling and diction among Li Shangyin's regulated verses, since ages judged the supreme language of lovers.

隔座送钩春酒暖，分曹射覆蜡灯红

Across seats, the hook game is played with warm spring wine; divided into groups, the hidden object game under red candlelight. Vividly depicts the lively feast, heightening the joy of the moment.

隔着座位传送弯钩行酒令，春酒正暖；分作两队射覆为戏，蜡灯通红。

Across the seats we passed the hidden hook, the spring wine warm; divided into teams at guessing games, the candle lamps red.

此联补写宴席之欢，是全诗唯一的暖色画面。「送钩」「射覆」皆唐代宴饮中的行酒游戏，一写藏钩之戏，一写猜物之戏，皆须两人或两队相与，暗写她与他虽隔座分曹而眉目心通的情景；「春酒暖」写酒之温煦，「蜡灯红」写烛光之炽烈，暖与红皆为热色，极写欢会之盛。然而乐景之下暗藏哀情：越是热闹欢洽，越见相聚之短暂、分离之必然，暖与红不过是瞬息之欢，为尾联的骤冷蓄势。四词叠用，秾丽而不堆砌，声色俱茂，是典型的义山风调——于繁华中见苍凉，于暖红中伏寒机，读之令人乐极生哀。

This couplet fills in the banquet's joy, the poem's only warm-colored picture. Passing the hidden hook and guessing games are both Tang banquet drinking games - one the hidden hook, one the guessing of objects, both requiring two or teams; secretly writing that though she and he were separated by seats and teams, eyes and hearts connected. The spring wine warm writes the wine's warmth; the candle lamps red the lamp's blaze - warm and red both hot colors, writing the tryst's splendor. Yet beneath joyful scenery hides grief: the more bustling and congenial, the more the meeting's brevity and parting's necessity show; warm and red are only momentary joy, storing force for the sudden cold of the closing. Four terms stacked, gorgeous yet not piled, sound and color both flourishing - the typical Li Shangyin tone: seeing desolation in splendor, hiding cold mechanism in warm red; reading it, joy turns to grief.

嗟余听鼓应官去，走马兰台类转蓬

Alas, I hear the drum and must go to my duties, riding to the Orchid Terrace like a tumbleweed. A sudden shift to sorrow, expressing the hurried parting and the poet's sense of rootlessness.

可叹我听罢更鼓该去应卯为官，骑马奔向兰台，恰如飘转的飞蓬。

Alas, hearing the drum I must go to my office; galloping to the Lan-tai, I am like a tumbling weed.

尾联陡转，由宴饮之乐跌入应官之悲，是全诗情感的高潮与转折。「嗟余」一声长叹，是乐转悲的关纽，含身不由己之无奈；「听鼓应官」写更鼓催人、身系官身，欢会再好也须应卯离去；「走马兰台」写骑马赶往秘书省（兰台）供职；「类转蓬」以随风飞转之蓬喻官身奔走、身世飘零，收束全诗飘泊之慨。前六句写欢会之乐，此二句写离别之悲，乐极哀来，跌宕生姿，将爱情之惆怅升华为身世之飘零，使这首无题不止于艳情，更含士人宦海浮沉的生命悲感，故历来解者多谓其兼寓身世之慨，是「无题」之旨深不可测的又一明证。

The closing couplet turns abruptly, from the banquet's joy to the office-going grief, the poem's emotional climax and pivot. Alas is a long sigh, the hinge of joy turning to grief, holding the helplessness of being not his own master. Hearing the drum I must go to my office writes the night drum urging, the body bound to office; however fine the tryst, he must leave for the morning roll-call. Galloping to the Lan-tai writes riding to the Secretariat (Lan-tai); like a tumbling weed uses the wind-tossed tumbleweed to image the official's running and the life's drifting, resolving the poem's wandering sorrow. The first six lines write the tryst's joy; these two write parting's grief - joy to its extreme turns to grief, the brush rising and falling, sublimating love's wistfulness into life's wandering, making this untitled poem more than erotic: it holds the scholar's life-pain of official drifting; hence commentators have long read it as also holding personal fortune, another proof of the untitled's unfathomable depth.

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Word focus

灵犀 Magic rhinoceros horn: the white line through the horn was believed to enable telepathic connection, symbolizing a heart-to-heart bond. A novel and profound image. 「心有灵犀一点通」之「灵犀」，典出《南州异物志》：犀角中有白纹如线，直通两头，感应灵异，故称灵犀。李商隐借以喻两人心灵相通、情意相印，把抽象的默契化为具象的神异之物，意象新奇而情致深婉。妙处有三：一是「一点通」之「一点」，言相通只在方寸之间、灵光一闪，无须言语而心心相印，比直说「相通」更见分寸；二是以「灵」字写情之玄妙，非人力可致，更见天缘之奇；三是与上句「彩凤」对举，凤有翼而身不能飞，犀通灵而心自相印，一物理之隔，一精神之通，对照愈工，情致愈深，故千年传诵不衰，乃至脱离原诗而成为习用成语。

嗟 Alas: an interjection of regret, marking the turning point from joy to sorrow, conveying helplessness. 「嗟余听鼓应官去」之「嗟」字，是全篇由乐转悲的关纽。嗟为叹词，一声叹息，含无限无奈与怅惘：叹欢会之短，叹官身之累，叹身不由己之可悲。此字一出，前六句的暖红热闹戛然而止，情绪陡然跌落，音节亦由流丽转为低回。妙在「嗟」字不着一词形容，而万千感慨尽在叹息之中，正合义山诗含蓄深婉之旨。若直写「恨」「怨」等字，则辞情过露，反失其绵邈之致。一字之叹，为「类转蓬」的飘零之慨定下基调，是章法跌宕中不可或缺的情感枢纽，其轻其重，恰到好处。

转蓬 Tumbleweed: a plant that breaks off and rolls in the wind, used as a metaphor for the poet's drifting life due to official duties. 「走马兰台类转蓬」之「转蓬」，本曹植《杂诗》「转蓬离本根，飘飖随长风」之典，喻身世飘转、不由自主。李商隐借以自况：清晨应官，骑马奔向兰台，日复一日，如蓬草随风飞转，无根无定。妙处有二：一是「转」字写尽身不由己之态，与「走马」的动态呼应，奔波之状如在目前；二是蓬之飘零与宴中蜡灯之暖形成冷热对照，欢会之暖愈甚，飘零之悲愈深。以物喻人，形象鲜明而含蕴深厚，将身世之感融入一喻之中，收束全篇，余悲不尽，是义山诗中典型的沉郁之笔，也是「无题」由爱情升华为生命悲感的点睛之字。