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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

夜雪

The Night Snow

白居易

Bai Juyi

咏物Object poem 写景Scenery

已讶衾枕冷，复见窗户明。
夜深知雪重，时闻折竹声。

Already I am surprised that the quilt and the pillow are cold,
And again I see the window bright.I know in the deep night that the snow is heavy,
From time to time I hear the sound of the bamboo breaking.
Listen

Meaning

A short poem of the night snow, written by Bai Juyi. Already he is surprised that the quilt and the pillow are cold — the cold of the night felt on the body; and again he sees the window bright — the brightness of the snow's light. He knows in the deep night that the snow is heavy — from time to time he hears the sound of the bamboo breaking — the heavy snow breaking the bamboo, the sound of the night. The poem is the night snow observed through the senses: the cold, the brightness, and the breaking of the bamboo — the snow known without seeing it, the quiet night of the snow.

夜已深，我忽然惊觉被衾和枕席冷得出奇，又看见窗外一片明亮。这才知道夜里的雪下得很大，因为不时能听到积雪压断竹枝的声音。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Already I am surprised that the quilt and the pillow are cold, and again I see the window bright. I know in the deep night that the snow is heavy, from time to time I hear the sound of the bamboo breaking. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves through the senses of the night snow: the cold of the quilt and the pillow, the brightness of the window, and the breaking of the bamboo — the snow known through the body, the eyes, and the ears. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the indirect observation: the snow is never seen — only its effects — the cold felt, the light seen, and the breaking heard — the heavy snow known through its signs. [Emotional Tone] Surprised, quiet, and exact: the poem is the night snow of the senses, the cold and the brightness and the breaking, the quiet night observed.

【白话串讲】 白居易写《夜雪》：“已讶衾枕冷，复见窗户明”——被子枕头都冷了，窗户也亮了。“夜深知雪重，时闻折竹声”——深夜知道雪下得大，不时听见竹子被压断的声音——他不写雪，却处处是雪。 【意象与手法】 此诗写夜雪，却全篇不见一个「雪」字，纯以侧面烘托取胜，是咏雪诗中「不着一字，尽得风流」的典范。全诗按诗人的知觉顺序层层推进：先以触觉写「衾枕冷」，次以视觉写「窗户明」，再以听觉写「折竹声」，三觉并用，层层深入地写出雪之「重」。诗人从被窝里惊醒，感到奇冷，抬眼见窗外通明，这才恍悟大雪纷飞，随后又听到积雪压断竹枝的声响，雪的动态与厚度便在这四个短句中呼之欲出。全诗无一字写雪之形色，而雪的重量、亮度、声音俱在，正是侧面描写与多感官通感的绝妙结合。 【情感与主旨】 此诗作于白居易被贬江州（今江西九江）时期，是《夜雪》组诗之一。诗人于冬夜独卧，被严寒惊醒，通过衾枕之冷、窗纸之明、折竹之声，敏锐地捕捉到一场大雪的降临。诗中流露的是一种孤寂而宁静的情怀：夜深人静，万籁俱寂，唯闻折竹之声，诗人的心绪也如这夜雪一般清冷而澄明。虽不直写身世之感，但一个「讶」字、一个「知」字，已隐约透出诗人独处异乡、夜不能寐的羁旅况味，只是他将这份孤寂化入了对大自然的细致体察之中，哀而不伤、淡而有味，体现了白居易后期「知足保和」的人生态度与对生活细节的敏锐感受力。 【名句点睛】 常考此诗「正面不写侧面写」的烘托手法，触觉（衾枕冷）、视觉（窗户明）、听觉（折竹声）三觉并用的通感艺术，以及全诗无一「雪」字而写尽夜雪之妙的构思；同时注意「时闻折竹声」以动衬静的写法与结句的余韵。

Background

Bai Juyi (772–846) wrote this short poem of the night snow, one of his many brief observations of the daily life. The poem's art is the indirect observation: the snow is not seen, but known through its effects — the cold of the quilt and the pillow felt, the window bright with the snow's light, and the bamboo breaking under the weight, heard from time to time in the deep night. The poem is the model of the exact observation, the night snow gathered in the three senses.

此诗为白居易贬谪江州时期所作，约作于唐宪宗元和十一年（816）至十三年（818）之间。元和十年，白居易因上疏请捕刺杀宰相武元衡的凶手，被权贵以「越职言事」的罪名贬为江州司马。这是白居易政治生涯的重大转折，从京城谏官变为江州闲职，其心境由积极用世转为低沉内敛，此时期他写下《琵琶行》《夜雪》等一系列寄情山水、体察民情的作品。江州（今江西九江）地处长江南岸，冬季湿润寒冷，常降大雪，诗人谪居于此，于冬夜独处时写下此诗。诗中「衾枕冷」「窗户明」「折竹声」都是江州冬夜的如实记录，但更值得注意的是诗人心境的投射：一个被贬远方的士人，深夜无眠，以敏锐的感官体察着自然的变化，雪的寂静与沉重，恰如他此时的孤寂与压抑。然而白居易毕竟是乐天知命之人，此诗虽写寒夜孤寂，却无怨怼之气，反而在「时闻折竹声」的静谧中透出一种安详——他学会了在贬谪中与自然相伴、以物自遣。此诗是白居易「闲适诗」的代表，体现了他后期「知足保和、随缘任运」的人生哲学，也是唐代咏雪诗中构思最巧妙、最耐人寻味的短章之一。

Art

The poem's art is the art of the indirect observation. The cold comes first: already he is surprised that the quilt and the pillow are cold — the body's surprise, the cold of the night felt. The brightness follows: and again he sees the window bright — the eye's sign, the snow's light on the window. And the close gives the sound: he knows in the deep night that the snow is heavy — from time to time he hears the sound of the bamboo breaking — the ear's proof, the heavy snow breaking the bamboo. The snow is never seen — only the cold, the brightness, and the breaking — the night snow known through the three signs, the exact observation of the quiet night.

此诗的艺术特色集中体现在「侧面烘托」与「多觉通感」的巧妙运用上。首先，全诗二十字，通篇不著一个「雪」字，而夜雪之深、之重、之寂，无不毕现，堪称咏物诗「不写之写」的极致。诗人高明地选择了一个「夜卧初醒」的特定场景，从被褥的触感写起：「已讶衾枕冷」——一个「冷」字是雪夜最直接的身体经验，一个「讶」字则写出睡眠被寒气惊醒的意外；「复见窗户明」转入视觉，窗外通明乃积雪映光所致，由冷而明，感官次第打开；「夜深知雪重」是心理的判断，由现象推知本质；「时闻折竹声」复转入听觉，以雪压竹折的脆响印证「雪重」的判断。四句诗依次调动触觉、视觉、知觉、听觉四种官能，层层递进，环环相扣，如抽丝剥茧般将一场夜雪完整地呈现在读者面前。其次，以动衬静的手法也极见功力：夜深人静，唯有积雪压断竹枝的声响「时闻」——这一「时闻」不仅写雪的厚重，更反衬出夜的寂静与诗人内心的孤清，动静相生，意境全出。此外，全诗语言平易自然，无一处雕琢，却字字精准，正体现了白居易「老妪能解」而意蕴无穷的语言风格，是「平淡之中见奇警」的典范。

Allusions

The poem carries no learned allusion; its art is the plain observation. 'The quilt and the pillow' (qinzhen) are the bedding of the sleep, cold with the night; 'the window bright' (chuanghu ming) is the brightness of the snow's light on the window; 'the bamboo breaking' (zhe zhu sheng) is the sound of the bamboo breaking under the snow's weight — the three signs of the snow, each exact.

此诗虽不直接用典，却处处暗合中国文学中咏雪与写夜的传统意象。「雪」在中国古典文学中素来是清高洁净的象征，谢道韫以「未若柳絮因风起」咏雪，成为千古美谈；祖咏《终南望余雪》「林表明霁色，城中增暮寒」以望雪写寒，与此诗写「衾枕冷」同一机杼。「折竹声」一典尤其值得玩味：王禹偁《黄冈竹楼记》有「冬宜密雪，有碎玉声」之句，以雪落竹楼之声写雪，此诗「时闻折竹声」正是以积雪压竹之声写雪重，皆是借竹声传雪意的写法。而「衾枕冷」写寒夜独卧，又暗承《诗经·小雅·斯干》「乃生女子，载寝之地」及乐府「寒夜清」一类咏夜的传统，更与白居易《卖炭翁》「心忧炭贱愿天寒」的「天寒」意象遥相呼应，只是彼写民生之寒、此写个人之寂。至于「窗户明」写雪光，则令人想起岑参「忽如一夜春风来，千树万树梨花开」的雪光映照之景，以及后世张岱《湖心亭看雪》「天与云与山与水，上下一白」的雪夜寂寥。白居易将这一系列咏雪传统化入二十字的小诗中，不用典而典在其中，正是他融化古人、自出机杼的功力所在。

Commentary

This short poem is one of the model observations of Bai Juyi, quoted for its exactness. The cold, the brightness, and the breaking — the snow known through the three senses — are among the most admired of his brief works. Critics praise the poem's art: the night snow gathered in its signs, the heavy snow proven by the breaking of the bamboo.

此诗历来被推为白居易咏物小诗中的精品，也是唐代咏雪诗构思最巧者之一。历代论者多激赏其「不写雪而雪在」的侧面烘托手法，清人评曰「四句皆不言雪，而雪意盎然」，可谓的评。相较于岑参《白雪歌》的奇丽壮阔、柳宗元《江雪》的孤高冷峭、韩愈「白雪却嫌春色晚」的妙趣横生，白居易此诗另辟蹊径，以日常生活经验（被冷、窗明、折竹）写雪，亲切平实而余味无穷，正是他「为文者必当使人易晓」主张的体现。此诗在白居易集中属「闲适诗」一类，与《问刘十九》《池上》等同为晚年随缘任运心境的写照。从咏雪诗史看，此诗上承祖咏《终南望余雪》以侧面写雪的传统，下开宋代咏物诗「离形得似」之先声，苏轼「黑云翻墨未遮山，白雨跳珠乱入船」等以听觉写雨的名句，亦可窥见此诗「时闻折竹声」的影响。对于今日读者，此诗是理解古典诗歌「侧面描写」「通感」「以动衬静」等艺术手法的绝佳范本，也是体会白居易「于平淡处见奇警」语言风格的入门钥匙，二十字间尽见诗人对生活细致入微的观察与艺术上的巧思。

Prosody

Form Pentasyllabic quatrain (wuyan jueju)五言绝句（仄起首句不入韵）
Rhyme The poem rhymes on the level-tone ming and sheng of the group — the even, level rhyme that carries the quiet night.押下平八庚韵，韵脚为「明」「声」。首句「冷」字仄声（上声二十三梗）不入韵，属首句不入韵之格。韵脚「明」「声」皆属庚部，韵音清亮，与雪夜的明净清冷之境相谐。
Tone pattern The cadence is that of the quiet observation: the rising with the cold and the surprise, the turning with the brightness, and the close's fall with the breaking of the bamboo.已讶衾枕冷，仄仄平仄仄；复见窗户明，仄仄平仄平；夜深知雪重，仄平平仄仄；时闻折竹声，平平仄仄平。全诗平仄大体合于五绝格律，首句「衾枕」二字皆平，拗中见变；末句「时闻折竹声」平平仄仄平，声调顺畅，收束从容，与「时闻」二字的断续感相呼应。
Reading note The poem's sound matches its quiet: the level rhymes carry the even cadence of the night, and the close — 'yeshen zhi xue zhong, shi wen zhe zhu sheng' — falls with the breaking, the sound of the snow heard in the deep night.此诗是标准的五言绝句，仄起首句不入韵，押平声庚韵，格律严整。四句的声调安排极有讲究：首句「已讶衾枕冷」以仄声字为多，读来急促冷峭，恰合诗人被寒气惊醒的突兀；末句「时闻折竹声」以平声收尾，舒缓悠长，正应那雪夜断续传来的竹裂之声。韵脚「明」「声」皆清亮之音，与雪光的明亮、折竹的清脆相映成趣。诵读时，宜以前两句的短促节奏传达惊醒之感，后两句放慢放轻，突出「夜深」的静谧与「时闻」的断续，使声音的起伏与诗境的冷暖变化相契合。白居易诗以平易流畅著称，此诗声律亦如清水出芙蓉，天然去雕饰，正是其「不求奇险而自奇」风格的体现。

Line by line

已讶衾枕冷，复见窗户明。

Already I am surprised that the quilt and the pillow are cold, and again I see the window bright.

我忽然惊觉被衾和枕席冷得出奇，又看见窗外一片明亮。

Startled, I find quilt and pillow cold; then I see the window bright.

两句写诗人夜半醒来时的第一重感受。「已讶衾枕冷」以触觉起笔，一个「讶」字传神地写出诗人从酣睡中被寒气惊醒的意外——被衾本是温暖之物，此刻却冷得让人吃惊，可见天气骤寒；「复见窗户明」转以视觉，一个「复」字写出由冷而明的连缀：被冻醒后抬眼一看，窗外竟明亮如昼，这反常的明亮（非月光之清，乃雪光之白）立刻引起诗人的注意。两句一冷一明、一触一视，感官依次打开，为下文「夜深知雪重」的判断埋下伏笔。值得注意的是，诗人没有直接说「下雪了」，而是通过「讶」「见」两个动词，将读者带入他惊觉的瞬间，让读者与他一同经历这场发现雪的过程，因而格外真切。冷与明的对照，也暗示着雪夜的寂静与清寒，两句已将夜雪的氛围烘托得呼之欲出。

The two lines write the poet's first sensation on waking at midnight. Startled, I find quilt and pillow cold opens with touch: one startled vividly writes the surprise of waking from deep sleep into cold - the quilt should be warm, yet now cold enough to shock, showing the sudden chill. Then I see the window bright turns to sight: one then writes the connection from cold to bright - frozen awake, he looks up, the window unexpectedly bright as day; this abnormal brightness (not moonlight's clearness, but snow's whiteness) at once catches the poet's attention. The two lines one cold one bright, one touch one sight, the senses opening in turn, planting the伏笔 for deep in the night I know the snow is heavy below. Notably, the poet does not directly say it is snowing, but through startled and seen brings the reader into his instant of waking, letting the reader share this process of discovering snow; hence it is most real. The contrast of cold and bright also hints the snow night's stillness and cold; the two lines already make the night-snow atmosphere ready to leap forth.

夜深知雪重，时闻折竹声。

I know in the deep night that the snow is heavy, from time to time I hear the sound of the bamboo breaking.

夜深了，我知道这雪下得很大，因为不时能听到积雪压断竹枝的声音。

Deep in the night I know the snow is heavy; now and then I hear bamboo branches snapping.

这两句是全诗的点睛之笔，也是「侧面写雪」的最高境界。「夜深知雪重」是心理判断——诗人由「衾枕冷」「窗户明」推知雪下得很大，一个「知」字将前三句的感官经验收束为理性认知；「时闻折竹声」则以听觉坐实这一判断：夜深人静，积雪越来越厚，竹枝终于不堪重负，「咔嚓」断裂。这一「时闻」极妙：它不是连续不断的声音，而是时断时续的脆响，恰恰写出雪仍在持续飘落、竹枝陆续被压断的动态过程；同时，在万籁俱寂的深夜，唯有这折竹之声传入耳中，更反衬出夜的深沉与诗人独卧的孤寂。以动写静、以声写雪，二十字间，雪的厚度、夜的寂静、人的孤清，三者交织成一幅清冷而幽美的冬夜图，读来如在目前，余韵悠长。

These two lines are the poem's eye, also the highest realm of writing snow from the side. Deep in the night I know the snow is heavy is a mental judgment - the poet infers from cold quilt and bright window that the snow is falling hard; one know gathers the first three lines' sensory experience into rational cognition. Now and then I hear bamboo branches snapping then confirms this judgment through hearing: deep night, all still, the snow accumulating thicker; bamboo branches at last unequal to the weight, snapping with a crack. This now and then is superb: it is not continuous sound, but intermittent crisp snaps, precisely writing the dynamic process of snow still falling and branches snapping one after another; at the same time, in the soundless deep night, only this bamboo-snapping reaches the ear, all the more setting off the night's depth and the poet's solitary lying. Writing stillness through motion, writing snow through sound; within twenty characters, the snow's weight, the night's silence, and the man's loneliness weave into a clear, exquisite winter night picture, read as if before the eyes, the aftertaste long.

Study

Word focus

讶 'To be surprised' — the surprise at the cold, the body's first sign of the snow. 「讶」字是全诗第一个传神之笔，写尽诗人从酣睡中被寒气惊醒的瞬间反应。讶者，惊讶、惊怪也。被衾本是温暖舒适的，夜半忽然冷得让人「讶」，这一字透出三层信息：其一，气温骤降之突然，连睡梦中的身体都发出了警报；其二，诗人睡眠之浅、感官之敏，一点寒气便将他从梦中唤醒；其三，诗人初醒时懵懂诧异的神态——他尚不知道发生了什么，只觉得被窝怎么这样冷。这个「讶」字将读者带入了诗人惊觉的现场，使后文的「复见」「知」「时闻」一系列发现雪的过程显得顺理成章。若换作「觉」「感」等字，则只是陈述寒冷的事实，少了那份从睡梦中惊醒的意外与好奇；唯「讶」字，既写身体之感，又写心理之态，还暗含诗人对自然变化的敏感，一字而数义兼赅，正是白居易炼字的精到处。
重 'Heavy' — the heaviness of the snow, known in the deep night, proven by the breaking. 「重」字是理解全诗的关键，也是咏雪诗中最见巧思的一个形容词。雪之「重」本不可见，但诗人通过三件事坐实了它：衾枕之冷，是雪寒之重；窗户之明，是雪光之重；折竹之声，是雪量之重——唯有雪下得够多够厚，才能压断竹枝。一个「重」字，把抽象的雪量化为可感的重量，将一场夜雪写得仿佛有了沉甸甸的质感。更重要的是，「重」字还与「夜深知」相连：诗人是在深夜的静谧中「知」雪之重的，这份「知」不是目见，而是由触觉、视觉、听觉综合推得的，因而格外真实可信。同时，「重」字也暗含时间的推移——雪是在夜里越下越大的，故称「夜深」「雪重」，时间的流动与雪量的增加在「重」字中合而为一。以「重」写雪，是白居易对咏雪文学的一大贡献，后世「雪压冬云白絮飞」等句皆由此脱化。

Related Reading

江雪 Fishing in the Snow on the River 柳宗元 · 同写雪景，一以重笔实写一以侧笔虚写 Both are the poems of the snow and the quiet — Liu Zongyuan's lone fisherman, Bai Juyi's night listener — the two snows of the Tang.

Liu Zongyuan's 'Fishing in the Snow on the River' — 'a lone boat, an old man in the straw cloak, fishing alone in the cold river's snow' — is the snow seen, the solitude of the scene; Bai Juyi's 'Night Snow' is the snow heard — the cold, the brightness, the breaking bamboo — the two snows of the Tang, the one seen, the other known.

柳宗元《江雪》「千山鸟飞绝，万径人踪灭。孤舟蓑笠翁，独钓寒江雪」以浓墨重彩正面描写雪天的寂寥，画面空阔、气象凛冽，寄寓的是诗人贬谪后孤高傲岸的人格。白居易《夜雪》则通篇不写雪的形色，只从衾枕之冷、窗户之明、折竹之声侧面烘托，亲切平实。一为「大景」之雪，一为「细景」之雪；柳诗以雪写人的孤高，白诗以雪写人的闲静；柳诗如一幅冷峻的山水长卷，白诗如一帧温情的冬夜小品。两诗对读，可见唐代诗人写雪的两种极致。

 白雪歌送武判官归京 The White Snow Song — Sent Off Secretary Wu Returning to the Capital 岑参 · 同咏雪而一壮丽一清幽 Both are the poems of the snow of the frontier and the night — Cen Shen's flying snow, Bai Juyi's night snow — the two snows of the Tang poets.

Cen Shen's 'White Snow Song' — 'the north wind rolls the white grass, the flying snow of the eighth month' — is the vast snow of the frontier, the parting in the snow; Bai Juyi's 'Night Snow' is the quiet snow of the night — the cold felt, the bamboo breaking — the two snows, the one vast and seen, the other quiet and heard.

岑参《白雪歌送武判官归京》以「忽如一夜春风来，千树万树梨花开」写塞外雪景的奇丽壮阔，笔力雄健、想象瑰奇，是边塞诗中的咏雪绝唱。白居易《夜雪》则以「已讶衾枕冷」写江州冬夜的雪，笔触细腻、意境清幽。同样是雪，岑参笔下是「瀚海阑干百丈冰」的壮观，白居易笔下是「时闻折竹声」的静美；岑参以奇喻取胜，白居易以侧写见长。两诗对照，正可看出盛唐边塞诗的雄浑与中唐闲适诗的淡远之间的鲜明分野。

 问刘十九 Asking Liu Nineteenth 白居易 · 同一诗人同一冬夜情境，一邀友一独处 Both are the winter poems of Bai Juyi — the snow of the night, the wine of the evening — the two winter moments of the poet.

Bai Juyi's 'Asking Liu Nineteenth' — 'the green ant's new brewed wine, the red clay stove small; the evening sky will snow — can you drink a cup?' — is the winter evening of the wine and the friend; 'The Night Snow' is the winter night of the snow — the cold and the breaking — the two winter moments of Bai Juyi, the one social, the other solitary.

《问刘十九》「绿蚁新醅酒，红泥小火炉。晚来天欲雪，能饮一杯无」与《夜雪》同是白居易冬夜之作，却一热一冷、一聚一独。《问刘十九》以新酒、火炉的暖色调写冬夜之温馨，邀友共饮，其乐融融；《夜雪》则以衾枕冷、折竹声的冷色调写冬夜之孤寂，独卧无眠，静听雪声。两诗恰成对照：同样是雪夜，白居易写出了两种截然不同的心境与生活情味，正见其「闲适诗」题材之广、笔调之活，也说明诗人既能享受友情的温暖，也能安于独处的清寂。