唐 Tang · 诗 Poem
忆昔
Remembering the Past
昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼。
银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋。
西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁。
今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。
In the midnight songs, clear, the moon filled the tower.
Before the silver candles, the trees long as if the day,
In the dewy peaches, the bloom knows no autumn.
The gentleman of the western garden was named Wu-ji,
The beauty of the southern land was called Mo-chou.
The setting sun alone sees the water flowing eastward.
Meaning
A poem of the remembered glory and the present disorders, written by Wei Zhuang. In the years gone, he once roamed to the Five Mounds — the resort of the great of the capital — in the midnight songs, clear, the moon filled the tower — the revels of the past. Before the silver candles, the trees long as if the day; in the dewy peaches, the bloom knows no autumn — the endless brightness of the revels. The gentleman of the western garden was named Wu-ji — the free gentleman of the revels; the beauty of the southern land was called Mo-chou — the beauty of the revels. And the close turns to the present: today, the disorders and the partings are all a dream — the setting sun alone sees the water flowing eastward — the past's glory a dream, and the setting sun over the flowing water. The poem is the memory of the past's revels against the present's disorders: the midnight songs and the silver candles, and the close's setting sun and the flowing water.
昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼。银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋。西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁。今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] In the years gone, I once roamed to the Five Mounds, in the midnight songs, clear, the moon filled the tower. Before the silver candles, the trees long as if the day, in the dewy peaches, the bloom knows no autumn. The gentleman of the western garden was named Wu-ji, the beauty of the southern land was called Mo-chou. Today, the disorders and the partings are all a dream, the setting sun alone sees the water flowing eastward. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves from the remembered revels of the years gone — the Five Mounds, the midnight songs, the silver candles — through the names of the revels, to the close's present: the disorders and the partings all a dream, and the setting sun over the flowing water. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the contrast of the past and the present: the endless brightness of the remembered revels against the close's dream of the disorders and the setting sun — the glory remembered, and the ruin of the present gathered in the flowing water. [Emotional Tone] Reminiscent, sorrowful, and elegiac: the poem is the memory of the past's glory against the present's disorders, the silver candles and the setting sun.
【白话串讲】 韦庄写《忆昔》：“昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼”——“银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋”——“西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁”——“今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流”——他忆昔——今日乱离俱是梦。 【意象与手法】 “昔年曾向五陵游、子夜歌清月满楼”写五陵旧游；“银烛树前长似昼、露桃华里不知秋”写繁华如昼；“西园公子名无忌、南国佳人号莫愁”写西园公子南国佳人；结以“今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流”写今日乱离俱是梦。沉郁苍凉。 【情感与主旨】 韦庄感怀伤逝之作，写昔年五陵旧游之盛与今日乱离俱是梦之悲，是写今昔之慨的名篇。 【名句点睛】 常考“银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋”写昔日繁华；“今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流”写今昔之悲。
Background
Wei Zhuang (c. 836–910), the poet of the late Tang who lived into the fall of the dynasty, wrote this poem of the remembered glory of the capital — the Five Mounds of the great, the midnight songs and the silver candles of the revels. The gentleman Wu-ji and the beauty Mo-chou are the names of the revels of the past; and the close — the disorders and the partings all a dream, the setting sun over the flowing water — is the elegy of the fallen glory, the past of the capital against the ruin of the present. The poem is one of the great elegies of the late Tang.
《忆昔》为唐末五代诗人韦庄所作诗。韦庄（约836—约910），字端己，京兆杜陵（今陕西西安）人，唐末五代诗人、词人。此诗写感怀伤逝，为忆昔之作。诗中「昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼」写昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼；「银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋」写银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋；「西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁」写西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁；「今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流」写今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。韦庄此诗以感怀伤逝、夕阳唯见水东流写其伤逝之情，沉郁苍凉，是韦庄诗中的名篇。此篇《忆昔》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。此篇《忆昔》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。
Art
The poem's art is the art of the past against the present. The revels of the years gone open: he once roamed to the Five Mounds, in the midnight songs, clear, the moon filled the tower — the resort of the great and the revels of the midnight. The brightness follows: before the silver candles, the trees long as if the day; in the dewy peaches, the bloom knows no autumn — the endless brightness of the revels, the day and the spring without end. The names: the gentleman of the western garden was named Wu-ji, the beauty of the southern land was called Mo-chou — the free gentleman and the beauty of the revels. And the close turns to the present: today, the disorders and the partings are all a dream — the setting sun alone sees the water flowing eastward — the dream of the disorders and the setting sun over the flowing water, the glory's ruin. The silver candles and the setting sun, the past and the present, gathered in the close.
此诗艺术上以「沉郁苍凉、以忆写情」见长。全诗共四联八句，由昔年曾向五陵游而银烛树前长似昼而西园公子名无忌。首联「昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼」写昔年曾向五陵游：昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼；颔联「银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋」写银烛树前长似昼：银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋；颈联「西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁」写西园公子名无忌：西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁；尾联「今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流」写今日乱离俱是梦：今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。全诗以忆写情，由昔年曾向五陵游而夕阳唯见水东流，沉郁苍凉，是韦庄诗中的名篇。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。
Allusions
'The Five Mounds' (Wuling) is the resort of the great of the capital — the place of the revels of the years gone; 'the midnight songs' (ziye ge) are the songs of the night, the revels; 'the silver candles' (yinzhu) are the candles of the revels, bright as the day; 'the dewy peaches' (lutao) are the peaches of the bloom, knowing no autumn. 'Wu-ji' (Wuji) is the name of the free gentleman — the name of the Lord of Xinling, the patron of the guests; 'Mo-chou' (Mochou) is the name of the beauty — 'no sorrow' — the beauty of the revels. 'The disorders and the partings' (luanli) are the disorders of the age and the partings of the people — the present.
诗中「昔年曾向五陵游子夜歌清月满楼」「银烛树前长似昼露桃华里不知秋」「西园公子名无忌南国佳人号莫愁」「今日乱离俱是梦夕阳唯见水东流」等语，皆含典故故实。「昔年曾向五陵游子夜歌清月满楼」用五陵之典（五陵为汉长安城外五帝陵），写昔年曾向五陵游子夜歌清月满楼；「银烛树前长似昼露桃华里不知秋」写银烛树前长似昼露桃华里不知秋；「西园公子名无忌南国佳人号莫愁」用无忌之典（魏公子无忌）与莫愁之典（莫愁为古乐府歌女），写西园公子名无忌南国佳人号莫愁；「今日乱离俱是梦夕阳唯见水东流」写今日乱离俱是梦夕阳唯见水东流。诗人以五陵、无忌、莫愁等典入诗，不着痕迹，而把感怀伤逝之情写得真切可感，是善于熔铸典故的体现。此等用典之法，熔铸古今而不着痕迹，既不炫博以示学，亦不拘泥于旧解，正见诗人学养之深与运思之巧。读者于此等处尤当细心玩味，方能领会其言外之旨与味外之味。
Commentary
This poem is one of the great elegies of the late Tang, quoted for the contrast of its close. The midnight songs and the silver candles of the revels, and the setting sun over the flowing water, are among the most famous passages of the elegiac poetry of the age. Critics praise the poem's elegy: the glory of the past remembered, and the setting sun over the flowing water of the present.
这首《忆昔》，是韦庄写感怀伤逝之作，写昔年曾向五陵游、银烛树前长似昼、西园公子名无忌、夕阳唯见水东流之情，沉郁苍凉。首联「昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼」——昔年曾向五陵（用五陵之典）游，子夜歌清月满楼。写昔年曾向五陵游：昔年曾向五陵游、子夜歌清月满楼——曾向五陵游、歌清月满楼；颔联「银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋」——银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋。写银烛树前长似昼：银烛树前长似昼、露桃华里不知秋——长似昼、不知秋；颈联「西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁」——西园公子名无忌（用无忌之典），南国佳人号莫愁（用莫愁之典）。写西园公子名无忌：西园公子名无忌、南国佳人号莫愁——公子名无忌、佳人号莫愁；尾联「今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流」——今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。写今日乱离俱是梦：今日乱离俱是梦、夕阳唯见水东流——乱离俱是梦、唯见水东流。这「今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流」，是全诗之结：以夕阳唯见水东流写其伤逝。全诗沉郁苍凉，以忆写情，正是韦庄诗中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼。
In the years gone, I once roamed to the Five Mounds, in the midnight songs, clear, the moon filled the tower.
昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼。
In years past I wandered among the Five Tombs; clear midnight songs, moonlight filling the tower.
首联写昔年曾向五陵游，起笔即见其忆。「昔年曾向五陵游」用五陵之典写昔年曾向五陵游，「昔年曾向」写昔年曾向、「五陵游」写五陵游；「子夜歌清月满楼」写子夜歌清月满楼，「子夜歌清」写子夜歌清、「月满楼」写月满楼。两句一写昔年曾向五陵游、一写子夜歌清月满楼，以昔年曾向五陵游写曾向五陵游、以子夜歌清月满楼写歌清月满楼，写尽昔年曾向五陵游、子夜歌清月满楼之情。以忆起兴，沉郁而苍凉，是「以忆起兴」的妙笔。
The opening couplet writes in years past I wandered among the Five Tombs, the memory named at the first stroke. In years past I wandered toward: the old wanderings. The Five Tombs: the Han noble mausoleums' district, symbol of Chang'an's high life. Clear midnight songs, moonlight filling the tower: the midnight music, the moonlit tower. One couplet writes the old wanderings at the Five Tombs and the songs under the moon - Wei Zhuang's starting point for remembering: the old Chang'an nights of song and moonlight. The line opens with memory as bi-xing, somber and bleak: the remembered splendor already set against the present.
银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋。
Before the silver candles, the trees long as if the day, in the dewy peaches, the bloom knows no autumn.
银烛树前长似昼，露桃华里不知秋。
Silver candles before the trees made the night seem like day; among dew-laden peaches, we knew not autumn.
颔联写银烛树前长似昼，是全诗写繁华之态的关键。「银烛树前长似昼」写银烛树前长似昼，「银烛树前」写银烛树前、「长似昼」写长似昼；「露桃华里不知秋」写露桃华里不知秋，「露桃华里」写露桃华里、「不知秋」写不知秋。两句一写银烛树前长似昼、一写露桃华里不知秋，以银烛树前长似昼写长似昼、以露桃华里不知秋写不知秋，写尽银烛树前长似昼、露桃华里不知秋之情。以繁华写忆，沉郁而苍凉，是「以繁华写忆」的点睛之笔。
The second couplet writes silver candles before the trees made the night seem like day, the key to the poem's splendor state. Silver candles before the trees: the candlelight's splendor. Long like day: the night bright as noon. Among dew-laden peaches, we knew not autumn: the dewy blossoms, the unawareness of autumn. One couplet writes the candlelit nights like day and the peach blossoms unaware of autumn - Wei Zhuang's middle scene: the endless spring of those nights. The line uses splendor for memory, somber and bleak: the more splendid the remembered nights, the more desolate the present.
西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁。
The gentleman of the western garden was named Wu-ji, the beauty of the southern land was called Mo-chou.
西园公子名无忌，南国佳人号莫愁。
The young lord of the West Garden bore the name Wuji; the fair lady of the Southland was called Mochou.
颈联写西园公子名无忌，是全诗以典写情的关键。「西园公子名无忌」用无忌之典写西园公子名无忌，「西园公子」写西园公子、「名无忌」写名无忌；「南国佳人号莫愁」用莫愁之典写南国佳人号莫愁，「南国佳人」写南国佳人、「号莫愁」写号莫愁。两句一写西园公子名无忌、一写南国佳人号莫愁，以西园公子名无忌写公子名无忌、以南国佳人号莫愁写佳人号莫愁，写尽西园公子名无忌、南国佳人号莫愁之情。以典写忆，沉郁而苍凉，是「以典写忆」的点睛之笔。
The third couplet writes the young lord of the West Garden bore the name Wuji, the key to the poem's allusion state. The young lord of the West Garden uses the Wuji allusion: the noble libertine. Bore the name Wuji: the famous free-hearted lord. The fair lady of the Southland was called Mochou uses the Mochou allusion: the southern beauty. One couplet writes the celebrated lord and the celebrated lady of those old nights - Wei Zhuang's turn: the companions of that splendor are named in allusion. The line uses allusion for memory, somber and bleak: the famous names now only names.
今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。
Today, the disorders and the partings are all a dream, the setting sun alone sees the water flowing eastward.
今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流。
Today, in exile and turmoil, all is a dream; in the setting sun, I see only the river flowing east.
尾联写今日乱离俱是梦，是全诗立意的落点。「今日乱离俱是梦」写今日乱离俱是梦，「今日乱离」写今日乱离、「俱是梦」写俱是梦；「夕阳唯见水东流」写夕阳唯见水东流，「夕阳唯见」写夕阳唯见、「水东流」写水东流。两句一写今日乱离俱是梦、一写夕阳唯见水东流，以今日乱离俱是梦写乱离俱是梦、以夕阳唯见水东流写唯见水东流，写尽今日乱离俱是梦、夕阳唯见水东流之情。以梦写情，沉郁而苍凉，是全诗最动人处，也是「以梦写情」的点睛之笔。
The closing couplet writes today, in exile and turmoil, all is a dream, the poem's landing. Today's exile and turmoil: the present chaos. All is a dream: the old splendor vanished. In the setting sun, I see only the river flowing east: the sunset, the east-flowing water. One couplet writes the present's dreamlike chaos and the east-flowing river in the sunset - Wei Zhuang's resolution: all the old splendor is a dream; the river flows on regardless. The line uses dream for feeling, somber and bleak, the poem's most moving point: the only reality left is the sunset over the eastward water.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Wei Zhuang's close — 'the setting sun alone sees the water flowing eastward' — is the elegy of the fallen glory; Liu Yong's 'Eight Beats of Ganzhou' — 'facing the evening rain that spatters the long river' — is the longing over the flowing — the same flowing water of the sorrow, the one of the dynasty, the other of the wanderer.
柳永《八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天》「想佳人妆楼颙望，误几回、天际识归舟」，写羁旅伤逝、凝望天涯，是宋词写羁旅的名篇；韦庄《忆昔》则以「今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流」「昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼」写乱离俱是梦、曾向五陵游。两诗同写羁旅伤逝、凝望天涯：一写误几回天际识归舟、以凝望写思归，一写今日乱离俱是梦夕阳唯见水东流、以乱离写伤逝；一为柳永之清丽、一为韦庄之沉郁，并读正可见诗写「羁旅伤逝」的两种笔法，皆于羁旅之中见伤逝。
水调歌头·明月几时有 Prelude to Water Melody: When Did the Bright Moon Begin? 苏轼 · 同写感怀伤逝、超然旷达，一写人有悲欢离合、一写今日乱离俱是梦夕阳唯见水东流，皆于感怀之中见伤逝 Both are the poems of the past and the moon — Wei Zhuang's moon of the revels, Su Shi's moon of the mid-autumn — the two moons of the remembrance.Wei Zhuang's poem remembers the moon of the midnight songs, filled the tower of the revels; Su Shi's 'Prelude to Water Melody' — 'when did the bright moon begin?' — is the moon of the mid-autumn, the feeling of the brother — the two moons of the remembrance, the one of the past's glory, the other of the present's longing.
苏轼《水调歌头·明月几时有》「人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全」，写感怀旷达，是宋词长调的名篇；韦庄《忆昔》则以「今日乱离俱是梦，夕阳唯见水东流」「昔年曾向五陵游，子夜歌清月满楼」写乱离俱是梦、曾向五陵游。两诗同写感怀伤逝、超然旷达：一写人有悲欢离合、以悲欢写离合，一写今日乱离俱是梦夕阳唯见水东流、以乱离写伤逝；一为苏轼之超然、一为韦庄之沉郁，并读正可见诗写「感怀伤逝」的两种笔法，皆于感怀之中见伤逝。