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魏晋 Wei-Jin · 诗 Poem

桃花源诗

The Peach Blossom Spring

陶渊明

Tao Yuanming

隐逸/田园reclusion / pastoral 游仙/玄思wandering immortals / metaphysics

嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世。
黄绮之商山，伊人亦云逝。
往迹浸复湮，来径遂芜废。
相命肆农耕，日入从所憩。
桑竹垂余荫，菽稷随时艺。
春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税。
荒路暧交通，鸡犬互鸣吠。
俎豆犹古法，衣裳无新制。
童孺纵行歌，斑白欢游诣。
草荣识节和，木衰知风厉。
虽无纪历志，四时自成岁。
怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧。
奇踪隐五百，一朝敞神界。
淳薄既异源，旋复还幽蔽。
借问游方士，焉测尘嚣外。
愿言蹑清风，高举寻吾契。

The Ying clan threw the heavenly order into chaos; the worthy fled the age.
Huang and Qi withdrew to Mount Shang; these people too passed away.
Their old traces slowly faded; the path in grew wild and waste.
They called to one another, gave themselves to farming,
resting each at sunset as they would.
Mulberries and bamboo cast their shade; beans and grain sown in season.
Spring silkworms yield long thread; the autumn harvest owes no king's tax.
Overgrown lanes faintly meet; cocks crow and dogs bark to one another.
The rites still follow the ancient way; their clothes know no new fashion.
Children sing as they roam; the grey-haired visit in joy.
Flourishing grass marks the gentle season; falling leaves tell the harsh wind.
Though they keep no calendar, the four seasons make their year.
Content, with joy to spare—why labour the weary wit?
Their marvellous trace lay hidden five hundred years,
then one morning the divine realm stood open.
The pure and the corrupt spring from different sources;
soon it closed again into deep concealment.
I ask the wandering priests—how gauge what lies beyond the dust?
I would ride the clear wind, soar high to seek my kindred souls.

Listen

Meaning

The Ying clan of Qin threw the heavenly order into chaos, and the worthy fled the age. Master Huang and Qi withdrew to Mount Shang, and these people of the spring too went into hiding. Their old traces slowly faded, and the path in grew wild and waste. They called to one another and gave themselves to farming, each resting at sunset as he would. Mulberries and bamboo cast their shade; beans and grain were sown in season. Spring silkworms yielded long thread; the autumn harvest owed no king's tax. Overgrown lanes faintly met; cocks crowed and dogs barked to one another. The rites still followed the ancient way; their clothes knew no new fashion. Children sang as they roamed; the grey-haired visited in joy. Flourishing grass told of the gentle season; falling leaves told of the harsh wind. Though they kept no almanac, the four seasons made their year. Content, with joy to spare—why labour the weary wit? Their marvellous trace lay hidden five hundred years, then one morning the divine realm stood open. The pure and the corrupt spring from different sources, and soon it closed again into deep concealment. I ask the wandering priests—how can they gauge what lies beyond the dust? I would ride the clear wind, soar high, to seek those who are akin to me.

秦嬴氏扰乱天纲，贤者避世而去。夏黄公、绮里季避入商山，这桃源中人也都隐遁。往日踪迹渐被湮没，来路于是荒芜废弃。相互招呼努力农耕，日落后各从其憩。桑竹垂下浓荫，豆麦随时种植。春蚕收得长丝，秋熟不纳王税。荒径暧暧相通，鸡犬彼此鸣吠。祭祀犹循古礼，衣裳没有新样。孩童纵情歌吟，老人欢然往来。草荣便知节令和煦，木落方觉风寒。虽无历书纪年，四时自成一岁。怡然自得乐有余，何须劳费心机。奇异踪迹隐没五百载，一朝敞开这神界。淳朴与浇薄本不同源，旋即又归幽蔽。借问云游方外之士，哪能测度尘嚣之外？愿乘清风，高飞去寻找与我相契之人。

Appreciation

Tao Yuanming, styled Yuanliang, was a recluse poet of the late Eastern Jin. In the transition from Jin to Song, war was frequent and corvee heavy, and many scholars thought of withdrawal. Having written the 'Record of the Peach Blossom Spring,' Tao also made this five-character 'Peach Blossom Spring' poem to unfold its meaning, probably in his late years. The line 'The Ying clan threw the heavenly order into chaos' uses Qin to shadow the violence of Jin and Song; 'the worthy fled the age' quietly fits his own will; 'Huang and Qi' refers to two of the four white-haired recluses of Mount Shang, using ancient hermits to honour his own kind. The poem and the record are two faces of one truth, raising the utopian ideal into a spiritual home that joins pastoral warmth with metaphysical transcendence—the peak where recluse literature and wandering-immortal metaphysics merge. The five-character ancient form is plain and full like the Old Poems, yet its sense-vein runs deep. In structure it first tells the cause of withdrawal (Ying clan—Huang and Qi—these people), then lays out the spring life (farming, mulberries, silk, tax, rites, children and aged), then with 'flourishing grass' and 'falling leaves' writes the natural knowing of seasons without a calendar, and ends in the metaphysics of 'pure and corrupt from different sources' and 'seek my kindred.' Moving from fact to void, from common to metaphysical, the record's concrete image here becomes a poem of idea; scene, feeling, and principle blend, pale yet ever meaningful.

【白话串讲】 “嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世”——陶渊明写桃花源：秦朝乱了，贤者躲进山里。“春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税”——春天养蚕收丝，秋天收粮，不用交税。“荒路暧交通，鸡犬互鸣吠”——一个没有战乱、没有王税的世界。【意象与手法】五言古体，语言朴茂近《古诗》，而意脉深长【情感与主旨】陶渊明字元亮，东晋末隐士诗人。晋宋易代之际，战乱频仍、赋役繁重，士人多有遁世之思【名句点睛】常考其与《桃花源记》'诗文互证'的关系；'秋熟靡王税'所体现的理想；'淳薄既异源'的哲理

Background

《桃花源诗》为东晋陶渊明所作，是《桃花源记》的附诗，写桃花源之理想社会。陶渊明（约365—427），字元亮，一名潜，号五柳先生，浔阳柴桑人，东晋诗人，田园诗派的开创者。此诗：嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世；黄绮之商山，伊人亦云逝；往迹浸复湮，来径遂芜废；相命肆农耕，日入从所憩；桑竹垂余荫，菽稷随时艺；春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税。荒路暧交通，鸡犬互鸣吠；俎豆犹古法，衣裳无新制；童孺纵行歌，斑白欢游诣；草荣识节和，木衰知风厉；虽无纪历志，四时自成岁；怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧？奇踪隐五百，一朝敞神界；淳薄既异源，旋复还幽蔽；借问游方士，焉测尘嚣外？愿言蹑轻风，高举寻吾契。全诗写桃花源的理想生活，是陶渊明田园诗与乌托邦理想的代表作。

Art

The five-character ancient form is plain and full like the Old Poems, yet its sense-vein runs deep. In structure it first tells the cause of withdrawal (Ying clan—Huang and Qi—these people), then lays out the spring life (farming, mulberries, silk, tax, rites, children and aged), then with 'flourishing grass' and 'falling leaves' writes the natural knowing of seasons without a calendar, and ends in the metaphysics of 'pure and corrupt from different sources' and 'seek my kindred.' Moving from fact to void, from common to metaphysical, the record's concrete image here becomes a poem of idea; scene, feeling, and principle blend, pale yet ever meaningful.

《桃花源诗》艺术上以理想境界的描绘与对比的寄托见长。全诗三十二句，层层写来：前六句写避世之由——“嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世”写秦乱避世，“黄绮之商山，伊人亦云逝”写黄绮商山，“往迹浸复湮，来径遂芜废”写来径芜废；中十二句写桃源之景——“相命肆农耕，日入从所憩”写农耕作息，“桑竹垂余荫，菽稷随时艺”写桑竹菽稷，“春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税”写无税之乐，“荒路暧交通，鸡犬互鸣吠”写鸡犬相闻，“俎豆犹古法，衣裳无新制”写古法古制，“童孺纵行歌，斑白欢游诣”写老少行乐；后十四句写桃源之理——“草荣识节和，木衰知风厉”写四时自成，“虽无纪历志，四时自成岁”写无历而自岁，“怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧”写无智之乐，“奇踪隐五百，一朝敞神界”写神界之开，“淳薄既异源，旋复还幽蔽”写淳薄异源，“借问游方士，焉测尘嚣外”写游方难测，“愿言蹑轻风，高举寻吾契”写寻契之愿。全诗以理想境界的描绘写对比的寄托，正是陶渊明田园诗与乌托邦理想的笔法。

Allusions

'Huang and Qi' refers to Master Huang and Master Qi of the four white-haired recluses of Mount Shang, Qin-era hermits, figures of lofty withdrawal from turmoil; 'rites' (the sacrificial vessels) comes from the 'Analects' ('matters of the sacrificial vessels'), meaning the sacrificial rites, saying the spring still keeps the ancient ceremonies; 'wandering priest' originally meant a Daoist roaming the four directions (from the 'Zhuangzi'), here broadly the worldly man. The 'fleeing Qin' motif inherits the Shi Jing's 'Rats' ('I will go to that happy land') and the pre-Qin recluse tradition, raising political flight into a philosophical 'leaving the dust.'

《桃花源诗》用典在“嬴氏乱天纪”“黄绮之商山”。“嬴氏乱天纪”写秦嬴政扰乱天纪（天序）；“黄绮之商山”用商山四皓（东园公、绮里季等）避秦之典，写贤者避世；“靡王税”写没有王税；“俎豆”写祭祀之器。全诗以这些典故写桃花源避世无税之理想，用典自然而理想自明，正是陶渊明写乌托邦理想的笔法。

Commentary

Su Shi said of Tao Yuanming 'when he wishes to serve he serves, not ashamed to seek it; when he wishes to retire he retires, not proud to leave it,' and of his Peach Spring thought 'not necessarily real, but a true delight in his breast'; the Qing critic Shen Deqian judged it 'full of ancient charm, with a still air flowing.' Moderns hold this poem 'writes utopia in five-character ancient,' fusing pastoral, wandering-immortal, and metaphysical verse, one of the highest representations of Tao's philosophizing poetry.

《桃花源诗》是陶渊明的代表作，也是中国文学史上写乌托邦理想的源头之作。此诗与《桃花源记》并称，写桃花源的理想社会，向为论者称道。论者多赏其理想境界的描绘——“春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税”写无税之乐，正是理想社会之写照；“怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧”写无智之乐，更见其理想。陶渊明为田园诗派的开创者，其诗以自然真率著称，此诗正是其代表——以桃花源写理想，正是其厌弃现实、向往淳朴的风格。

Prosody

Form Five-character ancient poem (pastoral · metaphysical)五言古诗

Rhyme age, pass, waste, rest, season, tax, bark, fashion, visit, harsh, year, wit, realm, conceal, beyond, kindred—ancient rhymes in accord《桃花源诗》为五言古诗，三十二句，押平声韵。此诗用韵：世、逝、废（月部）、憩、艺、税（祭部）、吠、制、诣（祭部）、厉、岁、慧（祭部）、界、蔽（祭部）、外、契（祭部），随段换韵，音节悠远。

Tone pattern Not traceable (five-character ancient)五言古诗以音节悠远、意境恬淡见长。此诗写桃花源之理想，音节悠远而意境恬淡。全诗以五言贯底，声调与理想境界的内容相合，是陶渊明田园诗中写乌托邦理想的一路。

Reading note Five-character ancient, plain and full like the Old Poems, moves from factual scene to metaphysics《桃花源诗》为东晋陶渊明所作，是《桃花源记》的附诗，写桃花源的理想社会。此诗以“嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世”写避世之由，以“相命肆农耕”“春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税”写农耕无税之乐，以“俎豆犹古法”“童孺纵行歌”写古风淳朴，以“怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧”写无智之乐。以理想境界写乌托邦之思，正是陶渊明田园诗的代表作，也是中国文学史上乌托邦理想的源头。

Line by line

嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世。黄绮之商山，伊人亦云逝。

When the house of Ying threw heaven's order into chaos, wise men fled the age; as Huang and Qi withdrew to Mount Shang, those folk too vanished from the world of men.

嬴秦扰乱了天纪，贤者避离其世。商山四皓去了商山，那桃源之人也离开了尘世。

The Qin of Ying disrupted the cosmic order, and men of worth shunned its times. The four white-beards went to Mount Shang, and the people of Peach Spring likewise left the mortal world behind.

前四句写避世之由，是全诗桃花源之由的起点。“嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世”写秦乱避世——“嬴氏乱天纪”写嬴秦扰乱天纪，“贤者避其世”写贤者避离其世——秦乱天纪，贤者避世；“黄绮之商山，伊人亦云逝”写黄绮商山、桃源人逝——“黄绮之商山”用商山四皓避秦之典，写其往商山，“伊人亦云逝”写那桃源之人也离开尘世——黄绮往商山，桃源人亦逝。四句写避世之由：嬴氏乱天纪，贤者避其世；黄绮之商山，伊人亦云逝。以“嬴氏乱天纪”写乱世之由，以“黄绮之商山”用四皓避秦之典，以“伊人亦云逝”写桃源人避世，正是陶渊明写桃花源之由的笔法——乱世避秦，桃源遂成。

These opening quatrains give the cause behind Peach Spring: the age of disorder under Qin. The first couplet states why worthies fled, while the second invokes the allusion to the four white-beards who withdrew to Mount Shang to escape Qin tyranny. By pairing the historical recluses with the unnamed people of Peach Spring, Tao Yuanming frames the utopia as the logical outcome of a turbulent era—when the world grows cruel, the upright simply vanish. The allusion to Huang and Qi anchors the fable in a recognizable pattern of withdrawal, so that the lost community of Peach Spring feels not invented but inevitable.

相命肆农耕，日入从所憩。桑竹垂余荫，菽稷随时艺。春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税。

They call one another to work the fields, and at sunset each turns to rest; mulberry and bamboo shed their shade, beans and millet are sown in season; spring silkworms yield long silk, and when autumn ripens there is no royal tax to pay.

互相招呼着尽力农耕，太阳落山便各自休息。桑竹垂下余荫，菽稷随时播种。春蚕收得长丝，秋熟没有王税。

They call to one another to till the fields in earnest, and when the sun sets they each go to rest. Mulberries and bamboos drop their shade, beans and grain are planted according to the season; spring silkworms give long silk, and the autumn harvest owes no tax to any king.

此数句写桃源农耕之乐，是全诗理想境界的核心。“相命肆农耕，日入从所憩”写农耕作息——“相命肆农耕”写互相招呼尽力农耕，“日入从所憩”写日落便各自休息——相命农耕、日入而憩；“桑竹垂余荫，菽稷随时艺”写田园之景——“桑竹垂余荫”写桑竹垂荫，“菽稷随时艺”写菽稷随时播种；“春蚕收长丝，秋熟靡王税”写无税之乐——“春蚕收长丝”写春蚕收丝，“秋熟靡王税”写秋熟没有王税。六句写桃源农耕之乐：相命农耕、日入而憩，桑竹垂荫、菽稷随时艺，春蚕收丝、秋熟无税。以“相命肆农耕，日入从所憩”写耕作之勤与作息之适，以“桑竹垂余荫”写田园之美，以“秋熟靡王税”写无税之乐，正是陶渊明写桃花源理想境界的核心——耕而自足，无税无忧。

This passage is the heart of the utopian vision: farming as plenty, labor as rhythm, and—to the point—freedom from exaction. The couplets move from work and rest, through the beauty of mulberry and bamboo, to the economic miracle of a harvest with no royal tax. Tao builds an agrarian idyll where human labor aligns with the seasons and the state has no claim on the fruit of the soil. The phrase 'no royal tax' is the quiet climax: the community's happiness rests not on wealth but on autonomy. It is precisely this image of self-sufficiency and ease that made Peach Spring the enduring symbol of a just, ungoverned world.

荒路暧交通，鸡犬互鸣吠。俎豆犹古法，衣裳无新制。童孺纵行歌，斑白欢游诣。

Wild paths dim the way in and out, yet dogs and cocks answer one another; their rituals keep the old forms, their robes know no new fashion; children sing as they walk, and the gray-headed stroll together in delight.

荒路昏暗，交通不便，鸡犬互相鸣吠。祭祀还守着古法，衣裳没有新制。孩童纵情唱歌，白发老人欢快游聚。

The overgrown paths make travel hard, yet chickens and dogs call back and forth. Their sacrifices still follow ancient rites, and their clothing has no new styles; children sing freely as they walk, and the white-haired come together in happy gatherings.

此数句写桃源风俗之淳，是全诗理想境界的深化。“荒路暧交通，鸡犬互鸣吠”写桃源之隔绝——“荒路暧交通”写荒路昏暗交通不便，“鸡犬互鸣吠”写鸡犬相闻——“俎豆犹古法，衣裳无新制”写古法古制——“俎豆犹古法”写祭祀守古法，“衣裳无新制”写衣裳无新制；“童孺纵行歌，斑白欢游诣”写老少行乐——“童孺纵行歌”写孩童纵情唱歌，“斑白欢游诣”写白发老人欢快游聚。六句写桃源风俗之淳：荒路暧交通、鸡犬互鸣吠，俎豆犹古法、衣裳无新制，童孺纵行歌、斑白欢游诣。以“鸡犬互鸣吠”写桃源之隔绝而自足，以“俎豆犹古法，衣裳无新制”写古风之淳，以“童孺纵行歌，斑白欢游诣”写老少之乐，正是陶渊明写桃花源理想境界的深化——古风淳朴，老少同乐。

Here the ideal deepens into custom. The first couplet states the community's isolation—dims, overgrown paths—yet the sounds of dogs and cocks prove it is alive and self-contained, an echo of the classic rural peace. Rites still follow ancient forms and clothes know no new fashion, signaling a society frozen in unchanging simplicity. The final image, children singing and the aged strolling happily together, gives the utopia its human warmth: old and young at ease. Tao's point is that secession from history has produced not savagery but a gentler, more cohesive life.

怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧？愿言蹑轻风，高举寻吾契。

Serene and overflowing with joy, why should one toil with cleverness? Would that I might mount the light wind and rise high to seek my kindred spirits.

怡然自得、其乐有余，何必劳费智慧？但愿踏着轻风，高高飞起去寻求我的同道。

Serene and content with joy to spare, what need is there to exhaust oneself with cunning? Would that I might tread the light breeze and soar aloft to find those who share my heart.

末段写桃源之理与寻契之愿，是全诗理想的归结。“怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧”写无智之乐——“怡然有余乐”写怡然自得其乐有余，“于何劳智慧”写何必劳费智慧——怡然有余乐，何须劳智慧；“愿言蹑轻风，高举寻吾契”写寻契之愿——“愿言蹑轻风”写但愿踏着轻风，“高举寻吾契”写高高飞起寻求同道——愿蹑轻风，高举寻契。四句写桃源之理与寻契之愿：怡然有余乐、于何劳智慧；愿言蹑轻风、高举寻吾契。以“怡然有余乐，于何劳智慧”写淳朴无智之乐，以“愿言蹑轻风，高举寻吾契”写寻求同道之愿，正是陶渊明写桃花源理想的归结——淳朴自乐，愿寻吾契。

The closing passage turns from description to longing. The lines first reflect on the community's happiness—a joy that needs no cleverness or calculation—and then utter the poet's own wish: to ride the wind and soar upward in search of kindred souls. This is the pivot where the fable ends and personal aspiration begins: the Peach Spring is not merely a place described but a way of being Tao himself seeks. The phrase 'seek my kindred' reveals that the whole idyll was ultimately a projection of the poet's own isolation and his hope for a world of like-minded recluses.

Study

Word focus

天纪 The heavenly order, the order of heaven; 'threw the heavenly order into chaos' means tyrannic ruin of the norm, using Qin to point at Jin-Song. “嬴氏乱天纪”之“天纪”，写天序、天道之纪，是全诗写秦乱之由的关键词。“天”写天道，“纪”写纲纪——嬴秦扰乱天纪。这一词写秦之乱：不是寻常之乱，而是乱天纪；不是一时之弊，而是乱天道之序。以“乱天纪”写秦之暴政，正是陶渊明写桃花源避世之由的笔法——秦乱天纪，贤者避世。

靡王税 'Owes no'—'the autumn harvest owes no king's tax' writes a land without corvee, the core of the spring ideal. “秋熟靡王税”之“靡王税”，写没有王税，是全诗写桃源无税之乐的关键词。“靡”写无，“王税”写王室的税赋——秋熟没有王税。这一词写桃源之乐：不是有税而轻，而是靡王税；不是减税之惠，而是无税之乐。以“靡王税”写桃源之乐，正是陶渊明写理想社会、对现实苛税的反衬之笔。

俎豆 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “俎豆犹古法”之“俎豆”，写祭祀之器，是全诗写桃源古风的关键词。“俎豆”写俎（盛牲之器）豆（盛食之器），祭祀之器——祭祀还守着古法。这一词写桃源之古风：不是新制之礼，而是俎豆古法；不是变易之俗，而是古风之淳。以“俎豆犹古法”写桃源古风，正是陶渊明写理想社会淳朴的笔法。

吾契 Those akin to me; the closing 'seek my kindred' points the spiritual home. “高举寻吾契”之“吾契”，写我的同道，是全诗写寻契之愿的关键词。“吾”写我的，“契”写志同道合之人——高高飞起去寻求我的同道。这一词写所求之人：不是泛泛之友，而是吾契；不是趋时之众，而是志同道合之人。以“寻吾契”写寻契之愿，正是陶渊明写其理想之孤高的笔法——桃源之外，愿寻吾契。