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五代 Five Dynasties · 词 Ci lyric

谢新恩·秦楼不见

Gratitude for the New Spring · The Tower Out of Sight

李煜

Li Yu

爱情love 离别parting

秦楼不见吹箫女，空余上苑风光。
粉英金蕊自低昂。
东风恼我，才发一衿香。
琼窗梦醒留残日，当年得恨何长！
碧阑干外映垂杨。
暂时相见，如梦懒思量。

The phoenix tower no longer shows the flute-playing maiden; only the royal garden's scenery remains.
Pink petals and golden stamens bow and rise on their own. The east wind vexes me, having just sent forth a fragrance to fill my robe.
By the jade window I wake from dreams, left with the lingering sun; how long was the regret of those years!
Beyond the green balustrade the drooping willows shine. We met but for a moment, like a dream I am too weary to ponder.

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Meaning

The tower no longer shows the flute-playing fairy; only the royal garden's scenery is left behind. Pink blossoms and golden stamens rise and fall at will. The east wind seems to vex me, sending forth a fragrance to fill my robe only to let it fade. Leaning by the fine window I dream, and waking find but a thread of the lingering sun; how long and deep was the regret left from those years! Beyond the green balustrade the drooping willows mirror one another. My meeting with her was but momentary, like a dream, and I am too weary to dwell on it.

秦楼上已不见那吹箫的仙女，只空留下皇家上苑的风光。粉红的花、金黄的蕊自在地或低或昂。东风仿佛在恼我，才绽出一阵袭人衣襟的芳香便凋零了。倚着精美的窗子成梦，醒来时只剩一缕残阳，当年留下的遗恨何等悠长！碧绿栏杆外垂柳相映。与她的相聚只是暂时的，恍如梦境，也懒得再去思量。

Appreciation

The whole lyric is grieving and tender, opening with scene to stir feeling and blending scene with emotion. The opening line 'The tower no longer shows the flute-playing maiden' borrows the tale of Xiao Shi and Nong Yu to hint that the beloved has become an immortal and gone; 'only left' echoes the earlier 'no longer seen', and the ache of things remaining while the person is gone overflows the words. 'Pink petals and golden stamens bow and rise on their own' uses the word 'on their own' to widen the distance between the man and the scene; 'the east wind vexes me' lends feeling to things, lively and vivid. The lower stanza weaves a desolate, tender mood from the lingering sun, the drooping willows, and the green balustrade.

【白话串讲】 “秦楼不见吹箫女，空余上苑风光”——李煜写：秦楼里不见吹箫的人。“琼窗梦醒留残日，当年得恨何长”——他梦醒，想起当年的恨。“暂时相见，如梦懒思量”——短暂的相见，像梦一样。【意象与手法】全词悲切缠绵，以景起情、情景交融。起句“秦楼不见吹箫女”借萧史弄玉典暗喻佳人仙去【情感与主旨】从词意判断，此词当为李煜悼念昭惠后周娥皇之作。大周后通书史、善歌舞、精琵琶，十九岁与后主成婚，恩爱甚笃【名句点睛】中高考若考此词，常从：一、典故，“秦楼吹箫女”所指及其寄托；二、炼字，“自低昂”的“自”字如何表现物是人非

Background

Judging by its meaning, this lyric was written by Li Yu in mourning for his queen, Empress Zhou the Elder, also called Zhou Ehuang. The elder queen knew literature and history, was skilled in song and dance, and excelled at the pipa; she married the young sovereign at nineteen and the couple loved each other deeply. In the second year of the Qiande era she fell ill; when she heard that her second son, Zhongxuan, had died young, her grief was so great that she sickened and died the next year at only twenty-nine. The grieving sovereign was nearly beside himself and styled himself 'the widower Yu'. This lyric is the first of five elegiac pieces under the tune 'Gratitude for the New Spring'; the original text has come down to us missing one character.

《谢新恩·秦楼不见》是南唐后主李煜的悼亡词。李煜（937—978），南唐中主李璟第六子，宋建隆二年（961年）嗣位，开宝八年（975年）国破降宋，太平兴国三年（978年）被毒死。此词所悼者，学界多指昭惠后周娥皇，即大周后。大周后通书史、善歌舞、尤精琵琶，十九岁与李煜成婚，二人恩爱甚笃，曾共同补定唐明皇《霓裳羽衣曲》。然大周后于乾德二年（964年）病逝，年仅二十九岁，李煜哀痛逾恒，亲撰《昭惠周后诔》千言，又作《挽辞》二首及此词以寄哀思。就版本而言，此词收入《南唐二主词》，然《谢新恩》一词的调名与字句，各本颇有出入，或以为此调即《临江仙》之异体，或以为调名残缺致讹，文字亦多阙佚，「才发一衿香」句诸本互异，学者多有校补。此词是李煜由前期艳情词转向后期悲怆词的关键一环，虽仍以男女情思为题材，然悼亡之痛已使词风由绮丽转入沉郁，为后来「一江春水向东流」的亡国之恸预作铺垫。大周后之死，是李煜人生与词风的一大转捩。据《南唐书》及马令《南唐书》诸史所记，昭惠后病中，其妹（后之小周后）已入宫，后主悼亡之际，心境之复杂与哀痛之深，皆可于《昭惠周后诔》与此词相参证。此词「暂时相见，如梦懒思量」的怅惘，与《昭惠周后诔》中「永念」的痛切互为表里，可见悼亡之情非徒文字之哀，实出于至性的追怀。就版本而言，此词调名「谢新恩」诸本或作「临江仙」，字句亦多阙佚，然「秦楼不见吹箫女」一句则各本无异，足证其为全词之眼。

Art

The whole lyric is grieving and tender, opening with scene to stir feeling and blending scene with emotion. The opening line 'The tower no longer shows the flute-playing maiden' borrows the tale of Xiao Shi and Nong Yu to hint that the beloved has become an immortal and gone; 'only left' echoes the earlier 'no longer seen', and the ache of things remaining while the person is gone overflows the words. 'Pink petals and golden stamens bow and rise on their own' uses the word 'on their own' to widen the psychological distance between the man and the scene; 'the east wind vexes me' lends feeling to things, lively and vivid. The lower stanza weaves a desolate, tender mood from the lingering sun, the drooping willows, and the green balustrade.

此词以景起情、情景交融，通篇悲切缠绵，是李煜悼亡词的代表。起句「秦楼不见吹箫女，空余上苑风光」以「不见」「空余」的对照起笔，一个「空」字写尽人去楼空、风光徒存的怅惘，秦楼吹箫的典故一出，佳人之逝已在不言中。「粉英金蕊自低昂」写繁花自在地或低或昂，「自」字写花之无情，正反衬人之有情，物是人非之感顿生。「东风恼我，才发一衿香」写东风仿佛恼人，才绽出一阵袭人的芳香便又凋零，以花香的短暂喻欢情的易逝，拟人之中暗含悼亡之痛。下片「琼窗梦醒留残日，当年得恨何长」写梦醒之后唯余残日，当年遗恨悠长，「残日」与「何长」对照，昔日之欢与今日之恨判然。「碧阑干外映垂杨」转写阑外垂杨，「暂时相见，如梦懒思量」以「暂时」「如梦」写相聚的短暂与虚幻，收于「懒思量」的强自排遣，愈排遣而愈深痛。全词以「不见」「空余」「自」「恼」等字眼织成一张怅惘之网，不直写悲悼而悲悼自见，是李煜以淡语写深情的极致。此词上片写景、下片写情，而以「不见」「空余」「自」「恼」诸字眼贯穿，织成一张怅惘之网。上片「粉英金蕊自低昂」的「自」字，写花之无情；下片「暂时相见，如梦懒思量」的「懒」字，写人之无奈，两字遥相呼应，物自低昂而人自懒思量，物我之间，悼亡之痛弥漫无垠。其以「空余」「残日」「垂杨」等衰飒意象与「上苑」「琼窗」等华美意象交错并置，正是悼亡词「以乐景写哀情」的典型笔法。

Allusions

The allusion centers on one place: 'the tower' and 'the flute-playing maiden' borrow the story from the Lie Xian Zhuan of Xiao Shi and Nong Yu riding off on a phoenix, using 'the phoenix gone, the tower empty' to hint at the passing of the elder queen. It recalls not only her beauty but also her artistry, for she played the flute, deepening the longing. Further, in 'a fragrance to fill my robe', the word for 'robe' is a variant for 'collar', and writing that the collar receives the scent figures the brevity of the blossoms' opening, hinting at how swiftly the queen's young life faded; there is metaphor within the image, implicit and deeply sorrowful.

「秦楼不见吹箫女」用萧史弄玉之典。典出旧题刘向《列仙传》：秦穆公之女弄玉善吹箫，嫁于萧史，萧史教弄玉吹箫作凤鸣，后有凤凰来集，夫妇遂乘凤仙去。此词以「吹箫女」代指所悼的佳人，以弄玉的仙去暗喻大周后的香消玉殒，一个「不见」写尽仙凡永隔的怅惘，用典而不露痕迹，是李煜以典寄情的妙笔。「秦楼」即弄玉所居之凤楼，此词借以指宫中的楼阁，「空余上苑风光」的「上苑」，则指皇家苑囿，皆以仙家与帝王之境并写，烘托所悼者的身份与词中的空寂。「粉英金蕊」指花，粉花金蕊的繁盛与「自低昂」的无人欣赏相对照，其「自」字的物是人非之感，可上溯刘希夷《代悲白头翁》「年年岁岁花相似」的兴叹，然李煜以一「自」字出之，更为凝练。「琼窗」指精美的窗，与「碧阑干」同属宫苑意象，其华美与「残日」「垂杨」的衰飒相映，正是悼亡词以乐景写哀情的笔法。「垂杨」为离别与怀人的传统意象，《诗经·小雅·采薇》「昔我往矣，杨柳依依」已以杨柳写别情，此词「碧阑干外映垂杨」，承此传统而写对逝者的追怀，柳色依依而人已不在，其哀愈深。又「东风恼我，才发一衿香」的「恼」字拟人，实承李商隐「东风无力百花残」的以东风写离愁之法，李煜化之，将春风的吹拂写成有意的捉弄，更添一层怨意。学界有谓「吹箫女」一语双关，既指弄玉之典，又暗含大周后善琵琶、通音律之实，以「吹箫」代「知音」，其悼亡之痛遂与知音永失之恨叠合，此说尤见用典之深曲。

Commentary

Lu You's History of the Southern Tang calls the elder queen 'delicate yet upright, gentle yet bright'. Modern readers note that this lyric 'shows its theme from the opening line, the grief that things remain while the person is gone saturating the whole piece', and that the echoed pairing of 'no longer seen' and 'only left' reveals a tight craft. It is also said that 'the east wind vexes me' may be read as 'I vex at the east wind'—lending feeling to things, lively and vivid—making this a 'rare' piece among Li Yu's elegies for the dead.

李煜词以「眼界始大，感慨遂深」著称，王国维《人间词话》谓「词至李后主而眼界始大，感慨遂深，遂变伶工之词而为士大夫之词」，又谓后主「俨有释迦、基督担荷人类罪恶之意」，此等评语虽多针对其亡国后之作，然此首悼亡词已见其由伶工之词向士大夫之词过渡的端倪。就选本而言，此词收入《南唐二主词》，然因调名与字句的残缺，历代选家多所校订，清侯文灿、王国维诸家校勘尤勤，王国维《唐五代二十一家词辑》于此词字句的考订尤为精审。清沈谦《填词杂说》以「男中李后主，女中李易安」并称，此词悼亡之恸，与李清照《孤雁儿》「吹箫人去玉楼空」的悼夫之悲，皆借「吹箫」之典写生死之隔，二词先后辉映，皆为中国悼亡词的杰作。就接受史而言，此词「吹箫女」的用典与「如梦懒思量」的收束，直接影响了后世悼亡词，苏轼《江城子》「十年生死两茫茫」的沉痛、纳兰性德「当时只道是寻常」的怅惘，皆可见此词先声。今人王仲闻《南唐二主词校订》、詹安泰《李璟李煜词》于此词的调名、字句、系年注释最详，是研读此词的基本文献。又明沈际飞《草堂诗余别集》评此词「悼亡之词，此其祖也」，虽未必确，然足见后世推重。清周济《介存斋论词杂著》以「亡国之音哀以思」论后主词，实则其悼亡之哀已先于亡国之恸。就影响而言，此词「如梦懒思量」的收束，直接下启纳兰性德「当时只道是寻常」的追悔，苏轼「十年生死两茫茫」的沉痛，皆可于此词见其先绪，可见李煜悼亡词在中国悼亡文学中的枢纽地位。

Prosody

Form Lyric, 'Gratitude for the New Spring' (Xie Xin En), double-tune short form (some say it is actually the tune 'Lin Jiang Xian')词，调寄《谢新恩》（双调小令）

Rhyme Irregular lines, level-tone rhyme held throughout, soft words and a sorrowful cadence全词押平水韵下平七阳韵，韵脚为「光、昂、香、长、杨、量」，一韵到底，皆属平声阳韵

Tone pattern Short form, desolate yet restrained, with a loose tonal pattern此词句式参差，上下片各为七、六、七、四、五的句式结构。上片「秦楼不见吹箫女，空余上苑风光。粉英金蕊自低昂。东风恼我，才发一衿香」；下片「琼窗梦醒留残日，当年得恨何长！碧阑干外映垂杨。暂时相见，如梦懒思量」，上下片句法相同，四字句与五字句的收束使节奏由舒展而趋顿挫。

Reading note Wang Guowei's recension notes this piece is actually in the 'Lin Jiang Xian' tune; the original has come down missing one character.《谢新恩》一词，调名仅见于《南唐二主词》，或以为即《临江仙》之异体，或以为调名残缺致讹，其格律今已难详，然以存词观之，上下片句式相同，皆为七、六、七、四、五，属双调小令。全词押平声阳韵，「光、昂、香、长、杨、量」皆属下平七阳，一韵到底，阳韵属开口洪亮之音，然用于悼亡，反以洪亮衬悲凉，声情之反差，正是「以乐声写哀情」的极致，与「空余上苑风光」的乐景写哀同构。上片「光、昂、香」三韵连押，写风光的空寂与花事的短暂；下片「长、杨、量」三韵连押，写遗恨的悠长与思量的无力，韵脚的匀停与情感的层递相生。上下片末皆以四字句「东风恼我」「暂时相见」一顿，再接五字句收束，由顿而收，节奏先抑后扬，恰合悼亡词欲言又止、吞吐难尽的情态，其声情之妙，正是小令以声传情的本色。且上下片末皆以四字一顿、五字一收，先抑后扬的节奏，恰合悼亡词欲言又止、吞吐难尽的情态，此种以句式的顿挫传情感的顿挫之法，实为后主小令声情之妙的又一体现。

Line by line

秦楼不见吹箫女

On the Qin tower, the flute-playing maid is seen no more.

秦楼上已不见那吹箫的仙女

On the Qin tower, the flute-playing maiden is nowhere to be seen.

此句以萧史弄玉之典起笔，写佳人仙去、楼阁空寂，是全词悼亡之痛的起点。「秦楼」即弄玉所居之凤楼，此借指宫中楼阁，「吹箫女」代指所悼的佳人，一个「不见」写尽仙凡永隔的怅惘——弄玉乘凤仙去，佳人亦香消玉殒，楼阁犹在而人已杳然。此句以「不见」二字领起，与下句「空余」相对，一写人之不在，一写景之徒存，人去楼空的悲悼尽在这两个否定词的对照之中。以典写情而不露痕迹，弄玉之仙去与佳人之逝两相叠合，仙家的缥缈与悼亡的沉痛并陈，正是李煜以典寄情的妙笔。

The opening uses the allusion to Xiao Shi and Nong Yu, writing the beloved gone to immortality and the tower empty, the starting point of the elegy's grief. The 'Qin tower' is the phoenix tower where Nong Yu dwelt, here referring to the palace chambers; the 'flute-playing maid' stands for the beloved being mourned, and the single word 'seen no more' writes to the full the gulf between mortal and immortal—Nong Yu rode the phoenix away, and the beloved too has perished, the tower remaining while she is vanished. The line opens on 'seen no more,' set against the next line's 'only remains,' one writing the person's absence, the other the scene's mere standing; the grief of the empty tower after the person's going lies in the contrast of the two negatives. Using the allusion without a trace, the immortal departure of Nong Yu and the passing of the beloved overlap, the ethereal and the elegiac set side by side—Li Yu's subtle way of lodging feeling in allusion.

粉英金蕊自低昂

Pink petals, golden stamens, bowing and lifting on their own.

粉红的花、金黄的蕊自在地或低或昂

Pink blossoms and golden stamens nod and lift at their own will.

此句写繁花自在地或低或昂，是全词写物是人非最冷峭的一笔。「粉英金蕊」状花之繁盛，粉花金蕊，色彩明丽，「自低昂」则写花自在地俯仰起伏，无人赏玩，一个「自」字写尽花之无情与人之有情——花不解人意，依旧自在地开落，而赏花之人已去，此情此景，徒增物是人非之痛。此句表面写花，实则写人，以花的「自低昂」反衬人的「不自已」，乐景写哀，其哀愈深。李煜以「自」字写花之无主，较直写人去楼空更为含蓄，其以淡语写深情的笔法，于此字中尽见。

This line writes the rich flowers nodding on their own, the coldest stroke of the lyric on things remaining while the person is gone. 'Pink petals, golden stamens' pictures the abundance of bloom, pink and gold, bright in color. 'Nodding and lifting on their own' writes the flowers bowing and rising of themselves, with no one to enjoy them; the single word 'on their own' writes the heartlessness of the flowers against the feeling of the person—the flowers know nothing of human feeling, still blooming and falling as before, while the one who enjoyed them is gone, and the sight only adds the pain of things remaining while men are gone. On the surface writing flowers, in truth writing people, the flowers' 'on their own' set against the person's 'not himself at peace,' joyous scenery doubling grief. Li Yu's word 'on their own' for the flowers' lack of a master is more reserved than directly writing the empty tower after the person's going, and his method of writing deep feeling in plain words is fully visible in this single character.

琼窗梦醒留残日

Waking from dreams by the jade window, only the fading sun remains.

倚着精美的窗子成梦，醒来时只剩一缕残阳

Waking from a dream at the jeweled window, only a streak of setting sun remains.

此句写下片，写梦醒之后的怅惘，是全词由外景转入内情的枢纽。「琼窗」点出宫苑的华美，「梦醒」写睡梦初回，「留残日」则写醒来时唯余一缕残阳，一个「留」字写残日之将尽，也写白日之难留，梦中的相聚与醒来的孤寂，尽在这「梦醒」与「残日」的对照之中。此句与下句「当年得恨何长」连读，「残日」之短与「何长」之恨对举，昔日之欢的短暂与今日之恨的悠长，一短一长，反差触目。以「琼窗」「残日」写梦醒的怅惘，华美与衰飒并陈，正是悼亡词以景写情的笔法，其梦醒之痛，开苏轼「十年生死两茫茫」的先声。

This line begins the lower stanza, writing the wistfulness after waking, the hinge where the lyric moves from outer scene to inner feeling. 'The jade window' fixes the splendor of the palace; 'waking from dreams' writes the first return from sleep; 'only the fading sun remains' writes that on waking only a thread of setting sun is left, the single word 'remains' writing both the dying of the sun and the difficulty of keeping the daylight; the embrace in the dream and the solitude on waking are all within the contrast of 'waking' and 'the fading sun.' Read with the next line, 'how long the grief of those years,' the shortness of 'the fading sun' set against the length of 'how long,' the brief joy of old and the long grief of today contrasting sharply. Writing the wistfulness of waking through 'jade window' and 'fading sun,' splendor and decay side by side, it is the elegy's method of writing feeling through scenery, and its pain of waking foreshadows Su Shi's 'ten years dead and living, vast and dim.'

暂时相见

For a moment we met.

与她的相聚只是暂时的

Our meeting was only for a little while.

此句写相聚的短暂，是全词情感的最深落点。「暂时」二字，谓往昔的欢会不过一时之暂，转瞬即逝，「相见」则唤起对昔日恩爱的追忆，二字连读，欢情的短暂与离别的恒久形成尖锐的对照。此句与下句「如梦懒思量」连读，「暂时相见」是回望过去，「如梦」是看待现在，过去的欢会恍如梦境，如今连梦也懒于思量，愈是不愿思量，愈见其痛之深。以「暂时」写欢情之短，以「懒思量」写哀思之痛，表面是强自排遣，实则愈排遣而愈沉痛，正是悼亡词「以淡语写深情」的极致，其笔法对纳兰性德「当时只道是寻常」的追悔之叹影响深远。

This line writes the briefness of the meeting, the deepest landing point of the lyric's feeling. 'For a moment' means that the old joy was but a moment's briefness, gone in a breath; 'we met' calls up the memory of past affection, and the two words read together set the briefness of joy against the permanence of parting in sharp contrast. Read with the next line, 'like a dream, too listless to think on,' 'for a moment we met' looks back to the past, 'like a dream' views the present; the old embrace seems a dream, and now even the dream is too listless to revisit—the more he will not think, the deeper the pain. Writing the briefness of joy through 'for a moment' and the pain of grief through 'too listless to think,' on the surface forcing composure, yet the more forced the more stricken, the extreme of the elegy's 'deep feeling in plain words,' and it deeply influenced Nalan Xingde's sigh of regret, 'at the time I only thought it ordinary.'

Study

Word focus

自 In 'pink petals and golden stamens bow and rise on their own', the word 'on their own' widens the psychological distance between the man and the scene, revealing his loneliness. 「粉英金蕊自低昂」的「自」字，是全词写物是人非最凝练的一笔。「自」者自在地、径自地，花不解人意，依旧自在地俯仰开落，一个「自」字，写尽花之无情与人之有情——赏花之人已去，而花犹自低昂，此情此景，物之自在反成人之刺痛。此字将「粉英金蕊」的繁盛与「低昂」的动态一并收于无主的境地，花的自开自落，恰是人的茕茕孑立。以「自」字写物之无情以衬人之深情，其法可上溯「年年岁岁花相似」的兴叹，而李煜以一字出之，更为凝练含蓄，是词家炼字的典范。

恼 In 'the east wind vexes me', the word 'vexes' lends human feeling to a thing, vividly showing the fond folly of blaming the spring wind because he has no heart to enjoy it. 「东风恼我」的「恼」字，以拟人写东风的捉弄，是写悼亡之痛最巧妙的一笔。「恼」者烦扰、戏弄也，东风本是无情之物，着一「恼」字，便似有意与人作对——才绽出一阵袭人的芳香，便又凋零，仿佛专为撩动人的哀思而来。此字将自然的风拟为有情的敌手，东风的「恼」，实是词人心中之痛的投射，风本不恼人，是人自恼，以「恼」字写之，反见其哀之深。以「恼」字写东风，较「吹」「拂」多一层怨意，将悼亡的沉痛化入对自然的一转嗔怪之中，怨而不怒，哀而不伤，正是李煜词深婉之处的体现。

懒 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「如梦懒思量」的「懒」字，是全词情感的收束之眼。「懒」者不愿、无心也，往昔的欢会恍如梦境，词人却「懒」于思量，一个「懒」字，表面是强自排遣的淡漠，实则是不堪回首的沉痛——愈是不愿思量，愈见其痛之深，愈是故作懒散，愈见其情之切。此字以极淡之笔写极深之痛，将悼亡的悲恸压成一声无力的「懒思量」，较痛哭流涕更具力量。以「懒」字写不堪回首，其法对后世影响深远，纳兰性德「当时只道是寻常」的追悔、李清照「懒倚阑干」的无绪，皆可见此「懒」字的遗韵，一字之立，开悼亡词「以淡写深」的法门。