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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

竹枝词四首·其一

The, Words, of, the, Bamboo, the, Branches, the, First, of, the, Four

白居易

Bai Juyi

民歌people 竹枝Theme

瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西。
唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼。

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Meaning

A poem of the gorge and the sorrow, written by Bai Juyi. The mouth of the Qutang the Gorge the mist of the water low, the head of the White Emperor City the moon toward the west — the scene of the opening. Singing to the Bamboo the Branches the place of the sobbing of the voices, the cold apes the dark birds at the same time the crying — the sorrow of the close. The poem is the gorge and the sorrow: the scene, and the close's sorrow.

瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西。唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] The, mouth, of, the, Qutang, the, Gorge, the, mist, of, the, water, low, the, head, of, the, White, Emperor, City, the, moon, toward, the, west. Singing, to, the, Bamboo, the, Branches, the, place, of, the, sobbing, of, the, voices, the, cold, apes, the, dark, birds, at, the, same, time, the, crying. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves from the scene of the gorge with the moon, through the singing of the Bamboo the Branches, to the close's the sorrow of the cold apes. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the close of the sorrow: singing to the Bamboo the Branches the place of the sobbing of the voices, and the close's the cold apes the dark birds at the same time the crying — the gorge gathered in the singing and the close's sorrow. [Emotional Tone] Misty, sorrowful, and mourning: the poem is the scene, the singing and the close's sorrow.

【白话串讲】白居易写《竹枝词四首·其一》：“瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西”——“唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼”——他写瞿塘峡的夜色——唱到竹枝声咽处。【意象与手法】此诗写民歌，以竹枝写民歌，是白居易的名篇。前二句写夜景：「瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西」写瞿塘峡口水烟低、白帝城头月向西——写尽峡江的夜景；后二句写歌声：「唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写唱到竹枝声咽处、寒猿闇鸟一时啼——写尽竹枝的哀切。全诗以竹枝写民歌，写尽峡江的夜景与竹枝的哀切，是白居易的代表作。【情感与主旨】此诗写民歌，以竹枝写民歌，是白居易的名篇。此诗为《竹枝词四首》之一。竹枝词为巴渝（今重庆一带）民歌，白居易在忠州（今重庆忠县）刺史任上仿作。此诗写瞿塘峡（长江三峡之一）口的水烟低垂，白帝城头的月亮已向西斜；竹枝歌唱到声咽处，寒猿暗鸟一时齐啼。全诗以峡江夜景写竹枝哀声，正见巴渝民歌的凄切。此诗写夜景：瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西——写瞿塘峡口水烟低、白帝城头月向西，写尽峡江的夜景；唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼——写唱到竹枝声咽处、寒猿闇鸟一时啼，写尽竹枝的哀切。全诗以竹枝写民歌——那「瞿塘峡口水烟低」写尽峡江的夜景，「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写尽竹枝的哀切，写尽峡江的夜景与竹枝的哀切，是理解白居易竹枝词的重要篇章。【名句点睛】常考「瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西」写峡江的夜景；「唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写竹枝的哀切；以及全诗以竹枝写民歌、以景衬声的手法。

Background

Bai Juyi (772-846), the great poet of the Tang, wrote this 'The, Words, of, the, Bamboo, the, Branches, the, First, of, the, Four' of the gorge and the sorrow — the sorrow of the gorge in the exile. The scene of the gorge with the moon, and the close's the sorrow of the cold apes — the poem gathers the sorrow of the poet, the sadness of the folk songs. The poem is one of the famous works of the poet's poems of the folk songs.

此诗写民歌，以竹枝写民歌，是白居易的名篇。白居易（772—846），字乐天，号香山居士，又号醉吟先生，下邽（今陕西渭南）人，唐代诗人，与元稹并称「元白」，为新乐府运动代表，为唐代存诗最多的诗人。此诗为《竹枝词四首》之一。竹枝词为巴渝（今重庆一带）民歌，白居易在忠州（今重庆忠县）刺史任上仿作。此诗写瞿塘峡（长江三峡之一）口的水烟低垂，白帝城头的月亮已向西斜；竹枝歌唱到声咽处，寒猿暗鸟一时齐啼。全诗以峡江夜景写竹枝哀声，正见巴渝民歌的凄切。此诗写夜景：「瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西」写瞿塘峡口水烟低、白帝城头月向西——写尽峡江的夜景（瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西）；「唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写唱到竹枝声咽处、寒猿闇鸟一时啼——写尽竹枝的哀切（唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼）。全诗以竹枝写民歌，写尽峡江的夜景与竹枝的哀切，是理解白居易竹枝词的重要篇章。

Art

The poem's art is the art of the sorrow. The scene opens: the, mouth, of, the, Qutang, the, Gorge, the, mist, of, the, water, low — the mouth of the Qutang of the mist of the water low; the, head, of, the, White, Emperor, City, the, moon, toward, the, west — the White Emperor City of the moon toward the west. The sorrow follows: singing, to, the, Bamboo, the, Branches, the, place, of, the, sobbing, of, the, voices — the Bamboo the Branches of the sobbing of the voices; the, cold, apes, the, dark, birds, at, the, same, time, the, crying — the cold apes of the dark birds crying — the scene, the singing and the close's sorrow, gathered in the poem.

此诗的艺术特色可从四个方面解析。其一，以白描写夜景。「瞿塘峡口水烟低」以白描写夜景——那「水烟低」写尽水烟的迷蒙，以白描写尽峡江的夜景。其二，以对照写月斜。「白帝城头月向西」以对照写月斜——那「月向西」写尽月光的西斜，以对照写尽峡江的夜景。其三，以声写哀切。「唱到竹枝声咽处」以声写哀切——那「声咽」写尽歌声的哽咽，以声写尽竹枝的哀切。其四，以衬写写啼声。「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」以衬写写啼声——那「寒猿」「闇鸟」写尽猿鸟的齐啼，以衬写写尽竹枝的哀切。此外，此诗前二句写峡江的夜景，后二句写竹枝的哀切，由景及声，正是竹枝词「以景衬声」的写法。四重手法，使此诗以竹枝写民歌，写尽峡江的夜景与竹枝的哀切，是白居易的代表作。此诗还善于以「白帝城头月向西」的「向西」写月斜之时——那「向西」写尽月光的西斜，正是夜将半的写照，以「向西」写尽峡江的夜景。又善以「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」的「一时」写啼声之齐——一时啼，正见哀声相和，以「一时」写尽竹枝的哀切。

Allusions

'The mouth of the Qutang the Gorge' (qu tang xia kou) is the mouth of the Qutang the Gorge — the gorge of the Qutang, the mist of the opening; 'the White Emperor City' (bai di cheng) is the White Emperor City — the city of the White Emperor, the moon of the opening; 'the cold apes the dark birds' (han yuan an niao) are the cold apes the dark birds — the apes of the cold, the crying of the close — the crying of the folk song, the sorrow of the gorge.

此诗的用语深植于民歌与竹枝传统。「瞿塘峡」令人想到「瞿塘峡」写三峡的意象——长江三峡之一，也令人想到「滟滪堆」的意象；「水烟」令人想到「水烟」写江雾的意象——也令人想到「烟波江上使人愁」（崔颢）的意象；「白帝城」令人想到「白帝城」写白帝城的意象——在今重庆奉节，也令人想到「白帝城中云出门」（杜甫）的意象；「竹枝」令人想到「竹枝」写巴渝民歌的意象——也令人想到刘禹锡《竹枝词》的意象；「声咽」令人想到「声咽」写哽咽的意象——也令人想到「箫声咽」（李白）的意象；「寒猿」令人想到「寒猿」写寒猿的意象——也令人想到「巴东三峡巫峡长，猿鸣三声泪沾裳」的意象。全诗化用瞿塘峡、水烟、白帝城、竹枝、声咽、寒猿的意象，以竹枝写民歌，正是白居易「平易」而善写实、承民歌传统写哀切之本领。「水烟低」令人想到「水烟」写江上烟气的意象——也令人想到崔颢《黄鹤楼》「烟波江上使人愁」的意象；「闇鸟」令人想到「暗鸟」写暗夜之鸟的意象——也令人想到「宿鸟」的意象，以闇鸟写夜色中应声而啼的鸟。

Commentary

This poem is one of the famous works of Bai Juyi's poems of the folk songs, quoted for the depth of its opening and the sorrow of its close. The mouth of the Qutang of the mist of the water low, and the cold apes of the dark birds crying, are among the admired passages of the poet's poems. Critics praise the poem's sorrow: the gorge gathered in the singing, to the close's mourning.

此诗历来被推为白居易竹枝词的名篇，也是唐诗写巴渝民歌的代表。历代论者对此诗评价极高：清人评此诗「以竹枝写民歌，凄切自然」；近人更指出「唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写竹枝的哀切，是此诗的名句。在诗歌史上，此诗的特殊价值在于：它以四句的绝句写尽峡江的夜景与竹枝的哀切——那瞿塘峡口，那水烟低，那白帝城头，那月向西，那唱到，那竹枝，那声咽处，那寒猿，那闇鸟，那一时啼，都写尽了白居易笔下的竹枝词；那「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」更以衬写写尽竹枝的哀切。此诗与白居易《竹枝词四首·其二》同为竹枝词，又与刘禹锡《竹枝词》「东边日出西边雨」的竹枝传统一脉相承，可见唐诗写竹枝的传统。对于今日读者，此诗是理解白居易竹枝词的窗口，也是唐诗写巴渝民歌的经典——那寒猿暗鸟的齐啼，穿越千年，仍在诉说着竹枝的哀切。此诗的价值更在于它写出了巴渝竹枝的声情——白居易任忠州刺史时，正是以文人身份听巴渝民歌，遂能传其声情。后世学者指出，此诗「以景衬声，声情并茂」，与刘禹锡夔州竹枝并为唐人仿民歌之双璧。

Prosody

Form A quatrain of the folk song (qi yan jue ju)诗·七言绝句

Rhyme The poem rhymes on the level of the group — the cadence of the quatrain that carries the mournful sorrow.七绝，押「西」「啼」韵（上平八齐），一韵到底，音节凄切

Tone pattern The cadence is that of the sorrow: the level opening with the scene, the turning with the singing, and the close's fall with the crying.此诗为七言绝句，押平声韵，一韵到底，音节凄切，正合民歌的凄切。

Reading note The poem's sound matches its mourning: the cadences of the quatrain, and the close — 'han yuan an niao yi shi ti' — falls with the crying, the sound of the sorrow of the gorge poet.此诗为七言绝句，四句——「瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西。唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼」，押「齐」韵（西、啼），一韵到底，音节凄切。全诗以竹枝写民歌：前二句写峡江的夜景（瞿塘峡口水烟低、白帝城头月向西），后二句写竹枝的哀切（唱到竹枝声咽处、寒猿闇鸟一时啼）。四句短章，前写夜景，后写哀切，以「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写尽竹枝的哀切，正见白居易「平易」的本色。诵读此诗，宜以凄切的语调读「唱到竹枝声咽处」的哽咽，以苍凉的语调读「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」的啼声，结句要读得凄切而有余韵，方能传达出白居易的凄切自然。白居易绝句以「平易」著称，此诗正是其竹枝词的典范。

Line by line

唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼

When the song reaches the choking, sobbing note of the Zhuzhi, the cold apes and the hidden birds all cry out at once.

唱到竹枝声咽处，寒猿闇鸟一时啼。

When the Zhuzhi song reaches its sobbing, choking note, the cold apes and the shadowed birds all cry together.

此二句是全诗写哀切的核心，以唱到竹枝声咽处写声咽，以寒猿闇鸟一时啼写一时啼，写尽竹枝的哀切，是千古名句。「唱到竹枝声咽处」写唱到竹枝声咽处——那「唱到竹枝」写唱到竹枝，「声咽处」写声咽处，写尽歌声的哽咽；「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写寒猿闇鸟一时啼——那「寒猿闇鸟」写寒猿闇鸟，「一时啼」写一时啼，写尽猿鸟的齐啼。这句的深意在于：它以「唱到竹枝声咽处」的声咽与「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」的一时啼，写尽竹枝的哀切——唱到竹枝声咽处，那「唱到竹枝声咽处」写尽歌声的哽咽——唱到声咽，正是歌至哽咽的写照，那「声咽处」写尽竹枝的哀切；寒猿闇鸟一时啼，那「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写尽猿鸟的齐啼——寒猿闇鸟，正是寒猿暗鸟的写照，那「一时啼」写尽竹枝的哀切；那「唱到竹枝声咽处」写尽歌声的哽咽，那「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写尽猿鸟的齐啼，一写歌声，一写猿鸟，写尽竹枝的哀切——歌声哽咽而猿鸟齐啼，正是哀声相和的写照；此二句以声咽、啼声写尽竹枝的哀切，也让此二句成为全诗写哀切的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「竹枝歌唱得很悲伤，连猿猴和鸟都跟着叫」，则失其意境；唯以「唱到竹枝声咽处」写声咽、「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写一时啼，写尽竹枝的哀切，也让此二句成为全诗写哀切的核心。

These two lines are the core of the poem's pathos, 'when the song reaches the choking, sobbing note of the Zhuzhi' the choking note, 'the cold apes and the hidden birds all cry out at once' the crying out, writing the Zhuzhi's pathos, a famous line. 'When the song reaches the choking, sobbing note of the Zhuzhi' - the Zhuzhi song sung to the point of choking; 'the cold apes and the hidden birds all cry out at once' - the cold apes and the dark birds joining in the song. The song choking and the apes and birds crying together, the portrait of the sad sounds answering; one line the song, one the apes and birds, the pathos complete. If one said plainly 'the Zhuzhi song is so sad that apes and birds join in,' the mood would be lost; only the choking note of the Zhuzhi song and the cold apes and hidden birds crying at once hold the pathos.

瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西

At the mouth of Qutang Gorge, the water mist hangs low; above the city of Baidi, the moon slants west.

瞿塘峡口水烟低，白帝城头月向西。

At the mouth of Qutang Gorge the water-mist hangs low; above the walls of Baidi the moon leans west.

此二句是全诗写夜景的核心，以瞿塘峡口水烟低写水烟低，以白帝城头月向西写月向西，写尽峡江的夜景，是千古名句。「瞿塘峡口水烟低」写瞿塘峡口水烟低——那「瞿塘峡口」写瞿塘峡口，「水烟低」写水烟低，写尽峡口水烟；「白帝城头月向西」写白帝城头月向西——那「白帝城头」写白帝城头，「月向西」写月向西，写尽城头月斜。这句的深意在于：它以「瞿塘峡口水烟低」的水烟与「白帝城头月向西」的月斜，写尽峡江的夜景——瞿塘峡口水烟低，那「瞿塘峡口水烟低」写尽峡口水烟——瞿塘峡口，正是峡口水雾的写照，那「水烟低」写尽峡江的夜景；白帝城头月向西，那「白帝城头月向西」写尽城头月斜——白帝城头，正是城头望月的写照，那「月向西」写尽峡江的夜景；那「瞿塘峡口水烟低」写尽峡口水烟，那「白帝城头月向西」写尽城头月斜，一写水烟，一写月色，写尽峡江的夜景——峡口水烟而城头月斜，正是夜色苍茫的写照；此二句以水烟、月斜写尽峡江的夜景，也为下文的歌声作铺垫，也让此二句成为全诗写夜景的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「瞿塘峡口雾蒙蒙的，白帝城头的月亮偏西了」，则失其画面；唯以「瞿塘峡口水烟低」写水烟低、「白帝城头月向西」写月向西，写尽峡江的夜景，也让此二句成为全诗写夜景的核心。

These two lines are the core of the poem's night scene, 'at the mouth of Qutang Gorge, the water mist hangs low' the low mist, 'above the city of Baidi, the moon slants west' the slanting moon, writing the gorge river's night, a famous line. 'At the mouth of Qutang Gorge, the water mist hangs low' - Qutang Gorge's mouth, the water mist low; 'above the city of Baidi, the moon slants west' - Baidi city wall, the moon slanting west. The low mist at the gorge and the slanting moon above the wall, the portrait of the vast night; one line the mist, one the moon, the night scene complete. If one said plainly 'Qutang Gorge mouth is misty, the moon over Baidi is westward,' the picture would be lost; only the low water-mist at Qutang's mouth and the moon leaning west over Baidi hold the gorge night.

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Word focus

咽 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「唱到竹枝声咽处」之「咽」字是写哀切的关键词，一个「咽」字写尽歌声的哽咽。咽者，哽咽、悲咽也。白居易以「唱到竹枝声咽处」写哀切，这个「咽」字至少有双重意味：其一，写声之咽——那「唱到竹枝声咽处」写唱到竹枝声咽处，那「咽」字写尽歌声的哽咽——声咽处，正是歌声哽咽的写照，那「咽」字写尽竹枝的哀切；其二，写情之悲——那「咽」字更是写悲——咽，正见歌声的悲凉，那「咽」字写尽巴渝民歌的凄切。以「咽」字写哀切，正是白居易写竹枝的枢纽——若换作「悲」「泣」等字，则或失其与「唱到竹枝」「声咽处」的配合，或失其写咽的意味；唯「咽」字，以唱到竹枝声咽处写尽歌声之哽咽与情思之悲凉，与「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」的啼相合，写尽竹枝的哀切，也让「唱到竹枝声咽处」成为全诗写哀切的名句。

一时 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」之「一时」是写齐啼的关键词，一个「一时」写尽猿鸟的齐啼。一时者，同时、一齐也。白居易以「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写齐啼，这个「一时」至少有双重意味：其一，写啼之齐——那「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」写寒猿闇鸟一时啼，那「一时」写尽猿鸟的齐啼——一时啼，正是同时而啼的写照，那「一时」写尽竹枝的哀切；其二，写声之应——那「一时」更是写应——一时，正见哀声相和的感应，那「一时」写尽民歌的感染力。以「一时」写齐啼，正是白居易写竹枝的枢纽——若换作「同声」「齐声」等词，则或失其与「寒猿闇鸟」「啼」的配合，或失其写一时的意味；唯「一时」二字，以寒猿闇鸟一时啼写尽猿鸟之齐啼与哀声之感应，与「唱到竹枝声咽处」的声咽相合，写尽竹枝的哀切，也让「寒猿闇鸟一时啼」成为全诗写齐啼的名句。