All poems

唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

板桥晓别

Parting at Dawn at the Plank Bridge

李商隐

Li Shangyin

送别Farewell 离别Parting

回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波。
水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多。

Looking back, the high city, the dawn river sets; the long pavilion's window presses down on the ripples.
The water immortal would ride the carp away; all night the lotus wept crimson tears.

Listen

Meaning

At dawn by the Banqiao ferry, Li Shangyin parts from a loved one, blending real farewell scenery with fairy-tale imagery of immortals riding carp and lotuses weeping blood. The poem transforms a mundane leave-taking into a haunting, romantic vision of parting.

回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波。水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Looking back, the high city, the dawn river sets; the long pavilion's window presses the ripples. The water immortal would ride the carp away; all night the lotus wept crimson tears. [Structure] The first couplet sets the real parting scene at dawn by the waterside pavilion; the second leaps into fairy-tale imagery of departure and weeping flowers, real giving way to vision. [Imagery] 'Window presses the ripples' makes the pavilion lean heavily over the water, as if the parting weighed upon it. 'Water immortal rides the carp' transforms the traveler into a mythic figure, while 'lotus weeps crimson tears' turns the one left behind into a flower bleeding with grief. The blend of scene and fantasy is Li Shangyin's 'deep, distant passion.'

【白话串讲】李商隐写《板桥晓别》：“回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波”——“水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多”——他在板桥晓别——一夜芙蓉红泪多——他写别离之泪。【意象与手法】此诗写板桥晓别，以奇幻写别情，是李商隐的名篇。前二句写别时：「回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波」写回望高城落晓河、长亭窗户压微波——写尽晓别的时分；后二句写别情：「水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多」写水仙欲上鲤鱼去、一夜芙蓉红泪多——写尽奇幻的别情。全诗以奇幻写别情，写尽板桥晓别的缠绵，是李商隐的代表作。【情感与主旨】此诗写板桥晓别，以奇幻写别情，是李商隐的名篇。此诗写诗人于板桥（汴河上渡口）晓别之情，以水仙、鲤鱼、芙蓉、红泪等仙幻意象写别情。此诗写别时：回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波——写回望高城落晓河、长亭窗户压微波，写尽晓别的时分；水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多——写水仙欲上鲤鱼去、一夜芙蓉红泪多，写尽奇幻的别情。全诗以奇幻写别情——那「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」写尽奇幻的别情，「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写尽缠绵的别泪，写尽板桥晓别的缠绵，是理解李商隐送别诗的重要篇章。【名句点睛】常考「回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波」写晓别的时分；「水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多」写奇幻的别情；以及全诗以奇幻写别情、以仙话写离别的浪漫手法。

Background

Li Shangyin (c. 813-c. 858), styled Yishan, titled Yuxi Sheng, was a great Late Tang poet, paired with Du Mu as the 'Lesser Li-Du.' This quatrain was written at the Plank Bridge, a ferry on the Bian River at Bianzhou (present-day Kaifeng), a traditional place of farewell. It is often read as a parting from a lover met there; Li's biographical disappointments in love lend the fairy-tale imagery its ache.

此诗写板桥晓别，以奇幻写别情，是李商隐的名篇。李商隐（约813—约858），字义山，号玉谿生，怀州河内（今河南沁阳）人，晚唐伟大的诗人，与杜牧并称「小李杜」。板桥在汴州（今河南开封）南，汴河上的渡口，唐时为送别之地。此诗写诗人在板桥与友人（一说情人）晓别之情。「回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波」写回望高城落晓河、长亭窗户压微波——写尽晓别的时分（回望高城，晓河西落，长亭的窗户俯压微波）；「水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多」写水仙欲上鲤鱼去、一夜芙蓉红泪多——写尽奇幻的别情（水仙欲乘鲤鱼而去，一夜之间芙蓉的红泪更多）。全诗以奇幻写别情，写尽板桥晓别的缠绵，是理解李商隐送别诗的重要篇章。还需结合李商隐的情感经历来读：李商隐一生与多段情缘失之交臂，其送别诗中常以仙幻之笔写别情，正是将现实之离别提升为永恒之怅惘。此诗所别者，或为汴州相遇之女子，诗人以「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」写行者之去如仙人乘鲤，以「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写送者之泪如芙蓉泣露——去者仙踪缥缈，送者泪眼迷离，一仙一凡，正是李商隐将别情浪漫化、凄美化的一贯手法，也可见其「直道相思了无益」式明知无益而仍深情的执着。

Art

Four techniques shape the poem. First, scenic framing: 'looking back, the high city, the dawn river sets' and 'the long pavilion's window presses the ripples' ground the parting in a precise dawn moment. Second, fairy-tale metamorphosis: 'the water immortal would ride the carp away' cites the immortal Qin Gao who rode a carp, turning the traveler into a myth. Third, imagistic pathos: 'the lotus wept crimson tears' makes the flower the weeping lover. Fourth, romantic imagination: the poem leaps from fact to fantasy, the signature of Li's 'deep, distant passion.' The first two lines are real (city, river, pavilion); the last two are vision (immortal, carp, lotus); entering the unreal from the real is the quatrain's 'a thousand miles in a foot' power. The word 'presses' makes the locale oppressively close, while 'crimson tears' renders grief as flower-blood.

此诗的艺术特色可从四个方面解析。其一，以写景写晓别。「回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波」以写景写晓别——那「落晓河」「压微波」写尽晓天的时分，以写景写尽晓别的时刻。其二，以仙话写别情。「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」以仙话写别情——那「水仙」「鲤鱼」写尽琴高乘鲤的仙话，以仙话写尽奇幻的别情。其三，以意象写凄美。「一夜芙蓉红泪多」以意象写凄美——那「芙蓉」「红泪」写尽芙蓉的红泪，以意象写尽缠绵的别泪。其四，以想象写浪漫。全诗由晓别实景转入仙话幻境，以想象写尽离别之情的浪漫化。此外，此诗前二句写实景（高城、晓河、长亭、微波），后二句写幻境（水仙、鲤鱼、芙蓉、红泪），由实入幻，正是李商隐「深情绵邈」而善幻想的本色。四重手法，使此诗以奇幻写别情，写尽板桥晓别的缠绵，是李商隐的代表作。此诗尤可注意时空的处理：首句「回望高城落晓河」以「回望」写去者之依依不舍，次句「长亭窗户压微波」以「压」字写送别之地的逼仄与离情之沉重；后二句陡然转入仙幻，以「欲上鲤鱼去」写去势之决绝，以「红泪多」写送情之缠绵——四句之间，由实入虚、由晓至夜（一夜），时空跳荡而情脉不断，正是绝句「尺幅千里」的典范。

Allusions

The language rests on fairy-tale and parting traditions. 'Water immortal rides the carp' alludes to Qin Gao, the Warring-States immortal who descended into the Zhuo River for dragon sons and returned riding a red carp. 'Crimson tears' cites the tale of Xue Lingyun, whose parting tears congealed like blood (recorded in Records of the Lost). 'Long pavilion' is the classic farewell station ('long pavilions and short, where is the road home' - Li Bai). 'Lotus' evokes feminine beauty. The poem fuses Qin Gao's carp, crimson tears, and the long pavilion into a romantic, otherworldly leave-taking.

此诗的用语深植于仙话与离别的传统。「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」用「水仙」写琴高乘鲤的仙话——琴高为战国赵人，入涿水取龙子，与弟子期某日返，果乘赤鲤而出，也令人想到「鲤鱼」写鲤鱼的意象——「鲤鱼」正是琴高所乘；「芙蓉红泪」用「红泪」写美人之泪的典故——《拾遗记》载薛灵芸被选入宫，别父母时泪下，以玉唾壶承泪，泪凝如血，也令人想到「芙蓉」写芙蓉的意象——「一夜芙蓉红泪多」正是李商隐的名句；「长亭」令人想到「长亭」写送别的意象——「长亭送别」正是传统，也令人想到「何处是归程，长亭更短亭」（李白）。全诗化用琴高乘鲤、红泪、长亭的典故，以奇幻写别情，正是李商隐「深情绵邈」而善用典、承仙话传统写离别的本领。又「长亭」意象可深味：古人有「十里一长亭，五里一短亭」之制，长亭正是送别之所的固定意象，李白「何处是归程，长亭更短亭」即写长亭绵绵。李商隐于此以「长亭窗户压微波」写临水长亭，既点明板桥临汴河的地理位置，又暗含长亭送别的文化传统；而「窗户」二字将送别之亭写得具体如在目前，使典故意象与眼前实景交融，可见其用典化景的本领。

Commentary

Long ranked a masterpiece of Li Shangyin's farewell verse and a Tang model for dawn parting, the poem is praised for its 'fantastic feeling, lingering passion.' The carp-and-lotus couplet is repeatedly cited as its finest line. It pairs with his 'Untitled' ('parting is hard... the silk worm dies') - one on steadfast passion, one on fantastical parting - and with Li Bai's bright 'Seeing Meng Haoran off at Yellow Crane Tower,' showing the contrast between High and Late Tang farewells. For modern readers it is a window onto Li's romantic, elusive art.

此诗历来被推为李商隐送别诗的名篇，也是唐人写晓别的代表。历代论者对此诗评价极高：清人评此诗「以奇幻写别情，情致缠绵」；近人更指出「水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多」以仙话写别情，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板桥晓别的缠绵——那回望的高城，那西落的晓河，那长亭的窗户，那微波，那欲上的水仙，那鲤鱼，那芙蓉，那红泪，都写尽了李商隐笔下的板桥晓别；那「一夜芙蓉红泪多」更以红泪写尽离别之情的凄美。此诗与李商隐《无题·相见时难别亦难》（「春蚕到死丝方尽」）同为别情名篇，一写「春蚕到死丝方尽」的执着（无题），一写「一夜芙蓉红泪多」的凄美（板桥晓别）；又与李白「孤帆远影碧空尽」的送别传统一脉相承，可见中国诗送别的深情。对于今日读者，此诗是理解李商隐送别诗的窗口，也是中国诗写晓别的经典——那芙蓉的红泪，穿越千年，仍在诉说着晓别的缠绵。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain (qijue)诗·七言绝句

Rhyme Rhymes on bo, duo (Ge category), single rhyme throughout, lingering七绝，押「波」「多」韵（下平五歌），一韵到底，音节缠绵

Tone pattern A seven-character quatrain with level-tone rhymes carried straight through, its lingering sound suiting parting.此诗为七言绝句，押平声韵，一韵到底，音节缠绵，正合别情的缠绵。

Reading note A seven-character quatrain of four lines - 'Looking back, the high city, the dawn river sets... all night the lotus wept crimson tears' - rhyming on the Ge category (waves, many), lingering throughout. The first two lines set the real dawn scene, the last two the fantastical parting.此诗为七言绝句，四句——「回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波。水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多」，押「歌」韵（波、多），一韵到底，音节缠绵。全诗以奇幻写别情：前二句写晓别的时分（回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波），后二句写奇幻的别情（水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多）。四句短章，前写实景，后写幻境，以「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写尽别情的凄美，正见李商隐「深情绵邈」的本色。诵读此诗，宜以缠绵的语调读「回望高城落晓河」的晓别，以凄美的语调读「一夜芙蓉红泪多」的别泪，结句要读得低回而有余韵，方能传达出李商隐的深情绵邈。李商隐绝句以「深情绵邈」著称，此诗正是其晓别绝句的典范。

Line by line

水仙欲上鲤鱼去，一夜芙蓉红泪多

The water immortal would ride the carp away; all night the lotus wept crimson tears.

水仙欲乘鲤鱼而去，一夜之间芙蓉的红泪更多。

The water spirit is about to ride her carp away; all night long the hibiscus flowers weep red tears.

此二句是全诗写别情的核心，以水仙鲤鱼写仙话，以芙蓉红泪写别泪，写尽奇幻的别情，是千古名句。「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」写水仙欲乘鲤鱼而去——那「水仙」写水中仙人，「欲上鲤鱼去」写欲乘鲤鱼而去，写尽奇幻的仙话；「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写一夜之间芙蓉的红泪更多——那「芙蓉」写芙蓉，「红泪多」写红泪更多，写尽缠绵的别泪。这句的深意在于：它以「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」的仙话与「一夜芙蓉红泪多」的别泪，写尽奇幻的别情——水仙欲乘鲤鱼而去，那「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」写尽奇幻的仙话——琴高乘鲤而去，正是仙人的离别，那「欲上鲤鱼去」写尽离别之将去；一夜之间芙蓉的红泪更多，那「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写尽缠绵的别泪——芙蓉红泪，正是离人之泪的化身，那「红泪多」写尽一夜的离愁；那「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」写尽奇幻的仙话，那「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写尽缠绵的别泪，一写离去，一写别泪，写尽奇幻的别情——水仙乘鲤而去，而芙蓉垂泪相送，正是仙凡两隔的别情；此二句以仙话、别泪写尽奇幻的别情，也让此二句成为全诗写别情的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「离别时很伤心」，则失其奇幻；唯以「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」写仙话、「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写别泪，写尽奇幻的别情，也让此二句成为全诗写别情的核心。

Li Shangyin transfigures a dawn parting into fairy tale. "The water spirit rides a carp" alludes to Qin Gao, the Han immortal who mounted a carp and sailed away across the river; by casting the departing beloved as such a figure, he raises a mortal farewell to the border between human and immortal. The counterpart image is botanical: hibiscus blooms shed red tears all the night through, after the old tale of beauty weeping gem-like tears, here transferred to flowers. One line shows the departure as enchantment, the other the night of grief; together they make the parting both supernatural and heartbreaking. The allusion is the couplet's dazzle; without it, goodbye and crying would be ordinary.

回望高城落晓河，长亭窗户压微波

Looking back, the high city, the dawn river sets; the long pavilion's window presses down on the ripples.

回望高城，晓河西落；长亭的窗户俯压微波。

Looking back at the tall city, the morning galaxy is setting; the parting pavilion's windows lean over the rippling water.

此二句是全诗写晓别的核心，以回望高城写依恋，以长亭窗户写别处，写尽晓别的时分，是千古名句。「回望高城落晓河」写回望高城晓河西落——那「回望高城」写回望高城，「落晓河」写晓河西落，写尽依恋的时分；「长亭窗户压微波」写长亭的窗户俯压微波——那「长亭窗户」写长亭的窗户，「压微波」写俯压微波，写尽送别之地。这句的深意在于：它以「回望高城落晓河」的依恋与「长亭窗户压微波」的别处，写尽晓别的时分——回望高城晓河西落，那「回望高城落晓河」写尽依恋的时分——回望高城，晓河西落，正是天将破晓之时，那「落晓河」写尽拂晓的时刻；长亭的窗户俯压微波，那「长亭窗户压微波」写尽送别之地——长亭的窗户，俯压着微波，正是送别之所的实景，那「压微波」写尽水边长亭的景致；那「回望高城落晓河」写尽依恋的时分，那「长亭窗户压微波」写尽送别之地，一写时分，一写地点，写尽晓别的时分——晓河将落而长亭待发，正是拂晓送别之时；此二句以时分、地点写尽晓别的时分，也为后二句的仙话作铺垫，也让此二句成为全诗写晓别的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「天快亮了，在长亭告别」，则失其画面；唯以「回望高城落晓河」写时分、「长亭窗户压微波」写地点，写尽晓别的时分，也让此二句成为全诗写晓别的核心。

The couplet fixes the hour and the place of the dawn farewell. "Looking back at the tall city, the morning galaxy sets" gives the moment—just before dawn, when the last stars sink and the traveler turns for one more look at the walls. "The parting pavilion's windows lean over the rippling water" plants the scene by a riverside: the long pavilion where friends see each other off, its windows pressing down on the small waves below. Time and place are bound together—the star is sinking, the boat is about to cast off—and the concrete detail of windows above the water makes the farewell tangible. These two lines ground the fairy-tale couplet that follows; without this realistic setting, the water spirit would float loose. To have said it was dawn and they parted at the pavilion would lose both the hour's poetry and the riverside frame.

Study

Word focus

压 'Press' / 'bear down.' In 'the long pavilion's window presses the ripples,' it conveys the pavilion's closeness to the water and, figuratively, the weight of parting bearing down on the heart - a single verb binding place and feeling. 「长亭窗户压微波」之「压」字是写景的字眼，一个「压」字写尽长亭临水的姿态。压者，俯临、逼近也。李商隐以「长亭窗户压微波」写长亭，这个「压」字至少有双重意味：其一，写临水之近——那「长亭窗户压微波」写长亭的窗户俯压微波，那「压」字写尽长亭临水的姿态——窗户俯压微波，正是临水长亭的写照，那「压」字写尽临水之近；其二，写别情之重——那「压」字更是写情——窗户压微波，仿佛离情亦压心头，那「压」字写尽别情之重。以「压」字写长亭，正是李商隐写景的枢纽——若换作「临」「俯」「映」等字，则或失其写俯压的意味，或失其与「微波」的配合；唯「压」字，以长亭窗户压微波写尽临水的姿态与别情之重，与「回望高城」的依恋相合，写尽晓别的时分，也让「长亭窗户压微波」成为全诗写景的名句。

红泪 'Crimson tears.' In 'all night the lotus wept crimson tears,' it fuses the lover's blood-like parting tears (after Xue Lingyun's tale) with the lotus flower, making the flower itself weep and rendering grief as beautiful, bleeding petals. 「一夜芙蓉红泪多」之「红泪」是写别情的关键词，一个「红泪」写尽离人的血泪。红泪者，凝红之泪也。李商隐以「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写芙蓉，这个「红泪」至少有双重意味：其一，写别泪之血——那「一夜芙蓉红泪多」写一夜之间芙蓉的红泪更多，那「红泪」写尽别泪如血——薛灵芸之泪凝如血，正是红泪之典，那「红泪」写尽离别的伤痛；其二，写芙蓉之凄——那「红泪」更是写芙蓉——以红泪写芙蓉，正是以泪洗花，那「红泪」写尽芙蓉的凄美。以「红泪」写别情，正是李商隐写凄美的枢纽——若换作「清泪」「珠泪」等词，则或失其写红泪的血色，或失其与「芙蓉」的配合；唯「红泪」二字，以一夜芙蓉红泪多写尽别泪如血与芙蓉的凄美，与「水仙欲上鲤鱼去」的仙话相合，写尽奇幻的别情，也让「一夜芙蓉红泪多」成为全诗写别情的名句。