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宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric

朝中措·梅

Chao Zhong Cuo · The Plum Blossom

陆游

Lu You

咏梅Ode to the plum blossom 感慨Reflection / Lament

幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉。
一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠。
江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香。
任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇。

Its secluded grace enters not the youthful crowd; wordless, it is only desolate.
A drifted, wand'ring life; a heart utterly cold and indifferent.
By the river's head, beneath the moon: new poems, old dreams, a lone regret and pure fragrance.
Even if the spring wind cares nothing for it, still it knew the Lord of Spring first.

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Meaning

In this lyric Lu You uses the plum blossom as a self-portrait of his own exiled, unyielding spirit. The flower stands apart from the worldly crowd, cold and solitary, yet keeps its pure fragrance and is first to know the returning spring. The poem quietly laments the poet's repeated exclusion from office while affirming his principled detachment.

幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉。一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠。江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香。任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] The plum's secluded grace will not enter the gay youthful throng; silent, it is only desolate. It has a drifted, wandering life and a heart completely cold and indifferent. By the river, under the moon, there are new poems and old dreams, a lone regret and pure scent. Even should the spring wind neglect it, still it was first to know the Lord of Spring. [Structure] The first half paints the plum's solitude and coldness; the second half turns to its feeling and pride—new poems, old dreams, lone regret, pure fragrance—and closes on its independence of the spring wind and prior knowledge of spring. The movement is from coldness to fragrance, the classic 'plum-as-self' progression. [Imagery] 'Secluded grace,' 'youthful crowd,' 'wordless desolation' establish withdrawal; 'drifted life' and 'cold heart' state the fate; 'river head, moon, new poems, old dreams' gather the plum's inner world; 'pure fragrance' and 'knew the Lord of Spring first' crown it with quiet superiority. The pairing of 'new poems' and 'old dreams' (present vs. past) deepens the emotional weight the blossom carries.

【白话串讲】陆游写《朝中措·梅》：“幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉”——“一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠”——“江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香”——“任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇”——他写梅——幽姿不入少年场。【意象与手法】此词写梅，以感慨写梅，是陆游的名篇。上片写梅之孤：「幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉。一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠」写幽姿不入少年场、无语只凄凉、一个飘零身世、十分冷淡心肠——写尽梅的孤冷；下片写梅之情：「江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香。任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇」写江头月底、新诗旧梦、孤恨清香、也曾先识东皇——写尽梅的清香。全词以感慨写梅，写尽梅的孤冷与梅的清香，是陆游的代表作。【情感与主旨】此词写梅，以感慨写梅，是陆游的名篇。此词咏梅而自寓身世。陆游一生力主抗金而屡遭排挤，壮志难酬，其咏梅诗词多以梅自况，此词即写梅之幽姿孤冷与清香自守。此词写梅之孤：幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉——写幽姿不入少年场、无语只凄凉，写尽梅的孤冷；一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠——写一个飘零身世、十分冷淡心肠，写尽梅的飘零；江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香——写江头月底、新诗旧梦、孤恨清香，写尽梅的清香；任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇——写任是春风不管、也曾先识东皇，写尽梅的孤傲。全词以感慨写梅——那「一个飘零身世」写尽梅的孤冷，「也曾先识东皇」写尽梅的清香，写尽梅的孤冷与梅的清香，是理解陆游咏梅词的重要篇章。【名句点睛】常考「幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉」写梅的孤冷；「任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇」写梅的孤傲；以及全词以感慨写梅、以梅自寓的手法。

Background

Lu You (1125–1210), styled Wu Guan, self-titled 'Old Man of Fangweng,' was a patriotic poet of the Southern Song from Shanyin (modern Shaoxing, Zhejiang). This lyric praises the plum while figuratively telling of his own life. All his days Lu You urged resistance against the Jin and was repeatedly sidelined; his ambitions unfulfilled, he often used the plum to figure himself, and this piece writes the blossom's secluded coldness and its guarding of pure fragrance. He was obsessed with the plum—'How can I divide into a thousand selves, one plum tree, one Fangweng'—and works like 'Bu Suan Zi · Ode to the Plum' and 'Plum Blossom Quatrain' are famous companions to this one. Written in his later years, the poem uses the plum to embody his drifted career and proud character: like the blossom braving the cold alone, unswayed by the crowd, to sing of the plum is to sing of himself.

此词写梅，以感慨写梅，是陆游的名篇。陆游（1125—1210），字务观，号放翁，越州山阴（今浙江绍兴）人，南宋爱国诗人。此词咏梅而自寓身世。陆游一生力主抗金而屡遭排挤，壮志难酬，其咏梅诗词多以梅自况，此词即写梅之幽姿孤冷与清香自守。此词写梅之孤：「幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉」写幽姿不入少年场、无语只凄凉——写尽梅的孤冷（幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉）；「一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠」写一个飘零身世、十分冷淡心肠——写尽梅的飘零（一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠）；「江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香」写江头月底、新诗旧梦、孤恨清香——写尽梅的清香（江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香）；「任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇」写任是春风不管、也曾先识东皇——写尽梅的孤傲（任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇）。全词以感慨写梅，写尽梅的孤冷与梅的清香，是理解陆游咏梅词的重要篇章。陆游爱梅成癖，其《卜算子·咏梅》《梅花绝句》等皆为咏梅名篇，自谓「何方可化身千亿，一树梅花一放翁」。此词作于陆游晚年，以梅自寓其飘零身世与孤傲品格——陆游力主抗金而屡遭排挤，恰如梅之凌寒独开、不随俗流，故咏梅即是自咏。

Art

The craft may be read in four aspects. First, plain sketch of the plum's seclusion: 'Its secluded grace enters not the youthful crowd' draws the blossom through bare description. Second, contrast for its coldness: 'wordless, it is only desolate' sets silence against desolation. Third, self-figuration for its wandering: 'a drifted, wand'ring life' maps the flower's rootlessness onto Lu You's own. Fourth, allusion for its pride: 'still it knew the Lord of Spring first' invokes the Lord of Spring (Dong Huang) to crown the plum's independence. The upper stanza writes coldness, the lower fragrance—cold giving way to scent—the standard 'plum-as-self' movement. The poem also pairs 'new poems' (present chanting) with 'old dreams' (past longing), one now and one then, revealing the deep feeling the blossom bears; and it sets 'lone regret and pure fragrance' side by side—lonely yet resentful, yet finally fragrant—another variant of 'crushed to dust, its scent remains,' so that coldness itself holds a high stature.

此词的艺术特色可从四个方面解析。其一，以白描写梅之幽。「幽姿不入少年场」以白描写梅之幽——那「幽姿」「不入少年场」写尽梅的幽姿，以白描写尽梅的孤冷。其二，以对照写梅之冷。「无语只凄凉」以对照写梅之冷——那「无语」「凄凉」写尽梅的无语凄凉，以对照写尽梅的孤冷。其三，以自况写飘零。「一个飘零身世」以自况写飘零——那「飘零身世」写尽梅的飘零，以自况写尽陆游的身世。其四，以用典写孤傲。「也曾先识东皇」以用典写孤傲——那「东皇」用东皇太一之典写春神，以用典写尽梅的孤傲。此外，此词上片写梅的孤冷，下片写梅的清香，由冷及香，正是咏梅词「以梅自寓」的写法。四重手法，使此词以感慨写梅，写尽梅的孤冷与梅的清香，是陆游的代表作。此词还善于以「新诗旧梦」的对举写梅之情韵——那「新诗」写当下之吟咏，「旧梦」写往昔之追怀，一今一昔，正见梅之承载的深沉情愫。又善以「孤恨清香」的并置写梅之品格——孤而有恨，却终有清香，正是「零落成泥碾作尘，只有香如故」的另一种写法，使孤冷之中自有高格。

Allusions

The language is rooted in the traditions of plum-praising and lament. 'Secluded grace' recalls the image of a hidden, refined beauty; 'drifted life' echoes the topos of the fallen blossom ('crushed to dust' in Lu You's own line); 'cold heart' evokes clarity and detachment; 'river head, moon' reaches Lin Bu's 'sparse shadows lie aslant the clear shallow water, faint fragrance drifts at dusk beneath the moon'; 'Lord of Spring' cites the Chu Ci hymn to Dong Huang Tai Yi, the god of spring, used here to say the plum first senses and first opens to spring—a 'knowing first' akin to 'the duck knows first when the river warms.' The whole lyric transmutes these inherited images and allusions into a personal allegory of principled solitude.

此词的用语深植于咏梅与感慨传统。「幽姿」令人想到「幽姿」写幽姿的意象——也令人想到「幽姿不入少年场」的意象；「飘零身世」令人想到「飘零身世」写飘零的意象——也令人想到「零落成泥碾作尘」（陆游）的意象；「冷淡心肠」令人想到「冷淡心肠」写冷淡的意象——也令人想到「清冷」的意象；「江头月底」令人想到「江头月底」写江月的意象——也令人想到「疏影横斜水清浅」（林逋）的意象；「东皇」令人想到「东皇」用东皇太一之典——《楚辞·九歌》有《东皇太一》，为春神，也令人想到「先识东皇」的意象。全词化用幽姿、飘零身世、冷淡心肠、江头月底、东皇的意象典故，以感慨写梅，正是陆游「沉郁」而善咏物、承咏梅传统写自寓之本领。「东皇」即东皇太一，为《楚辞·九歌》之首神，司春之神；陆游以「先识东皇」写梅最先感知春意、最先开放，正用此典，暗含「春江水暖鸭先知」式的先知之意。又「江头月底」令人想到林逋《山园小梅》「疏影横斜水清浅，暗香浮动月黄昏」的江月咏梅之境，可见其承咏梅传统。

Commentary

This lyric has long been ranked among Lu You's finest plum poems and a representative of the Song lyric's self-figuring through the blossom. Qing critics called it 'plum praised through lament, clear-cold and lofty'; modern readers single out 'even if the spring wind cares nothing, still it knew the Lord of Spring first' as its famous line. Its special worth lies in using the double-toned 'Chao Zhong Cuo' to render the plum's coldness and fragrance—the secluded grace, the youthful crowd, the silence, the desolation, the drifted life, the cold heart, the river head, the moon, the new poems, the old dreams, the lone regret, the pure scent, the spring wind, the Lord of Spring—all Lu You's plum. 'Still it knew the Lord of Spring first' crowns its pride through allusion. With 'Bu Suan Zi · Ode to the Plum' it forms a pair of plum masterpieces; with Lin Bu's 'Mountain Garden Plum' it shares the tradition of singing the blossom. For readers today it is a window onto Lu You's plum lyrics and a classic of the lonely, proud fragrance that still speaks across the ages.

此词历来被推为陆游咏梅词的名篇，也是宋词写梅自寓的代表。历代论者对此词评价极高：清人评此词「以感慨写梅，清冷孤高」；近人更指出「任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇」写梅的孤傲，是此词的名句。在词史上，此词的特殊价值在于：它以双调的朝中措写尽梅的孤冷与梅的清香——那幽姿，那少年场，那无语，那凄凉，那飘零身世，那冷淡心肠，那江头，那月底，那新诗，那旧梦，那孤恨，那清香，那春风，那东皇，都写尽了陆游笔下的梅；那「也曾先识东皇」更以用典写尽梅的孤傲。此词与陆游《卜算子·咏梅》（「驿外断桥边」）同为咏梅名篇，一写「零落成泥碾作尘，只有香如故」的驿外（卜算子），一写「任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇」的江头（朝中措）；又与林逋「疏影横斜水清浅」的咏梅传统一脉相承，可见中国词写梅的传统。对于今日读者，此词是理解陆游咏梅词的窗口，也是中国词写梅的经典——那先识东皇的梅，穿越千年，仍在诉说着孤傲的清香。

Prosody

Form Ci lyric, tune 'Chao Zhong Cuo' (词·朝中措)词·朝中措

Rhyme Rhymes on liang, chang, xiang, huang (Yang rhyme, lower level tone 下平七阳), one rhyme throughout, a clear, cold music.押「凉」「肠」「香」「皇」韵（下平七阳），一韵到底，音节清冷

Tone pattern The 'Chao Zhong Cuo' tune carries level-tone rhymes throughout, one rhyme to the end, its cool cadence fitting the plum's clarity.此词为朝中措词牌，押平声韵，一韵到底，音节清冷，正合咏梅的清冷。

Reading note This is the double-toned 'Chao Zhong Cuo': upper four lines, lower four—'Its secluded grace enters not the youthful crowd... still it knew the Lord of Spring first'—rhyming on Yang (liang/chang/xiang/huang), one rhyme throughout, a clear, cold music. The upper stanza writes the plum's coldness, the lower its fragrance, closing on its proud priority in knowing spring, true to Lu You's 'grave' manner. Read the cold heart with chill restraint and the final line with lonely height; the close should sound clear and resonant.此词为《朝中措》双调，上片四句、下片四句——「幽姿不入少年场，无语只凄凉。一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠。江头月底，新诗旧梦，孤恨清香。任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇」，押「阳」韵（凉、肠、香、皇），一韵到底，音节清冷。全词以感慨写梅：上片写梅的孤冷（幽姿不入少年场、十分冷淡心肠），下片写梅的清香（江头月底、也曾先识东皇）。双调短章，上写孤冷，下写清香，以「也曾先识东皇」写尽梅的孤傲，正见陆游「沉郁」的本色。诵读此词，宜以清冷的语调读「十分冷淡心肠」的孤冷，以孤高的语调读「也曾先识东皇」的孤傲，结句要读得清冷而有余韵，方能传达出陆游的清冷孤高。陆游词以「沉郁豪放」著称，此词正是其咏梅词的典范。

Line by line

任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇

Even if the spring wind cares nothing for it, still it knew the Lord of Spring first.

任是春风不管，也曾先识东皇。

Even if the spring wind ignores it, it was still the first to know the god of spring.

此二句是全词写孤傲的核心，以任是春风不管写春风，以也曾先识东皇写东皇，写尽梅的孤傲，是千古名句。「任是春风不管」写任是春风不管——那「任是」写任是，「春风不管」写春风不管，写尽春风的不管；「也曾先识东皇」写也曾先识东皇——那「也曾」写也曾，「先识东皇」写先识东皇，写尽先识的东皇。这句的深意在于：它以「任是春风不管」的春风与「也曾先识东皇」的东皇，写尽梅的孤傲——任是春风不管，那「任是春风不管」写尽春风的不管——任是春风不管，正是对春风的淡看，那「任是」写尽梅的孤傲；也曾先识东皇，那「也曾先识东皇」写尽先识的东皇——也曾先识东皇，正是先春而开的写照，那「先识东皇」写尽梅的清香；那「任是春风不管」写尽春风的不管，那「也曾先识东皇」写尽先识的东皇，一写春风，一写东皇，写尽梅的孤傲——春风不管而先识东皇，正是梅的孤傲；此二句以春风、东皇写尽梅的孤傲，也让此二句成为全词写孤傲的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「梅花很早就开了」，则失其深意；唯以「任是春风不管」写春风、「也曾先识东皇」写东皇，写尽梅的孤傲，也让此二句成为全词写孤傲的核心。

Lu You's plum blossom argues with the spring wind. Even if the wind neglects it, the flower says, it was still the first to know the god of spring—the first to bloom, before any other. The pride is precise: the plum does not need the wind's favor, because its distinction is priority, not beauty. This is the poet's own self-defense: a loyal man neglected at court does not measure himself by the world's notice. The allusion to the spring god ties the early flower to a kind of election. To have said the plum blooms first would be fact; despite neglect, it knew the god is the self-vindication.

一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠

A drifted, wand'ring life; a heart utterly cold and indifferent.

一个飘零身世，十分冷淡心肠。

A drifting, fallen lot in life; a heart ice-cold and indifferent.

此二句是全词写孤冷的核心，以一个飘零身世写身世，以十分冷淡心肠写心肠，写尽梅的孤冷，是千古名句。「一个飘零身世」写一个飘零身世——那「一个」写一个，「飘零身世」写飘零身世，写尽身世的飘零；「十分冷淡心肠」写十分冷淡心肠——那「十分」写十分，「冷淡心肠」写冷淡心肠，写尽心肠的冷淡。这句的深意在于：它以「一个飘零身世」的身世与「十分冷淡心肠」的心肠，写尽梅的孤冷——一个飘零身世，那「一个飘零身世」写尽身世的飘零——一个飘零身世，正是梅自况的写照，那「飘零身世」写尽陆游的身世；十分冷淡心肠，那「十分冷淡心肠」写尽心肠的冷淡——十分冷淡心肠，正是孤冷自守的写照，那「冷淡心肠」写尽梅的孤冷；那「一个飘零身世」写尽身世的飘零，那「十分冷淡心肠」写尽心肠的冷淡，一写身世，一写心肠，写尽梅的孤冷——飘零身世而冷淡心肠，正是以梅自寓的写照；此二句以身世、心肠写尽梅的孤冷，也为下文的清香作铺垫，也让此二句成为全词写孤冷的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「梅花孤零零的很冷清」，则失其深沉；唯以「一个飘零身世」写身世、「十分冷淡心肠」写心肠，写尽梅的孤冷，也让此二句成为全词写孤冷的核心。

The couplet merges flower and poet. A drifting, fallen lot—this is both the wild plum blown on its own and Lu You's own career, exiled and unused. A heart ice-cold and indifferent—this is the cold reserve of the flower, and the courtier's refusal to flatter. The numerical precision (one lot, ten parts of cold) gives the self-portrait an almost surgical bluntness. The plum is not loved for being cheerful; it is respected for being cold. To have said the plum was solitary and austere would be description; the drifting life joined to the cold heart is the confession.

Study

Word focus

冷 Cold, indifferent; in 'a heart utterly cold and indifferent' the word conveys both the plum's chilled detachment and the poet's淡泊 (unimpassioned) disposition—a self-portrait of principled solitude rather than mere temperature. 「十分冷淡心肠」之「冷」字是写孤冷的关键词，一个「冷」字写尽心肠的冷淡。冷者，冷淡、清冷也。陆游以「十分冷淡心肠」写孤冷，这个「冷」字至少有双重意味：其一，写心之冷——那「十分冷淡心肠」写十分冷淡心肠，那「冷」字写尽心肠的冷淡——十分冷淡，正是孤冷自守的写照，那「冷」字写尽梅的孤冷；其二，写情之淡——那「冷」字更是写淡——冷，正见情意的淡泊，那「冷」字写尽陆游的孤傲。以「冷」字写孤冷，正是陆游写梅的枢纽——若换作「寒」「清」等字，则或失其与「十分」「心肠」的配合，或失其写冷的意味；唯「冷」字，以十分冷淡心肠写尽心肠的冷淡与情意的淡泊，与「一个飘零身世」的飘零相合，写尽梅的孤冷，也让「十分冷淡心肠」成为全词写孤冷的名句。

先 First, ahead; in 'still it knew the Lord of Spring first' the word marks the plum's early blooming and, figuratively, the superiority of its character—being first to sense spring crowns its proud independence of the neglectful spring wind. 「也曾先识东皇」之「先」字是写孤傲的关键词，一个「先」字写尽梅的早开。先者，领先、抢先也。陆游以「也曾先识东皇」写孤傲，这个「先」字至少有双重意味：其一，写花之先——那「也曾先识东皇」写也曾先识东皇，那「先」字写尽梅的早开——先识东皇，正是先春而开的写照，那「先」字写尽梅的清香；其二，写格之高——那「先」字更是写高——先，正见品格的超拔，那「先」字写尽梅的孤傲。以「先」字写孤傲，正是陆游写梅的枢纽——若换作「早」「独」等字，则或失其与「也曾」「识东皇」的配合，或失其写先的意味；唯「先」字，以也曾先识东皇写尽梅的早开与品格的超拔，与「任是春风不管」的任是相合，写尽梅的孤傲，也让「也曾先识东皇」成为全词写孤傲的名句。