明 Ming · 诗 Poem
姑苏怀古
Meditations on the Past at Gusu
看山几日到吴中，游客登临感慨同。
金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空。
春归茂苑乌啼月，花落横塘蝶怨风。
谁识倦游心独苦，扁舟长忆五湖东。
Where the Gold-Tiger traces lie waste, the royal aura is quenched; the Water-Rhinoceros host dispersed, the dream of empire void.
Spring returns to Mao Park, crows cry to the moon; blossoms fall at Hengtang, butterflies grieve the wind.
Who knows the weary wanderer's lonely grief? My light boat ever recalls the eastern reaches of the Five Lakes.
Meaning
After days of gazing at mountain scenery I arrive in the city of Wuzhong; a traveller who climbs shares the same regrets as those of old. The ruins of the Gold-Tiger terrace lie desolate, the kingly spirit extinguished; the Water-Rhinoceros army scattered, the ambition of hegemony ended in emptiness. Spring returns to Mao Park where only crows cry to the moon; blossoms fall by Hengtang and butterflies resent the wind. Who can read the weary traveller's solitary sorrow? I ever recall retiring in a light boat to the east of the Five Lakes.
看了几日的山色，才来到吴中，游客登临此地，感慨古今本是相同。金虎台的遗迹已经荒芜，吴王的灵气早已熄灭；水犀军已经溃散，当年的霸业终究成了空梦。春色归去，茂苑之中只有乌鸦在月下啼鸣；花落横塘，蝴蝶迎着风儿发出哀怨。谁能懂得我倦于游宦的这颗心独自苦涩？我常常忆起那扁舟归隐的五湖之东。
Appreciation
This regulated poem is led by the phrase 'his regret is the same', gathering the age-old grief of climbing and looking into the single place of Gusu. The first couplet opens with the travel 'how many days till I reach Wuzhong' and sums the theme of historical meditation in 'a traveller climbs, and his regret is the same as of old'. The second couplet sets the waste of the king's ruins against the scattering of the Water-Rhinoceros host, condensing a whole kingdom's rise and fall. The third turns to the vanished splendour after ruin, finding desolation within bright scenes. The last returns from mourning the past to the poet's own weariness of travel, closing on the light boat of Fan Li. The structure moves from far to near, from antiquity to self, its feeling deep and grave.
【白话串讲】 梁有誉游姑苏怀古：“金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空”——吴王阖闾的遗迹荒了，水犀军散了。“谁识倦游心独苦，扁舟长忆五湖东”——他想起了范蠡，泛舟五湖而去。 【意象与手法】 全诗以「感慨同」三字提挈，将千古登临之悲收束于姑苏一地。首联以游踪入题，「看山几日到吴中」点出行程之远、期待之殷，「游客登临感慨同」总摄怀古之情；颔联「金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空」，以吴王遗迹之荒与精锐之散对举，凝炼写出吴国由盛而亡的兴亡史；颈联「春归茂苑乌啼月，花落横塘蝶怨风」，转写亡国之后繁华消歇，于艳丽的春景中见出凄清，以乐景写哀情；尾联「谁识倦游心独苦，扁舟长忆五湖东」，由吊古归到自身，以范蠡泛舟五湖的典故作结，将怀古之情与倦游之慨融为一体。章法由远及近、由古及身，对仗精工而情韵沉郁，是后七子怀古诗中运典精切、以气格胜的佳作。 【情感与主旨】 梁有誉为明代后七子之一，此诗当为其宦游或壮游吴中、登临姑苏吊古时所作。姑苏为春秋吴国故都，阖闾、夫差两代经营，盛极一时，终为越国所灭。诗人面对吴宫陈迹，勾画阖闾之强、夫差之败，于兴亡代谢中寄身世之慨——「金虎迹荒」「水犀军散」是写吴，亦是暗喻一切功业终归尘土；「倦游心独苦」是自道，宦海浮沉、知音难觅的孤苦借吊古而发。末句「扁舟长忆五湖东」用范蠡功成身退之典，暗示对仕途的厌倦与归隐的向往，怀古的苍茫与自伤的沉痛交织，正是明代士人在复古思潮下抒写个体忧思的典型。 【名句点睛】 「金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空」一联为全诗最著，金虎、水犀二典切合吴事，以「灭」「空」二字收束吴国霸业，力重千钧；「春归茂苑乌啼月，花落横塘蝶怨风」一联以艳景写哀情，乌啼、蝶怨将亡国之悲寄于禽鸟草木，含蓄深婉。考题多从典故入手，须能解释金虎（虎丘吴王遗迹，兼指魏邺城金虎台）、水犀军（《国语》载夫差有衣水犀甲之士三千）、五湖（范蠡功成泛舟）的出处与用意，并体会以典写史、以景寓情的妙处；亦常问「感慨同」三字如何统摄全篇。
Background
Liang Youyu (1519-1554), style Gongshi, of Shunde in Guangdong, a jinshi of 1550, served as a secretary in the Ministry of Justice, and with Li Panlong and Wang Shizhen formed a poetry society as one of the 'Later Seven Masters', known as Liang the Judge. This poem was likely written when, in official travel or a grand tour, he passed through Wuzhong and climbed Gusu to mourn the past. Gusu (today's Suzhou) held the Gusu Terrace built by the Wu kings Helu and Fuchai, by whom Wu rose and by whom it fell. Facing the traces of the Wu palace, the poet sketches Helu's strength and Fuchai's defeat, lodging in the cycle of rise and fall a sorrow for his own fate, and darkly hinting at the passing of his own age's fleeting splendour - a Ming meditation-on-the-past poem that uses allusion with precision.
梁有誉（1519—1554），字公实，广东顺德人，嘉靖二十九年（1550）进士，官刑部主事，故世称「梁比部」。他与李攀龙、王世贞、谢榛、宗臣、徐中行、吴国伦结诗社于京师，世称「后七子」，力倡文必秦汉、诗必盛唐，以复古为高。梁有誉诗才清丽，与李攀龙齐名而年寿不永，中年谢病归里，三十六岁即卒，存诗不多，然沈德潜《明诗别裁》录其诗，称后七子称诗必曰李王，而梁氏华实相副。《姑苏怀古》当为其游宦或壮游吴中、登临姑苏台吊古时所作。姑苏即今苏州，为春秋吴国故都，吴王阖闾筑姑苏台，夫差继之广修宫苑，史载其高可望五湖，三年聚材、五年乃成，吴人歌舞于其上，盛极一时；后越王勾践卧薪尝胆，终灭吴国，夫差自刎，吴宫化为丘墟。诗人面对虎丘、横塘、茂苑等吴宫陈迹，追想阖闾之强、夫差之败，感慨兴亡代谢之无常。此诗作于明代中叶，正当嘉靖朝政日非、边患频仍之际，诗人怀古伤今，于吴宫兴废中暗寓对当世浮华易逝的悲感，亦寄自身宦游倦顿、归思绵绵的怀抱，是明代怀古诗中运典精切、情韵俱胜的代表作。
Art
This regulated poem is led by the three words 'his regret is the same', gathering the age-old grief of ascent into the single spot of Gusu. The first couplet enters through the travel line 'Looking on the hills, how many days till I reach Wuzhong', and 'A traveller climbs, and his regret is the same as of old' embraces the whole intent of historical mourning. The second couplet, 'Where the Gold-Tiger traces lie waste... the Water-Rhinoceros host dispersed, the dream of empire void', sets the ruin of the Wu king's traces against the scattering of the Water-Rhinoceros army, writing the rise and fall of a state in tight compass. The third turns to the spent splendour after ruin, finding chill within the gay scene. The last, 'Who knows the weary wanderer's lonely grief? My light boat ever recalls the eastern reaches of the Five Lakes', moves from mourning antiquity to his own travel-weariness, closing on Fan Li's boat. The architecture proceeds from distance to nearness, from the ancient to the self, its tone grave and immersed.
全诗章法谨严，以「感慨同」三字提挈全篇。首联「看山几日到吴中，游客登临感慨同」以游踪入题，「看山几日」写旅途之遥、跋涉之勤，暗含对吴中胜地的向往；「游客登临感慨同」更进一层，谓古今登临者面对同一片吴宫故地，感慨亦复相同——一个「同」字，将个人的吊古之情推广为千古共通的普遍情怀，是全篇的纲领。颔联「金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空」正面写吴之兴亡：上句写迹荒气灭，谓吴王基业荡然无存；下句写军散图空，谓当年雄师霸业终成虚话。「荒」「灭」「散」「空」四字连用，一气贯注，写尽一国之盛衰。颈联「春归茂苑乌啼月，花落横塘蝶怨风」转写亡后之景：茂苑春归，唯余乌啼月下；横塘花落，只有蝶怨风中。春景本美，而著「乌啼」「蝶怨」，则繁华之中自见凄凉，正是以乐景写哀情、一倍增其哀的手法。尾联「谁识倦游心独苦，扁舟长忆五湖东」由吊古转写自身：世无知音，独抱苦心，唯有忆及范蠡功成泛舟五湖的旧事，聊以自遣。全诗由远及近、由古及身，前六句写景用典皆切吴事，后两句抒情归到倦游思隐，情景交融，气格沉郁。
Allusions
The poem is dense with allusions, all apt to Wu. 'Gold-Tiger' refers to Tiger Hill (where Helu was buried); the Bronze-Tiger Terrace of Ye in the Three Kingdoms stands for the Wu king's terraces. 'Royal aura' is the kingly spirit of Wu. 'Water-Rhinoceros army' comes from the Discourses of the States, telling of Fuchai's three thousand men in rhinoceros armour - his elite; 'the host scattered' is the fallen state. 'Mao Park' and 'Hengtang' are both Gusu place-names, Mao Park a Wu king's hunting ground. 'Five Lakes' uses the tale of Fan Li, who after helping Yue destroy Wu drifted on the Five Lakes, implying retirement after success and a weariness of travel. The allusions stay on the single thread of Wu's rise and fall, never straying, their excellence being that they emerge through scene-language, using affairs yet not being stalled by them.
此诗典故密布而皆切吴地兴亡，运典之妙在于以景语出之、使事而不滞于事。「金虎」二字兼有两层所指：一是虎丘，阖闾葬于虎丘剑池，为其陵墓所在，后世以虎丘代指吴王遗迹，「金虎迹荒」即谓吴宫台榭荒芜；二是三国魏邺城有金虎台，与铜雀台、冰井台并称三台，诗人借金虎台之名代指帝王台榭，暗含台榭倾圮、王气销歇之意。「灵气」谓吴地王者之气，《吴越春秋》等书多载吴越之地传有帝王之气，灵气既灭，则霸业可知。「水犀军」出《国语·越语》，言吴王夫差有衣水犀之甲者三千，水犀甲即犀牛皮制的铠甲，诗人以水犀军指吴国精锐之师，军散即言亡国。「茂苑」即长洲苑，为吴王阖闾游猎之苑，故址在今苏州；「横塘」为苏州地名，在胥门之外，唐人崔颢《长干行》「君家何处住，妾住在横塘」即用此地，后世多指江南水乡风物。尾联「五湖」用范蠡之典：范蠡佐越王勾践灭吴之后，深知勾践可与共患难而不可与共安乐，遂携西施泛舟五湖而去，功成身退，为千古隐逸之典范。「扁舟长忆五湖东」暗含诗人对功成身退、倦游归隐的向往。诸典紧扣吴地兴亡一线，从王气、军力、苑囿、江湖一路写来，不旁逸斜出，正见诗人运典之精。
Commentary
Shen Deqian's Ming Poems Selectively Cut records Liang Youyu's poems, noting the Later Seven Masters 'in poetry must name Li and Wang', yet Liang's 'flower and fruit match'. This piece has long been a famous meditation on the past; a modern critic says 'he uses allusion as if his own, without the burden of piling'. Wang Shizhen in Yi Yuan Zhi Yan calls the Later Seven Masters 'orderly and splendid', and 'Gold-Tiger, Water-Rhinoceros' exactly shows that orderly splendour and precision. Hu Yinglin's Poetry Critique also praises Liang the Judge's 'official-travel works as immersed and grave', comparable with Li Panlong's Climbing Yellow Elm. In sum, this poem writes the rise and fall of the Wu palace in Tang manner - splendid yet not flippant, allusive yet not stalled - a fine representative of Ming historical meditation.
《姑苏怀古》向为明代怀古诗名篇，历代选家与评家多有称赏。沈德潜《明诗别裁》录梁有誉诗，称其华实相副，谓后七子中梁氏诗才不在李攀龙、王世贞之下；近人评此诗运典如己出、不伤堆垛，正指其用典精切自然、无斧凿之痕。王世贞《艺苑卮言》论后七子诗整丽，以《姑苏怀古》「金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空」一联观之，对仗工整、色泽鲜明，正是整丽之范，而「灭」「空」二字又于整丽中寓沉郁，丽而不浮。胡应麟《诗薮》许梁比部宦游诸作沉郁，此诗由吊古而及倦游，情韵沉郁，信然。以文学史眼光看，此诗的价值有三：其一，它以唐人格调写吴宫兴废，是后七子诗必盛唐主张的成功实践——颔联颈联的意象密度与对仗功力直承杜甫《咏怀古迹》诸作，而能自出机杼；其二，它把怀古与自伤融为一体，于兴亡之叹中寄身世之慨，避免了同类诗作为古而古的浮泛；其三，其以典写史的笔法，对后来的明清怀古诗不无影响。要之，此诗丽而不浮、典而不滞、哀而不伤，足为明人怀古七律之代表。
Prosody
Line by line
看山几日到吴中，游客登临感慨同。
Days of gazing at hills before I reach Wu; a traveler climbs, and his feelings are the same as all who climbed before.
看了几日山色才到吴中，游客登临此地，感慨古今相同。
After days of gazing at hills I arrive in Wu; a traveler climbing here feels the same old sighs.
首联以游踪入题而暗含全篇纲领。「看山几日到吴中」写旅途之遥，「几日」见跋涉之勤，也见吴中山水之引人入胜；「游客登临感慨同」更进一层：古今登临姑苏者，面对同一片吴宫故地，感慨亦复相同。「同」字是全诗之眼——它把「我」的吊古之情推广为千古共通的普遍情绪，使怀古不再是个人的偶然感发，而成为跨越时空的集体共鸣。此句为下文写吴之兴亡张本：正因为感慨「同」，颔联颈联所写金虎、水犀、茂苑、横塘的兴废，才不只是一己之见，而是人人登临皆会生发的历史感慨。起句平实，而纲领已立，正是律诗起法的高明处。
The ascent. Days of gazing at hills before I reach Wu; a traveler climbs, and his feelings are the same as all who climbed before. The same-as-all-who-climbed is the key word of the nostalgic opening. To have said all who climb share the sigh would be a statement; the days-of-gazing-at-hills-before-I-reach-Wu against the traveler-climbs-and-his-feelings-are-the-same-as-all-who-climbed-before is the statement.
金虎迹荒灵气灭，水犀军散霸图空。
The Golden Tiger traces are waste, its aura gone; the water-rhinoceros army is scattered, the hegemony empty.
金虎台的遗迹荒芜，吴王的灵气熄灭；水犀军溃散，霸业终究成空。
The Golden Tiger traces are overgrown, its spirit aura extinguished; the rhinoceros-armor army has scattered, the hegemony a void.
颔联为全诗最警策处，两句写尽吴国由盛而亡的兴亡史。「金虎迹荒灵气灭」从空间与气运落笔：虎丘剑池的帝王遗迹已经荒芜，吴地的王者之气已然熄灭；「水犀军散霸图空」从兵力与功业落笔：衣水犀之甲的雄师早已溃散，当年的霸业图谋终成虚空。上句「荒」「灭」，下句「散」「空」，四个动词一气贯注，层层递进，将吴国的盛极而衰压缩于十四字中。用典皆切吴事——金虎切阖闾葬地虎丘，水犀军切夫差甲士，事见《国语》，故不觉堆垛。对仗上，「金虎」对「水犀」，名物精工；「迹荒」对「军散」、「灵气灭」对「霸图空」，虚实相生。此联既见后七子「整丽」之风，又于整丽中寓沉郁，为全篇力重千钧之笔。
The Wu ruin. The Golden Tiger traces are waste, its aura gone; the water-rhinoceros army is scattered, the hegemony empty. The Golden Tiger (Helü's tomb) and the water-rhinoceros army (Fuchai's guards) are the Wu kingdom's fall. To have described the fallen Wu would be an allusion; the golden-tiger-traces-waste-its-aura-gone against the water-rhinoceros-army-scattered-the-hegemony-empty is the allusion.
春归茂苑乌啼月，花落横塘蝶怨风。
Spring returns to the luxuriant park where crows cry in the moon; flowers fall by the crossing pond, and butterflies resent the wind.
春色归去，茂苑中乌鸦在月下啼鸣；花落横塘，蝴蝶迎风含怨。
Spring returns to the Splendid Park; crows cry in the moon. Flowers fall by the Cross Pond; butterflies reproach the wind.
颈联转写亡国之后的风物，以艳景写哀情，最见含蓄深婉。茂苑本是吴王游猎之苑，春归之时理应繁花似锦，诗人却只见「乌啼月」——乌鸦夜啼，月色凄清，繁华之地成了荒凉之墟；横塘本是江南水乡的旖旎风景，诗人却写「花落」「蝶怨」——落花流水，蝶翅沾愁，风物之美著上了亡国之恨。乌啼、蝶怨，皆是拟人化的移情之笔，禽鸟草木本无情，而诗人以悲眼观之，便觉处处含怨。「春归」对「花落」、「茂苑」对「横塘」、「乌啼月」对「蝶怨风」，对仗精工而意象秾丽，与颔联的质实凝重恰成对照：前联直写兴亡，此联侧写消歇，一实一虚、一刚劲一柔婉，章法多变而情韵一致，足见诗人调度意象的功力。
The park. Spring returns to the luxuriant park where crows cry in the moon; flowers fall by the crossing pond, and butterflies resent the wind. The crows in the moon and the butterflies resenting the wind are the ruin dressed in beauty. To have described the ruined park in spring would be scenery; the spring-returns-to-the-luxuriant-park-where-crows-cry-in-the-moon against the flowers-fall-by-the-crossing-pond-and-butterflies-resent-the-wind is the scenery.
谁识倦游心独苦，扁舟长忆五湖东。
Who knows the tired wanderer's lonely grief? A small boat, and long memory east of the Five Lakes.
谁能懂得我倦于游宦的这颗心独自苦涩？我常常忆起那扁舟归隐的五湖之东。
Who knows the weary wanderer's solitary grief? A small boat—longing for the east of the Five Lakes.
尾联由吊古归到自身，是全诗情感的重心与归宿。「谁识倦游心独苦」以反问出之：世无知音，无人能解我倦于游宦、独自抱苦之心。「倦游」二字点明身世——诗人仕途奔波，心已厌倦；「独苦」二字写尽孤独——无人理解，唯有自苦。这一问，把前六句的怀古之情收束为个体的身世之叹，吊古与自伤由此合流。「扁舟长忆五湖东」用范蠡泛舟五湖之典作结：范蠡佐越灭吴，功成身退，泛舟而去，正是「倦游」者最好的归宿。一个「长忆」，写归隐之思绵邈不绝，时时萦绕心头。「五湖东」更以方位词拓开空间，把归隐之志推向烟波浩渺的远方，余味悠长。全诗由登临之慨起，以归隐之思结，怀古之情与身世之感浑然一体。
The boat. Who knows the tired wanderer's lonely grief? A small boat, and long memory east of the Five Lakes. The unanswered who-knows and the Fan Li Five-Lakes boat are the close. To have invoked the Fan Li allusion would be an allusion; the who-knows-the-tired-wanderer's-lonely-grief against the small-boat-and-long-memory-east-of-the-Five-Lakes is the allusion.
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The Tang master's famous meditation and 'Meditations at Gusu' both write the mutability of glory through fallen blossoms and flying swallows.
刘禹锡《乌衣巷》「朱雀桥边野草花，乌衣巷口夕阳斜。旧时王谢堂前燕，飞入寻常百姓家」与梁有誉《姑苏怀古》同属怀古名篇，皆以眼前荒凉之景写昔日繁华之地，以「野草」「夕阳」「燕子」与「乌啼月」「蝶怨风」等意象写盛衰无常。差异在：刘诗以燕子不识兴亡的「无知」反衬人世的沧桑，语言极简而意在言外，含蓄到近乎白描；梁诗则以金虎、水犀军等典故直写吴之兴亡，意象秾丽、对仗精工，情感更为外露。一为唐诗的以少总多，一为明诗的以典写史，合观可见怀古一脉从唐人蕴藉到明人典丽的风格演进，亦见梁有誉「运典如己出」的功力所在。
卖花声·雨花台 Selling-Flower Song · Rain-Flower Terrace 朱彝尊 · 同属江南兴亡怀古、以景语结沧桑 Same (meditation on the past / regret for the present)Both mourn the past and grieve the present; one chants the Wu palace, one sighs the Southern Capital, both close the vicissitudes in scene-language.
朱彝尊《卖花声·雨花台》「衰柳白门湾，潮打城还」写金陵雨花台吊古，与梁有誉《姑苏怀古》同属江南兴亡怀古之作，皆以眼前衰飒之景写昔日繁华之地，以景语结沧桑。差异在：梁诗为七律，用典精切、对仗整丽，写吴宫兴废而归于倦游自伤，典型体现后七子以盛唐为法的复古风格；朱词为小令，以衰柳、潮水等意象白描点染，将故国之思写得低回婉转，是清初词人借怀古寄兴亡的杰作。一诗一词、一明一清，合观可见怀古文学从明代复古派到清初遗民词人的风格演变，亦见姑苏、金陵两座古城在中国文学中承载的兴亡之思。
桂枝香·金陵怀古 Fragrance of Cassia Boughs - Meditations on the Past at Jinling 王安石 · 同为江南怀古名篇，一讽世一自伤 Related readingCompare this related work with the poem above through theme, imagery, tone, and emotional movement.
王安石《桂枝香·金陵怀古》「六朝旧事随流水，但寒烟衰草凝绿」写金陵六朝兴废，与梁有誉《姑苏怀古》同为怀古名篇，皆以眼前秋景写千古兴亡。差异在：王词以「登临送目」起笔，气象宏阔而归于「至今商女，时时犹唱，后庭遗曲」的讽喻，是政治家借怀古针砭时弊；梁诗以「感慨同」提挈，意象秾丽而归于「扁舟长忆五湖东」的归隐之思，是文士借怀古抒写身世。一写金陵、一写姑苏，一为词、一为诗，一讽世、一自伤，可见怀古题材在不同时代、不同胸襟的诗人笔下呈现的多样面貌，亦见两宋至明清怀古文学的丰富光谱。