南北朝 Northern and Southern Dynasties · 诗 Poem
断句
A Broken Verse
白云满鄣来，黄尘暗天起。
关山四面绝，故乡几千里。
Yellow dust rises and darkens the sky.
The passes and hills are cut off on every side -
My old home is a thousand li and more away.
Meaning
White clouds come welling over the mountain barrier; yellow dust rises and darkens the sky. The passes and hills are cut off on every side, with no road through; the old home is several thousand li away.
白云从山鄣上弥漫涌来，黄尘蔽天扬起。关山四面断绝、无路可通，故乡远在数千里之外。
Appreciation
This poem is only twenty characters yet its world is vast and wild; its art lies in 'locking feeling within scene, showing grief through numbers'. The first two lines 'White clouds come welling over the barrier; yellow dust rises and darkens the sky', with the words 'welling' and 'darkens', write to the utmost the oppressive scene of border-land cloud and dust blocking the view, its colours bleak, hinting at a dark future. The last two lines 'The passes and hills are cut off on every side' use 'every side' to write the plight of having no road, and 'My old home is a thousand li and more away' uses a huge spatial distance to write the faintness of the longing to return. The whole is tightly antithetical yet its breath moves; scene is set for feeling, feeling comes from scene; in the antique plainness of Han-Wei it shows a sombre weight. Short as it is, the sorrow is boundless - truly the finest of 'broken verses'.
【白话串讲】 “白云满鄣来，黄尘暗天起”——刘昶写逃难路上：白云漫天来，黄尘遮天起。“关山四面绝，故乡几千里”——四面都是关山，故乡在几千里外。二十个字，写尽亡国者的仓皇。 【意象与手法】 本诗仅二十字而境界苍莽，艺术妙在「以景锁情、以数见悲」。前两句「白云满鄣来，黄尘暗天起」以「满」「暗」二字极写边地云尘蔽塞的压抑之景，色彩惨淡，暗喻前途昏暗；后两句「关山四面绝」以「四面」写困顿无路，「故乡几千里」以巨大空间距离写归思渺茫。全篇对仗工稳而气脉动荡。 【情感与主旨】 刘昶字休道，宋文帝第九子，封义阳王。前废帝刘子业狂暴，疑忌宗室，昶惧祸于宋明帝泰始初（465）被迫拥兵降魏，自此流寓北朝。此诗即作于仓皇出奔、关山阻隔之际，二十字皆是血泪，亦折射出南朝后期宗室内讧、士族飘零的时代悲剧。 【名句点睛】 中高考若选此诗，多考景物描写作用、空间手法与情感。要点：一、「白云满鄣」「黄尘暗天」的意境及其对情感基调的作用；二、「关山四面绝，故乡几千里」的空间对比与思乡之情的表达。
Background
Liu Chang, courtesy Xiudao, was the ninth son of Emperor Wen of Song, made prince of Yiyang. When the mad young emperor Liu Ziye suspected and feared the imperial clan, Liu Chang, fearing for his life, was forced at the start of the Tai-shi reign (465) to gather troops and surrender to Wei, from then on wandering in the northern courts. This poem was written in the hurried flight, with passes and hills blocking the way. 'Broken verse' was then the name for a short lyric (close to the later quatrain). Living through an age of dynastic change and fratricidal strife, Liu Chang, a prince of the blood, suddenly became a fleeing exile; looking back, his homeland lay a thousand li away, all cloud-yellow and dust-dark - every one of the twenty characters is blood and tears. The poem also reflects the age's tragedy of Southern-Dynasty inner strife and the scattering of the great clans.
刘昶字休道，南朝宋文帝刘义隆第九子，封义阳王。宋前废帝刘子业狂暴荒淫，疑忌宗室诸王，刘昶惧祸，于宋明帝泰始初年（465）被迫拥兵降北魏，自此流寓北朝，官至北魏尚书令，封丹阳王。此诗即作于其仓皇出奔、关山阻隔之际。「断句」为当时对短章小诗的称呼（近似于后来之绝句），非谓文意中断。诗人身处易代鼎革、骨肉相残的乱世：作为宗室亲王，本为皇权最亲近者，忽成亡命之客，奔逃于荒塞之间，回望故国千里，满目云黄尘暗，二十字皆是血泪。此诗不仅是个人的去国之痛，更折射出南朝后期宗室内讧、骨肉相残、士族飘零的时代悲剧——刘宋自文帝以来，宗室诸王屡遭猜忌屠戮，刘昶之出奔，正是这一历史悲剧的缩影，也是六朝「断句」短章中罕见的以亲历血泪写成的作品。刘昶出奔北魏后，官至尚书令，封丹阳王，然「身在曹营心在汉」，其去国之痛终生未解；此诗作于奔逃途中，是其所见所感的即时记录，未经修饰而真挚动人，比起后世文人「拟思乡」之作，这份亲历的血泪使二十字的短章具有了不可替代的史料价值与情感力量。
Art
This poem is only twenty characters yet its world is vast and wild; its art lies in 'locking feeling within scene, showing grief through numbers'. The first two lines 'White clouds come welling over the barrier; yellow dust rises and darkens the sky', with the words 'welling' and 'darkens', write to the utmost the oppressive scene of border-land cloud and dust blocking the view, its colours bleak, hinting at a dark future. The last two lines 'The passes and hills are cut off on every side' use 'every side' to write the plight of having no road, and 'My old home is a thousand li and more away' uses a huge spatial distance to write the faintness of the longing to return. The whole is tightly antithetical yet its breath moves; scene is set for feeling, feeling comes from scene; in the antique plainness of Han-Wei it shows a sombre weight. Short as it is, the sorrow is boundless - truly the finest of 'broken verses'.
本诗仅二十字而境界苍莽，艺术妙在「以景锁情、以数见悲」。前两句「白云满鄣来，黄尘暗天起」以「满」「暗」二字极写边地云尘蔽塞的压抑之景：「白云满鄣」写白云弥漫、涌塞山鄣，云本洁白之物，此处却与「黄尘」并置，一片惨淡昏黄之色，色彩基调即定「暗」之氛围；「黄尘暗天」更写风沙蔽日、天昏地暗，「暗」字一语双关，既是天色之暗，更是前途之暗、心境之暗。后两句「关山四面绝，故乡几千里」由景入情：「四面绝」以「四面」写东西南北皆无路可通，困顿无路之境毕现；「几千里」以巨大的空间距离写归思之渺茫，故乡愈远，悲愈深。全篇对仗工稳而气脉动荡，前写景、后写情，景为情设、情由景出，于汉魏古质中见沉郁，篇幅虽短而悲愁无际，诚「断句」中之绝唱，亦可见六朝短章在由古体向绝句过渡中的艺术成就。此外，全诗以「满—暗—绝—几千里」四词立骨：云之满、天之暗、路之绝、乡之远，层层加压，如四记重锤，把绝望与乡愁敲进读者心里；前两句写景之压抑与后两句写情之绝望，景情交融，二十字中无一处闲笔，正是「断句」体「以少总多」的极致，亦见六朝短章炼意之精。
Allusions
The title 'Broken Verse' was the Six Dynasties name for a five-character four-line short piece, close to the later quatrain, not meaning the sense is cut off. 'Barrier' means a screen or border-wall, in antiquity a border defense; 'white clouds well over the barrier' quietly carries on the northern-border imagery. 'Yellow dust darkens the sky' transforms the yuefu 'yellow dust falls' and the border-poem tradition, describing the bleak sandstorm that blocks the sun. 'Passes and hills' has been a classic image of parting and distant service since the 'Ballad of Mulan', 'crossing passes and hills as if flying'. Though the poem has few clear allusions, 'white clouds', 'yellow dust', 'passes and hills' and 'old home' are all the common code of yuefu and border poetry, naturally carrying the pain of leaving state and homeland.
题中「断句」为六朝时对五言四句短章的称谓，近于后世绝句，非谓文意截断。「鄣」即障壁、山鄣，古指边塞屏障或山间小城，「白云满鄣」暗承北地边塞意象，写奔逃途中所见之荒塞云景；「黄尘暗天」化用乐府「黄尘下」及边塞诗传统（如汉乐府「黄尘蔽天」之语），状风沙蔽日之惨淡；「关山」一词自《木兰诗》「关山度若飞」以来为离别远戍的经典意象，写关隘与山岭之阻；「故乡几千里」则承《古诗十九首》「相去万余里，各在天一涯」的思乡语码。全诗虽少显典，而「白云」「黄尘」「关山」「故乡」皆乐府与边塞诗的惯用语码，自然传递去国怀乡之痛，不堆砌故实而自有苍凉之气，正见六朝诗人在短章中化用传统意象、以少总多的功力，亦可见此诗对唐人边塞诗（如王之涣「春风不度玉门关」）的启导。「黄尘暗天」又暗合汉末乐府「黄尘蔽天」的乱世意象与《古诗十九首》「白杨何萧萧」的荒凉之境，刘昶取这些惯用语码入诗，不待解释而苍凉自现，这种「以熟语写新悲」的手法，正是六朝诗人在短章中调动文化记忆的高明处。
Commentary
Both the 'New Songs from the Jade Terrace' and the 'Source of Ancient Poems' record this poem; Shen Deqian said 'twenty characters stand for a thousand of another's'. Modern scholars of Six Dynasties quatrains often set this piece of Liu Chang beside the short pieces of Yu Xin and Xiao Que, saying 'though the broken verse is short, its bone remains'. Its two lines 'The passes and hills are cut off on every side; my old home is a thousand li and more away', with the minimal spatial tension writing the deep pain of leaving state, opened the way for Wang Zhihuan's 'the spring wind does not pass the Jade Gate' and Li Bai's 'where is the road home' - truly an important link in the transition from Six-Dynasty small poems to Tang quatrains.
《玉台新咏》《古诗源》皆录此诗。清·沈德潜《古诗源》评其「二十字抵人千百言」，以极短之篇写极深之悲，正是六朝短章「以少总多」的典范。近人论六朝绝句，多以刘昶此首与庾信《拟咏怀》、萧悫《秋思》等短章并列，谓「断句虽短，风骨独存」，其「关山四面绝，故乡几千里」二句，以极简的空间张力写极浓的去国之悲，启唐人王之涣「羌笛何须怨杨柳」、李白「何处是归程」之先声，诚六朝小诗向唐绝过渡之重要一环。此诗的价值有二：一是身世之真——以宗室亲王的亲历出奔写去国之痛，非泛泛的思乡之作可比，其「四面绝」「几千里」皆有切肤的痛感；二是艺术之精——二十字中，景之惨淡、路之困绝、乡之渺茫，层层推进，对仗工稳而气脉动荡，为六朝短章树立了「以简笔写深情」的范式，亦可见六朝诗歌在格律化进程中「断句」体的独特贡献。此诗在六朝诗史上的意义，在于其「断句」体的典范性：六朝五言四句之体，上承汉魏乐府短歌，下启唐人绝句，刘昶此作以二十字写尽去国之悲，为这一诗体提供了「以短写长」的范本；《古诗源》收之，沈德潜评其「二十字抵人千百言」，正见其在古体向近体过渡中的枢纽地位，亦为后世绝句写家国兴亡之悲开了先声。
Prosody
Line by line
白云满鄣来，黄尘暗天起
White clouds come filling the barrier; yellow dust rises, darkening the sky.
白云从山鄣上弥漫涌来，黄尘蔽天扬起。
White clouds roll in over the mountain barriers; yellow dust rises and darkens the sky.
起笔写景，以「满」「暗」二字极写边地云尘蔽塞的压抑，是全诗情感基调的定音。「白云满鄣来」写白云从山鄣上弥漫涌来，「满」字写云气之浓重、涌塞之无间，山鄣本是屏障，如今却被云层「满」覆，仿佛连最后的遮蔽也在吞没；「黄尘暗天起」写黄尘扬起、遮蔽天日，「暗」字一语双关，既是写实——风沙蔽日、天昏地暗，更是写意——前途昏暗、心境灰暗。云本洁白，尘本昏黄，两句以「白云」与「黄尘」并置，色彩由白转黄、由明转暗，正写出诗人由宗室之尊跌落为亡命之客的心境变化；「满」「暗」二字炼字精警，把奔逃途中的压抑与绝望写得如在目前，为下句「关山四面绝」的困绝之境作了铺垫。
The dust. White clouds come filling the barrier; yellow dust rises, darkening the sky. The clouds-filling-barrier and the dust-darkening-sky are the opening. To have filled the barrier would be a filling; the white-clouds-come-filling-the-barrier-yellow-dust-rises-darkening-the-sky is the filling.
关山四面绝，故乡几千里
Mountain passes are cut off on every side; my home lies thousands of li away.
关山四面断绝、无路可通，故乡远在数千里之外。
Mountain passes cut off every side; my home is thousands of li away.
以空间写悲，是全诗的点睛之笔，二十字之诗眼尽在此联。「关山四面绝」写关隘山岭四面阻绝，无路可通——「四面」写东西南北皆绝，不是一面的阻隔，而是全方位的围困，逃无可逃、退无可退的绝境毕现，这既是地理的实写（奔逃途中关山重重），更是处境的象征（身为降将、故国难归、进退失据）；「故乡几千里」以巨大的空间距离写归思之渺茫——「几千里」极言其远，故乡非但不可见，甚至不可计其程，愈远愈悲。两句以「四面」与「几千里」对举，一写空间之封闭（四面绝），一写空间之辽远（几千里），封闭与辽远并存，正是困于绝境而心系千里之外的撕心之痛。不着一「悲」字，而去国之悲、思乡之痛尽在数字与方位的对比之中，以数见悲、以空间写情，是六朝短章炼意的典范。
The distance. Mountain passes are cut off on every side; my home lies thousands of li away. The passes-cut-off-every-side and the home-thousands-of-li-away are the close. To have been cut off would be a cutting-off; the mountain-passes-are-cut-off-on-every-side-my-home-lies-thousands-of-li-away is the cutting-off.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Both write the worry of leaving state and life's sigh; one desolate, one angry - kindred air.
两诗同写乱世中的忧思感慨，皆以苍凉悲慨见长。《短歌行》「对酒当歌，人生几何？譬如朝露，去日苦多」以酒歌起兴，写求贤若渴、人生苦短的忧思，最终归于「周公吐哺，天下归心」的豪迈，是曹操作为主宰者的忧思，悲而能壮；《断句》则写「白云满鄣」「关山四面绝」的困绝之景与「故乡几千里」的思归之痛，是刘昶作为亡命者的悲慨，悲而愈沉。一为君临天下者的求贤之忧、一为弃国出奔者的去国之痛；一苍凉豪迈、一苍莽沉郁。两诗并读，可见汉魏至六朝「忧思」主题由政治家到亡国宗室的不同声口，气格相承而境遇迥异。
咏怀 Singing My Heart 阮籍 · 同出乱世，皆写身世飘零之悲，沉郁有风骨 SameBoth writers of a troubled age on the sorrow of a drifting fate; both sombre with bone.
两诗同写乱世中的身世之悲，皆以隐晦沉郁见长。《咏怀》八十二首「夜中不能寐，起坐弹鸣琴」「忧思独伤心」写司马氏高压统治下士人的忧惧与孤独，情感幽隐曲折，是「魏晋之际，天下多故，名士少有全者」时代的产物；《断句》则写宗室出奔、关山阻隔的去国之痛，情感直接苍莽。一写名士的隐忧、一写宗室的绝境；一幽约曲折、一质直苍莽。两诗并读，可见魏晋南北朝乱世文人的两种命运——或如阮籍隐忍忧惧，或如刘昶弃国奔亡，其诗皆沉郁有风骨，共同构成了乱世诗歌的悲慨谱系，亦是「建安风骨」在后世的回响。
咏怀·楚材 Singing My Heart - Chu Timber 庾信 · 同写去国怀乡、身仕他朝之痛，可比较南北文人之悲 SameBoth write the pain of leaving state and serving another court; compare the northern and southern scholars' grief.
两诗同写去国怀乡、流寓他朝之痛，而身份与笔法有别。庾信《咏怀》「楚材称晋用，秦臣即赵冠」「独怜生意尽，空惊槐树衰」写由南入北、身仕北朝的身世之感，以典故与隐语写「乡关之思」，情感深沉委婉，是文人以典写悲的典型；刘昶《断句》则写宗室出奔途中的即时所见所感，以白云黄尘、关山故乡的白描写「四面绝」「几千里」的绝境，情感质直苍莽。一以典写悲、一以景写悲；一深婉、一苍莽。两诗并读，可见南北朝「去国怀乡」主题的两种写法，亦可见南人庾信之文雅与北奔宗室刘昶之质直的不同风貌，共同构成了六朝流寓文学的悲慨图景。