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先秦 Pre-Qin · 诗经 Classic of Poetry

兔爰

The Hare Is at Ease

诗经

Shijing

隐逸/忧愤Hermit-like Grief 民生/讽喻Social Satire

有兔爰爰，雉离于罗。
我生之初，尚无为；
我生之后，逢此百罹。
尚寐无吪！
有兔爰爰，雉离于罦。
我生之初，尚无造；
我生之后，逢此百忧。
尚寐无觉！
有兔爰爰，雉离于罿。
我生之初，尚无庸；
我生之后，逢此百凶。
尚寐无聪！

The hare is at ease,
The pheasant is caught in the snare.
When I was born,
There was yet no trouble;
After I was born,
I meet this hundred griefs.
Would I could sleep and never speak!

The hare is at ease,
The pheasant is caught in the net.
When I was born,
There was yet no strife;
After I was born,
I meet this hundred cares.
Would I could sleep and never wake!

The hare is at ease,
The pheasant is caught in the trap.
When I was born,
There was yet no toil;
After I was born,
I meet this hundred ills.
Would I could sleep and never hear!

Listen

Meaning

The poem contrasts the carefree hare (symbolizing the cunning and wicked who escape) with the trapped pheasant (symbolizing the honest and upright who suffer). Through a refrain of longing for death-like sleep, it expresses despair over living in chaotic times.

兔子自由自在地跑，野鸡却陷入罗网。我初生的时候，天下还太平无事；我出生之后，却遭逢这百般苦难。但愿长眠不再说话！兔子自由自在地跑，野鸡却陷在覆车网里。我初生时，尚且无人造作；我出生后，遭逢这百般忧愁。但愿长眠不再醒觉！兔子自由自在地跑，野鸡陷在罿网中。我初生时，尚且无庸役；我出生后，遭逢这百般凶险。但愿长眠不再听闻！

Appreciation

A poignant lament for a life born into turmoil. The vivid contrast between the free hare and the trapped pheasant sets up a metaphor for an inverted world where the wicked thrive and the good perish. The repetition of 'when I was born' versus 'after I was born' heightens the sense of loss, and the final wish for oblivious sleep conveys utter hopelessness.

【白话串讲】兔子在野外逍遥，野鸡却被网住。诗人感叹：我生得早，天下太平；我生得晚，遇上这么多灾难——“尚寐无吪”，不如睡死过去算了。乱世之人的绝望。【意象与手法】三章重章叠唱。首二句「有兔爰爰，雉离于罗」以兔之逍遥反衬雉之陷网，喻小人得志而君子遭殃，对比强烈；中段今昔对举，由「无为」而「无造」而「无庸」，乱况愈深；末句「尚寐无吪（无觉、无聪）」以愿死写绝望，沉痛无伦，抒情张力极强。【情感与主旨】《兔爰》属《诗经·王风》。周平王东迁后，王纲解纽，诸侯争霸，战乱频仍，徭役繁兴。诗人伤叹生逢乱世，以「我生之初」与「我生之后」对照，寄托对太平往昔的追怀与对现实的绝望。【名句点睛】考点：一、对比（兔爰、雉离、生初、生后）的表现作用；二、重章叠句中「罹—忧—凶」的情感递进。

Background

This poem is from the 'Wang feng' section of the Shijing, composed after the Zhou court moved east to Luoyang. During this period, royal authority declined, feudal lords fought, and warfare and corvée were constant. Traditionally, it is seen as a lament by a former Western Zhou official or scholar grieving the transition from peace to chaos. The 'Shi xu' says it mourns King Huan's loss of trust among vassals, leading to conflict and suffering.

《兔爰》属《诗经·王风》，为周代民歌。周平王东迁洛邑之后，王纲解纽，诸侯争霸，王室衰微，战乱频仍，徭役繁兴，东迁前后的社会剧变使许多人从太平盛世骤然落入乱离之苦。旧说此诗为西周旧臣或士人伤叹生逢乱世之作。《毛诗序》云：「《兔爰》，闵周也。桓王失信，诸侯背叛，构怨连祸，王师伤败，君子不乐其生。」郑玄笺释以为周桓王时王室多难，君子无所措其手足。诗以「我生之初」与「我生之后」对照，正写东迁前后治乱之异：生初尚逢太平安乐，生后竟遭百般苦难，寄托对太平往昔的追怀与对现实的绝望。朱熹《诗集传》则谓周室衰微、诸侯背叛，君子不乐其生而作此诗，与《毛诗序》说略同。全诗三章，重章叠唱，以兔之逍遥与雉之陷网为喻，是《王风》中忧愤最深的一首。诗中之兔、雉、罗网诸象，皆取身边常见之物设喻，而寄托之深、悲慨之烈，正是《诗经》比兴传统在乱世中的极致发挥。

Art

The poem uses three stanzas with incremental variation. Each stanza begins with the same hare-pheasant contrast, then contrasts 'before my birth' (peace) with 'after my birth' (calamity), with the final line expressing a death wish. The net types (luo, fu, tong) intensify the sense of entrapment, while the three calamity words (li, you, xiong) escalate in severity. The refrain 'shang mei wu e/jue/cong' (would I could sleep and not speak/wake/hear) is a powerful emotional climax.

此诗三章重章叠唱，章法严整而情感递进。每章首二句「有兔爰爰，雉离于罗（罦、罿）」以兔雉对比起兴：兔子自由自在地奔跑，野鸡却陷入罗网，以兔之逍遥反衬雉之陷网，喻小人得志而君子遭殃，对比强烈，寄托深微。中段四句「我生之初，尚无为（无造、无庸）；我生之后，逢此百罹（百忧、百凶）」今昔对举，由「无为」而「无造」而「无庸」，写天下由太平而纷扰而苦役，乱况愈深；由「百罹」而「百忧」而「百凶」，写所遭之难愈重，情感层层加码。末句「尚寐无吪（无觉、无聪）」三章一意而三变其辞：愿长眠不言语、不愿醒觉、不愿听闻，以死写绝望，把乱世之痛推到极致，沉痛无伦，抒情张力极强。全诗比兴起、对照承、愿死结，章章相扣，回环往复，正是《诗经》重章叠唱以增其哀的典型。三章之间，章章相扣而层层递进，由兔雉之喻入今昔之叹，复以愿死之辞收束，章法谨严，情感由隐而显、由淡而烈，正见重章叠唱体在抒情上的独特优势。

Allusions

The phrase 'yuan yuan' describes the hare's slow, easy movement, often glossed as a loan for 'huan' (slow). 'Li' (离) is a loan for 'li' (罹), meaning to encounter. The nets—luo, fu, tong—are all types of bird traps, suggesting a world full of dangers. The death-wish motif 'shang mei' (尚寐) later influenced countless poems of 'born in the wrong era' lament.

「爰爰」犹言缓缓、悠然，形容兔子自由自在奔跑之态，《说文解字》段玉裁注以为「爰」乃「缓」之假借；「离」通「罹」，遭也，与下句「百罹」之「罹」相呼应，写野鸡遭网罗之祸。「罗」「罦」「罿」皆为捕鸟兽之网：罗为张网，罦为覆车之网（以车辕覆物诱捕），罿为罬（一种小网），三章递换网名，写网罗之密布、陷阱之无穷，喻乱世罗织之祸无所不在、无处可逃。「尚寐无吪」之「寐」写长眠，化用《诗经·邶风·柏舟》「耿耿不寐，如有隐忧」之失眠意象而反其意——不寐者忧不能眠，此则愿长眠不醒，由不能寐到不敢醒，忧愤之深可知。本诗以网罗喻乱世之祸，以长眠喻解脱之愿，意象朴素而寄托深远，无僻典而意蕴深厚，正是《诗经》比兴传统中「近取诸身、远取诸物」的典范。全诗三章，章章皆以「兔」起、以「寐」结，起兴与结穴遥相呼应，物象之网与人生之网交织为一，正是《诗经》比兴「近取诸身、远取诸物」而能物我贯通、寄托深远的典范。

Commentary

Mao's Preface: 'The Hare at Ease mourns the Zhou.' Zhu Xi: 'When the Zhou house declined and the feudal lords rebelled, the gentleman had no joy in living and made this poem.' Fang Yurun praised the lines 'When I was born...' as 'infinitely desolate and moving, a thousand jun of force.'

《毛诗序》标此诗之旨为「闵周」，朱熹《诗集传》谓周室衰微、诸侯背叛，君子不乐其生而作此诗，二说皆以乱世伤时释之，大体可信。清代方玉润《诗经原始》评此诗「我生之初」二句「无限凄凉，无限悲感，笔力千钧」，最得诗心。此诗在《王风》中别具一格：同卷《黍离》以「彼黍离离」写故国之思，情感沉郁而犹有怨慕；《兔爰》则以兔雉对比、今昔对照、愿死之辞，写出对现实的彻底绝望，忧愤之深为《王风》之最。诗以愿长眠不闻问作结，是《诗经》中罕见的极端抒情，对后世影响深远：屈原「愿摇起而横奔兮，览民尤以自镇」的怨愤、阮籍「愿耕东皋阳，谁与守其真」的避世，皆可于此诗觅其先声。就文学史而言，此诗是先秦乱世抒情诗的典范，其以物喻人、以今昔对照写时代苦难的手法，为后世伤乱诗开辟了范式。此诗之沉痛，正为乱世生灵写照，其价值历二千余年而不减，诚为中国诗史伤乱之祖。

Prosody

Form Shijing - Guofeng - Wangfeng诗经·国风·王风（四言重章叠唱）

Rhyme luo, wei, li, e (ge group); fu, zao, you, jue (you group); tong, yong, xiong, cong (dong group)首章「罗、为、罹、吪」押歌部韵；次章「罦、造、忧、觉」押幽部韵；末章「罿、庸、凶、聪」押东部韵，三章换韵，韵随章转。

Tone pattern Not determinable四言为主，句式整饬，重章叠唱，回环往复；比兴起、对照承、祈愿结，声情由舒缓而沉痛。

Reading note Four-character lines, three stanzas with refrain. Strong use of contrast and incremental repetition.此诗为《诗经·国风·王风》四言诗，属重章叠唱体：三章句式全同，仅换「罗、罦、罿」（网名）「为、造、庸」（乱况）「罹、忧、凶」（苦难）「吪、觉、聪」（祈愿）数字，章章相复而层层递进，正是《诗经》重章叠唱最典型的章法——以复沓的节奏强化情感的咏叹，以易字的变化推进意义的发展。用韵上三章各押一韵：首章歌部（罗、为、罹、吪），次章幽部（罦、造、忧、觉），末章东部（罿、庸、凶、聪），换韵即换境，声情随之推移；歌部韵宽舒，幽部韵低沉，东部韵浑厚，正合三章由起兴而对照而祈愿的情感进程。四言句式的整饬与重章的回环，使此诗诵之如咏叹调，一唱三叹；末句「尚寐无吪（觉、聪）」以短句收束，音节顿挫，如长歌当哭，戛然而止，余哀不尽。此诗格律之妙，不在藻饰，而在以最朴素的复沓形式承载最深沉的乱世之痛，是《诗经》声情合一传统的典范。

Line by line

有兔爰爰，雉离于罗。

Lo, the hare leaps free at will; the pheasant is caught in the net.

兔子自由自在地跑，野鸡却陷入罗网。

The hare runs free and unhurried; the pheasant, alas, is tangled in the snare.

首二句以兔雉对比起兴，是全诗托物寄意的开端。「爰爰」犹言缓缓，写兔子自由自在、从容奔跑之态，何等逍遥；「离于罗」写野鸡不幸陷于罗网，「离」通「罹」，遭遇之意，何等困厄。一兔一雉，一逸一陷，对比鲜明：兔之逍遥，正衬雉之陷网之惨。此二句之寄托，旧说以为兔喻小人——小人逍遥法外、为所欲为；雉喻君子——君子正直守分，反遭罗网之祸。罗网象征乱世的迫害与罗织，兔子何以能逃？野鸡何以被擒？正在于狡黠者善于趋避，而耿直者疏于防范，诗人以物喻人，不着一字议论而褒贬自见，正是《诗经》比兴「言近旨远」的典范笔法。

The first two lines rise on the contrast of hare and pheasant, the opening of the poem's object-encoded meaning. At will means slow and easy, writing the hare's free, unhurried bounding, what ease. The pheasant is caught in the net: li is interchangeable with li, encountered, here ensnared, what dire straits. One hare, one pheasant; one at large, one trapped; the contrast is sharp: the hare's freedom sets off the pheasant's capture. The older reading takes the hare for the petty man, who goes free and does as he pleases; the pheasant for the noble man, upright and dutiful, yet ensnared. The net figures the persecution and frame-ups of a chaotic age; why does the hare escape? Why is the pheasant taken? Because the cunning know how to dodge, while the upright are unguarded. Writing through animals, without a word of argument, praise and blame appear of themselves, the Shijing model of near words, distant meaning.

我生之初，尚无为；我生之后，逢此百罹。

In the time when I was first born, there was yet no strife; but after I was born, I have met with every calamity.

我初生的时候，天下还太平无事；我出生之后，却遭逢这百般苦难。

When I was first born, the world was still at peace; but after my birth, I have fallen into all manner of affliction.

此四句今昔对照，是全诗由起兴转入抒情的关键，也是全诗最沉痛的句子。「我生之初，尚无为」写初生之时天下尚太平无事，「无为」犹言无事、无乱，追忆的是往昔的安宁；「我生之后，逢此百罹」写生后遭逢百般苦难，「百罹」总括乱离之祸，与「无为」形成强烈反差。一前一后，一治一乱，一生的际遇就在这四句的对照中写尽。「初」与「后」写时间的断裂：仿佛一夜之间，太平盛世便成乱世，诗人幼年所见的安宁与成年所遭的苦难，构成了难以弥合的创伤。此四句不写具体战乱，而以「无为」与「百罹」对举，以大空白写大悲痛，愈是概括愈见其深，正是《诗经》抒情「不言而言」的至高境界。

The four lines set past against present, the turning point from rising image to lyric, and the most sorrowful lines in the poem. In the time when I was first born, there was yet no strife: at birth the world was still untroubled; no strife means no disorder, recalling an old quiet. But after I was born, I have met with every calamity: every calamity sums up the disasters of a broken age, set sharply against no strife. Before and after, order and chaos: a whole life's lot is written in the contrast. The words first and after write a rupture in time: as if overnight, a golden age became a disordered one; the quiet the poet knew as a child and the suffering he met as an adult form a wound that cannot be closed. The four lines name no specific war, but set no strife against every calamity, writing great grief through great blankness: the more general, the deeper, the Shijing height of lyric saying without saying.

我生之后，逢此百忧。

After I was born, I have fallen into every sorrow.

我出生之后，遭逢这百般忧愁。

But after I was born, I have encountered all manner of anxious care.

此句为第二章之变文，与首章「逢此百罹」相对，而情感又进一层。「罹」写遭难，是祸患之实；「忧」写忧患，是心理之痛，由「罹」而「忧」，正见苦难由外而内、由事而心的深化——不仅是遭逢灾祸，更是忧心如焚、难以自遣。三章由「百罹」而「百忧」而「百凶」，罹者祸也，忧者痛也，凶者殃也，一层深于一层：先写遭祸，再写忧痛，终写殃及，把乱世的苦难写到无以复加。配合上句「尚无造」，写生初之时天下尚无造作纷扰，与生后的百忧相对照，今昔之反差愈大，其悲愈深。此句在重章叠唱中不是简单的重复，而是情感的递进与深化，正见《诗经》重章法在回环往复中寓层递之妙。

The line varies the second stanza against the first stanza's every calamity, deepening the feeling one layer. Calamity writes disaster, the outward fact; sorrow writes anguish, the inner pain: from calamity to sorrow, suffering moves from outside to inside, from event to heart, not only has disaster struck, but the heart burns with worry that cannot be eased. Across the three stanzas: every calamity, every sorrow, every evil; disaster, pain, woe, each deeper than the last: first misfortune, then anguish, finally ruin; the suffering of a chaotic age is written past bearing. Paired with the preceding line there was yet no toil in my first days, the peace of birth is set against the sorrows that followed; the greater the contrast, the deeper the grief. In the refrain, the line is no simple repetition but a deepening of feeling, showing the Shijing art of mounting progression within circling song.

尚寐无吪！

Would I might sleep forever and never speak again!

但愿长眠不再说话。

Would that I might fall into endless sleep and never more open my mouth!

末句是全诗情感的爆发点，也是《诗经》中最惊心动魄的祈愿之一。「尚」犹言庶几、但愿，是无可奈何中的祈求；「寐」写长眠，「无吪」写不再说话——诗人愿就此长眠，不再开口言说，也不愿再面对这乱世。此句的深层含义，是愿死：乱世既不可救，人生既不可聊，则唯愿长眠以求解脱。第二章作「无觉」（不愿醒觉），第三章作「无聪」（不愿听闻），三章一意而三变：不愿说、不愿醒、不愿闻，把逃避的愿望写到层层递进，由回避言说而回避清醒而回避视听，正见其痛之深、绝望之甚。以愿死写绝望，沉痛至极，是《诗经》抒情中极罕见的极端之笔，也是此诗最点睛的句子，千载之下读之，犹令人心悸。

The last line is the emotional explosion of the poem, one of the most shattering wishes in the Shijing. Would that means if only, a prayer uttered in helplessness. Sleep forever is eternal rest; never speak means to open the mouth no more: the poet wishes to lie down and sleep, never to speak, never again to face this disordered age. The deep meaning is a wish for death: if the age cannot be saved and life cannot be endured, then let endless sleep bring release. The second stanza says never wake, the third never hear; one intention, three variations: not to speak, not to wake, not to hear; the wish to escape mounts layer by layer, from refusing speech to refusing consciousness to refusing sight and sound, showing how deep the pain, how absolute the despair. Writing despair through a wish for death, the sorrow reaches its extreme, an almost unheard-of extremity in the Shijing, and the poem's most striking line; reading it across the ages, the heart still falters.

Study

Word focus

爰爰 slow and easy, carefree – contrasts with the trapped pheasant 「有兔爰爰」之「爰爰」，是全诗比兴起句的关键叠词，也是理解此诗寄托的第一把钥匙。「爰爰」犹言缓缓、悠然，形容兔子自由自在、从容奔跑之态，段玉裁《说文解字注》以为「爰」乃「缓」之假借，写兔行之舒缓，正见其不受拘束、逍遥自在。此词之妙，在以叠词状物之态而寓褒贬之意：兔之「爰爰」愈是悠然自得，愈衬出雉之「离于罗」的困厄悲惨；兔子何以能缓步逍遥？野鸡何以陷网丧生？诗人不答，而读者自会想到：天下事本无公道，狡者善避而直者易伤，逍遥与陷网之间，正见乱世生存的残酷法则。「爰爰」以声写形，音节舒缓，读之如见兔之安步，与「离于罗」的急促相映成趣，比兴之妙尽在两词之间。

离 a loan for 'li' (罹), to meet with, to suffer 「雉离于罗」之「离」字，通「罹」，义为遭遇、陷于，是全诗理解的关键字眼，也是训诂学上的著名用例。「离」本义为离开、别离，此处却用作「罹」之假借，写野鸡遭遇罗网之祸——不是远离罗网，而是恰恰撞入罗网，一字之通假，写出了陷网之灾的不可避免。此字与下句「逢此百罹」之「罹」前后呼应：雉「离」于罗，我「罹」百难，野鸡的遭遇与诗人的遭际正相映照，以物喻人，由雉及我，比兴之脉由此贯通。更可味者，「离」与「罹」同音通假，而「离」又有离别之义，暗含与太平往昔的诀别，一语双关，余味深长。正因有此通假，雉之陷网与人之遭难才得以在同一字面上会合，正是《诗经》用字简而意丰的绝佳例证。

尚 an expression of wish, 'would that' – carries a tone of hopeless longing 「尚寐无吪」之「尚」字，是全诗抒情转折处的关键虚词，也是读懂末句绝望之情的钥匙。「尚」犹言庶几、但愿，是《诗经》中常见的祈愿副词，如《小雅·庭燎》「夜如何其？夜未央」、《周颂》「尚克时忱」，皆以「尚」表希冀。此处「尚寐无吪」，写诗人无可奈何之中唯愿长眠不语，一个「尚」字，把祈愿的语气写得卑微而凄楚——不是慷慨赴死，而是忍辱偷生者的最后祈求；不是愤怒的诅咒，而是绝望的叹息。此字之妙，在以虚词写尽无力感：世既不可救，身既不可脱，则惟余一「寐」可求，而连这长眠之愿都要以「尚」字谦卑地道出，其哀可知。三章三「尚」，一以贯之，由愿寐而不语，到愿寐而不觉，到愿寐而不聪，一个虚词的反复，写尽乱世之人求生不得、求死不能的绝境。

百罹 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「逢此百罹」之「百罹」二字，是全诗情感的支点，也是三章递进的起点。「罹」即遭遇祸患，「百」极言其多，「百罹」写所遭之难多而纷至，如网罗之密布、如祸殃之层叠，总括乱世之苦。此词之妙，在以数字写苦难之广：不是一难二难，而是百难齐至，罹字本义为被罗网所陷，与首句「雉离于罗」之罗网意象暗相呼应——野鸡陷于一网，诗人却陷于百罹之网，由物及人，苦难层层加码。三章由「百罹」而「百忧」而「百凶」，罹为祸患之实，忧为心理之痛，凶为殃及之深，一词之变，苦难由外而内、由事而心、由轻而重，正见重章叠唱在回环中的层递之妙，也见出诗人对乱世苦难体认之深。

兔爰