清 Qing · 诗 Poem
宝应舟中月夜
Moonlit Night on a Boat at Baoying
芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排？
明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮。
Wild geese descend on the rounded sands, a few in a row?
The bright moon sinks into the mist, frost settles on the water—
A traveler lodges tonight by the clear Huai.
Meaning
The poem captures a traveler's night mooring at Baoying on the waterway, gazing over endless reed beds and settled geese. As the moon dissolves into mist and frost touches the surface, the poet records the quiet solitude of a journey spent far from home, embodying the Zhexi school's secluded and limpid manner.
芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排？明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] The opening line looks out over faint reed roots stretching beyond sight, with wild geese alighting on rounded sandbanks in scattered rows; the second turns to the bright moon sinking into mist while frost rests on the water; the close places a traveler lodging tonight by the clear Huai. [Structure] The quatrain moves from a distant, low wetland prospect to the luminous sky, then settles on the human figure, tightening its focus from vastness to a single resting traveler. [Imagery] Li E pairs 'reed roots' and 'geese' to evoke a watery night, then uses 'moon sinking into mist' and 'frost on water' to render stillness tangible. The diction is pared and cool, typical of his 'secluded, sharp, and clear' (you juan qing qiao) style. The contrast between the boundless view and the lonely lodger gives the little scene its lingering pathos, making an ordinary night on the canal resonate with quiet travel-weariness.
【白话串讲】 厉鹗写《宝应舟中月夜》：“芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排”——“明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮”——他夜泊宝应——明月堕烟霜着水。 【意象与手法】 “芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排”以芦根雁落写水乡夜景；“明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮”以明月堕烟写夜泊清淮。意象清幽、语言洗练。 【情感与主旨】 夜泊宝应舟中所作，写水乡月夜的清幽与羁旅之思，是浙派诗人厉鹗“幽隽清峭”诗风的体现。 【名句点睛】 常考“明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮”以明月堕烟写夜泊清幽；“芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排”以芦根雁落写水乡夜景。
Background
Li E (1692–1752), style name Taihong, literary name Fanxie, was a native of Qiantang (Hangzhou), Zhejiang, a Qing-dynasty literatus and a leading lyricist of the West-Zhejiang (Zhexi) school. Though learned, he attained only modest office and devoted himself to poetry and ci. This poem was written on a night boat at Baoying, on the Grand Canal, a place the poet passed during his travels. It belongs to the vein of his work that transforms the sights of rivers and lakes into secluded, refined images, and it remains one of his most frequently anthologized quatrains.
《宝应舟中月夜》为清代诗人厉鹗所作诗。厉鹗（1692—1752），字太鸿，号樊榭，浙江钱塘人，清代文学家，浙西词派的重要词人。此诗写景羁旅，为宝应舟中月夜之作。诗中「芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排」写芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排；「明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮」写明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮。厉鹗此诗以写景羁旅、行人今夜宿清淮写其羁旅之情，清幽羁旅，是厉鹗诗中的名篇。此篇《宝应舟中月夜》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。此篇《宝应舟中月夜》在历代选本中多被收录，其艺术价值与流传之广，正可见此诗在同类题材中的重要地位。诗人以匠心独运之笔写寻常之情事，遂使此作历千载而犹有生气，为后人所称赏不绝。
Art
The poem's art lies in its secluded travel mood built through moonlight and scene. In four lines and two couplets it proceeds from 'reed roots faint, no boundary' to 'bright moon sinks into mist, frost on water.' The first couplet sets the wetland night with reeds and geese; the second couplet narrows to the moon dissolving in mist and the traveler lodging by the Huai. Li E achieves much with little: images are condensed, feeling is indirect, and the technique of 'saying much through few' keeps the structure tight yet resonant. The cool, long cadence matches the seven-character quatrain's compression, so that a few lines open onto an expansive, hushed world.
此诗艺术上以「清幽羁旅、以月写情」见长。全诗共四句两联，由芦根渺渺望无涯而明月堕烟霜着水。起「芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排」写芦根渺渺望无涯：芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排；结「明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮」写明月堕烟霜着水：明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮。全诗以月写情，由芦根渺渺望无涯而行人今夜宿清淮，清幽羁旅，是厉鹗诗中的名篇。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。通篇以少总多之法出之，章法严谨而用意深曲，意象凝练而情韵悠长，读之愈久，愈觉其构思之精与笔力之健，堪称同类诗作中不可多得之佳篇，足见诗人炉火纯青的艺术功力。
Allusions
The poem is lightly allusive. 'Clear Huai' (qing Huai) evokes the Huai River, here standing for the waterway where the traveler rests; the phrase lends the closing line a classical resonance without overt bookishness. 'Reed roots' and 'rounded sand' draw on the long tradition of river-and-geese imagery for separation and travel, while 'moon sinking into mist' belongs to the familiar lexicon of night-mooring poems. Li E fuses these inherited elements so seamlessly that the allusion feels natural, never displayful—an instance of his skill in smelting classical material into fresh, restrained feeling.
诗中「芦根渺渺望无涯雁落圆沙几点排」「明月堕烟霜着水行人今夜宿清淮」等语，皆含典故故实。「芦根渺渺望无涯雁落圆沙几点排」写芦根渺渺望无涯雁落圆沙几点排；「明月堕烟霜着水行人今夜宿清淮」用清淮之典（清淮写淮水），写明月堕烟霜着水行人今夜宿清淮。诗人以清淮之典入诗，不着痕迹，而把写景羁旅之情写得真切可感，是善于熔铸典故的体现。此等用典之法，熔铸古今而不着痕迹，既不炫博以示学，亦不拘泥于旧解，正见诗人学养之深与运思之巧。读者于此等处尤当细心玩味，方能领会其言外之旨与味外之味。此等用典之法，熔铸古今而不着痕迹，既不炫博以示学，亦不拘泥于旧解，正见诗人学养之深与运思之巧。读者于此等处尤当细心玩味，方能领会其言外之旨与味外之味。此等用典之法，熔铸古今而不着痕迹，既不炫博以示学，亦不拘泥于旧解，正见诗人学养之深与运思之巧。读者于此等处尤当细心玩味，方能领会其言外之旨与味外之味。
Commentary
This 'Moonlit Night on a Boat at Baoying' is Li E's secluded travel lyric: it renders reed roots, the sinking moon, and the traveler lodging by the Huai with quiet feeling. The opening lines spread the boundless wetland view; the close fixes the lonely lodger by the clear Huai, the poem's emotional pivot. Throughout, feeling is true, scene is precise, and meaning is deep, the three fused without seam, so that a few phrases carry infinite implication. Its restraint and suggestiveness embody the classical ideal of 'saying little yet meaning much,' which is why later readers return to it again and again.
这首《宝应舟中月夜》，是厉鹗写写景羁旅之作，写芦根渺渺望无涯、明月堕烟霜着水、行人今夜宿清淮之情，清幽羁旅。起「芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排」——芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排。写芦根渺渺望无涯：芦根渺渺望无涯、雁落圆沙几点排——望无涯、几点排；结「明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮」——明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮。写明月堕烟霜着水：明月堕烟霜着水、行人今夜宿清淮——霜着水、宿清淮。这「明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮」，是全诗之结：以行人今夜宿清淮写其羁旅。全诗清幽羁旅，以月写情，正是厉鹗诗中的名篇。综观全诗，情真、景切、理深，三者浑融无迹，故能于短短数语之中寄无限深意，令人百读不厌。其含蓄蕴藉之处，正是中国古典诗歌以少总多、言有尽而意无穷的美学精神的生动体现。综观全诗，情真、景切、理深，三者浑融无迹，故能于短短数语之中寄无限深意，令人百读不厌。其含蓄蕴藉之处，正是中国古典诗歌以少总多、言有尽而意无穷的美学精神的生动体现。
Prosody
Line by line
芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排？
Reed roots stretch faint and far, no boundary to the sight—wild geese descend on the rounded sands, a few in a row?
芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排？
Miles of reed roots stretch to the horizon; a few wild geese alight in rows on the round sandbar.
起句写芦根渺渺望无涯，起笔即见其芦根。「芦根渺渺望无涯」写芦根渺渺望无涯，「芦根渺渺」写芦根渺渺、「望无涯」写望无涯；「雁落圆沙几点排」写雁落圆沙几点排，「雁落圆沙」写雁落圆沙、「几点排」写几点排。一句写芦根渺渺望无涯雁落圆沙几点排，以芦根渺渺望无涯写望无涯、以雁落圆沙几点排写几点排，写尽芦根渺渺望无涯、雁落圆沙几点排之情。以芦起兴，清幽而羁旅，是「以芦起兴」的妙笔。
The opening line at once shows the reeds: miles of reed roots stretch to the horizon writes the boundless marsh, a few wild geese alight in rows on the round sandbar the small dark marks. Rising on the reeds, the mood is clear and remote, a traveler's mood; the boundless reed marsh and the few geese on the sandbar write the vast loneliness of the waterway, the finest stroke of rising on an object.
明月堕烟霜着水，
The bright moon sinks into the mist, frost settles on the water,
明月堕烟霜着水，
The bright moon falls into the mist; frost settles on the water.
此句写明月堕烟霜着水，是全诗写明月的关键。「明月堕烟」写明月堕烟，「明月」写明月、「堕烟」写堕烟；「霜着水」写霜着水，「霜着」写霜着、「水」写水。一句写明月堕烟霜着水，以明月堕烟写堕烟、以霜着水写着水，写尽明月堕烟霜着水之情。以月写景，清幽而羁旅，是「以月写景」的点睛之笔。此句以寥寥数语写尽深意，情韵兼胜，正是全诗点睛之笔。其于字句之间暗藏波澜，于平易之中寄寓曲折，尤当反复涵泳，方能得其三昧。
The line writes the bright moon falling into mist, frost on the water, the key to the poem's moonlight. The bright moon falls into the mist writes the moon among the river fog; frost settles on the water writes the cold upon the stream. Writing scene through the moon, the mood is clear and remote, a traveler's mood; in a few words the line says deep things, feeling and tone together, the very crowning stroke of the poem, with undercurrents hidden between the words that need slow savoring.
行人今夜宿清淮。
A traveler lodges tonight by the clear Huai.
行人今夜宿清淮。
The traveler tonight lodges on the clear Huai River.
结句写行人今夜宿清淮，是全诗立意的落点。「行人今夜」写行人今夜，「行人」写行人、「今夜」写今夜；「宿清淮」用清淮之典写宿清淮，「宿」写宿、「清淮」写清淮。一句写行人今夜宿清淮，以行人今夜写今夜、以宿清淮写清淮，写尽行人今夜宿清淮之情。以淮写情，清幽而羁旅，是全诗最动人处，也是「以淮写情」的点睛之笔。
The closing line, the traveler tonight lodges on the clear Huai River, is where the poem's meaning comes to rest. The traveler tonight writes the wandering man, lodges on the clear Huai uses the river as the lodging-place. Writing feeling through the Huai, the mood is clear and remote, a traveler's mood; this is the most moving passage of the poem, the crowning stroke of writing feeling through the river.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Su Shi's 'When Did the Bright Moon Appear?' ('When did the bright moon appear? I lift my wine and ask the azure sky') is a transcendent meditation, a famous Song lyric; Li E's 'Moonlit Night on a Boat at Baoying' uses 'bright moon sinks into mist, frost on water' and 'traveler lodges by the clear Huai' to write cold and travel. Both treat the moonlit night with seclusion: Su through lofty detachment, Li through quiet loneliness—read together they show two ways of inscribing moonlit feeling.
苏轼《水调歌头·明月几时有》「明月几时有？把酒问青天」，写月夜感怀、清幽旷达，是宋词长调的名篇；厉鹗《宝应舟中月夜》则以「明月堕烟霜着水，行人今夜宿清淮」「芦根渺渺望无涯」写霜着水、望无涯。两诗同写月夜感怀、清幽旷达：一写明月几时有、以把酒问青天写超然，一写明月堕烟霜着水行人今夜宿清淮、以明月写羁旅；一为苏轼之旷达、一为厉鹗之清幽，并读正可见诗写「月夜感怀」的两种笔法，皆于月夜之中见清幽。
八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天 Tune: 'Ba Sheng Gan Zhou' — Over the Misty Rain Sweeping River and Sky at Dusk 柳永 · 同写舟中凝望、清幽清丽，一写对潇潇暮雨洒江天、一写芦根渺渺望无涯雁落圆沙几点排，皆于舟中之中见凝望 Both write gazing from a boat, secluded and pure; one faces misty dusk rain on river and sky, the other looks over faint reed roots and geese—both find fixed gazing upon the water.Liu Yong's 'Ba Sheng Gan Zhou' ('Over the misty rain sweeping river and sky at dusk, once more it washes the clear autumn') is a famous Song lyric of travel and gazing; Li E's poem uses 'reed roots faint, no boundary' and 'traveler lodges by the Huai' to write the boundless view and night lodging. Both share boatside gazing: Liu through clear beauty, Li through seclusion—read together they show two manners of writing fixed attention upon the water.
柳永《八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天》「对潇潇暮雨洒江天，一番洗清秋」，写舟中凝望、清幽清丽，是宋词写羁旅的名篇；厉鹗《宝应舟中月夜》则以「芦根渺渺望无涯，雁落圆沙几点排」「行人今夜宿清淮」写望无涯、宿清淮。两诗同写舟中凝望、清幽清丽：一写对潇潇暮雨洒江天、以暮雨写清秋，一写芦根渺渺望无涯雁落圆沙几点排、以芦根写羁旅；一为柳永之清丽、一为厉鹗之清幽，并读正可见诗写「舟中凝望」的两种笔法，皆于舟中之中见凝望。