清 Qing · 诗 Poem
好了歌
Song of Well-and-Over
世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！
古今将相在何方？
荒冢一堆草没了。
世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！
终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了。
世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！
君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了。
世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！
痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了？
yet none can forget worldly fame!
Where now are the generals and ministers of past and present?
A heap of barren graves, overgrown with grass, and gone.
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals,
yet none can forget gold and silver!
All day long they rue that their hoard is not yet large enough,
but when it grows large, their eyes are shut forever.
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals,
yet none can forget a lovely wife!
While you lived she spoke daily of love and kindness,
but when you died she followed another man.
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals,
yet none can forget their children and grandchildren!
Doting parents have been many since ancient times,
but filial grandchildren—who has ever seen one?
Meaning
Sung by the lame Taoist in Chapter 1 of Dream of the Red Chamber, the Song of Well-and-Over exposes the futility of the four great human attachments—fame, wealth, beautiful wives, and offspring. Through insistent repetition and blunt rhetorical questions it drives home the Buddhist theme of 'emptiness' (se-kong): everything people cling to proves illusory in the end.
世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了。世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了。世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了。世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了？
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] The poem declares that everyone acknowledges the happiness of the immortal sages, yet no one can relinquish fame, riches, a beloved spouse, or descendants. Fame ends in forgotten graves; riches are amassed only to be lost at death; the faithful wife soon remarries; and doting parents meet no grateful children. [Structure] The song is built from four parallel stanzas, each opening with the identical line 'All the world knows the bliss of the immortals' and closing with a pointed question or ironic turn. This refrain-and-variation form mimics a folk ballad and accumulates force through repetition. [Imagery] The governing contrast is between the idealized 'immortals' and the grim particulars of earthly attachment: 'a heap of barren graves,' 'eyes shut forever,' 'followed another man,' 'who has ever seen one.' The repeated 'hao' (good/well) and 'liao' (over/done) frame a dialectic of desire and extinction. The language is deliberately plain and vernacular, lending the song the air of popular wisdom while carrying profound philosophical weight. It is the thematic keynote of the novel's meditation on illusion and release.
【白话串讲】 曹雪芹写《好了歌》：“世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了”——“世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了”——他写功名、金银、姣妻、儿孙——好了，好了。 【意象与手法】 以“世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了”等排比反复，历数功名、金银、姣妻、儿孙之“忘不了”；每节以“古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了”等设问点破虚幻。语言通俗、以俗寓理。 【情感与主旨】 《红楼梦》中跛足道人所唱之歌，以“好”与“了”的辩证写人生功名富贵之虚幻，是全书“色空”主题的点题之作，寓意深刻。 【名句点睛】 常考“古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了”以荒冢写功名虚幻；“世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了”以忘不了写人欲难舍。
Background
Cao Xueqin (c. 1715–c. 1763), courtesy name Mengruan, art name Xueqin, was a Qing-dynasty novelist and poet of the Bordered White Banner. His single great work, Dream of the Red Chamber (Honglou meng), is the supreme achievement of Chinese fiction. The Song of Well-and-Over appears in the novel's first chapter, sung by the lame Taoist who chances upon the scholar Zhen Shiyin; it is later answered by the 'Song of the Painted Faces' (Hao-liao ge zhu jie). Written as philosophical reflection on impermanence, the verse belongs to the novel's framing apparatus, announcing the 'color is emptiness' vision that governs the entire book.
《好了歌》为清代小说家曹雪芹所作诗。曹雪芹（约1715—约1763），名霑，字梦阮，号雪芹、芹圃，满洲正白旗人，清代小说家，著有《红楼梦》。此诗写感怀哲理，见于《红楼梦》第一回。诗中「世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了」写世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了，古今将相在何方，荒冢一堆草没了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了」写世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了，终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了」写世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了，君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」写世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了，痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了。曹雪芹此诗以感怀哲理、孝顺儿孙谁见了写其感怀之情，慷慨旷达，是曹雪芹诗中的名篇。
Art
The poem's art lies in its 'generous, transcendent air carried by a song'—a ballad-like simplicity that veils deep irony. Four stanzas share an identical opening line, producing a hypnotic refrain; each then specifies a different attachment and punctures it with a closing image. The first stanza moves from universal knowledge ('all know the immortals' bliss') to the specific impossibility of forgetting fame, then answers with the desolate 'barren graves.' The second and third trace the same arc through wealth and the wife, while the fourth turns to children and lands its sharpest barb: parents' devotion is proverbial, filial returns rare. The tone is colloquial and unembellished, yet the repetitions and the closing questions generate a cumulative, almost liturgical force. By couching weighty metaphysics in the rhythm of a street song, Cao achieves the 'natural' quality prized in folk verse while making the song a miniature of the novel's whole argument about desire and release.
此诗艺术上以「慷慨旷达、以歌写情」见长。全诗共四节，由世人都晓神仙好而古今将相在何方而只有金银忘不了。起「世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了」写世人都晓神仙好：世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了，古今将相在何方，荒冢一堆草没了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了」写只有金银忘不了：世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了，终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了」写只有姣妻忘不了：世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了，君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了；结「世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」写孝顺儿孙谁见了：世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了，痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了。全诗以歌写情，由世人都晓神仙好而孝顺儿孙谁见了，慷慨旷达，是曹雪芹诗中的名篇。
Allusions
The song is lean in explicit allusion, yet saturated with shared cultural reference. The 'immortals' (shenxian) evoke the Daoist ideal of liberation from worldly bonds, set against the Confucian ladder of 'generals and ministers' (jiangxiang)—the very career the poem dismisses. 'Barren graves' (huangzhong) echoes the traditional memento mori of tumulus poetry, while the faithless wife and the doting-but-unrewarded parents draw on perennial motifs of Buddhist impermanence sermons. Cao weaves these familiar materials without ostentation, so that the philosophical weight arrives through recognition rather than erudition. The dialectic of 'hao' (good/well) and 'liao' (finished/over) itself functions as a conceptual pun grounding the novel's title logic. The effect is a seamless fusion of popular saying and literary craft—an exemplary instance of Cao's ability to 'melt' common lore into original vision.
诗中「世人都晓神仙好惟有功名忘不了古今将相在何方荒冢一堆草没了」「世人都晓神仙好只有金银忘不了终朝只恨聚无多及到多时眼闭了」「世人都晓神仙好只有姣妻忘不了君生日日说恩情君死又随人去了」「世人都晓神仙好只有儿孙忘不了痴心父母古来多孝顺儿孙谁见了」等语，皆含典故故实。「世人都晓神仙好惟有功名忘不了古今将相在何方荒冢一堆草没了」写世人都晓神仙好惟有功名忘不了古今将相在何方荒冢一堆草没了；「世人都晓神仙好只有金银忘不了终朝只恨聚无多及到多时眼闭了」写世人都晓神仙好只有金银忘不了终朝只恨聚无多及到多时眼闭了；「世人都晓神仙好只有姣妻忘不了君生日日说恩情君死又随人去了」写世人都晓神仙好只有姣妻忘不了君生日日说恩情君死又随人去了；「世人都晓神仙好只有儿孙忘不了痴心父母古来多孝顺儿孙谁见了」写世人都晓神仙好只有儿孙忘不了痴心父母古来多孝顺儿孙谁见了。诗人以神仙、将相等语入诗，不着痕迹，而把感怀哲理之情写得慷慨淋漓，是善于熔铸典故的体现。
Commentary
As a reflective set-piece within Dream of the Red Chamber, the Song of Well-and-Over has been read for centuries as the novel's thematic overture. Critics note how its four stanzas move from fame to riches to wife to children, each closing on an image of inevitable loss, building a rhetoric of disenchantment. The line 'Where now are the generals and ministers of past and present? / A heap of barren graves' is often cited for its stark rendering of fame's nothingness; 'Doting parents have been many since ancient times, / but filial grandchildren—who has ever seen one?' is prized as the poem's most quotidian and most devastating turn. Later anthologies value the song precisely because it condenses, in folk-ballad form, the 'generous and transcendent' spirit that pervades Cao's poetry. Its plainness is strategic: the simpler the language, the more universal the disillusionment it conveys, making it one of the most frequently excerpted passages in the novel.
这首《好了歌》，是曹雪芹写感怀哲理之作，写世人都晓神仙好、古今将相在何方、痴心父母古来多之情，慷慨旷达。起「世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了」——世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了，古今将相在何方，荒冢一堆草没了。写世人都晓神仙好：世人都晓神仙好、惟有功名忘不了、古今将相在何方、荒冢一堆草没了——都晓神仙好、功名忘不了、将相在何方、荒冢草没了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了」——世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了，终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了。写只有金银忘不了：都晓神仙好、只有金银忘不了、终朝只恨聚无多、及到多时眼闭了——金银忘不了、恨聚无多、眼闭了；「世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了」——世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了，君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了。写只有姣妻忘不了：都晓神仙好、只有姣妻忘不了、君生日日说恩情、君死又随人去了——姣妻忘不了、日日说恩情、死又随人去；结「世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」——世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了，痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了。写孝顺儿孙谁见了：都晓神仙好、只有儿孙忘不了、痴心父母古来多、孝顺儿孙谁见了——儿孙忘不了、父母古来多、儿孙谁见了。这「痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」，是全诗之结：以孝顺儿孙谁见了写其感怀。全诗慷慨旷达，以歌写情，正是曹雪芹诗中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了。
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals, yet none can forget worldly fame! Where now are the generals and ministers of past and present? A heap of barren graves, overgrown with grass, and gone.
世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了！古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了。
All men know that being an immortal is best, yet official fame and rank they cannot forget. Where are the generals and ministers of old and today? A waste mound, a heap of grass, and they are gone.
首节写世人都晓神仙好，起笔即见其论。「世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了」写世人都晓神仙好惟有功名忘不了，「都晓神仙好」写都晓神仙好、「惟有功名忘不了」写功名忘不了；「古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了」写古今将相在何方，荒冢一堆草没了，「古今将相在何方」写将相在何方、「荒冢一堆草没了」写荒冢草没了。四句一写世人都晓神仙好、一写惟有功名忘不了、一写古今将相在何方、一写荒冢一堆草没了，以世人都晓神仙好写都晓神仙、以惟有功名忘不了写功名难忘、以古今将相在何方写将相何方、以荒冢一堆草没了写荒冢没了，写尽世人都晓神仙好、惟有功名忘不了、古今将相在何方、荒冢一堆草没了之情。以论起兴，慷慨而旷达，是「以论起兴」的妙笔。
The first stanza writes all men know that being an immortal is best, the argument visible from the first stroke. All men know that being an immortal is best, yet official fame and rank they cannot forget: know that being an immortal best, cannot forget fame and rank the first obsession. Where are the generals and ministers of old and today? A waste mound, a heap of grass, and they are gone: where are the chancellors, the grass-covered mound the forgotten grave. Four lines: all know the immortals' way, yet fame cannot be forgotten; where are the ancient and modern leaders, the waste mound buried in grass. Writing how all know the immortal's bliss, yet cannot forget rank; where the generals are gone, the mound lost in grass, exhausts the feeling: all know, yet forget not; the leaders gone, the mound overgrown. Rising on argument, the tone grand and detached, the finest stroke of rising on discourse.
世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了。
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals, yet none can forget gold and silver! All day long they rue that their hoard is not yet large enough, but when it grows large, their eyes are shut forever.
世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了！终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了。
All men know that being an immortal is best, yet gold and silver they cannot forget. All day they grieve they have not hoarded enough; and when at last the hoard is great, their eyes are closed.
此节写只有金银忘不了，是全诗写金银之态的关键。「世人都晓神仙好，只有金银忘不了」写世人都晓神仙好只有金银忘不了，「都晓神仙好」写都晓神仙好、「只有金银忘不了」写金银忘不了；「终朝只恨聚无多，及到多时眼闭了」写终朝只恨聚无多及到多时眼闭了，「终朝只恨聚无多」写终朝恨聚无多、「及到多时眼闭了」写多时眼闭了。四句一写世人都晓神仙好、一写只有金银忘不了、一写终朝只恨聚无多、一写及到多时眼闭了，以世人都晓神仙好写都晓神仙、以只有金银忘不了写金银难忘、以终朝只恨聚无多写恨聚无多、以及到多时眼闭了写眼闭了，写尽世人都晓神仙好、只有金银忘不了、终朝只恨聚无多、及到多时眼闭了之情。以金写情，慷慨而旷达，是「以金写情」的点睛之笔。
The stanza writes yet gold and silver they cannot forget, the key to the poem's writing of wealth. All men know that being an immortal is best, yet gold and silver they cannot forget: know the immortal's bliss, cannot forget gold and silver. All day they grieve they have not hoarded enough; and when at last the hoard is great, their eyes are closed: all day grieving the small hoard, eyes closed when the hoard is full. Four lines: all know, yet cannot forget silver; grieving the hoard too small, eyes shut when it grows. Writing the known bliss and the forgotten wealth, the daily grudge and the final closing of eyes, exhausts the feeling: all know, yet cling to gold; grieving the lack, then the eyes shut. Writing feeling through wealth, the tone grand and detached, the crowning stroke of writing emotion through gold.
世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了。
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals, yet none can forget a lovely wife! While you lived she spoke daily of love and kindness, but when you died she followed another man.
世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了。
All men know that being an immortal is best, yet the lovely wife they cannot forget. While you live, daily you vow love and devotion; once you are dead, off she goes with another.
此节写只有姣妻忘不了，是全诗写姣妻之态的关键。「世人都晓神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了」写世人都晓神仙好只有姣妻忘不了，「都晓神仙好」写都晓神仙好、「只有姣妻忘不了」写姣妻忘不了；「君生日日说恩情，君死又随人去了」写君生日日说恩情君死又随人去了，「君生日日说恩情」写君生日日说恩情、「君死又随人去了」写君死随人去了。四句一写世人都晓神仙好、一写只有姣妻忘不了、一写君生日日说恩情、一写君死又随人去了，以世人都晓神仙好写都晓神仙、以只有姣妻忘不了写姣妻难忘、以君生日日说恩情写日日说恩情、以君死又随人去了写死随人去了，写尽世人都晓神仙好、只有姣妻忘不了、君生日日说恩情、君死又随人去了之情。以妻写情，慷慨而旷达，是「以妻写情」的点睛之笔。
The stanza writes yet the lovely wife they cannot forget, the key to the poem's writing of the wife. All men know that being an immortal is best, yet the lovely wife they cannot forget: know the immortal's bliss, cannot forget the beautiful wife. While you live, daily you vow love and devotion; once you are dead, off she goes with another: daily vows of devotion while the husband lives, following another after his death. Four lines: all know, yet cannot forget the wife; vows daily while he lives, gone with another when he dies. Writing the known bliss and the forgotten wife, the daily protestations and the departure after death, exhausts the feeling: all know, yet cling to the wife; vows while he lives, following another in death. Writing feeling through the wife, the tone grand and detached, the crowning stroke of writing emotion through her.
世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了？
All the world knows the bliss of the immortals, yet none can forget their children and grandchildren! Doting parents have been many since ancient times, but filial grandchildren—who has ever seen one?
世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了！痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了？
All men know that being an immortal is best, yet sons and grandsons they cannot forget. Doting parents have been many since old; but who has ever seen a filial son or grandson?
结节写孝顺儿孙谁见了，是全诗立意的落点。「世人都晓神仙好，只有儿孙忘不了」写世人都晓神仙好只有儿孙忘不了，「都晓神仙好」写都晓神仙好、「只有儿孙忘不了」写儿孙忘不了；「痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」写痴心父母古来多孝顺儿孙谁见了，「痴心父母古来多」写痴心父母古来多、「孝顺儿孙谁见了」写孝顺儿孙谁见了。四句一写世人都晓神仙好、一写只有儿孙忘不了、一写痴心父母古来多、一写孝顺儿孙谁见了，以世人都晓神仙好写都晓神仙、以只有儿孙忘不了写儿孙难忘、以痴心父母古来多写父母古来多、以孝顺儿孙谁见了写儿孙谁见了，写尽世人都晓神仙好、只有儿孙忘不了、痴心父母古来多、孝顺儿孙谁见了之情。以问写情，慷慨而旷达，是全诗最动人处，也是「以问写情」的点睛之笔。
The last stanza writes but who has ever seen a filial son or grandson, where the poem's meaning comes to rest. All men know that being an immortal is best, yet sons and grandsons they cannot forget: know the immortal's bliss, cannot forget children and grandchildren. Doting parents have been many since old; but who has ever seen a filial son or grandson? doting parents through the ages, filial children none seen. Four lines: all know, yet cannot forget the children; doting parents of old, filial heirs never seen. Writing the known bliss and the forgotten heirs, the ancient doting parents and the unseen filial sons, exhausts the feeling: all know, yet cling to children; parents doting since old, filial heirs never seen. Writing feeling through a question, the tone grand and detached, the most moving passage of the poem, the crowning stroke of writing emotion through inquiry.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Yan Shu's 'Huanxi Sha' ('flowers fall, helplessly; swallows return, as if known') is a famous Song lyric of reflective melancholy; Cao's Song of Well-and-Over answers with 'where are the ministers now, a heap of barren graves' and 'doting parents... who has seen one.' Both treat reflective lament and helplessness: Yan via falling flowers and returning swallows lamenting lost time, Cao via barren graves and unfilial heirs lamenting impermanence. One is Yan's gentle warmth, the other Cao's transcendent irony—read together they show two ways of writing 'reflective helplessness,' each finding resignation within contemplation.
晏殊《浣溪沙·一曲新词酒一杯》「无可奈何花落去，似曾相识燕归来」，写感怀言志，是宋词小令的名篇；曹雪芹《好了歌》则以「古今将相在何方？荒冢一堆草没了」「痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」写将相在何方、儿孙谁见了。两诗同写感怀言志、无可奈何：一写无可奈何花落去、以花落燕归写惜时，一写古今将相在何方荒冢一堆草没了、以荒冢写感怀；一为晏殊之温润、一为曹雪芹之旷达，并读正可见诗写「感怀无可奈何」的两种笔法，皆于感怀之中见无可奈何。
山园小梅 Plum Blossoms by the Mountain Garden 林逋 · 同写隐逸清雅、看破名利，一写疏影横斜水清浅暗香浮动月黄昏、一写世人都晓神仙好惟有功名忘不了，皆于隐逸之中见看破 Both treat reclusive purity and seeing through fame and gain—one through 'sparse shadows, faint fragrance' and the other through 'all know the immortals' bliss, yet none forget fame'—each finding detachment within reclusion.Lin Bu's 'Plum Blossoms by the Mountain Garden' ('sparse shadows slant by clear water, faint fragrance floats at dusk moon') celebrates the plum's elegance and reclusive charm; Cao's Song answers with 'all know the immortals' bliss, yet none forget fame' and 'doting parents... who has seen one.' Both treat reclusive purity and seeing through fame: Lin via the plum's elegance, Cao via the ballad's expose of attachment. One is Lin's refined detachment, the other Cao's transcendent irony—read together they show two ways of writing 'reclusive detachment,' each finding clarity within seclusion.
林逋《山园小梅》「疏影横斜水清浅，暗香浮动月黄昏」，写梅之清雅、隐逸之趣，是宋诗咏物的绝唱；曹雪芹《好了歌》则以「世人都晓神仙好，惟有功名忘不了」「痴心父母古来多，孝顺儿孙谁见了」写功名忘不了、儿孙谁见了。两诗同写隐逸清雅、看破名利：一写疏影横斜水清浅暗香浮动月黄昏、以梅写清雅，一写世人都晓神仙好惟有功名忘不了、以歌谣写看破；一为林逋之清逸、一为曹雪芹之旷达，并读正可见诗写「隐逸看破」的两种笔法，皆于隐逸之中见看破。