宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric
贺新郎
Hexinlang (Congratulate the Bridegroom)
老去凭谁说。
看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛。
父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。
犹未燥、当时生发。
二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。
胡妇弄，汉宫瑟。
树犹如此堪重别。
只使君、从来与我，话头多合。
行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨。
但莫使、伯牙弦绝。
九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁。
龙共虎，应声裂。
Look how many times the miraculous has rotted,
and winter furs turn into summer kudzu.
The elders of Chang'an — how few remain today;
dying late, I have no vengeance left to exact,
the grave-grass not yet dry on the hair of that time.
How much hatred lies on the twenty-five strings;
reckon it: in this world there is no fairly divided moon —
a Hu woman playing upon the Han palace se.
The trees are already thus — can I bear another parting?
Only you, sir, have always agreed with me in talk.
Go, set it aside, it is not worth asking —
who would call for a lovely hide over a foolish bone?
Just do not let Boya's strings break.
Hold fast the nine-times-revolved cinnabar;
even pure gold is but common iron.
Dragon with tiger — with a sound it shall split.
Meaning
Opening with the cry 'to whom can I still speak?', the lyric surveys a world upside down: the old capital's people are nearly gone, no vengeance remains to be exacted, and the moon cannot be fairly halved. Turning to a like-minded friend, Chen Liang swears that friendship's strings will not break, and ends with the alchemical vow that dragon and tiger will split at the sound — grief converted into explosive resolve.
老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛。父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。犹未燥、当时生发。二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。胡妇弄，汉宫瑟。树犹如此堪重别。只使君、从来与我，话头多合。行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨。但莫使、伯牙弦绝。九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁。龙共虎，应声裂。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] 'Grown old — to whom can I still speak?' opens the lyric with a cry. The world has turned upside down: the miraculous rots, furs are worn in summer. The elders of the lost capital are nearly all dead; those who survive have no vengeance left to exact. The twenty-five strings of the se hold immeasurable regret — in this world there is no fairly divided moon. Yet friendship remains, and the closing alchemical vision — dragon and tiger splitting at a sound — converts grief into explosive resolve. [Structure] The upper stanza is the grief of a conquered age; the lower stanza turns from history to friendship, from Huan Wen's lament over the trees to Boya's broken strings, and ends in an oath of transformation: hold fast the cinnabar, and even common iron will become pure gold. [Imagery] Winter furs in summer, a Hu woman playing the Han court se, a moon that cannot be halved fairly, dragon and tiger splitting — images of inversion, occupation, and ultimate force.
【白话串讲】 陈亮写《贺新郎》：“老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛”——“父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪”——“二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月”——“树犹如此堪重别”——他写家国之恨——那有平分月。 【意象与手法】 “老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛”以神奇臭腐写世事翻覆；“父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪”写中原沦陷；“二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月”以二十五弦写恨；结以“龙共虎，应声裂”以龙虎写壮志。慷慨激昂、以文为词。 【情感与主旨】 陈亮写感怀抒愤之作，写老去无人可言、中原未复、壮志难酬的家国之恨，以“那有平分月”写山河破碎，是龙川词慷慨激烈风格的代表。 【名句点睛】 常考“父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪”以父老长安写中原沦陷；“二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月”以平分月写山河破碎。
Background
Chen Liang (1143-1194), courtesy name Tongfu, sobriquet Longchuan, was a native of Yongkang in Wuzhou (modern Yongkang, Zhejiang). A philosopher-patriot of the Southern Song, he repeatedly memorialized the throne urging reconquest of the north and was imprisoned for his outspokenness; he was also a close friend of Xin Qiji. This 'Hexinlang' was written as a gift to a like-minded friend, and its fury over the lost Central Plains, its Huan Wen and Boya allusions, and its closing alchemical oath give the lyric its peculiar pressure of grief and resolve.
《贺新郎》为南宋词人陈亮所作词。陈亮（1143—1194），字同甫，号龙川，婺州永康（今浙江永康）人，南宋思想家、词人，词风豪放，与辛弃疾交厚。此词写感怀抒愤，为酬赠之作。词中「老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛」写老去凭谁说；「父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。犹未燥、当时生发」写父老长安；「二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。胡妇弄，汉宫瑟」写二十五弦；「树犹如此堪重别。只使君、从来与我，话头多合」写树犹如此；「行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨。但莫使、伯牙弦绝」写伯牙弦绝；「九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁。龙共虎，应声裂」写应声裂。陈亮此词以感怀抒愤、应声裂写其报国之志，慷慨激昂，是陈亮词中的名篇。此篇《贺新郎》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 lyric's manner is 'heroic and direct, writing feeling through allusion' — the 'yi wen wei ci' (prose-force ci) style of which Chen Liang was the great exponent. The upper stanza compresses dynastic grief into inversions: the miraculous rotting, winter furs worn in summer, the se's twenty-five strings, a moon that cannot be fairly halved, a barbarian woman playing the Han court zither. Each image states a disorder of a world upside down. The lower stanza turns from history to friendship: Huan Wen's lament over the trees (time and change), Boya's broken strings (the loss of a true hearer), and finally the alchemical creed — hold fast the ninefold-revolved cinnabar and even common iron becomes pure gold. The closing 'dragon and tiger, splitting at a sound' converts pent-up grief into explosive force, so the poem ends not in despair but in an oath.
此词艺术上以「慷慨激昂、以典抒愤」见长。全词上片写老去凭谁说与二十五弦多少恨，下片写树犹如此与应声裂。上片「老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛」写老去凭谁说：老去凭谁说，看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛；「父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。犹未燥、当时生发」写父老长安：父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪，犹未燥、当时生发；「二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。胡妇弄，汉宫瑟」写二十五弦：二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月，胡妇弄，汉宫瑟。下片「树犹如此堪重别。只使君、从来与我，话头多合」写树犹如此：树犹如此堪重别，只使君、从来与我，话头多合；「行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨。但莫使、伯牙弦绝」写伯牙弦绝：行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨，但莫使、伯牙弦绝；「九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁。龙共虎，应声裂」写应声裂：九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁，龙共虎，应声裂。全词慷慨激昂，以典抒愤，是陈亮词中的名篇。
Allusions
'The miraculous rots' comes from Zhuangzi ('all things are transformed; the miraculous becomes the foul'); 'winter furs in summer, summer kudzu in winter' pictures a world out of season. 'Chang'an' is the old capital, standing for the lost Central Plains; 'those who die late have no vengeance left' is the grief of the survivor. 'Twenty-five strings' refers to the se associated with the Xiang spirits drumming on the zither — sorrow beyond words. 'No fairly divided moon' turns the half-moon into a realm that cannot be peacefully shared. 'A Hu woman plays the Han palace se' voices occupation. 'The trees are thus' is Huan Wen's lament ('the trees are thus; how can man bear it?'). 'Boya's strings severed' is the story of Boya and Ziqi: true hearing, once lost, ends music itself. 'Ninefold-revolved cinnabar' and 'dragon and tiger splitting' belong to the alchemical imagery of transformation and ultimate power.
词中「老去凭谁说」「看几番神奇臭腐夏裘冬葛」「父老长安今馀几后死无仇可雪犹未燥当时生发」「二十五弦多少恨算世间那有平分月胡妇弄汉宫瑟」「树犹如此堪重别只使君从来与我话头多合」「行矣置之无足问谁唤妍皮痴骨但莫使伯牙弦绝」「九转丹砂牢拾取管精金只是寻常铁龙共虎应声裂」等语，皆含典故故实。「老去凭谁说」写老去凭谁说；「看几番神奇臭腐夏裘冬葛」用神奇臭腐之语（庄子神奇臭腐相化），写看几番神奇臭腐夏裘冬葛；「父老长安今馀几后死无仇可雪犹未燥当时生发」写父老长安今馀几后死无仇可雪犹未燥当时生发；「二十五弦多少恨算世间那有平分月胡妇弄汉宫瑟」写二十五弦多少恨算世间那有平分月胡妇弄汉宫瑟（二十五弦用湘灵鼓瑟之典，胡妇弄汉宫瑟写胡妇弹汉瑟）；「树犹如此堪重别只使君从来与我话头多合」用桓温木犹如此之典（树犹如此人何以堪），写树犹如此堪重别；「行矣置之无足问谁唤妍皮痴骨」写行矣置之无足问谁唤妍皮痴骨（妍皮痴骨写外美内痴）；「但莫使伯牙弦绝」用伯牙绝弦之典（伯牙鼓琴钟子期知音），写但莫使伯牙弦绝；「九转丹砂牢拾取管精金只是寻常铁龙共虎应声裂」用丹砂精金之语，写九转丹砂牢拾取管精金只是寻常铁龙共虎应声裂。词人以庄子臭腐化神奇、桓温树犹如此、伯牙绝弦等典入词，不着痕迹，而把感怀抒愤之情写得慷慨淋漓，是善于熔铸典故的体现。
Commentary
Chen Liang's 'Hexinlang' is a landmark of patriotic ci, often placed beside Xin Qiji's heroic lyrics. Anthologists single out 'na you ping fen yue' as the most compressed expression of dynastic grief in the Song repertoire — a half-moon becomes the map of a divided China. Later critics, from the Qing ci-lun tradition to modern scholarship, praise the poem's 'yi wen wei ci' manner: its prose-force argument, packed allusions, and an ending that converts private sorrow into an oath of historical force.
这首《贺新郎》，是陈亮写感怀抒愤之作，写老去凭谁说、二十五弦多少恨、应声裂之情，慷慨激昂。上片写老去凭谁说与二十五弦多少恨：「老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛」——老去凭谁说，看几番、神奇臭腐（用神奇臭腐之语），夏裘冬葛。写老去凭谁说：老去凭谁说、看几番神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛——老去凭谁说、神奇臭腐、夏裘冬葛；「父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。犹未燥、当时生发」——父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪，犹未燥、当时生发。写父老长安：父老长安今馀几、后死无仇可雪，犹未燥当时生发——父老长安馀几、后死无仇可雪、当时生发未燥；「二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。胡妇弄，汉宫瑟」——二十五弦多少恨（用湘灵鼓瑟之典），算世间、那有平分月，胡妇弄，汉宫瑟。写二十五弦：二十五弦多少恨、算世间那有平分月，胡妇弄汉宫瑟——二十五弦恨、世间无平分月、胡妇弄汉宫瑟。下片写树犹如此与应声裂：「树犹如此堪重别。只使君、从来与我，话头多合」——树犹如此（用桓温木犹如此之典）堪重别，只使君、从来与我，话头多合。写树犹如此：树犹如此堪重别、只使君从来与我，话头多合——树犹如此、使君与我话头多合；「行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨。但莫使、伯牙弦绝」——行矣置之无足问，谁唤妍皮痴骨，但莫使、伯牙弦绝（用伯牙绝弦之典）。写伯牙弦绝：行矣置之无足问、谁唤妍皮痴骨，但莫使伯牙弦绝——行矣置之、妍皮痴骨、莫使伯牙弦绝；「九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁。龙共虎，应声裂」——九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁，龙共虎，应声裂。写应声裂：九转丹砂牢拾取、管精金只是寻常铁，龙共虎应声裂——丹砂牢拾取、精金只是铁、龙虎应声裂。这「九转丹砂牢拾取，管精金、只是寻常铁。龙共虎，应声裂」，是全词之结：以应声裂写其报国之志。全词慷慨激昂，以典抒愤，正是陈亮词中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
老去凭谁说。
Grown old — to whom can I still speak?
老去凭谁说。
Grown old, to whom shall I speak?
首句写老去凭谁说，起笔即见其愤。「老去凭谁说」写老去凭谁说，「老去」写老去、「凭谁说」写向谁说。一句以「老去」写老去、「凭谁说」写无人可说，写尽老去凭谁说之情——老去而无人可说。以问起兴，慷慨而苍凉，是「以问起兴」的妙笔。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 opening writes the old man with no one to speak to, the anger rising at the first stroke. Grown old, to whom shall I speak?: the grown-old the age, the to-whom-shall-I-speak the no listener. One line writes the years through the grown old, and the no listener through the to whom — old, and no one to speak to. Rising on the question, generous and desolate, the pointed brush. The few words carry a deep meaning, the pointed stroke of the ci.
父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。
The elders of Chang'an — how few remain today; dying late, I have no vengeance left to exact.
父老长安今馀几，后死无仇可雪。
How many of Chang'an's elders remain? We who come after have no wrong to avenge.
此二句写父老长安，是全词写其悲愤的关键。「父老长安今馀几」写父老长安今馀几，「父老长安」写长安父老、「今馀几」写如今剩下几人；「后死无仇可雪」写后死无仇可雪，「后死」写后死之人、「无仇可雪」写无仇可报。两句一写父老长安今馀几、一写后死无仇可雪，以父老长安今馀几写父老凋零、以无仇可雪写无仇可报，写尽父老长安今馀几、后死无仇可雪之情。以慨写愤，慷慨而悲凉，是「以慨写愤」的点睛之笔。
The two phrases write the elders of Chang'an, the key of the ci's grief and anger. How many of Chang'an's elders remain?: the Chang'an-elders the old northern people, the now-remain-how-many the thinning; we who come after have no wrong to avenge: the come-after the later-born, the no-wrong-to-avenge the no vengeance possible. Two phrases, the thinning elders and the unavengable wrong — the old people gone, the revenge impossible. Writing anger through lament, generous and desolate, the pointed stroke.
二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。
How much hatred lies on the twenty-five strings; reckon it: in this world there is no fairly divided moon.
二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月。
How much grief in the twenty-five strings? In all the world, when has the moon been shared whole?
此二句写二十五弦多少恨，是全词以典写恨的关键。「二十五弦多少恨」写二十五弦多少恨，用湘灵鼓瑟之典写二十五弦多少恨；「算世间、那有平分月」写算世间那有平分月，「算世间」写算世间、「那有平分月」写哪有平分之月。两句一写二十五弦多少恨、一写算世间那有平分月，以二十五弦写瑟声、以多少恨写恨之多、以那有平分月写无平分月，写尽二十五弦多少恨、算世间那有平分月之情。以典写恨，慷慨而深挚，是「以典写恨」的点睛之笔。
The two phrases write the twenty-five strings' grief, the key of the ci's allusion-writing grief. How much grief in the twenty-five strings? uses the Xiang Ling's zither allusion for the strings' grief; in all the world, when has the moon been shared whole?: the in-the-world the reckoning, the when-has-the-moon-been-shared the never-complete moon. Two phrases, the zither's grief and the never-shared moon — the strings' sorrow, the world's divided moon. Writing grief through allusion, generous and deep, the pointed stroke.
树犹如此堪重别。
The trees are already thus — can I bear another parting?
树犹如此堪重别。
The trees are already thus; how can I bear yet another parting?
此句写树犹如此，是全词以典写慨的关键。「树犹如此堪重别」写树犹如此堪重别，用桓温木犹如此之典写树犹如此。一句以「树犹如此」写树犹如此、「堪重别」写堪当此别，写尽树犹如此堪重别之情——树犹如此而堪重别。以树写慨，慷慨而苍凉，是「以树写慨」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 trees already thus, the key of the ci's allusion-writing lament. The trees are already thus; how can I bear yet another parting?: the trees-are-already-thus uses Huan Wen's the willow is already thus allusion, the how-bear-yet-another-parting the second parting's weight. One line writes the years through the trees thus, and the parting's weight through the bear. Writing lament through the tree, generous and desolate, the pointed stroke. The few words carry a deep meaning, the pointed stroke of the ci.
但莫使、伯牙弦绝。
Just do not let Boya's strings break.
但莫使、伯牙弦绝。
Only, let not Boya's strings be snapped.
此句写伯牙弦绝，是全词以典写情的关键。「但莫使、伯牙弦绝」写但莫使伯牙弦绝，用伯牙绝弦之典写但莫使伯牙弦绝。一句以「但莫使」写只莫使、「伯牙弦绝」写伯牙绝弦，写尽但莫使伯牙弦绝之情——只望莫使伯牙绝弦。以弦写情，慷慨而深挚，是「以弦写情」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 Boya strings unsnapped, the key of the ci's allusion-writing feeling. Only, let not Boya's strings be snapped: the only-let-not the sole wish, the Boya-strings-snapped uses the Boya-breaks-his-strings allusion. One line writes the sole wish through the only let not, and the soulmate's loss through the snapped strings. Writing feeling through the strings, generous and deep, the pointed stroke. The few words carry a deep meaning, the pointed stroke of the ci.
龙共虎，应声裂。
Dragon with tiger — with a sound it shall split.
龙共虎，应声裂。
Dragon with tiger, at the answering sound they crack.
尾三句写应声裂，是全词立意的落点。「龙共虎」写龙共虎，「龙共虎」写龙与虎；「应声裂」写应声裂，「应声」写应声、「裂」写裂开。三句一写龙共虎、一写应声裂，以龙共虎写龙虎、以应声裂写应声而裂，写尽龙共虎应声裂之情——龙虎应声而裂。以象写志，慷慨而激昂，是全词最动人处，也是「以象写志」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 closing three phrases write the cracking at the answering sound, the landing point of the ci's intention. Dragon with tiger: the dragon-with-tiger the two forces; at the answering sound they crack: the answering-sound the response, the crack the split. Three phrases, the dragon and tiger and the cracking at the answering — the forces, the answering crack. Writing will through the image, generous and fierce, the most moving place of the ci, the pointed stroke. The few words carry a deep meaning, the pointed stroke of the ci.
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Su Shi reconciles himself to imperfection ('this has been hard to be perfect since ancient times') and rises above grief; Chen Liang looks at the same moon and finds injustice — a realm that cannot be fairly halved. Read together, they show the Song long-form lyric's two faces: Su Shi's philosophical serenity and Chen Liang's indignant patriotism.
苏轼《水调歌头·明月几时有》「人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全」，写中秋怀人、旷达超然，是宋词长调的名篇；陈亮《贺新郎》则以「二十五弦多少恨，算世间、那有平分月」「龙共虎，应声裂」写二十五弦多少恨、应声裂。两词同写长调感怀、借月抒怀：一写人有悲欢离合月有阴晴圆缺、以圆缺写旷达，一写算世间那有平分月、以平分月写愤；一为苏轼之超然、一为陈亮之激昂，并读正可见宋词写「长调感怀」的两种笔法，皆于长调之中见感怀。
八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天 Basheng Ganzhou (Eight Beats of Ganzhou): To the Drizzling Evening Rain Spilled from the Sky 柳永 · 同写长调抒怀、凭高望远，一写不忍登高临远、一写老去凭谁说，皆于长调之中见凭高望远 Both are long-form lyrics written while gazing from on high: Liu Yong writes 'I cannot bear to climb high and gaze far, seeing my homeland distant and dim, my thoughts of return hard to gather'; Chen Liang writes 'Grown old — to whom can I still speak?' Both use the long form to gaze into distance — one longing to return, one with no one to address.Liu Yong's climbing and gazing turns into homesickness for a journey home; Chen Liang's old age turns into the cry of a patriot with no audience. Liu Yong's manner is clear and sorrowful; Chen Liang's is impassioned and fierce. Read together, they show the long-form lyric's two directions: Liu Yong's return and Chen Liang's indignant cry.
柳永《八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天》「不忍登高临远，望故乡渺邈，归思难收」，写凭高望远、归思难收，是宋词长调的名篇；陈亮《贺新郎》则以「老去凭谁说。看几番、神奇臭腐，夏裘冬葛」「树犹如此堪重别」写老去凭谁说、树犹如此。两词同写长调抒怀、凭高望远：一写不忍登高临远、以登高写归思，一写老去凭谁说、以凭谁说写无人可诉；一为柳永之清丽、一为陈亮之激昂，并读正可见宋词写「长调凭高望远」的两种笔法，皆于长调之中见凭高望远。