宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric
水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静
Prelude to Water Melody: The Snow Has Washed the Dust of the Foe
雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。
何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼。
湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩。
胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮。
忆当年，周与谢，富春秋。
小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游。
赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁。
我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流。
The wind restrains the clouds of Chu and detains them.
The heroic spirit of my whole life on the lakes and the seas —
Now the scenery of the passes and the barriers —
I trim the candle and look at the Wu hook.
She was newly married, the younger Qiao,
And the perfume-bag not yet untied —
The great deeds are done at leisure.
Strike the oar, and vow in the midstream.
Meaning
A lyric of the victory over the northern invader, written by Zhang Xiaoxiang, the patriotic poet of the Southern Song. The snow has washed the dust of the foe to stillness — the invader's dust cleaned by the snow of the victory — and the wind restrains the clouds of Chu and detains them. The heroic spirit of his whole life on the lakes and the seas; now the scenery of the passes and the barriers — he trims the candle and looks at the Wu hook, the sword of the warrior. The younger Qiao newly married, the perfume-bag not yet untied — the leisure of the hero at the height of the deeds. And the close: I want to ride the wind and go, strike the oar, and vow in the midstream — the vow of the recovery, the striking of the oar in the middle of the stream. The lyric is the joy of the victory and the vow of the recovery: the dust washed clean, and the oar struck in the midstream.
雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼。湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩。胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮。忆当年，周与谢，富春秋。小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游。赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁。我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] The snow has washed the dust of the foe to stillness, the wind restrains the clouds of Chu and detains them. The heroic spirit of my whole life on the lakes and the seas — now the scenery of the passes and the barriers — I trim the candle and look at the Wu hook. She was newly married, the younger Qiao, and the perfume-bag not yet untied — the great deeds are done at leisure. I want to ride the wind and go, strike the oar, and vow in the midstream. [Structure and Thought] The lyric moves from the scene of the victory — the snow washing the foe's dust — through the warrior's spirit and the sword, to the close's vow of the oar struck in the midstream. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the gathering of the patriotic will: the snow of the victory, the Wu hook looked at in the candle, and the vow of the oar — the will to the recovery carried through the images. [Emotional Tone] Heroic, easy, and vowed: the lyric is the joy of the victory and the vow of the recovery, the sword looked at and the oar struck in the midstream.
【白话串讲】 张孝祥写《水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静》：“雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留”——“湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩”——“忆当年，周与谢，富春秋”——“小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游”——他写雪洗虏尘——剪烛看吴钩。 【意象与手法】 “雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留”写虏尘洗尽；“湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩”以吴钩写豪气；“忆当年，周与谢，富春秋”以周瑜谢玄写当年；“小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游”写勋业优游；结以“我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流”以击楫中流写报国。豪放激昂。 【情感与主旨】 张孝祥写咏怀爱国之作，写闻捷雪耻之喜与击楫中流的报国之志，是于湖词中爱国豪放的代表。 【名句点睛】 常考“雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留”以雪洗虏尘写捷报；“我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流”以击楫中流写报国之志。
Background
Zhang Xiaoxiang (1132–1170) was one of the great patriotic poets of the early Southern Song. This lyric was written on the news of the victory over the northern invader — the 'snow washing the dust of the foe' — the joy of the patriot in the defeat of the Jin. The 'Wu hook' is the sword of the warrior, looked at in the candle; 'the younger Qiao' and 'the perfume-bag' are the leisure of the hero; and the close — 'strike the oar, and vow in the midstream' — alludes to the vow of the Jin general Zu Ti, who struck his oar in the middle of the stream and swore to recover the lost land. The lyric is one of the boldest of the patriotic songs.
《水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静》为南宋词人张孝祥所作词。张孝祥（1132—1169），字安国，别号于湖居士，历阳乌江（今安徽和县）人，南宋词人，词风豪放。此词写咏怀爱国，追忆当年抗金之役（宋高宗绍兴三十一年采石矶大捷后作）。词中「雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼」写吹角城楼；「湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩」写湖海豪气；「胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮」写然犀处；「忆当年，周与谢，富春秋。小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游」写周谢勋业；「赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁」写赤壁肥水；「我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流」写击楫中流。张孝祥此词以咏怀爱国、击楫中流写其爱国之情，豪放激昂，是张孝祥词中的名篇。此篇《水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静》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 art is the art of the patriotic will. The scene of the victory is given first — the snow washing the dust of the foe to stillness, the wind restraining the clouds — the cleansed, cleared scene of the victory. The spirit follows: the heroic spirit of his whole life on the lakes and the seas, and now the scenery of the passes and the barriers — the trimming of the candle and the looking at the Wu hook, the warrior's sword in the candlelight. The leisure of the hero: the younger Qiao newly married, the perfume-bag not yet untied — the great deeds done at leisure, the ease of the victor. And the close gathers the will: I want to ride the wind and go, strike the oar, and vow in the midstream — the vow of the recovery, the oar struck in the middle of the stream, the will carried to its end.
此词艺术上以「豪放激昂、以典写志」见长。全词上片写吹角城楼与湖海豪气，下片写周谢勋业与击楫中流。上片「雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼」写吹角城楼：雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留，何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼；「湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩」写湖海豪气：湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩；「胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮」写然犀处：胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮。下片「忆当年，周与谢，富春秋。小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游」写周谢勋业：忆当年，周与谢，富春秋，小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游；「赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁」写赤壁肥水：赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁；「我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流」写击楫中流：我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流。全词豪放激昂，以典写志，是张孝祥词中的名篇。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。
Allusions
'The Wu hook' (Wugou) is the sword of the warrior of the south — the hooked sword, looked at in the candle, the will to the war. 'The younger Qiao' (Xiao Qiao) is the younger of the two Qiao sisters, the wife of the hero Zhou Yu of the Three Kingdoms — the leisure of the hero at the height of the deeds; 'the perfume-bag' (xiangnang) is the pouch of the perfumes, not yet untied — the same leisure. 'To strike the oar and vow in the midstream' (jiji shi zhongliu) alludes to the Jin general Zu Ti, who struck his oar in the middle of the stream and vowed to recover the lost land — the vow of the recovery, the standard vow of the patriot.
词中「雪洗虏尘」「风约楚云」「吹角」「古城楼」「湖海平生豪气」「关塞风景」「剪烛」「吴钩」「然犀」「骇浪与天浮」「周与谢」「富春秋」「小乔初嫁」「香囊未解」「勋业优游」「赤壁矶头」「肥水桥边」「唤人愁」「乘风去」「击楫誓中流」等语，皆含典故故实。「雪洗虏尘」写大雪洗净虏寇之尘；「风约楚云」写风约束楚云；「吹角」写吹号角；「古城楼」写古城之楼；「湖海平生豪气」写平生湖海之豪气；「关塞风景」写关塞之风景；「剪烛」写剪烛夜谈；「吴钩」用鲍照《代结客少年场行》「锦带佩吴钩」之语，写宝刀吴钩；「然犀」用《晋书》温峤过牛渚矶燃犀照水怪之典，写然犀照怪；「骇浪与天浮」写骇浪与天浮；「周与谢」用周瑜赤壁破曹、谢玄肥水破秦之典；「富春秋」写年富力强；「小乔初嫁」用周瑜娶小乔之典（《三国志》周瑜娶桥公女）；「香囊未解」用谢玄幼时好佩紫罗香囊之典（《晋书》谢玄少时好佩紫罗香囊）；「勋业优游」写勋业优游；「赤壁矶头」用周瑜赤壁之战的古战场；「肥水桥边」用谢玄肥水之战的古战场；「唤人愁」写唤起人之愁；「乘风去」用苏轼「我欲乘风归去」之意，兼写乘风破浪；「击楫誓中流」用祖逖「中流击楫」之典，写誓复中原。词人以然犀、周谢、小乔、香囊、赤壁、肥水、击楫等典入词，不着痕迹，而把爱国之情写得真切可感，是善于熔铸典故的体现。
Commentary
This lyric is one of the boldest of the Southern Song patriotic songs, quoted for its joy and its vow. The snow washing the dust of the foe, the Wu hook looked at in the candle, and the oar struck in the midstream are among the most admired images of the patriotic tradition. Critics praise the lyric's heroism: the victory's joy and the vow of the recovery, struck in the middle of the stream.
这首《水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静》，是张孝祥写咏怀爱国之作，写雪洗虏尘、湖海豪气、击楫中流之情，豪放激昂。上片写吹角城楼与湖海豪气：「雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼」——雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留，何人为写悲壮，吹角古城楼。写吹角城楼：雪洗虏尘静、风约楚云留，何人为写悲壮、吹角古城楼——虏尘洗尽、吹角城楼；「湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩」——湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩。写湖海豪气：湖海平生豪气、关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩——平生豪气、剪烛看吴钩；「胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮」——胜喜然犀处，骇浪与天浮。写然犀处：胜喜然犀处、骇浪与天浮（用温峤然犀之典）——然犀照怪、骇浪浮天。下片写周谢勋业与击楫中流：「忆当年，周与谢，富春秋。小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游」——忆当年，周与谢，富春秋，小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游。写周谢勋业：忆当年周与谢、富春秋（用周瑜赤壁、谢玄肥水之典），小乔初嫁、香囊未解，勋业故优游——忆周瑜谢玄当年、勋业优游；「赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁」——赤壁矶头落照，肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁。写赤壁肥水：赤壁矶头落照、肥水桥边衰草，渺渺唤人愁——赤壁落照、肥水衰草、唤起人愁；「我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流」——我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流。写击楫中流：我欲乘风去、击楫誓中流（用祖逖中流击楫之典）——欲乘风而去、击楫而誓中流。这「我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流」，是全词之结：以击楫中流写其壮志。全词豪放激昂，以典写志，正是张孝祥词中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。
The snow has washed the dust of the foe to stillness, the wind restrains the clouds of Chu and detains them.
雪洗虏尘静，风约楚云留。
Snow washes clean the foe's dust, all is still; the wind stays me, a cloud lingering over Chu.
首二句写虏尘洗尽，起笔即见其意。「雪洗虏尘静」写雪洗虏尘静，「雪洗虏尘」写大雪洗净虏寇之尘、「静」写其安静；「风约楚云留」写风约楚云留，「风约」写风之约束、「楚云留」写楚云滞留。两句一写雪洗虏尘静、一写风约楚云留，以雪洗虏尘写虏尘之洗尽、以风约楚云写风云之留滞，写尽雪洗虏尘、楚云留滞之景。以景起兴，豪放而苍茫，是「以景起兴」的妙笔。
The opening two lines writing the foe-dust's-washing-clean, the meaning present at the first stroke. The-snow-washes-clean-the-foe's-dust-all-is-still writes the heavy snow's washing of the foe's dust and the stillness; the-wind-stays-me-a-cloud-lingering-over-Chu writes the wind's restraining and the Chu cloud's lingering. Two lines, the foe-dust's cleansing through the snow-washing, the cloud-and-wind's lingering through the wind's restraint, exhausting the snow-washed foe dust and the lingering Chu cloud. Rising on scene, the bold and yet vast, a wondrous brush of rising-on-scene.
湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩。
The heroic spirit of my whole life on the lakes and the seas — now the scenery of the passes and the barriers — I trim the candle and look at the Wu hook.
湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩。
Lakes and seas, my lifelong heroic spirit; the frontier's scene today — I trim the candle and look at my Wu hook.
此三句写湖海豪气，是全词写其壮志的关键。「湖海平生豪气」写湖海平生豪气，「湖海」写湖海、「平生豪气」写一生之豪气；「关塞如今风景」写关塞如今风景，「关塞」写关塞、「如今风景」写如今之风景；「剪烛看吴钩」写剪烛看吴钩，「剪烛」写剪烛、「吴钩」用鲍照锦带佩吴钩之语写宝刀。三句一写湖海平生豪气、一写关塞如今风景、一写剪烛看吴钩，以湖海写其豪、以关塞写其地、以吴钩写其志，写尽湖海豪气、剪烛看吴钩之情。以志写情，豪放而激昂，是「以志写情」的点睛之笔。
These three lines writing the lakes-and-seas-heroic-spirit, the ci's stirring-will key. The-lakes-and-seas-my-lifelong-heroic-spirit writes the lakes-and-seas and the whole-life heroic spirit; the-frontier's-scene-today writes the passes-and-frontiers and the today's scene; I-trim-the-candle-and-look-at-my-Wu-hook writes the candle-trimming and the Wu hook (using Bao Zhao's brocade-belt-worn-Wu-hook words for the treasured sword). Three lines, the heroic through the lakes-and-seas, the place through the frontier, the will through the Wu hook, exhausting the lakes-and-seas heroism and the candle-trimming look at the Wu hook. Writing feeling through will, the bold and yet impassioned, a telling stroke of feeling-through-will.
小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游。
She was newly married, the younger Qiao, and the perfume-bag not yet untied — the great deeds are done at leisure.
小乔初嫁，香囊未解，勋业故优游。
Qiao was newly wed, the perfume pouch still undone, and yet his merit came with ease.
此三句写周谢勋业，是全词以古喻今的关键。「小乔初嫁」写小乔初嫁，用周瑜娶小乔之典（用苏轼「小乔初嫁了」之意）；「香囊未解」写香囊未解，用谢玄好佩紫罗香囊之典；「勋业故优游」写勋业故优游，「勋业」写功业、「故优游」写从容自若。三句一写小乔初嫁、一写香囊未解、一写勋业故优游，以周瑜小乔初嫁写周瑜年少、以谢玄香囊未解写谢玄年少、以勋业优游写其从容，写尽周瑜谢玄当年年少而勋业从容之情。以典写志，豪放而昂扬，是「以典写志」的点睛之笔。
These three lines writing the Zhou-Xie-era merit, the ci's ancient-for-present key. Qiao-was-newly-wed uses Zhou Yu's marriage-to-Qiao allusion (using Su Shi's Qiao-was-newly-wed meaning); the-perfume-pouch-still-undone uses Xie Xuan's love-of-the-purple-silk-pouch allusion; the-merit-came-with-ease writes the merit and the composed ease. Three lines, Zhou Yu's youth through the newly-wed Qiao, Xie Xuan's youth through the undone perfume pouch, the composure through the merit's ease, exhausting Zhou Yu and Xie Xuan's that-year's youth and yet the composed merit. Writing will through allusion, the bold and yet high-spirited, a telling stroke of will-through-allusion.
我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流。
I want to ride the wind and go, strike the oar, and vow in the midstream.
我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流。
I would ride the wind away, and strike my oar, swearing by the midstream.
尾二句写击楫中流，是全词立意的落点。「我欲乘风去」写我欲乘风去，「我欲」写我欲、「乘风去」写乘风而去；「击楫誓中流」写击楫誓中流，「击楫」用祖逖中流击楫之典、「誓中流」写誓于中流。两句一写我欲乘风去、一写击楫誓中流，以乘风去写其乘风之志、以击楫誓中流写其誓复中原之壮，写尽欲乘风而去、击楫誓于中流之情。以典写志，豪放而激昂，是全词最动人处，也是「以典写志」的点睛之笔。
The closing two lines writing the oar-striking-at-midstream, the landing of the ci's theme. I-would-ride-the-wind-away writes the I-would and the wind-riding departure; and-strike-my-oar-swearing-by-the-midstream uses Zu Ti's midstream-oar-striking allusion and the midstream oath. Two lines, the wind-riding will through the wind-riding departure, the Central-Plains-recovery's vow through the midstream oath, exhausting the wind-riding departure and the midstream oath. Writing will through allusion, the bold and yet impassioned, the ci's most moving place.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Su Shi's 'Prelude to Water Melody' — 'I want to ride the wind and return' — rides the wind to the transcendence of the moon; Zhang Xiaoxiang's lyric of the same tune — 'I want to ride the wind and go, strike the oar, and vow in the midstream' — rides the wind to the vow of the recovery. The same tune, the same wind, the two wills: the one transcendent, the other martial.
苏轼《水调歌头·明月几时有》「我欲乘风归去，又恐琼楼玉宇，高处不胜寒」，写欲乘风归去、超然物外，是水调歌头调最著名的词；张孝祥《水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静》则以「我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流」写欲乘风去、击楫中流。两词同用水调歌头词牌写乘风之志：一写我欲乘风归去、以乘风归去写超然，一写我欲乘风去击楫誓中流、以击楫中流写壮怀；一为苏轼之超旷、一为张孝祥之激昂，并读正可见水调歌头词牌写「乘风之志」的两种情致，皆于乘风之中见其志。
定风波·莫听穿林打叶声 Calming the Wind and the Waves: Do Not Listen to the Rain Beating Through the Forest 苏轼 · 同写任风雨而自若、旷达从容，一写也无风雨也无晴、一写击楫誓中流，皆于风雨中流之中见从容壮怀 Both are the lyrics of the Southern Song heroism answered by Su Shi's ease — the rain and the wind of the exile, the snow and the oar of the patriot.Su Shi's 'Calming the Wind and the Waves' — 'do not listen to the rain beating through the forest' — is the philosophical ease in the storm of the exile; Zhang Xiaoxiang's lyric is the martial version — the snow of the victory and the oar struck in the midstream, the same wind and rain shown in the two wills.
苏轼《定风波·莫听穿林打叶声》「一蓑烟雨任平生」「回首向来萧瑟处，归去，也无风雨也无晴」，写任风雨而自若，是苏轼写旷达的名篇；张孝祥《水调歌头·雪洗虏尘静》则以「湖海平生豪气，关塞如今风景，剪烛看吴钩」「我欲乘风去，击楫誓中流」写湖海豪气、击楫中流。两词同写任风雨而自若、旷达从容：一写一蓑烟雨任平生也无风雨也无晴、以旷达写怀，一写击楫誓中流、以壮志写怀；一为苏轼之超旷、一为张孝祥之激昂，并读正可见宋词写「从容壮怀」的两种情致，皆于风雨中流之中见从容壮怀。