宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric
天香
The Heavenly Fragrance
烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓。
烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露。
不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。
惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮。
当年酒狂自负。
谓东君、已春相付。
流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦。
幽恨无人晤语。
赖明月曾知旧游处。
好伴云来，还将梦去。
The mountains sink the distant light,
Winding, winding, the dusk bells and drums.
The candle shines on the curtain frame,
The crickets urge the loom,
Together we suffer the clear autumn wind and dew.
The sleepless, thinking wife,
All answer together with a few sounds of the washing beetle.
I think of the beloved,
Shutting the small window, silently silent,
The lamp flowers empty, falling.
Looking to the sky, the bright moon,
And the jade-dew of the lofty autumn,
It is the time to trust the high autumn for a while.
Again relying on the railings,
With the wine, I ask for a time,
After the drunk, I fear that the night will be short.
I rely on the bright moon, who once knew the places of the old roaming.
Meaning
A lyric of the autumn longing, written by He Zhu. The smoke binds the horizontal forest, the mountains sink the distant light, winding, winding, the dusk bells and drums — the autumn scene of the dusk. The candle shines on the curtain frame, the crickets urge the loom, together we suffer the clear autumn wind and dew — the cold autumn and the urging crickets. The sleepless, thinking wife, all answer together with a few sounds of the washing beetle — the washing beetle of the autumn, the wife thinking of the absent one. I think of the beloved, shutting the small window, silently silent, the lamp flowers empty, falling — the silent shutting of the window, the empty lamp flowers. Looking to the sky, the bright moon, and the jade-dew of the lofty autumn, it is the time to trust the high autumn for a while — the bright moon of the high autumn. Again relying on the railings, with the wine, he asks for a time, after the drunk, he fears that the night will be short — the wine and the feared short night. I rely on the bright moon, who once knew the places of the old roaming — the close's reliance on the moon that knew the old roaming. The lyric is the autumn longing: the dusk scene, the thinking wife, and the close's reliance on the moon of the old roaming.
烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓。烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露。不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮。当年酒狂自负。谓东君、已春相付。流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦。幽恨无人晤语。赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] The smoke binds the horizontal forest, the mountains sink the distant light, winding, winding, the dusk bells and drums. The candle shines on the curtain frame, the crickets urge the loom, together we suffer the clear autumn wind and dew. The sleepless, thinking wife, all answer together with a few sounds of the washing beetle. I rely on the bright moon, who once knew the places of the old roaming. [Structure and Thought] The lyric moves from the dusk autumn scene and the cold of the wind and dew, through the sleepless thinking wife and the sound of the washing beetle, to the beloved shutting the window and the close's reliance on the bright moon that knew the old roaming. [Key Technique] The lyric's art is the turning of the scene to the memory: the dusk bells and the washing beetle of the autumn, and the close's reliance on the moon that once knew the places of the old roaming — the longing turned to the moon of the past, the old roaming of the beloved. [Emotional Tone] Cold, longing, and relying: the lyric is the autumn longing, the dusk scene and the thinking wife, the close's reliance on the moon.
【白话串讲】 贺铸写《天香》：“烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓”——“烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露”——“不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵”——“惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮”——“当年酒狂自负。谓东君、已春相付”——他写秋暮——共苦清秋风露。 【意象与手法】 “烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓”写秋夜之景；“烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露”写清秋风露；“不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵”写思妇砧杵；“惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮”写岁华行暮；“当年酒狂自负。谓东君、已春相付”忆当年自负；结以“赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去”以明月知旧游。含蓄深婉。 【情感与主旨】 贺铸写羁旅秋夜之作，写秋夜羁旅、思妇砧杵与岁华行暮之叹，以“明月知旧游”写对往昔的追怀，是贺铸词中羁旅写情的代表。 【名句点睛】 常考“烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露”以蛩催机杼写秋夜；“赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去”以明月知旧游写追怀。
Background
He Zhu (1052–1125), the lyric master of the Song, wrote this 'Heavenly Fragrance' of the autumn longing — the dusk of the autumn and the memory. The smoke binding the horizontal forest and the sinking distant light of the dusk, the candle and the crickets of the cold autumn, the sleepless thinking wife and the washing beetle, the beloved shutting the small window with the empty lamp flowers, and the close's reliance on the bright moon that once knew the places of the old roaming — the lyric gathers the autumn longing, the scene and the memory. The lyric is one of the representative works of the master's longing.
《天香》为北宋词人贺铸所作词。贺铸（1052—1125），字方回，号庆湖遗老，卫州（今河南卫辉）人，北宋词人，词风兼婉约豪放，人称「贺梅子」。此词写羁旅秋夜。词中「烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓」写秋夜之景；「烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露」写清秋风露；「不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮」写思妇砧杵；「当年酒狂自负。谓东君、已春相付」写当年酒狂；「流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦」写流浪客路；「幽恨无人晤语。赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去」写幽恨无人。贺铸此词以羁旅秋夜、思妇砧杵写其羁旅之情，含蓄深婉，是贺铸词中的名篇。此篇《天香》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《天香》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 autumn longing. The dusk scene opens: the smoke binds the horizontal forest, the mountains sink the distant light, winding, winding, the dusk bells and drums — the binding smoke and the sinking light, the winding bells of the dusk. The cold follows: the candle shines on the curtain frame, the crickets urge the loom, together we suffer the clear autumn wind and dew — the urging crickets and the suffered wind and dew; the sleepless, thinking wife, all answer together with a few sounds of the washing beetle — the washing beetle of the autumn, the wife of the absent one. The beloved: I think of the beloved, shutting the small window, silently silent, the lamp flowers empty, falling — the silent shutting and the falling lamp flowers. The high autumn: looking to the sky, the bright moon, and the jade-dew of the lofty autumn, it is the time to trust the high autumn for a while — the bright moon of the high autumn; again relying on the railings, with the wine, he asks for a time, after the drunk, he fears that the night will be short — the wine and the feared short night. And the close gathers the memory: I rely on the bright moon, who once knew the places of the old roaming — the moon of the past, the old roaming of the beloved — the autumn longing, the dusk scene and the memory gathered in the reliance.
此词艺术上以「含蓄深婉、以景写情」见长。全词上片写秋夜之景与思妇砧杵，下片写当年酒狂与幽恨无人。上片「烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓」写秋夜之景：烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓；「烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露」写清秋风露：烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露；「不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮」写思妇砧杵：不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵；惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮。下片「当年酒狂自负。谓东君、已春相付」写当年酒狂：当年酒狂自负，谓东君、已春相付；「流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦」写流浪客路：流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦；「幽恨无人晤语。赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去」写幽恨无人：幽恨无人晤语，赖明月曾知旧游处，好伴云来，还将梦去。全词含蓄深婉，以景写情，是贺铸词中的名篇。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 washing beetle' (zhen chu) is the beetle of the washing — the sound of the washing, the autumn of the wife; 'the lamp flowers' (deng hua) are the flowers of the lamp — the empty falling of the lamp flowers, the lonely night; 'the jade-dew of the lofty autumn' (qiong qiu yu lu) is the dew of the high autumn — the jade-dew of the autumn; 'the places of the old roaming' (jiu you chu) are the places of the old roaming — the past places of the beloved.
词中「烟络横林」「逦迤」「蛩催机杼」「砧杵」「倦宦」「骎骎」「酒狂」「东君」「征骖」「客墙」「南浦」「晤语」「明月」「旧游处」「云来」「梦去」等语，皆含典故故实。「烟络横林」写烟霭缭绕横林；「逦迤」写连绵不断；「蛩催机杼」写蟋蟀鸣声如催机杼；「砧杵」写捣衣之声（思妇为征人捣衣）；「倦宦」写倦于宦游；「骎骎」写马疾行、岁月之速，「骎骎岁华行暮」写岁月疾行将暮；「酒狂」写纵酒疏狂（用阮籍酒狂之意）；「东君」为春神，「谓东君、已春相付」写谓春神已把春付与；「征骖」写征行之马；「客墙」写客舟之帆（墙同樯）；「南浦」用江淹《别赋》「送君南浦，伤如之何」之意，写送别之地；「晤语」写相对而语；「旧游处」写旧日游处；「云来」「梦去」写好伴云来、将梦送去。词人以烟络横林、蛩催机杼、砧杵、东君、南浦、明月等语入词，不着痕迹，而把羁旅秋夜之情写得真切可感，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。
Commentary
This lyric is one of the representative works of He Zhu, quoted for the reliance of its close. The dusk bells and the washing beetle of the autumn, and the reliance on the moon of the old roaming, are among the admired passages of the master's lyrics. Critics praise the lyric's longing: the autumn gathered from the dusk scene and the wife, to the close's reliance on the moon of the past.
这首《天香》，是贺铸写羁旅秋夜之作，写烟络横林、不眠思妇、幽恨无人之情，含蓄深婉。上片写秋夜之景与思妇砧杵：「烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓」——烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓。写秋夜之景：烟霭缭绕横林，山沈于远照，连绵黄昏钟鼓之声——横林、远照、黄昏钟鼓，写尽秋夜苍茫；「烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露」——烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露。写清秋风露：烛光映帘栊，蛩声催机杼，共苦清秋风露——烛、蛩、风露，写尽秋夜之苦；「不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮」——不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵；惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮。写思妇砧杵：不眠之思妇，齐应和几声砧杵；惊动天涯倦宦，岁月骎骎行暮——砧杵声起，惊动天涯倦宦，正写思妇捣衣、游子惊秋。下片写当年酒狂与幽恨无人：「当年酒狂自负。谓东君、已春相付」——当年酒狂自负，谓东君、已春相付。写当年酒狂：当年酒狂自负，谓春神已把春付与——忆当年之狂、以为春已付我；「流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦」——流浪征骖北道，客墙南浦。写流浪客路：流浪于征骖北道、客墙南浦——北道征行、南浦客舟，写尽羁旅之流浪；「幽恨无人晤语。赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去」——幽恨无人晤语，赖明月曾知旧游处，好伴云来，还将梦去。写幽恨无人：幽恨无人可语，赖明月曾知旧游之处，好伴云来，还将梦去——幽恨无人语，唯明月知旧游，以月写情。这「赖明月曾知旧游处。好伴云来，还将梦去」，是全词之结：以明月知旧游写其幽恨。全词含蓄深婉，以景写情，正是贺铸词中的名篇。
Prosody
Line by line
烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓。
The smoke binds the horizontal forest, the mountains sink the distant light, winding, winding, the dusk bells and drums.
烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓。
Mist entwines the stretching groves; the hills sink in the distant glow; dusk bells and drums drift on.
首三句写秋夜之景，起笔即见其境。「烟络横林」写烟霭缭绕横林，「烟络」写烟霭缭绕、「横林」写横展之林；「山沈远照」写出沉于远照，「山沈」写出色沉落、「远照」写远山夕照；「逦迤黄昏钟鼓」写连绵黄昏钟鼓，「逦迤」写连绵、「黄昏钟鼓」写黄昏钟鼓之声。三句以烟络横林、山沈远照写秋夜之景，以黄昏钟鼓写其声，写尽秋夜苍茫连绵之境。以景起兴，含蓄而苍茫，是「以景起兴」的妙笔。
The opening three lines write the autumn-night scene, the first stroke at once seeing the setting. The mist-entwines-the-stretching-groves writing the wreathing mist and the extended wood; the hills-sink-in-the-distant-glow writing the hills' sinking and the far sunset; the dusk-bells-and-drums-drift-on writing the continuous bell-and-drum sound. Three lines using the mist-groves and hills-glow for the autumn night, the bells-and-drums for the sound, exhausting the autumn night's vast continuous realm. Using the scene's uprising, reserved and vast, the scene-uprising wondrous brush.
烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露。
The candle shines on the curtain frame, the crickets urge the loom, together we suffer the clear autumn wind and dew.
烛映帘栊，蛩催机杼，共苦清秋风露。
Candlelight on the lattice; crickets urge the loom; together we bear the clear autumn's wind and dew.
此三句写清秋风露，是全词写秋夜之苦的关键。「烛映帘栊」写烛光映帘栊，「烛映」写烛光映照、「帘栊」写帘栊；「蛩催机杼」写蛩声催机杼，「蛩催」写蟋蟀催鸣、「机杼」写织机之声；「共苦清秋风露」写共苦清秋风露，「共苦」写共历其苦、「清秋风露」写清秋之风露。三句以烛映帘栊写其室、以蛩催机杼写其声、以共苦风露写其苦，写尽秋夜烛光蛩声、共历风露之苦。以景写苦，含蓄而深挚，是「以景写情」的点睛之笔。
These three lines write the clear autumn's wind-and-dew, the whole ci's autumn-night-grief key. The candlelight-on-the-lattice writing the candle's reflection; the crickets-urge-the-loom writing the cricket's urging and the loom's sound; together-we-bear-the-clear-autumn's-wind-and-dew writing the shared hardship. Three lines one writing the chamber, one the sound, one the shared hardship, exhausting the autumn-night candle-cricket and shared-wind-dew grief. Using the scene for the hardship-writing, reserved and deep, the scene-writes-feeling telling stroke.
不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。
The sleepless, thinking wife, all answer together with a few sounds of the washing beetle.
不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵。
The sleepless longing wives join in harmony with the washing-block's beats.
此二句写思妇砧杵，是全词由景写人的关键。「不眠思妇」写不眠之思妇，「不眠」写其不眠、「思妇」写思念征夫之妇；「齐应和、几声砧杵」写齐应和几声砧杵，「齐应和」写同声相应、「砧杵」写捣衣之声。两句一写不眠思妇、一写几声砧杵，以思妇不眠写其为征夫捣衣、以砧杵写其声，写尽秋夜思妇捣衣砧杵之声——几声砧杵，正为征人。以声写人，含蓄而深挚，是「以声写情」的点睛之笔。
These two lines write the sleepless longing wives and the washing-block, the whole ci's scene-to-person key. The sleepless-longing-wives writing the awake wives; the join-in-harmony-with-the-washing-block's-beats writing the block's harmony and sound. Two lines one writing the wives' sleeplessness, one the block's beats, using the sleepless wives for the expeditionary-husband's washing and the block's sound for the beat, exhausting the autumn-night wives' washing-block sound — the beats, precisely for the traveler. Using the sound for the person-writing, reserved and deep, the sound-writes-feeling telling stroke.
赖明月曾知旧游处。
I rely on the bright moon, who once knew the places of the old roaming.
赖明月曾知旧游处。
Only the bright moon has known the old wandering places.
此句写明月知旧游，是全词写幽恨的关键。「赖明月曾知旧游处」写赖明月曾知旧游处，「赖」写依赖、幸亏，「明月曾知」写明月曾经知道，「旧游处」写旧日游处。一句以「赖明月」写唯赖明月、以「曾知旧游处」写明月中曾有旧游，写其幽恨无人可语、唯赖明月曾照旧游之处——当年旧游，明月曾照。以月写情，含蓄而深挚，是「以月写情」的点睛之笔。
This line writes the bright-moon-knows-old-wanderings, the whole ci's hidden-grief key. The only-the-bright-moon-has-known-the-old-wandering-places writing the reliance on the moon, the moon's knowing, and the old places. One line using the bright-moon for the only-moon and the old-knowing for the moon's lit old wandering, writing the hidden grief's no confidant and the only moon's lit old ground — the years' old wandering, the moon's once lit. Using the moon for the feeling-writing, reserved and deep, the moon-writes-feeling telling stroke.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Liu Yong's 'Bells Ringing in the Rain' — 'the cold cicadas, sorrowful and urgent' — is the parting of the autumn; He Zhu's 'Heavenly Fragrance' — 'winding, winding, the dusk bells and drums' — is the longing of the autumn — the two autumns of the longing, the one of the parting, the other of the memory.
柳永《雨霖铃·寒蝉凄切》「寒蝉凄切，对长亭晚，骤雨初歇」「今宵酒醒何处？杨柳岸，晓风残月」，写离别之凄切与别后之思，是宋词写离别的名篇；贺铸《天香》则以「烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓」「不眠思妇，齐应和、几声砧杵」写羁旅秋夜、思妇砧杵。两词同写羁旅秋景、别后之思：一写寒蝉凄切对长亭晚、以别时写思，一写烟络横林黄昏钟鼓、以秋夜写思；一为柳永之婉约、一为贺铸之深婉，并读正可见宋词写「羁旅秋思」的两种笔法，皆于秋景中见羁旅之情。
八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天 Eight Beats of Ganzhou: Facing the Evening Rain That Spatters the Long River 柳永 · 同写羁旅登高、岁华行暮之慨，一写霜风凄紧关河冷落、一写烟络横林骎骎岁华，皆于秋景中见羁旅之愁 Both are the lyrics of the climb and the longing over the distance — the tower of Liu Yong, the railing of He Zhu — the two railings of the longing.Liu Yong's 'Eight Beats of Ganzhou' — 'unwilling to climb high and look far' — is the longing over the distance; He Zhu's 'Heavenly Fragrance' — 'again relying on the railings, with the wine' — is the longing at the railing — the two railings of the longing, the one of the climb, the other of the leaning.
柳永《八声甘州·对潇潇暮雨洒江天》「渐霜风凄紧，关河冷落，残照当楼」「不忍登高临远，望故乡渺邈，归思难收」，写羁旅登高、望乡难归，是宋词写羁旅的名篇；贺铸《天香》则以「烟络横林，山沈远照，逦迤黄昏钟鼓」「惊动天涯倦宦，骎骎岁华行暮」写羁旅秋夜、岁华行暮。两词同写羁旅登高、岁华行暮之慨：一写霜风凄紧关河冷落、以登高写愁，一写烟络横林黄昏钟鼓、以秋夜写愁；一为柳永之婉约、一为贺铸之深婉，并读正可见宋词写「羁旅之愁」的两种笔法，皆于秋景中见羁旅之愁。