All poems

宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric

辛弃疾·鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作

Partridge Sky · Written after Illness on Return from Ehu

辛弃疾

Xin Qiji

婉约graceful 闲适leisure

枕簟溪堂冷欲秋。
断云依水晚来收。
红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁。
书咄咄，且休休。
一丘一壑也风流。
不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼。

Pillow and mat by the stream-hall, cold as if autumn were near.
Broken clouds rest on the water, gathering in at dusk.
Red lotuses lean together, wholly as if drunk;
White birds wordless, surely grieving on their own.
I write my 'tut-tut' in the air, and would rather withdraw.
A hill, a gully — even these have their grace.
I know not how much my strength has failed,
Only that lately I am too idle to climb the tower.

Listen

Meaning

By the stream-side hall the pillow and mat grow cool, as if early autumn were coming. Scattered clouds cling to the water and at dusk slowly withdraw. Red lotuses lean against each other, wholly as though drunk; white birds are silent, surely harbouring sorrow of their own. I may as well put my pent-up anger into writing 'tut-tut' in the air, yet better to retire and rest. Among a hill and a gully there is its own charm. I only know not how much my vigour has declined, only feel that of late I am too lazy to mount the tower.

溪边堂中枕席生凉，仿佛初秋将至。片片断云傍水，到傍晚渐渐散收。红莲相倚，浑然如醉；白鸟寂然不语，定是在暗自含愁。且把满腔忧愤写成书空咄咄，又不如归去休休。一山一水之间，也自有风流意趣。只是不知体力衰老了多少，只觉得近来懒得上楼。

Appreciation

The first stanza writes scene only, yet every line holds feeling: the cool pillow shows the body's decline after illness; broken clouds, red lotuses, white birds all wear a mournful air — feeling lent to scene, self and thing grieving together. The second stanza turns to reflection and feeling; 'I write my tut-tut' and 'and would rather withdraw' use allusion as speech, exhausting the anger of a patriot with no door to serve and the helplessness of forced diversion. The close 'I know not how much my strength has failed, only that lately I am too idle to climb the tower' ends in ordinary speech, revealing deep pain beneath the plain. Outwardly leisurely, inwardly bitter, the firm and the soft uphold each other — most showing Jiaxuan's late-life brush.

【白话串讲】辛弃疾从鹅湖回来病倒了：“红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁”。“书咄咄，且休休。一丘一壑也风流”——他说：别感叹了，山水也风流。“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”——他连上楼的力气都没了。【意象与手法】上片纯写景物而句句含情：枕簟生凉见病后体衰，断云、红莲、白鸟皆着愁态，是移情入景、物我同悲【情感与主旨】此词约作于辛弃疾晚年闲居铅山鹅湖一带时，据题"鹅湖归病起作"，可知写于自鹅湖归来病体初愈之际【名句点睛】中高考常考：一、上片景物描写如何为情感蓄势（红莲白鸟之愁）；二、"书咄咄""休休"用典的意蕴

Background

This lyric was probably written when Xin Qiji, in his late years, lived in retirement around Ehu in Yanshan. From the title 'written after illness on return from Ehu' we know it was composed just as he had recovered from sickness on his way back from Ehu. After returning south, Jiaxuan was long distrusted and left idle; his great ambition could not unfold. On the surface it writes the coolness and laziness of retirement after illness, but in truth uses a leisurely brush to write the grief of a hero thrown into idleness — a typical work of his brooding style in the dismissal years, reflecting the shared tragedy of patriotic men under the Southern Song's peace faction.

《鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作》为南宋辛弃疾所作，是写病起感慨的词。辛弃疾（1140—1207），字幼安，号稼轩，历城人，南宋爱国词人。此词：枕簟溪堂冷欲秋。断云依水晚来收。红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁。书咄咄，且休休。一丘一壑也风流。不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼。全词写病起之感、壮心渐衰，是辛弃疾词的名篇。

Art

The first stanza writes scene only, yet every line holds feeling: the cool pillow shows the post-illness decline; broken clouds, red lotuses, white birds all wear sorrow — feeling lent to scene, self and thing grieving as one. The second stanza turns to argument and feeling; 'I write my tut-tut' and 'and would rather withdraw' use allusion as language, exhausting the anger of no door to serve and the forced self-comfort. The close 'I know not how much my strength has failed, only that lately I am too idle to climb the tower' ends in plain speech, revealing deep pain beneath the even. Outwardly easy, inwardly furious, firm and soft together — most showing Jiaxuan's late-life strength.

《鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作》艺术上以景物的写意与感慨的深婉见长。全词九句，层层写来：上片写溪堂秋景——“枕簟溪堂冷欲秋”写溪堂冷欲秋，“断云依水晚来收”写断云晚收，“红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁”写红莲白鸟；下片写病起感慨——“书咄咄，且休休”用《世说》书咄咄之典，“一丘一壑也风流”写一丘一壑，“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”写筋力衰、懒上楼。全词以景写情、感慨壮心，正是辛弃疾词深婉沉郁的笔法。

Allusions

The second stanza uses two allusions in a row: 'I write my tut-tut' from the Jin Shu biography of Yin Hao, who after his demotion spent each day writing 'tut-tut, strange affair' in the air, meaning a heart full of grievance with no one to tell; 'and would rather withdraw' from the Xin Tang Shu biography of Sikong Tu, who retired to Zhongtiao Mountain and wrote the 'Record of the Rest-Rest Pavilion' to declare his withdrawal. One angry, one retired, the two allusions exactly write Jiaxuan's torn mind — wanting to advance yet unable, wanting to retire yet unwilling. 'A hill, a gully' also comes from the Shishuo Xinyu, meaning the pleasure of riverside seclusion — aptly chosen.

《鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作》用典在“书咄咄”“一丘一壑”。“书咄咄”用《世说新语》殷浩书空作“咄咄怪事”之典，写其愤慨；“一丘一壑”用《世说》明帝问谢鲲一丘一壑之典，写寄情山水。全词以这些典故写病起感慨、壮心渐衰，用典自然而沉郁自见，正是辛弃疾词的笔法。

Commentary

Chen Tingzhuo, in White Rain Studio Lyric Talk, judged Jiaxuan's lyrics 'of the greatest breath, yet the mood most brooding' — this lyric exactly earns that verdict. The modern Deng Guangming dated it to this retirement phase, saying 'too idle to climb the tower' writes the grief of a hero at his end. Yu Pingbo also prized its writing deep sorrow in shallow words, showing backbone within leisure. Critics often read it against Su Shi's leisure lyrics, saying Xin hides a blade in leisure — a different, heavier pain.

《鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作》是辛弃疾词的名篇，也是南宋词中写病起感慨的代表作。此词写病起之感、壮心渐衰，向为论者称道。论者多赏其景物的写意与感慨的深婉——“红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁”写红莲白鸟，亦写己之愁；“书咄咄，且休休”写其愤慨，更见壮心未已；“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”写筋力之衰，更见其慨。辛弃疾为南宋爱国词人，其词以沉郁豪放著称，此词正是其代表——以景写情、感慨壮心，正是其词风。

Prosody

Form Lyric, 'Partridge Sky' (Zhe Gu Tian), double-tune 55 characters词·鹧鸪天

Rhyme Level rhyme, per Ci Lin Zheng Yun, three level rhymes in the first stanza, two in the second《鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作》为双调词，押平声韵。此词用韵：秋、收、愁（尤部）、休、流、楼（尤部），一韵到底，音节沉郁。

Tone pattern First stanza three level rhymes, second two; the transition line opens with a three-character paired start鹧鸪天为双调词，音节沉郁而深婉。此词写病起感慨，音节沉郁而深婉。全词一韵到底，声调与壮心渐衰的内容相合，是辛弃疾词中沉郁的一路。

Reading note 'Partridge Sky' is also 'Thinking of the Fair Guest'; gentle metre, fit for leisure feeling — Jiaxuan lodges brooding in it.《鹧鸪天·鹅湖归病起作》为南宋辛弃疾所作，是写病起感慨的词。此词以“枕簟溪堂冷欲秋”写病起见秋之冷，以“红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁”写红莲白鸟亦写己愁，以“书咄咄，且休休”写其愤慨，以“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”写筋力渐衰。以景写情、感慨壮心，正是辛弃疾词的名篇。

Line by line

枕簟溪堂冷欲秋。断云依水晚来收。红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁。

On pillow and mat in the stream-side hall, the coolness turns almost autumn. Broken clouds along the water gather at evening. Red lotuses lean on one another, as if drunk; white birds are silent, surely grieved.

枕簟溪堂，凉冷欲秋。断云依水，晚来渐收。红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定是自愁。

On the mat by the stream-side hall, the chill is almost autumn. Scattered clouds cling to the water and gather as evening comes. Red lotuses lean together as if drunk; white birds are silent, certain in their grief.

上片写溪堂秋景，是全词病起感慨的起点。“枕簟溪堂冷欲秋”写溪堂冷欲秋——“枕簟溪堂”写枕簟溪堂（鹅湖之溪堂），“冷欲秋”写凉冷欲秋——枕簟溪堂，冷欲秋；“断云依水晚来收”写断云晚收——“断云依水”写断云依水，“晚来收”写晚来渐收——断云依水，晚来收；“红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁”写红莲白鸟——“红莲相倚浑如醉”写红莲相倚浑如醉，“白鸟无言定自愁”写白鸟无言定是自愁——红莲相倚，白鸟自愁。五句写溪堂秋景：枕簟溪堂冷欲秋、断云依水晚来收，红莲相倚浑如醉、白鸟无言定自愁。以“枕簟溪堂冷欲秋”写病起见秋之冷，以“红莲相倚浑如醉，白鸟无言定自愁”写红莲如醉、白鸟自愁（亦写己之愁），正是辛弃疾词写病起感慨、以景写情的起点。

The first stanza writes the stream-hall autumn scene, the whole ci's illness-recovery-sigh start. The on-the-mat-by-the-stream-side-hall-the-chill-is-almost-autumn writing the stream-hall's autumn-cool; the scattered-clouds-cling-to-the-water-and-gather-as-evening-comes writing the evening's clouds' gathering; the red-lotuses-lean-together-as-if-drunk-white-birds-are-silent-certain-in-their-grief writing the red lotus and white bird. Five lines writing the stream-hall autumn scene: the mat-hall's autumn-cool, the evening clouds' gathering, the red lotuses' drunken and the white birds' grieving. Using the coolness-turns-autumn for the illness-recovery's autumn-cold, and the red-lotus-as-if-drunk-white-birds-grieved for the red-lotus' drunken and the white-bird's grief (and also writing his own grief), precisely Xin ci's illness-recovery-sigh and scene-writes-feeling start.

书咄咄，且休休。一丘一壑也风流。不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼。

I write out bah! and yet let it be. One hill, one gully, are also elegant. I know not how much my strength has failed; I only feel of late too lazy to climb the tower.

书咄咄怪事，暂且休休。一丘一壑也足风流。不知筋力衰了多少，只觉得新来懒于上楼。

I write bah! at the empty air, and yet let it be. One hill and one ravine are still elegant. I know not how much my strength has failed; I only feel of late too lazy to climb the tower.

下片写病起感慨、壮心渐衰，是全词感慨的归结。“书咄咄，且休休”用殷浩书咄咄之典写其愤慨——“书咄咄”用《世说》殷浩书空“咄咄怪事”之典，“且休休”写暂且休休——书咄咄，且休休；“一丘一壑也风流”写一丘一壑——“一丘一壑也风流”用谢鲲一丘一壑之典写寄情山水——一丘一壑也风流；“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”写筋力衰懒上楼——“不知筋力衰多少”写不知筋力衰了多少，“但觉新来懒上楼”写只觉得新来懒于上楼——筋力衰，懒上楼。四句写病起感慨：书咄咄、且休休，一丘一壑也风流，不知筋力衰多少、但觉新来懒上楼。以“书咄咄，且休休”写其愤慨不平，以“一丘一壑也风流”写寄情山水之自解，以“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”写筋力渐衰、懒于登楼，正是辛弃疾词写壮心渐衰的归结——书咄咄而只能休休，登楼无力而壮心暗消。

The second stanza writes the illness-recovery-sigh and the lofty-heart's gradual-decline, the whole ci's sigh's close. The I-write-bah-at-the-empty-air-and-yet-let-it-be using Yin Hao's bah-allusion for the indignation — the write-bah using the New-Account's Yin-Hao's writing-bah-strange-affair allusion, the let-it-be writing the for-now rest; the one-hill-and-one-ravine-are-still-elegant using Xie Kun's one-hill-one-gully allusion for the landscape-entrustment; the I-know-not-how-much-my-strength-has-failed-I-only-feel-of-late-too-lazy-to-climb-the-tower writing the strength's decline and the tower-laziness. Four lines writing the illness-recovery sigh: the bah-and-let-be, the one-hill-one-gully elegance, the strength's decline and the lazy tower. Using the bah-and-let-be for the indignation, the one-hill-one-gully for the landscape's self-comfort, and the strength's decline-and-lazy-tower for the gradual decline, precisely Xin ci's lofty-heart's-gradual-decline close — the writing-bah's and yet the only-let-be, the tower-climb's no-strength and the lofty-heart's secretly fading.

Study

Word focus

枕簟 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “枕簟溪堂冷欲秋”之“枕簟”，写枕席，是全词写病起卧处之冷的关键词。“枕簟”写枕与席——枕簟溪堂，凉冷欲秋。这一词写卧处之物：不是寻常之具，而枕簟；不是安适之境，而冷欲秋之席。以“枕簟溪堂冷欲秋”写病起卧于溪堂、感秋之冷，正是辛弃疾词写病起感慨的笔法。

红莲相倚 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “红莲相倚浑如醉”之“红莲相倚”，写红莲相倚，是全词写景亦写情的意象词。“红莲相倚”写红莲相互倚靠——“红莲相倚”写红莲相倚，“浑如醉”写浑如醉——红莲相倚，浑如醉。这一词写红莲之态：不是孤莲之立，而相倚；不是清醒之姿，而浑如醉。以“红莲相倚浑如醉”写红莲如醉之景、亦寓己之醉愁，正是辛弃疾词以景写情的笔法。

书咄咄 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “书咄咄”之“书咄咄”，用殷浩书空“咄咄怪事”之典，写其愤慨不平，是全词写壮心未已的关键词。“书咄咄”写以指书空作咄咄怪事——书咄咄怪事。这一词写其愤慨：不是可忍之愤，而书咄咄；不是无言之时，而书空咄咄。以“书咄咄，且休休”写其愤慨不平而只能休休，正是辛弃疾词写壮心未已、归隐自解的笔法。

懒上楼 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “但觉新来懒上楼”之“懒上楼”，写懒于登楼，是全词写筋力渐衰的归结词。“懒上楼”写懒于上楼——只觉得新来懒于上楼。这一词写筋力之衰：不是无意之懒，而懒上楼；不是暂时之倦，而新来渐衰之象。以“不知筋力衰多少，但觉新来懒上楼”写筋力渐衰、懒于登楼，正是辛弃疾词写壮心渐衰的归结。