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宋 Song · 诗 Poem

都官叶郎中归三衢

Seeing Off Director Ye of the Bureau of Justice Returning to Sanqu

张方平

Zhang Fangping

山水Mountains and Waters 田园Fields and Gardens 咏史Reflection on History 愁思Melancholy Thought

宗邸横经授小侯，迹同半隐久沈浮。
却寻故国溪山路，多谢朝堂钟鼓楼。
冉冉年华年老态，纷纷时事作闲愁。
一丘一壑平生志，况有门人伴钓游。

In the princely mansion you once taught the classics to young nobles,
Your traces like a half-recluse, long adrift between rise and fall.
Now you seek again the mountain-stream roads of your native land,
And bid farewell to the bell-and-drum towers of the courtly hall.
The years pass slowly, bringing the signs of age,
The bustling affairs of the times turn into idle sorrow.
One hill, one vale—the lifelong wish of your heart,
And moreover, disciples accompany your fishing and roaming.

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Meaning

This poem sees off Director Ye, who is retiring to his hometown of Sanqu (modern Quzhou, Zhejiang). It recounts his former service teaching imperial clansmen, acknowledges his long semi-hermit existence in office, and celebrates his return to the rivers and mountains of his native place as the fulfillment of a lifelong desire, with disciples to share his leisured life of fishing and wandering.

曾在宗邸讲授经术、教授小侯，行迹如半隐之士久已沈浮。今却寻故国溪山旧路，多谢朝堂钟鼓之楼。冉冉年华添老态，纷纷时事化作闲愁。一丘一壑本平生志愿，况有门人相伴钓游。

Appreciation

The first couplet recalls Director Ye's official career, teaching classics to young nobles in the imperial clan mansion, and describes his long-standing half-hermit state. The second couplet turns to his homeward journey and his grateful farewell to the court. The third couplet laments the passage of years and turns worldly affairs into idle sorrow. The final couplet affirms that a hill and a vale were always his true aspiration, now realized with disciples accompanying him. The images of 'drifting', 'mountain streams', 'bell-and-drum towers', and 'one hill, one vale' skillfully delineate the tension between service and retirement. The parallel couplets are polished, and the tone is tranquil and far-reaching. The closing couplet, especially 'One hill, one vale—the lifelong wish of your heart, / And moreover, disciples accompany your fishing and roaming,' concludes with a note of serene warmth, typical of Zhang Fangping's gentle character.

【白话串讲】张方平送叶郎中归三衢：“宗邸横经授小侯，迹同半隐久沈浮”。“冉冉年华年老态，纷纷时事作闲愁”——“一丘一壑平生志，况有门人伴钓游”——他写叶郎中归隐。【意象与手法】以「沈浮」「溪山」「钟鼓」「一丘一壑」写出处，对仗工稳，情致闲远。【情感与主旨】送郎中归隐三衢，既叹老嗟时，又许其得遂丘壑之志、有门人相伴的清福。【名句点睛】「一丘一壑平生志，况有门人伴钓游」二句，以归隐之愿收束，闲远而温厚。

Background

This poem was written to see off a certain Director Ye of the Bureau of Justice (Duguan Langzhong) who was returning to his native Sanqu (modern Quzhou, Zhejiang). In the Song dynasty, 'Langzhong' was a director of a bureau in the various ministries, and the Bureau of Justice managed prisons and convicts. Director Ye had long served in the capital and had once taught the younger members of the imperial clan, as reflected in the first line. Sanqu was Ye's ancestral home, and returning there meant retirement. Zhang Fangping, a fellow court official, understood well the hardships of a capital official's rise and fall and the desire to request retirement in old age. The poem thus combines farewell, lament over aging, and approval of reclusion. In mid-Northern Song, it was common for scholar-officials to retire to their hometowns, build gardens, and teach disciples; the image of disciples accompanying him in fishing and roaming captures this ideal. The poem reflects the collective mentality of 'weary of office, longing to return' among officials of the era, especially after the Qingli period when many high ministers hastened to request retirement. Though Director Ye's given name is lost, his position and role as a teacher to imperial clansmen show that his learning and character were valued by the court. Sanqu was known for its cultural refinement in western Zhejiang, and retired scholars often built academies there.

此诗送都官郎中姓叶者归三衢（今浙江衢州）。宋代「郎中」为尚书诸司之官，「都官」掌刑狱徒隶之政，叶郎中当久任京朝、曾入宗室邸第为「小侯」授经——宋代宗室子弟就学，常择朝臣为教授，此即首联「宗邸横经授小侯」所本。三衢为叶氏故里，归乡即归隐。张方平与叶郎中同朝，深谙京朝官「沈浮」之苦与晚年乞归之愿，故诗兼送别、叹老、许隐三层意。北宋士大夫致仕归里、筑园训徒是常态，诗中「门人伴钓游」正写其退居后讲学自适之景。此诗因而不仅是送人，也是那个时代「倦宦思归」集体心态的写照，折射庆历以后大臣急于引年乞休的风气。叶郎中其名虽不可考，然「都官郎中」掌刑狱徒隶，属尚书省要曹，能入宗邸授经，更见其儒学与品行皆为朝廷所重。三衢即衢州，唐末五代以来为浙西文教之邦，士人退居于此，多筑园讲学、以终余年。张方平与叶氏同朝为官，深知京朝官「簿书鞅掌、进退两难」的滋味，故不独送其归，更代其吐露「半隐已久、今得全归」的心曲。此诗因而超越一般的饯行之作，成为北宋中期士大夫「倦宦思归」集体心态的一份生动自白。

Art

This seven-character regulated verse (qiyan lüshi) unfolds in a natural sequence: from recalling official service, to the journey home, to reflections on aging, and finally to the fulfillment of a lifelong aspiration. The first couplet sets the tone with 'half-recluse', a precise epithet for a capital official whose heart was already inclined to seclusion. The second couplet uses 'seek again' and 'thank' to contrast the mountain streams with the court's bell and drum towers, emphasizing the quiet of nature against the clamor of officialdom. The third couplet turns inward, with reduplicatives 'ran ran' and 'fen fen' conveying the slow passage of time and the futility of worldly cares. The final couplet rises to serene affirmation, with 'one hill, one vale' and 'disciples accompanying' transforming reclusion from a lonely retreat into a blessed life with companions. The poem's art lies in its plain language carrying deep feeling, a hallmark of Song-dynasty style. The diction is unadorned yet precise: 'half-recluse', 'seek again', 'thank', 'idle sorrow', and 'one hill, one vale' are all carefully chosen to embody the shift from officialdom to retirement.

此诗为七律，写归隐而兼叹老，章法由仕履回溯到归程、由归程转到暮年、由暮年落到志愿，次第自然。首联「宗邸横经授小侯，迹同半隐久沈浮」先叙叶氏仕履，「横经」写授书之状，「半隐」二字最切其「久沈浮」的京朝生涯——在官而心若隐，早已处否之间。颔联「却寻故国溪山路，多谢朝堂钟鼓楼」以「却寻」对「多谢」，写出由朝入野的转身，「钟鼓楼」以朝堂之喧反衬溪山之静。颈联「冉冉年华年老态，纷纷时事作闲愁」由外转内，叹老嗟时，「冉冉」「纷纷」叠字增其绵长无奈。尾联「一丘一壑平生志，况有门人伴钓游」收归志愿，闲远温厚。通篇以闲淡字面运深沉身世之感，是宋人「以淡语写沉情」的佳作。此诗之佳，在以「淡语写沉情」：字面无一奇字，而身世之感自在其中。首联「半隐」二字最见锤炼，不曰「隐」而曰「半隐」，正写京朝官身处廊庙而心寄丘壑的两难，非身历其境者不能道。颔联「却寻」对「多谢」、颈联「冉冉」对「纷纷」、尾联「一丘一壑」对「门人伴钓游」，叠字、典故、虚实错落相生，闲淡之中见整饬。尾联以「况有」递进，把「归隐」由孤独的退守变为有门人相从的清福，笔意温厚，最见张方平「乐全」之号的性情底色。

Allusions

1. 'Princely mansion' (zong di) refers to the residence of the imperial clan, where Director Ye taught the classics. 2. 'Young nobles' (xiao hou) originally referred to sons of empresses and princesses in the Han dynasty, here meaning imperial clansmen. 3. 'Half-recluse' (ban yin) evolves from Bai Juyi's concept of the 'middle recluse' (zhong yin), describing one who holds office yet keeps a hermit's heart. 4. 'Bell-and-drum towers' (zhong gu lou) stand for the court, and 'thank' (xie) carries both 'decline' and 'gratitude'. 5. 'One hill, one vale' (yi qiu yi he) comes from Gu Kaizhi's remark 'this man should be placed among hills and valleys,' meaning a hermit's abode. 6. 'Fishing and roaming' (diao you) echoes Han Yu's phrase 'the land of fishing and roaming' in 'Seeing off Assistant Magistrate Yang,' referring to one's native rivers and childhood haunts, and here also implying teaching disciples in retirement.

一、宗邸：宗室府第，宋代宗室子弟就学之所，「横经授小侯」指为宗室子弟讲授经术。二、小侯：汉制皇太后、公主子弟称小侯，后泛指贵族子弟，此处指宗室学子。三、半隐：谓居官而心近隐逸，白居易有「中隐」之说，此「半隐」近之，写京朝官身处簿书而神游丘壑。四、钟鼓楼：朝堂报时之楼，代指朝廷，「多谢」即告退辞别。五、一丘一壑：顾恺之答桓温「此子宜置丘壑中」，后指隐者所栖，＂一丘一壑平生志＂用此，写归隐之愿。六、钓游：韩愈《送杨少尹序》「钓游之乡」，指故乡山水与少时游处，尾联「门人伴钓游」写退居后讲学自适。诸典由仕、朝、老、隐层层写来，皆贴切叶氏身份。诸典之外，尚可补辨者：「横经」本指横陈经籍以授，后为讲学授徒之专称，与「授小侯」连用，写叶氏为宗室子弟讲经，是清望之职；「半隐」与白居易「中隐」说相承——白氏以「大隐住朝市，小隐入丘樊，不如作中隐」调和出处，张方平易「中」为「半」，更切京朝官「在官而心隐」的实态。「多谢」之「谢」兼有「辞谢」与「感谢」双关，辞朝堂之喧而谢其曾有之遇，语意婉曲。凡此皆以熟语翻新，见其使事之圆熟。

Commentary

Zhang Fangping's farewell poems to hermits differ by person: in 'Sent to Guo Xiansheng of Fenyang' he admires a true recluse; in 'Sent to Wu Fantian' he encourages official service; in this poem he approves the weary official's return. Together they reveal his flexible view of reclusion and service. Compared with his 'Seeing off Academician Su to Qiantang as Prefectural Inspector,' both poems grant the other person a fitting life, but this one adds the flavor of aging and farewell to the court, deepening the emotion. Song critics mainly praised Zhang's memorials and ancient prose; his poems received little attention, yet such retirement poems best express the true meaning of his sobriquet 'Lequan' (Perfect Joy), as he himself retired in his later years. This poem is a genuine sample of Song-dynasty grand councilor poetry that uses verse to express weariness with office and spiritual refuge in reclusion. It can be compared to farewell poems by Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, and Su Shi, who all console others with reason, but Zhang uniquely focuses on approving the return to a reclusive life, revealing his own preference for stepping back at the height of his career.

张方平送人归隐之作，与此前《寄汾阳郭先生》慕隐、《吴范天章》劝仕恰成三色：一慕真隐、一望大用、一许倦宦之归，合观可见其出处观随人而异的完整。与本集《送苏学士钱塘监郡》「湖山胜处即为归」相较，二诗皆许人以适意，而本篇更兼「叹老」「谢朝」的暮年况味，情致更深一层。宋人论张方平，以其奏议古文名世，诗少专评，然此类归隐送诗最见其「乐全」之号的真意——他晚年亦急流勇退，诗中「一丘一壑」之许，近乎自道。历来选家于其诗著录稀，但本篇这类作品，恰是北宋大臣诗「以诗写仕宦倦意、以归隐为精神归宿」的真切样本，可与当时士大夫墓志、乞休奏状互证其时代心态。宋人送归之作，自欧阳修《送杨寘序》以下，多以「适意」为归，然张方平此诗别具「叹老」一层，情致更深。可与王安石《送陈舜俞制科东归》、苏轼《送安惇秀才失解西归》并观：安石送人东归，重在「勉其再举」；东坡送人失解，重在「劝其勿灰」。张方平此诗则许其「得遂丘壑」，于仕途倦意中见从容。三家送人，或勉或劝或许，取向不同而皆以理节情，正见北宋士大夫送别诗「以道相慰」的丰富层次，而张氏「许归」一路，尤能见其晚年急流勇退的自况之味。

Prosody

Form Seven-character Regulated Verse (qiyan lüshi)七言律诗

Rhyme Rhymes on the level-tone 'you' group (hou, fu, lou, chou, you), one rhyme throughout, with a gentle and unhurried tone matching the mood of retirement and lament over age.押平声尤韵（侯、浮、楼、愁、游），一韵到底，韵部悠缓，与归隐叹老的从容语气相协，读来余味绵长。

Tone pattern Standard seven-character lüshi tonal pattern; the middle couplets are parallel: 'que xun gu guo xi shan lu, duo xie chao tang zhong gu lou' and 'ran ran nian hua nian lao tai, fen fen shi shi zuo xian chou'. The reduplicatives in the third couplet are especially polished.七律正格，中二联对仗：「却寻故国溪山路，多谢朝堂钟鼓楼」「冉冉年华年老态，纷纷时事作闲愁」，平仄相俪，叠字对仗尤见工稳。

Reading note The poetic sound is leisurely and far-reaching, deliberately choosing the level-tone 'you' rhyme to sustain a calm and unhurried cadence, fitting for a farewell that also reflects on aging. The first couplet begins in a level tone with a level ending, establishing a dignified tone; the second couplet uses the empty words 'que xun' and 'duo xie' to pivot gracefully; the third couplet's reduplicatives, both level in tone, extend the sound to mirror the drawn-out helplessness of old age; the final couplet settles into peace, closing the poem with level tones. The tonal pattern strictly follows the regulated verse norm, with well-balanced parallel couplets, and frequent use of empty words and reduplicatives to enliven the poem, allowing deep emotion to emerge from plain diction without clamor.此诗音韵以「悠缓闲远」为尚，故择平声尤部，收音绵长不迫，恰合送归、叹老需要的从容气度，与壮别诗的钟韵酣畅、应制排律的端重皆异。首联「宗邸横经授小侯」平起平收，先立清要之调；颔联「却寻」「多谢」以虚字斡旋，平仄整饬中见转身之轻；颈联「冉冉」「纷纷」两组叠字同为平声，读来声情绵长，把老境无奈拉得很慢，是声律服务于情绪的最显处；尾联「一丘一壑」「门人伴钓游」归于平和，以平声收束全篇。整体依七律正格，对仗中二联皆工，且多用虚字与叠字活局，使闲淡字面下藏沉情而不露叫嚣。声律随「仕履—归程—老态—志愿」的脉络由缓入沉、由沉归淡，是北宋归隐送诗「以声运情、以淡写厚」的典型音韵策略。

Line by line

宗邸横经授小侯，迹同半隐久沈浮。

In the princely mansion you once taught the classics to young nobles; your traces like a half-recluse, long adrift between rise and fall. This couplet recalls Director Ye's distinguished service as a teacher to imperial clansmen, while the word 'half-recluse' subtly establishes the poem's theme of reclusion, foreshadowing his eventual return.

宗邸横经教授小侯，行迹如半隐久已沈浮。

In the princely house he spread the classics to teach the young lords; his course, like a half-recluse, has long drifted between office and retirement.

首联溯叶郎中仕履，而「半隐」二字已定全诗归隐之调。「宗邸横经授小侯」写其曾入宗室府第、执经为宗室子弟讲授，是清要之职，亦见其儒学渊源；「横经」之「横」状执卷之态，闲雅可味。下句「迹同半隐久沈浮」方是诗眼：京朝官簿书鞅掌，而叶氏心若隐者，早已在「仕」与「隐」之间沈浮不定。「半隐」一词承白居易「中隐」而来，最切宋大臣处朝堂而神游丘壑的常态。诗人以此概括其一生行迹，既见体贴，又为后文「归三衢」作好伏笔——既久已半隐，则今之全隐不过是水到渠成。一句而兼叙事、定调、伏脉，是七律起联的稳当笔法。

The opening traces the Director Ye's official career, and the words half-recluse already fix the poem's key of retirement. In the princely house he spread the classics to teach the young lords writes that he once entered the imperial clan's mansion, holding the classics to lecture the clan's sons, a clear and important post, also showing his Confucian learning; the word spread in spread the classics writes the bearing of holding the scroll, leisurely and elegant. The second line, his course, like a half-recluse, has long drifted between office and retirement, is the poem's eye: the capital official's desk is burdened, yet Ye's heart is like a recluse, long drifting between office and retirement. The term half-recluse inherits Bai Juyi's middle recluse, most suiting the Northern Song grandee's common state of holding court while his spirit roams the hills. The poet uses it to sum his whole course, at once showing thoughtfulness and planting the thread for the later return to Sanqu - since he has long been half-recluse, the present full retirement is only water reaching its channel. One line at once narrates, fixes the key and plants the thread, a steady opening of the seven-character regulated verse.

冉冉年华年老态，纷纷时事作闲愁。

The years pass slowly, bringing the signs of age; the bustling affairs of the times turn into idle sorrow. The reduplicatives 'ran ran' and 'fen fen' create a lingering rhythm, expressing the inevitability of aging and the transformation of worldly cares into a detached, yet bitter-sweet, melancholy.

冉冉年华添老态，纷纷时事化闲愁。

The years drift on, adding the marks of age; the tangled affairs of the day turn to idle sorrow.

颈联由外转内，写暮年与世情，是全诗最见沉情处。「冉冉年华年老态」以「冉冉」状时光缓逝而不可追，老态于是悄然而至，不着力而力自深；「纷纷时事作闲愁」则把纷繁世事尽化为闲愁——一个「闲」字极妙：既指退念已生、时事于己渐远，又含无可奈何、只剩清愁的苍凉。二句以「冉冉」对「纷纷」两组叠字，声情绵长，把京朝官到老方悟的倦意写得极淡极厚。置于归隐诗脉中，此联是「为何归」的深层答案：非独爱丘壑，亦因老去、因时事催人。张方平以三朝老臣之眼写此，不愤不怨，只以「闲愁」二字收束万端，最见宋人「以淡语写沉情」的火候。

The neck couplet turns from outer to inner, writing the closing years and the world's ways, the poem's most feeling place. The years drift on, adding the marks of age uses drift on to write time's slow passing beyond recall, so that the marks of age arrive unawares, force without effort yet force deep; the tangled affairs of the day turn to idle sorrow turns the tangled world's affairs entirely into idle sorrow - the word idle is most artful, at once meaning the will to retire has arisen and affairs are growing distant, and holding the desolation of helplessness, only clear sorrow. The two lines pair drift on with tangled, two reduplicated words, the voice and feeling long, writing the weariness of the capital official who only in old age awakens, most light and most thick. Placed in the current of the retirement poem, this couplet is the deep answer to why return: not only loving the hills, but because of age and because the times press. Fangping, with the eye of a minister of three reigns, writes this without anger or resentment, closing all things in the two words idle sorrow, most showing the Song mastery of writing deep feeling in plain words.

一丘一壑平生志，况有门人伴钓游。

One hill, one vale—the lifelong wish of your heart; and moreover, disciples accompany your fishing and roaming. The allusion to Gu Kaizhi's 'hill and vale' affirms that reclusion is the fulfillment of a lifelong aspiration, and the addition of disciples transforms it into a blessed life of teaching and leisure.

一丘一壑本平生之志，况有门人相伴钓游。

One hill, one gully, was the lifelong wish; and now he has disciples to share his fishing and roaming.

尾联收归志愿，以温厚闲远之笔结全篇。「一丘一壑平生志」用顾恺之「宜置丘壑中」典，写归隐本是其平生之愿，今得遂之，语意坦然；「况有门人伴钓游」更进一层：不但丘壑可栖，且有门生弟子相随讲学、同游钓之处，清福加倍。韩愈《送杨少尹序》以「钓游之乡」写故园，此处「钓游」兼指故乡山水与退居讲学之乐，贴切叶氏「曾授经」的儒者身份。二句由「志」到「伴」，由孤隐到有人相从，情致愈转温润，一扫颈联「闲愁」的苍凉，使全诗落于安然。张方平许人以这样的归处，既合叶氏身份，亦暗含自己「乐全」的向往，是送归诗中少见的不粘离愁、专写清福的收法。

The closing returns to the wish, ending the whole piece in a warm, leisurely, far brush. One hill, one gully, was the lifelong wish uses Gu Kaizhi's should be set among hills and gullies, writing that retirement was originally his lifelong wish, now attained, the meaning at peace. And now he has disciples to share his fishing and roaming goes a step further: not only are hills and gullies a dwelling, but there are disciples and followers to lecture with and fish and roam together, the clear blessing doubled. Han Yu's preface seeing off Young Administrator Yang uses the home of fishing and roaming for the old garden; here fishing and roaming means both the native landscape and the delight of retiring and lecturing, suiting Ye's Confucian identity of once lecturing on the classics. The two lines move from wish to companion, from lone retirement to followers, the feeling turning ever warmer, sweeping away the neck couplet's desolation of idle sorrow, and landing the whole poem in peace. Fangping promises a man such a home, at once suiting Ye's identity and secretly holding his own longing for whole and at ease, a rare closing of a return-poem that does not cling to parting grief but writes only the clear blessing.

Study

Word focus

沈浮 Sinking and floating—the rise and fall of official career; also implies the alternation between the worldly and the reclusive. This word is pivotal, paired with 'half-recluse' to depict a capital official who is mentally detached while physically in office. 「沈浮」在「迹同半隐久沈浮」中指仕履的升沉起伏，亦暗喻身处朝市而心迹隐显之间。此词是首联、也是全诗的肯綮：叶郎中久任京朝，「久沈浮」五字写尽簿书岁月中进退失据、或显或晦的常态。炼字之妙在「沈浮」与「半隐」互文——既沈浮于仕，又半隐其心，恰是宋大臣「在官若隐」的写照。且「沈浮」为平声尤韵（沈平、浮平），与「侯」「楼」「愁」「游」同部押韵，读来悠缓，与暮年追叙的语气相称。更深层看，诗人以「久」字修饰，暗示这种状态已非一日，为尾联「一丘一壑平生志」的张本：正因久已半隐，归乡方是夙愿得偿。二字立骨，统摄全篇出处之思。

闲 Idle, leisurely—used in 'idle sorrow' (xian chou) to describe a sorrow that is detached and faint, not pressing. The character marks the shift from the burdens of office to the ease of retirement, and also serves as the rhyme word, adding to the calm tone. 「闲」在「纷纷时事作闲愁」中为形容词，修饰「愁」，意谓清淡、无关紧要之愁。此字是颈联、乃至全诗的转关：叶郎中老去，纷繁世事于己渐成「闲」事，所余唯此一缕清愁。炼字之妙在反用——时事本「忙」、本「重」，诗人偏说是「闲愁」，既写退念已生、置身事外，又含无可奈何的苍凉，较直说「愁绪」深沉十倍。音声上「闲」平声删韵，置于「作闲愁」句尾为韵脚（与游协），读来舒缓悠远，恰宜暮年况味。更紧要者，「闲」字为全诗由「仕之累」转向「隐之适」的枢纽：既已视时事为闲，则归钓游便是自然。一字而兼写心态转折、押韵、定调三用，是宋人「以一字写老境」的炼字范例。

壑 Vale, valley—used in 'one hill, one vale' (yi qiu yi he), alluding to Gu Kaizhi's phrase for a recluse's abode. The word 'one' emphasizes sufficiency with minimal natural scenery, reflecting a scholar's frugal ideal, and its entering-tone quality provides a sharp contrast in the tonal pattern. 「壑」在尾联「一丘一壑平生志」中与「丘」并举，指隐者所栖的山谷，典出顾恺之「此子宜置丘壑中」。张方平以此二字写叶郎中归隐之志，举重若轻：不铺陈田园之盛，只以「一丘一壑」四字概尽平生所慕，雅洁而含蓄。炼字之巧在「一」字——丘壑本多，偏言「一」，见其取足于自然、不务广丽，恰合儒者退居的清俭。且「壑」为入声药韵，与「游」平声虽异部，但置于对句尾、与「志」呼应，仄起平收，音节顿挫有致。更深一层，此词将个人归乡升格为「平生志」的兑现，使尾联不止送别、更成一种价值确认。一字而兼用典、写志、对仗三用，是短收笔中的精警之字。