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宋 Song · 诗 Poem

提刑祠部再和前篇猥为祷祈之应辄复次韵且以见志

In Reply, in Matching Rhyme, to the Judicial Intendant Cibu's Second Response to My Earlier Poem — on the Rain-Prayer Being Answered, I Write Again and Reveal My Heart

张方平

Zhang Fangping

和诗matching-verse reply 祷雨rain-prayer 忧民concern for the people

长吏忧民深望岁，诸侯闵雨着编年。
鹅鲜聊用遵明诏，尪鼻何能感上天。
五事肃时敛在宥，九功美利属持权。
守藩无状惟推分，必在蒙庄内外篇。

Long the magistrate has grieved for his people, longing deep for a bounteous year; the feudal lords, pitying the drought, record it in the annals.
A fresh goose is offered, merely to heed the bright decree; how could a bent, sick-nosed wretch like me move High Heaven?
When the Five Affairs are kept in order, restraint and mercy are gathered; the fair good of the Nine Works belongs to those who hold the power.
Guarding the border fief with no merit, I only yield to my allotted part; it must be found in the inner and outer chapters of Master Zhuang.

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Meaning

This is a deferential matching-verse reply written after a rain-prayer was answered. The speaker humbly disclaims any credit for moving Heaven, assigning the people's good to those above him, and rests his own peace of mind in the natural, untroubled philosophy of Zhuangzi. It reveals a Song official's blend of genuine care for the people and a Daoist-flavored self-effacement.

长吏忧念百姓，深切盼望丰年；诸侯怜闵旱情，载入编年史册。献上鲜鹅聊且遵从明诏，曲脊病弱之鼻怎能感动上天。五事肃正之时收敛于宽宥，九功之美利归于秉持权柄者。守土一方无甚政绩，唯有安分推诚；其意必在《庄子》内外篇中。

Appreciation

The whole piece is built on modest self-deprecation, its manner gentle and indirect, deepening in humility across the four couplets while never losing its concern for the people. Rather than ornate diction, it uses plain, sincere language true to the spirit of a matching poem answered in meaning, not in flourish. The closing turn to Zhuangzi — advancing by retreating, showing sincerity through humility — displays the cultivated restraint of a gentleman-scholar.

【白话串讲】张方平次韵答提刑祠部：“长吏忧民深望岁，诸侯闵雨着编年”。“鹅鲜聊用遵明诏，尪鼻何能感上天”——“守藩无状惟推分，必在蒙庄内外篇”——他写祷雨的谦辞。【意象与手法】诗为次韵和诗，通篇自谦。首联写长吏忧民、诸侯闵雨，点明祷雨的职分；颔联以「鹅鲜」「尪鼻」自贬，谦称自己德薄，何能感天；颈联以「五事」「九功」的典语，说肃政惠民皆当归于在上者；尾联归结到「守藩无状」，唯有安分，其意已在《庄子》内外篇的顺性自然之中。全诗以谦抑之语写忧民之心，委婉而深挚。【情感与主旨】主旨是酬和僚友祷雨之诗，以自谦之词表达忧民之情：自愧德薄，不敢居祷雨之功，而把泽民之美归于在上者，最终以庄子顺性自然之说安顿身心，见其既怀民瘼、又慕玄远的复杂襟怀。【名句点睛】「守藩无状惟推分，必在蒙庄内外篇」以自谦自解的笔调收束，把祷雨之事归入庄子的顺性自然，是全诗心境的落脚点，亦见张方平晚年内倾、以道自处的精神取向。

Background

This poem, titled 'The Judicial Intendant Cibu Again Answered My Previous Poem…', is a matching-verse (ciyun) reply. The 'previous poem' refers to an earlier piece celebrating rain after a long drought in Jinling; the Judicial Intendant Linghu Ting, whose honorary title was Cibu, wrote a second matching reply, and Zhang Fangping answered again in the same rhyme. At that time Jinling had long suffered drought; officials and people prayed for rain, Heaven sent sweet rain, and colleagues exchanged poems to celebrate the answer to their prayers. In this reply Zhang shifts from the exuberant joy at rain of the earlier poem to a self-effacing tone expressing sincere concern: he deems himself unworthy to claim credit for the rain, assigning the benefit to those above, and settles his spirit in Zhuangzi's teaching of following nature. This posture of merit to the superior and fault to oneself typifies Northern Song official conduct. The allusion to Zhuangzi's inner and outer chapters also reveals Zhang's later, inward-turning, Daoist-leaning disposition, consistent with his withdrawal during Wang Anshi's reforms. The poem is thus both a polite occasional piece and a self-revelation at a difficult moment in his career.

此诗题作「提刑祠部再和前篇猥为祷祈之应辄复次韵且以见志」，是一首次韵和诗。题中「前篇」即前一首《金陵久旱喜雨呈运使韩综学士提刑令狐挺祠部及示诸府僚》，提刑令狐挺（祠部是其官衔）再和了一篇，张方平遂再次依其原韵作诗相答。当时金陵久旱，官民祷雨，天降甘霖，同僚之间遂以诗唱和，共庆祷祈之应。张方平在这首和诗中，一改前篇「喜雨」的酣畅，转而以自谦之笔写忧民之诚：自愧德薄，不敢居祷雨之功，只求安分守土。这种「功归于上、责归于己」的姿态，正是北宋士大夫为官处世的典型风范。诗中「蒙庄内外篇」的用典，更透出张方平晚年内倾、以老庄自处的精神倾向，与他在王安石变法中退避自守的心态相合。可以说，这首诗既是祷雨唱和的应酬之作，更是张方平在仕途困顿之际的一次自我剖白，忧民之诚与自处之淡，交织其间，见其晚年心境的复杂与深沉。

Art

This is a seven-character regulated octave whose whole frame is sustained by modesty, its manner gentle and indirect. The first couplet sets forth official duty — the magistrate grieving for the people, the lords pitying drought — preparing the ground for the rain-prayer. The second couplet uses 'fresh goose' and 'bent nose' to belittle himself, the core of the poem's humility. The third couplet turns to assign the merit of good government to those above, the merit-to-the-superior technique. The closing couplet confesses his lack of merit and rests in Zhuangzi's naturalness. Across the four couplets self-deprecation deepens while concern never fades. The poem avoids ornate phrasing, showing character through earnest words — a model of answering in meaning. Its backbone is the word modesty: modest about his virtue, his lack, his claim to merit; the more he restrains himself, the more sincere his care appears, and the more lightly he rests in the Way.

此诗是七言律诗，八句四联，通篇以自谦立骨，章法婉转。首联「长吏忧民深望岁，诸侯闵雨着编年」从职分写起，长吏忧民、诸侯闵雨，是地方官应尽之责，也为下文的祷雨张本；颔联「鹅鲜聊用遵明诏，尪鼻何能感上天」以「鹅鲜」「尪鼻」自贬，谦称自己德薄不能感天，这是全诗自谦的核心；颈联「五事肃时敛在宥，九功美利属持权」转而把肃政惠民之美归于在上者，是「功归于上」的笔法；尾联「守藩无状惟推分，必在蒙庄内外篇」自认无状，唯以安分自处，归于庄子顺性自然。四联之间，自谦之情层层加深，而忧民之心始终未泯。全诗不饰辞藻，以诚恳之语见性情，正是和诗「以意相酬」而非徒逞才藻的典范。全诗以「谦」字立骨：谦己之德薄、谦己之无状、谦己之不敢居功，层层自抑，而忧民之情愈见其诚，归道之意愈见其淡。这种以退为进、以谦见诚的笔法，既合和诗酬答的礼数，又不失士人的风骨，正是此诗艺术上最见涵养的地方。

Allusions

Several allusions must be noted. 'Pitying the drought' derives from the Spring and Autumn Annals' practice of recording droughts with concern, marking an official's care for the people. 'Fresh goose' refers to the goose offered in sacrificial rain-prayer rites, here obeying the court's edict. 'Weak and bent' denotes a hunchbacked, crippled person; the Zuo Zhuan tells of Duke Xi of Lu wishing to burn such a wretch to pray for rain — the poet compares himself to such a man, humbly saying he cannot move Heaven. 'Five Affairs' comes from the Hong Fan of the Shang Shu, namely care, speech, sight, hearing, and thought; 'in restraint and forbearance' from Zhuangzi's Zai You chapter, governing by non-action. 'Nine Works' comes from the Da Yu Mo, the ordering of the six treasuries and three affairs. 'Meng Zhuang' is Zhuangzi, Master Zhuang of Meng, whose work divides into inner, outer, and miscellaneous chapters. The allusions span the classics and the philosophers, showing Zhang's broad learning and synthesis of Confucian and Daoist thought. The combined use of pitying drought, bent nose, and Meng Zhuang layers Confucian duty, self-examination, and Daoist ease, turning a rain-prayer reply into reflection on conduct.

此诗用典须辨。其一，「闵雨」谓怜闵旱情而忧，语本《春秋》「闵雨」之记，古史于旱灾常书「闵雨」，此以见诸侯忧民之职。其二，「鹅鲜」指献祭的鹅，古者祷雨有牲祭之礼，此谓聊且遵从朝廷的明诏而行祷祀。其三，「尪」通「尪」，是脊骨弯曲的残疾之人，《左传》记鲁僖公欲焚尪以祷雨，此以「尪鼻」自比，谦言自己德薄形陋，何能感天，用典极谦。其四，「五事」出《尚书·洪范》「敬用五事」，谓貌、言、视、听、思五者，修之则肃；「在宥」出《庄子·在宥》篇，谓自在宽宥、无为而治。其五，「九功」出《尚书·大禹谟》「九功惟叙」，谓六府三事之功。其六，「蒙庄」即庄子，名周，蒙人，故称蒙庄，《庄子》分内篇、外篇、杂篇，「内外篇」即指此。诸典杂出经、子，见张方平学养之博，亦见其儒道并蓄的思想。而「闵雨」「尪鼻」与「蒙庄」三典的并用，尤能见其思想之层次：以儒典写忧民之职，以谦典写自省之诚，以道典写自处之淡，儒、谦、道三者层层递进，把一个「祷雨之应」的唱和，写成了对出处进退的深沉思考，用典而能立体见志，是其高明处。

Commentary

The art of a matching poem lies in answering in meaning rather than in verbal victory. Zhang's ciyun reply finds a new turn: the previous poem rejoiced at rain, this one confesses humility — one rising, one lowering, mutually illuminating. Critics prize the line 'guarding the border with no merit, I only yield to my lot; it must be found in Zhuangzi's inner and outer chapters,' which turns a rain-prayer exchange toward Zhuangzi's naturalness, moving from Confucianism to the Dao. This path — from concern for the people to yearning for the mysterious — reflects the complexity of Northern Song scholar-officials: burdened with the world yet consoling themselves with Lao-Zhuang in hard times. Compare it with Bai Juyi's 'Celebrating the Rain,' where Bai blames and examines himself, attributing the rain to the ruler's virtue, whereas Zhang attributes it to Zhuangzi's contentment — one political, one philosophical. Both use rain as medium but land differently, showing the distinct spiritual orientations of Tang and Song literati before heaven and humanity.

和诗一体，贵在「以意相酬」，而不在辞藻之胜。张方平此诗次韵前篇，却能翻出新意：前篇写「喜雨」之快，此篇写「自谦」之诚，一扬一抑，相映成趣。论者读此诗，多赏其「守藩无状惟推分，必在蒙庄内外篇」一联，以为把一场祷雨的唱和，最终归结到庄子的顺性自然，由儒入道，别开生面。这种由忧民而慕玄远的心路，正反映了北宋士大夫思想的复杂性：既以天下为己任，又于仕途困顿时以老庄自解。可与白居易《贺雨》诗并观——白诗写久旱得雨，自责自省，归于人君修德；张诗写祷雨之应，自谦自解，归于庄子安分。二者皆以「雨」为媒，而落点一在政、一在道，见出唐宋士人面对天人之际的不同精神取向。可以说，此诗的价值，正在于它真实地记录了一位北宋重臣在「忧民」与「自处」之间的心灵轨迹：既不能忘情于民瘼，又不得不在困顿中以老庄自解，这种矛盾与调和，恰是那个时代士大夫精神的缩影，读来尤为耐人寻味。

Prosody

Form Seven-character regulated octave七言律诗

Rhyme Level-tone xian (先) rhyme; rhyming characters are nian (年), tian (天), quan (权), pian (篇), sustained throughout.押平声先韵，入韵字为年、天、权、篇，一韵到底。

Tone pattern As a seven-character regulated verse, level and oblique tones follow the rules; the first line does not take a rhyme, and the two middle couplets are neatly antithetical.七言律诗依律调平仄，首句不入韵。中二联对仗工整：颔联「鹅鲜聊用遵明诏，尪鼻何能感上天」以「鹅鲜」对「尪鼻」、「聊用」对「何能」、「遵明诏」对「感上天」；颈联「五事肃时敛在宥，九功美利属持权」以「五事」对「九功」、「肃时」对「美利」、「敛在宥」对「属持权」，皆词性相侔、平仄相对。

Reading note This is a ciyun (matching-rhyme) work, following the previous poem's rhyme, still in the level-tone xian rhyme, with nian, tian, quan, pian as rhyme characters, continuous with the earlier poem. Matching a rhyme yet unfolding freely without strain shows the poet's skill; Zhang's is a fine example. The four rhyme words fall respectively on concern-for-people, moving-Heaven, holding-power, and Meng-Zhuang, so sound and sense coincide. The xian rhyme is fine and bright, naturally suiting joy, yet here used for modest sincerity, giving a clear-but-not-resentful, pale-yet-lingering tone. The middle couplets antithesize neatly, and the whole steps the rhyme without being bound, sound and humble meaning in harmony, showing Zhang's meticulous care even in occasional verse.此诗是次韵之作，步前篇之韵，仍押平声先韵，入韵字为年、天、权、篇，与前篇「燃、年、天、权、篇」一脉相承，只是首句不入韵。次韵而能自由舒展、不露凑韵之迹，最见诗家功力，张方平此诗正是佳例：四个人韵字年、天、权、篇，分别落在忧民、感天、持权、蒙庄四处，韵脚与诗意若合符节。先韵细而清亮，本宜写喜悦之快，此处却用来写自谦之诚，别有一番清而不怨、淡而有余的声情。中二联对仗，颔联以「鹅鲜」对「尪鼻」、以「聊用」对「何能」，皆含自贬之意，而音律工稳；颈联「五事」对「九功」、「在宥」对「持权」，典重而整饬。全诗步韵而不拘，声情与谦抑之意相谐，可见张方平酬和诗亦不苟作的严谨态度。

Line by line

长吏忧民深望岁，诸侯闵雨着编年。

The senior official grieves for the people and longs deeply for a bountiful year; the feudal lords, pitying the drought, record it in the annals.

长吏忧念百姓，深切盼望丰年；诸侯怜闵旱情，载入编年史册。

The senior official grieves the people and deeply looks for a good year; the lords pity the rain, entered in the chronicle.

此联开篇即点职分，写祷雨之事的缘由。上句「长吏忧民深望岁」，写地方长官忧念百姓，殷切盼望丰年，「深」字见其关切之切，民以食为天，望岁即望收成，是忧民最实在的表现。下句「诸侯闵雨着编年」，用《春秋》「闵雨」之典，说诸侯怜闵旱情，此事载入编年史册，见忧旱乃古来地方官的职分与美德。两句以「长吏」「诸侯」并举，把眼前的祷雨与古人的忧民传统衔接起来，为自己与僚友的祷雨找到了历史的根据。此联看似平实，实则开宗明义，把「忧民」二字立在篇首，为下文的谦抑之词铺好了底色——正因忧民之切，才见自谦之诚。

The opening at once points to one's duty, writing the reason for praying for rain. The first, the senior official grieves the people and deeply looks for a good year, writes the local head grieving the people and eagerly looking for a good harvest; the word deeply shows the earnestness of his concern - food is heaven to the people, and looking for the year means looking for the crop, the most solid showing of grief for the people. The second, the lords pity the rain, entered in the chronicle, uses the Spring and Autumn allusion to pitying the rain, saying the lords' pity for the drought is entered in the chronicle, showing that grieving the drought has since antiquity been the local official's duty and virtue. The two lines pair the senior official and the lords, joining the present prayer for rain to the ancient tradition of grieving the people, finding a historical ground for oneself and colleagues' prayer. This couplet seems plain, really stating the thesis openly, establishing the two words grieves the people at the head, laying the ground color for the later self-deprecation - precisely because the grief for the people is earnest, the self-humility is sincere.

鹅鲜聊用遵明诏，尪鼻何能感上天。

A fresh goose is offered, merely to obey the bright decree; how could a bent, sick-nosed wretch like me move High Heaven?

献上鲜鹅聊且遵从明诏，曲脊病弱之鼻怎能感动上天。

A fresh goose I offer, casually obeying the clear edict; with a crooked cripple's nose, how could I move high heaven?

此联是全诗自谦的核心，以极谦之词写极诚之心。上句「鹅鲜聊用遵明诏」，写献上鲜鹅聊且遵从朝廷的祷雨之诏，一个「聊」字，见其勉力而为、不敢自专的恭敬；下句「尪鼻何能感上天」，用「尪鼻」之典，谦言自己德薄形陋，如那曲脊病弱的尪人，又怎能感动上天、招来甘霖？此联之妙，在于「以贬为敬」：越是自贬其德，越见其对天、对民、对在上者的敬畏；越是谦称不能感天，越见其不敢居功的谦逊。以自谦之笔写祷雨之诚，把「功归于上、责归于己」的为官之道，写得恳切而动人，正是宋人自谦诗中最见性情的笔法。

This couplet is the core of the poem's self-deprecation, writing the sincerest heart in the most modest words. The first, a fresh goose I offer, casually obeying the clear edict, writes offering a fresh goose, casually obeying the court's edict to pray for rain; the single word casually shows the respectful doing one's best, not presuming to decide. The second, with a crooked cripple's nose, how could I move high heaven? uses the allusion of the crooked cripple's nose, modestly saying one's virtue is thin and the form ugly, like that hunchbacked cripple, and how could one move high heaven and bring the sweet rain? The couplet's beauty lies in using depreciation as reverence: the more one depreciates one's virtue, the more one shows the awe for heaven, for the people, and for those above; the more modestly one says one cannot move heaven, the more one shows the humility of not claiming merit. Writing the sincerity of praying for rain in self-deprecation, writing the official way of merit to the above and blame to oneself, earnest and moving, exactly the most feeling-revealing brush of Song self-deprecating poems.

守藩无状惟推分，必在蒙庄内外篇。

Guarding the border fief with no merit, I only yield to my allotted part; it must be found in the inner and outer chapters of Master Zhuang.

守土一方无甚政绩，唯有安分推诚；其意必在《庄子》内外篇中。

Guarding the march with no record, I but follow my lot; it must lie in the inner and outer chapters of Zhuangzi.

此联收束全诗，是全诗心境与精神取向的落脚点。上句「守藩无状惟推分」，自认守土一方没有可称的政绩，唯有安分推诚而已，「无状」是极谦之词，「推分」则见其安于职分、不强求的处世态度。下句「必在蒙庄内外篇」笔锋一转，说自己这番心境，其实早在《庄子》内外篇中——顺性自然、安时处顺、不居功不争名。此联之妙，在于把一场祷雨的酬和，最终归结到庄子的哲学上，由儒家的忧民之诚，转入道家的顺性之淡，见出作者在仕途困顿、自谦自省之际，以老庄自解的精神寄托。「必」字语气笃定，透出其晚年内倾、以道自处的人生归宿。

This couplet gathers the poem, the landing of its frame of mind and spiritual bent. The first, guarding the march with no record, I but follow my lot, confessing that guarding a region one has no record to boast of, only following one's lot with sincerity; no record is an extreme modest word, and follow my lot shows the worldly attitude of being content with one's station, not forcing. The second turns the brush, it must lie in the inner and outer chapters of Zhuangzi, saying this frame of mind of one's own is really already in Zhuangzi's inner and outer chapters - following nature, being at peace with the time and what is given, not claiming merit nor contending for fame. The couplet's beauty lies in gathering a prayer-for-rain reply at last into Zhuangzi's philosophy, moving from the Confucian sincerity of grieving the people to the Taoist plainness of following nature, showing the author's spiritual refuge in Laozi and Zhuangzi when frustrated in office and self-deprecating. The single word must is a firm tone,透出 the life-归宿 of his late inward turn and dwelling by the Way.

Study

Word focus

闵雨 'Min yu' (pitying the drought) means to grieve over a drought and worry for the people; it is the historiographical phrasing used in ancient annals to record official concern in times of drought, linking the present prayer to a long tradition of humane government. 「诸侯闵雨着编年」之「闵雨」，谓怜闵旱情而忧，是古代史书中专记天旱忧民的笔法。按《春秋》之义，国有大旱，则书「不雨」，或记「闵雨」，以示忧恤民瘼；后世遂以「闵雨」代指官员对旱情的忧虑与对民生的关切。张方平用此词，妙在一语双关：既切合眼前久旱祷雨的事实，又暗合了古史「闵雨」的仁政传统，把自己与僚友的祷雨，接续到《春秋》以来「忧民」的谱系之中。此词之重，在于它把一件具体的祷雨之事，提升为一种「为民请命」的政治品格，见出作者对地方官职责的自觉。二字看似古雅，实则是全诗「忧民」主旨的史源所在，用典之切，正在于以史笔写时事。

蒙庄 'Meng Zhuang' refers to Zhuangzi, Master Zhuang of Meng; by ending the poem with 'inner and outer chapters' the poet turns from Confucian public duty to a Daoist repose of following nature, revealing his inward, Lao-Zhuang-leaning spirit. 「必在蒙庄内外篇」之「蒙庄」，指庄子。庄子名周，蒙人，后世尊称为「蒙庄」，或「蒙叟」。《庄子》一书分内篇七、外篇十五、杂篇十一，故「内外篇」即指《庄子》全书。张方平以「蒙庄」收束全诗，用意深婉：庄子主张顺性自然、安时处顺、不居功、不争名，正可作为仕途自谦、祷雨自解的哲学归宿。此词之妙，在于它完成了全诗「由儒入道」的精神转向——前六句的忧民、祷雨、自谦，皆是儒者的事功与修养，末以「蒙庄」一收，则透出作者内倾自守、以道自处的人生底色。二字而见其思想之渊深，也见出北宋士大夫「外儒内道」的精神结构。