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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

白鹿洞二首其一

White Deer Grotto, Two Poems (I)

王贞白

Wang Zhenbai

读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金。
不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻。

So lost in reading I did not notice spring had deepened; an inch of time is an inch of gold.
Had not the Taoist come to draw a smile, I was pursuing the feelings of Zhou and thoughts of Kong.
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Meaning

A seven-character quatrain in which Wang Zhenbai celebrates devoted study. Lost in reading, he lets spring slip by and values time as gold; only a Taoist's visit breaks his pursuit of the Duke of Zhou's feelings and Confucius's thoughts. A bright, rousing poem of learning.

读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金。不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] So lost in reading he missed the deepening spring; an inch of time is an inch of gold; had not the Taoist come to draw a smile, he was pursuing the feelings of Zhou and thoughts of Kong. [Structure] The first couplet states the love of study and time, the last explains the interruption—devotion then distraction. [Imagery] 'An inch of time is an inch of gold' is the famous simile for time's worth. [Tone] Bright, uplift, earnest.

【白话串讲】 王贞白写《白鹿洞二首其一》：“读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金”——“不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻”——他写惜时读书——一寸光阴一寸金。 【意象与手法】 “读书不觉已春深”写读书忘时；“一寸光阴一寸金”以金喻光阴之贵；“不是道人来引笑”写道人引笑；结以“周情孔思正追寻”写追寻孔孟之道。明快昂扬。 【情感与主旨】 王贞白写劝学言志之作，写读书惜时、以“一寸光阴一寸金”喻光阴可贵，是劝学诗中的名篇。 【名句点睛】 常考“读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金”以金喻光阴；“不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻”写追寻圣贤之道。

Background

Wang Zhenbai (875–c. 958), styled Youdao, was a Tang poet of Xinzhou. 'White Deer Grotto' is a poem of study (the grotto was a famous academy site). It urges that time is as precious as gold and that one should pursue the sage models—the Duke of Zhou and Confucius—a standard piece in the Chinese tradition of 'exhortation to learning.'

《白鹿洞二首其一》为唐代诗人王贞白所作诗。王贞白（875—约958），字有道，信州永丰（今江西广丰）人，唐代诗人。此诗写劝学言志，为咏读书之作。诗中「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」写读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金；「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」写不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻。王贞白此诗以劝学言志、周情孔思正追寻写其言志之情，明快昂扬，是王贞白诗中的名篇。此篇《白鹿洞二首其一》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《白鹿洞二首其一》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 art is 'bright and uplift, diligence for the self.' Four lines move from being lost in reading as spring deepens, to the simile of time as gold, to the Taoist's visit that drew a smile, to the pursuit of Zhou's feelings and Kong's thoughts. The famous 'inch of time is an inch of gold' makes the abstract concrete; the closing names the sage models without stating a sermon. Plain and stirring, it is a model learning-poem.

此诗艺术上以「明快昂扬、以勤写志」见长。全诗共四句，由读书不觉已春深而一寸光阴一寸金而不是道人来引笑。起「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」写读书不觉已春深：读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金；「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」写周情孔思正追寻：不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻。全诗以勤写志，由读书不觉已春深而周情孔思正追寻，明快昂扬，是王贞白诗中的名篇。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。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。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 key allusion is 'the feelings of Zhou and thoughts of Kong'—the Duke of Zhou, model of early Zhou statesmanship, and Confucius, the master—the sage standards the poet pursues. 'Taoist' (daoren) names a visitor who breaks his study with a smile. The White Deer Grotto itself evokes the famous academy. Wang Zhenbai keeps the exhortation light, carried by the time simile.

诗中「读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金」「不是道人来引笑周情孔思正追寻」等语，皆含典故故实。「读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金」写读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金；「不是道人来引笑周情孔思正追寻」用周情孔思之语（周情写周公、孔思写孔子），写不是道人来引笑周情孔思正追寻。诗人以周情孔思等语入诗，不着痕迹，而把劝学言志之情写得真切可感，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。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。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

A Tang poem of exhortation to learning, 'White Deer Grotto (I)' opens with being lost in reading as spring deepens and the axiom 'an inch of time is an inch of gold,' then notes a Taoist's smile and the pursuit of Zhou and Kong. Bright and uplift, it turns devotion into a rousing line—the source of the enduring 'inch of time is an inch of gold.'

这首《白鹿洞二首其一》，是王贞白写劝学言志之作，写读书不觉已春深、一寸光阴一寸金、周情孔思正追寻之情，明快昂扬。起「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」——读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金。写读书不觉已春深：读书不觉已春深、一寸光阴一寸金——读书不觉春深、光阴一寸金；「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」——不是道人来引笑，周情孔思（用周情孔思之语）正追寻。写周情孔思正追寻：不是道人来引笑、周情孔思正追寻——道人来引笑、孔思正追寻。这「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」，是全诗之结：以周情孔思正追寻写其言志。全诗明快昂扬，以勤写志，正是王贞白诗中的名篇。综观全诗，情真、景切、理深，三者浑融无迹，故能于短短数语之中寄无限深意，令人百读不厌。其含蓄蕴藉之处，正是中国古典诗歌以少总多、言有尽而意无穷的美学精神的生动体现。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain (qi jue)诗（七言绝句）
Rhyme Rhymes on shen, jin, xun (qin category), two lines then a turn; level tones fit the bright tone.此诗为七言绝句，共四句，两句一联。押平声韵：「深」「金」「寻」押侵部韵。诗体依绝句而定，句式整齐，音节随情起伏，正与写劝学言志的明快昂扬相称，也见其以绝句写言志的自然。
Tone pattern The first couplet sounds bright; the close is uplift—the quatrain's compression suits the urging of learning.句式上，「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」写读书不觉已春深，音节明快；「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」写周情孔思正追寻，音节昂扬。全诗音节随情起伏，由明快而昂扬，正合绝句「含蓄」之妙，读来如劝学言志、周情孔思正追寻之音，明快而动人。
Reading note A seven-character quatrain and a poem of exhortation to learning. Its art is 'bright and uplift, diligence for the self': lost in reading as spring deepens, time as gold, the Taoist's smile, pursuit of Zhou and Kong. Plain and stirring, it gives the axiom 'an inch of time is an inch of gold.'此诗为七言绝句，是王贞白写劝学言志之作，也是其诗中的名篇。全诗的艺术特色在于「明快昂扬、以勤写志」：「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」写读书不觉已春深、「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」写周情孔思正追寻。全诗明快昂扬，以勤写志。尤为精妙者，是「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」写尽光阴之贵；而「不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻」用周情孔思之语，正是王贞白诗「明快昂扬」的典范，为历代选本所常收。《白鹿洞二首其一》一诗之所以读来声情并茂，正在于诗人以声韵配合情思、以节奏烘托意境，音节之长短、平仄之起伏，皆与诗意相为表里，此亦可见中国古典诗歌声律之美与匠心之工。

Line by line

读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金。

So lost in reading I did not notice spring had deepened; an inch of time is an inch of gold.

读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金。

Reading, I did not notice spring was already deep; an inch of time is an inch of gold.

首二句写读书不觉已春深，起笔即见其勤。「读书不觉已春深」写读书不觉已春深，「读书不觉」写读书不觉、「已春深」写已春深；「一寸光阴一寸金」写一寸光阴一寸金，「一寸光阴」写一寸光阴、「一寸金」写一寸金。两句一写读书不觉已春深、一写一寸光阴一寸金，以读书不觉已春深写读书不觉、以一寸光阴一寸金写光阴寸金，写尽读书不觉已春深、一寸光阴一寸金之情。以勤起兴，明快而昂扬，是「以勤起兴」的妙笔。

The opening two lines write that reading, I did not notice spring was already deep, the diligence at once. The words reading, I did not notice write the absorption in study; spring was already deep writes the late spring gone unmarked. An inch of time is an inch of gold writes the worth of the hours. The two lines, one writing the absorbed reading, one writing the inch-gold time, write to the full the feeling of reading on into deep spring and the hour's weight. Rising through diligence, bright and rising, the fine brush of rising through diligence.

不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻。

Had not the Taoist come to draw a smile, I was pursuing the feelings of Zhou and thoughts of Kong.

不是道人来引笑，周情孔思正追寻。

Had the Daoist not come to draw a laugh, I would still be pursuing the thoughts of Zhou and Confucius.

尾二句写周情孔思正追寻，是全诗立意的落点。「不是道人来引笑」写不是道人来引笑，「不是道人」写不是道人、「来引笑」写来引笑；「周情孔思正追寻」用周情孔思之语写周情孔思正追寻，「周情孔思」写周情孔思、「正追寻」写正追寻。两句一写不是道人来引笑、一写周情孔思正追寻，以不是道人来引笑写道人来引笑、以周情孔思正追寻写孔思追寻，写尽不是道人来引笑、周情孔思正追寻之情。以勤写志，明快而昂扬，是全诗最动人处，也是「以勤写志」的点睛之笔。

The closing two lines write the pursuit of the thoughts of Zhou and Confucius, the landing of the whole's bent. Had the Daoist not come to draw a laugh writes the monk's interruption; I would still be pursuing the thoughts of Zhou and Confucius uses the phrase for the thought of the Duke of Zhou and Confucius, the classical learning. The two lines, one writing the Daoist's coming with a laugh, one writing the pursuit of Confucius' thought, write to the full the feeling of the interruption and the pursuit. Writing the will through diligence, bright and rising, the most moving place of the whole and the eye-dotting brush of writing the will through diligence.

Study

Word focus

读书 The phrase 'reading' opens the devotion; 'so lost' shows study absorbing him past the season's change. 「读书」写读书不觉已春深，是写读书之态的关键。「读书不觉已春深」着一「读书」，写读书——着一「读书」，写读书不觉已春深，见其书之读。两字写尽读书之态，是「以词写读」的妙笔。「读书」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。
一寸金 The phrase 'an inch of gold' makes time's worth concrete; one simile carries the poem's urging not to waste time. 「一寸金」写一寸光阴一寸金，是写一寸金之态的关键。「一寸光阴一寸金」着一「一寸金」，写一寸金——着一「一寸金」，写一寸光阴一寸金，见其光之贵。三字写尽一寸金之态，是「以词写贵」的点睛之词。「一寸金」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。
引笑 The word 'draw a smile' names the Taoist's visit that broke the study, the poem's gentle interruption. 「引笑」写不是道人来引笑，是写引笑之态的关键。「不是道人来引笑」着一「引笑」，写引笑——着一「引笑」，写不是道人来引笑，见其笑之引。两字写尽引笑之态，是「以词写笑」的点睛之词。「引笑」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。
追寻 The word 'pursue' closes on the seeking of Zhou's feelings and Kong's thoughts, the sage models aimed at. 「追寻」写周情孔思正追寻，是写追寻之态的关键。「周情孔思正追寻」着一「追寻」，写追寻——着一「追寻」，写周情孔思正追寻，见其思之寻。两字写尽追寻之态，是「以词写寻」的点睛之词。「追寻」一字之用而全篇生色，与诗中情韵相为表里，正见诗人炼字之精与匠心之独运。读者于此等处若细细体会，自能领会其于平淡之中见功力、于寻常处见神奇之妙。

Related Reading

浣溪沙·一曲新词酒一杯 Tune: Sand of the Washing Brook — A New Song, a Cup of Wine 晏殊 · 同写感怀惜时、无可奈何，一写无可奈何花落去、一写读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金，皆于感怀之中见惜时 Both brood on time: one helpless, one urging.

Yan Shu's 'Washing Brook' ('helpless, flowers fall') broods on time's passing; this poem values time as gold. Together they show time in two attitudes.

晏殊《浣溪沙·一曲新词酒一杯》「无可奈何花落去，似曾相识燕归来」，写感怀惜时，是宋词小令的名篇；王贞白《白鹿洞二首其一》则以「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」「周情孔思正追寻」写读书不觉春深、一寸光阴一寸金。两诗同写感怀惜时、无可奈何：一写无可奈何花落去、以花落燕归写惜时，一写读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金、以光阴寸金写惜时；一为晏殊之温润、一为王贞白之昂扬，并读正可见诗写「感怀惜时」的两种笔法，皆于感怀之中见惜时。

 山园小梅 Little Plum of the Mountain Garden 林逋 · 同写言志清雅、以勤寄情，一写疏影横斜水清浅暗香浮动月黄昏、一写读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金，皆于言志之中见勤勉 Both voice aspiration: one elegant, one diligent.

Lin Bu's 'Little Plum' praises the plum's elegance as self; this poem praises diligence through time. Together they show aspiration in two keys.

林逋《山园小梅》「疏影横斜水清浅，暗香浮动月黄昏」，写梅之清雅、言志，是宋诗咏物的绝唱；王贞白《白鹿洞二首其一》则以「读书不觉已春深，一寸光阴一寸金」「周情孔思正追寻」写读书不觉春深、一寸光阴一寸金。两诗同写言志清雅、以勤寄情：一写疏影横斜水清浅暗香浮动月黄昏、以梅写清雅，一写读书不觉已春深一寸光阴一寸金、以光阴写勤勉；一为林逋之清逸、一为王贞白之昂扬，并读正可见诗写「言志勤勉」的两种笔法，皆于言志之中见勤勉。