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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

孤鴈 二

A Lone Wild Goose, No. 2

崔涂

Cui Tu

几行归去尽片影独何之暮雨相呼失寒塘独下迟渚云低暗度关月冷遥随未必逢矰缴孤飞自可疑

The last lines of geese have all gone home; a single shadow — where is it flying alone?
Lost in the dusk rain as it called to the flock, it descends late onto the cold pond.
Past the islet clouds it steals low through the dark; the cold frontier moon follows it far.
It may never meet the arrow and its string, yet flying alone it suspects every shadow.
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Meaning

Cui Tu uses a lone wild goose — separated from its flock in dusk rain, flying past cold clouds and a frontier moon, never sure where the hunter's arrow waits — as a portrait of the late-Tang wanderer: alone in a disordered world, and so conditioned by fear that loneliness itself becomes suspicion.

几行归去尽，片影独何之。暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟。渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随。未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] The last geese have gone; one shadow flies alone. Lost from the flock in the dusk rain, it alights late on the cold pond; it crosses the low islet clouds under a cold frontier moon. It may never meet the arrow and string, yet flying alone it suspects every shadow. [The Goose as Self] Every image doubles: the lost flock is the poet's lost world of fellowship; the cold moon is his cold road; the hunter's arrow is the late-Tang age's unpredictable dangers. [The Psychological Turn] The closing couplet turns from scene to mind: 'It may never meet the arrow' concedes the danger is imagined, yet 'flying alone it suspects every shadow' shows loneliness has itself become fear — the poem's deepest point.

【白话串讲】 崔涂写《孤雁·其二》：“几行归去尽，片影独何之”——“暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟”——“渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随”——“未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑”——他写孤雁——片影独何之。 【意象与手法】 首联“几行归去尽，片影独何之”写雁群归尽、片影独飞；颔联“暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟”写暮雨失群、寒塘独下；颈联“渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随”写渚云暗度、关月遥随；尾联“未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑”写未必逢矰缴、孤飞自疑。咏物情深。 【情感与主旨】 崔涂咏孤雁之作，以孤雁写羁旅的孤独与警惕，托物寄情，是咏物诗中的名篇。 【名句点睛】 常考“暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟”写孤雁失群；“未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑”以孤飞自疑写警惕。

Background

Cui Tu (late ninth century), courtesy name Lishan, was a late-Tang poet from Jiangnan who passed the examination in 888 and whose poems are dominated by travel and homesickness. His 'Lone Wild Goose' poems belong to the Tang tradition of writing things to write the self — the same tradition as Du Fu's 'Lone Goose' and, later, Zhang Yan's lyric 'Jielianhuan: Lone Goose'. Written in an age of collapsing order, when scholars drifted constantly and danger was everywhere, the lone goose's fear-strained flight is the poet's own.

此诗为晚唐诗人崔涂的《孤鴈》其二之作，是咏物诗的名篇。崔涂，字礼山，江南人（一说睦州桐庐人），晚唐诗人，光启四年（888）进士。其诗多写羁旅漂泊，此诗咏孤鴈，以鴈写己，正是「以物写人」的咏物诗。「几行归去尽」，写几行雁归去已尽——雁群几行，皆已归去；「片影独何之」，写片影独自何往——那孤鴈的片影，独自何往；「暮雨相呼失」，写暮雨中相呼而失——暮雨之中，那孤鴈相呼同伴而失散；「寒塘独下迟」，写寒塘独下迟疑——寒塘之上，孤鴈独下而迟疑；「渚云低暗度」，写渚云低处暗度——渚（水中小洲）云低处，孤鴈暗中飞度；「关月冷遥随」，写关月寒冷遥随——关塞之月，寒冷遥随；「未必逢矰缴」，写未必逢矰缴——矰缴为射鸟的短箭与系箭之丝，「未必逢矰缴」写未必逢着矰缴；「孤飞自可疑」，写孤飞自可疑虑——那孤鴈，虽未必逢矰缴，而孤飞自可疑虑。全诗以孤鴈写羁旅的孤独，那「几行归去尽，片影独何之」的孤独，那「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」的警惕，正是晚唐诗人身世飘零的写照，咏物而情深，是咏物诗「以物写人」的代表作。

Art

The poem progresses in four stages: the flock's departure leaves the goose alone; the dusk rain and cold pond give its loneliness a setting; the islet clouds and frontier moon extend its flight into a cold, trackless night; the closing couplet turns from scene to mind. The regulated verse's parallel couplets are exact — 'dusk rain' against 'cold pond', 'islet clouds' against 'frontier moon' — and the final couplet breaks the parallelism with a psychological turn, so the poem ends not in scenery but in a state of mind.

此诗艺术上以「以物写人」与「孤寂入骨」为特色，在孤鴈的描绘中写尽羁旅的孤独。首联「几行归去尽，片影独何之」，以「几行归去尽」写雁群归尽，以「片影独何之」写片影独飞——「归去尽」与「独何之」，一群一独，正是孤鴈的孤独，「独」字写尽孤独；颔联「暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟」，以「暮雨相呼失」写失群之呼，以「寒塘独下迟」写独下之迟——「相呼失」写呼伴失散，「独下迟」写独下迟疑，「暮雨」「寒塘」，正是孤鴈的处境；颈联「渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随」，以「渚云低暗度」写暗度之云，以「关月冷遥随」写遥随之月——「暗度」「遥随」，一写潜飞、一写月随，「低」「冷」，写尽孤鴈的阴冷；尾联「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」，以「未必逢矰缴」写未必逢矰缴，以「孤飞自可疑」写孤飞自疑——「未必」写推测，「自可疑」写自疑，正是孤鴈的警惕，也是羁旅之人的戒惧。全诗由归尽写起，经暮雨失群、寒塘独下的处境，而归于「孤飞自可疑」的警惕，以物写人、孤寂入骨，正是咏物诗「以物写人」的极致。

Allusions

The wild goose is the classical bird of migration and separation: flying in formation ('goose rows' are a proverb for brothers), it embodies both journeying and loneliness. 'Arrow and string' — a short arrow with a line attached, used to shoot birds — alludes to the Warring States Strategies tale of Geng Lei, who 'shot' a wild goose with an empty bow: the bird, already wounded in spirit by the sound of the bow, fell. Du Fu's 'Lone Goose' ('The lone goose does not drink or peck; crying as it flies, it remembers the flock') is the poem's direct predecessor. The frontier moon and islet clouds belong to the border-travel imagery of the tradition.

此诗用典于关键处见深意。「鴈」，写鸿鴈——鴈为候鸟，秋来南飞，古以「鴈行」写兄弟，「孤鴈」写失群之鴈，正是孤独的象征。「暮雨」，写暮色之雨——「暮雨」写黄昏之雨，「暮雨相呼失」写暮雨中相呼失散。「寒塘」，写寒冷的池塘——「寒塘」写秋水寒塘，「寒塘独下迟」写寒塘独下迟疑。「渚云」，写小洲之云——「渚」写水中小洲，「渚云低暗度」写渚云低处暗度。「关月」，写关塞之月——「关月」写关塞的月色，「关月冷遥随」写关月寒冷遥随。「矰缴」，用「矰缴」之典——矰为射鸟的短箭，缴为系箭之丝，《战国策》「雁从东方来，更羸以虚发而下之」正写矰缴射雁，「未必逢矰缴」写未必逢着矰缴。值得注意的是，「孤鴈」一题，本于鲍照《孤鴈》诗「孤雁夜南飞」，亦见杜甫《孤雁》「孤雁不饮啄，飞鸣声念群」，崔涂此诗承之，以「孤鴈」写孤独，正是「以物写人」的传统。这些意象，或写暮雨、或写寒塘、或写渚云、或写关月、或写矰缴，皆围绕孤鴈的孤独与警惕这一核心，织成一张孤寂入骨的情网，正是晚唐咏物诗「以物写人」的特点。

Commentary

The poem is famous for its closing lines, 'It may never meet the arrow and its string, yet flying alone it suspects every shadow', praised as the moment when a goose poem becomes a portrait of the human heart. Commentators contrast it with Du Fu's 'Lone Goose': Du Fu's goose cries out in longing for the flock; Cui Tu's goose, in a late-Tang world of collapsing order, no longer even cries — it flinches. The shift from High Tang outward longing to late Tang inward fear is read as a symptom of the age.

读此诗，最值得注意的是「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」所写出的「孤鴈的警惕与羁旅之人的戒惧」。前六句写孤鴈的处境：几行归去尽，片影独何之——那是雁群归尽，片影独飞，正是孤独；暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟——那是暮雨失群，寒塘独下，正是流离；渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随——那是暗度渚云，冷随关月，正是凄冷。而那尾联「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」，是全诗的点睛：那孤鴈，未必逢着矰缴，而孤飞自可疑虑——「未必」二字，写推测；「自可疑」三字，写自疑。那孤鴈的警惕，不是因实有其祸，而是因孤飞而自疑——正因孤独，才时时戒惧。这「孤飞自可疑」，正是全诗的深意：那孤鴈，未必逢矰缴，却因孤飞而自疑——正是晚唐诗人身世飘零的写照；那羁旅之人，未必遭祸，却因孤独而戒惧。值得注意的是，崔涂以孤鴈写己，那「暮雨相呼失」的失群，那「孤飞自可疑」的警惕，正是他羁旅漂泊的孤独与戒惧。晚唐国势衰微，士人流离，那「孤飞自可疑」的孤鴈，正是晚唐士人孤独戒惧的写照。咏物而情深，那孤鴈的孤独与警惕，正是崔涂「以物写人」的深衷。

Prosody

Form Five-character regulated verse (wulu)诗（五言律诗）
Rhyme Eight lines rhyming on zhi (where), chi (late), sui (follow), and yi (suspect) of the level-tone zhi group. The cold, clear, drawn-out rhyme matches the poem's night flight and lonely mood.此诗为五言律诗，押平声「支」部韵，「之」「迟」「随」「疑」等字皆属上平四支韵，韵脚悠长而清冷，正合诗情「孤鴈羁旅」的声调。首联「几行归去尽，片影独何之」以「归去尽」「独何之」相对，工对而见孤独；颔联「暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟」，以「暮雨相呼」「寒塘独下」相对，工对而见流离；颈联「渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随」，以「渚云低」「关月冷」相对，工对而见凄冷；尾联「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」，以「未必逢」「自可疑」收束，写警惕。整体声调由首联的孤独，到尾联的警惕，悠长而清冷，正合咏物诗「孤寂入骨」的诗情。
Tone pattern The three middle couplets are strictly parallel — 'dusk rain calling-lost' against 'cold pond descending-late', 'islet clouds low crossing-dark' against 'frontier moon cold following-far' — and the final couplet breaks the parallelism into a psychological turn. The measured alternation of the regulated verse contains the fear, so it registers as tension rather than outcry.句式上，此诗善用对仗与虚字：「几行归去尽，片影独何之」，以「几行」「片影」相对，一群一影，对仗自然；「暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟」，以「暮雨」「寒塘」相对，「相呼失」「独下迟」写失散迟疑，对仗精工；「渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随」，以「渚云」「关月」相对，「低」「冷」写阴冷，对仗精工而见孤寂；「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」，以「未必」「自可」写推测自疑，转折而见深意。全诗由写孤独入写流离、由写流离入写警惕，对仗整饬而句法多变，正是咏物诗「以物写人」的节奏美学。
Reading note The five-character regulated verse suits the poem's progression: the even couplets lay out the night flight stage by stage, and the broken parallelism of the final couplet lets the poem end in the goose's — and the poet's — mind. The cold zhi rhyme carries the sound of a long, empty night.作为晚唐五律，《孤鴈·其二》的声律之美，在于以清冷的支韵与精工的对仗，写出孤鴈的孤独与警惕。全诗首联「几行归去尽，片影独何之」以归尽、独何之写孤独，一群一影；颔联「暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟」以暮雨失群、寒塘独下写流离，一呼一迟；颈联「渚云低暗度，关月冷遥随」以渚云暗度、关月遥随写凄冷，一低一冷；尾联「未必逢矰缴，孤飞自可疑」以未必逢、自可疑写警惕，一推一疑。全诗由写孤独入写流离、由写流离入写警惕，层层递进而声情相谐，正是咏物诗「以物写人」的体现。就全诗而言，此诗以孤鴈写羁旅的孤独，咏物而情深，是咏物诗的名篇，与杜甫《孤雁》同为咏孤鴈之作，而一写「飞鸣声念群」的念群，一写「孤飞自可疑」的警惕，可见咏孤鴈这一母题从盛唐到晚唐的演变，也可见晚唐士人孤独戒惧的身世写照。

Line by line

几行归去尽

The last lines of geese have all gone home;

几行归去已尽。

The few lines of geese have all gone home.

这一句是此诗的起笔，写雁群归尽，是此诗孤独意象的开端。「几行」，写几行雁——「几行」写雁群之数行，正是「几行归去尽」的雁群；「归去尽」，写归去已尽——「归去」写归去，「尽」写尽，「归去尽」写雁群皆已归去。以「几行归去尽」写雁群，比直写「雁都飞走了」更见雁群与归尽——那几行雁，皆已归去，正为「片影独何之」的孤独作衬；「归去尽」三字，写雁群归尽，正是「片影独飞」的铺垫。这一起笔，以几行归尽写雁群，为全诗定下孤独的基调，也是「片影独何之」的对照——一群一独，正是孤鴈的孤独。

The opening line writes the flocks of geese all gone home, the start of the poem's lonely image. 'A few lines' is the flock; 'all gone home' writes their full departure — the several rows of geese have all returned, setting off the loneliness of 'one lone shadow, where does it go'. The opening lays the lonely tone, and the contrast of flock and lone bird.

暮雨相呼失

Lost in the dusk rain as it called to the flock,

暮雨中相呼而失。

In the evening rain they call to one another, and are lost.

这一句写暮雨中失群相呼，是此诗流离意象的核心。「暮雨」，写暮色之雨——「暮雨」写黄昏之雨，正是孤鴈失群的时节；「相呼失」，写相呼而失——「相呼」写呼伴，「失」写失散，「相呼失」写暮雨中相呼同伴而失散。以「暮雨相呼失」写失群，比直写「失散」更见凄切与画面——那暮雨之中，孤鴈相呼同伴，却已失散；「相呼失」三字，写呼伴失散，正是「寒塘独下迟」的铺垫。这一句，是此诗流离意象的核心，与「寒塘独下迟」相连，一写失群之呼，一写独下之迟，正是孤鴈的流离——那暮雨中相呼失散的孤鴈，正是羁旅之人的写照。

This line writes calling to one another in the evening rain and being lost, the core of the wandering image. 'Evening rain' is the rain of dusk, the season of the lost bird; 'call to one another, and are lost' writes calling for its mate in vain, scattered. It is the image of the traveler gone astray: in the dusk rain, the lone bird calls for its companion, yet they are parted, the setup for 'alone it descends, slow, on the cold pool'.

孤飞自可疑

yet flying alone it suspects every shadow.

孤飞自可疑虑。

Flying alone, it is naturally full of fear.

这一句是全诗的结穴，写孤飞自疑，是此诗警惕意象的最高点。「孤飞」，写孤飞——「孤飞」写独自飞行，正是「孤鴈」的孤独；「自可疑」，写自可疑虑——「自可」写自然可以，「疑」写疑虑，「自可疑」写孤飞自可疑虑。以「孤飞自可疑」写警惕，比直写「害怕」更见内敛与深意——那孤鴈，未必逢矰缴，而孤飞自疑，正是因孤独而戒惧；「自可疑」三字，写自疑，正是晚唐士人孤独戒惧的写照。这一结句，内敛深意，是此诗警惕意象的最高点，也是「未必逢矰缴」的回应——那未必逢矰缴，而孤飞自疑，正是咏物写人的深衷。

The closing line writes that flying alone is naturally full of fear, the height of the watchful image. 'Flying alone' writes the solitary flight; 'naturally full of fear' writes the wariness within — it may not meet the hunter's arrow, yet flying alone it doubts and dreads, for loneliness breeds vigilance. The closing, restrained and deep, is the self-portrait of the late-Tang scholar, lonely and on guard; it answers 'it may not meet the arrow' — not meeting the arrow, yet doubting in its lone flight, the deep feeling of writing the man through the bird.

Study

Word focus

片影 A single shadow; the lone goose seen as a mere silhouette — the word 'sliver' makes its solitude visual, a lone shape against the sky. 「片影独何之」之「片影」，写孤独的身影，是此诗孤独意象的核心语。「片影」即孤独的身影——「片」写单一，「影」写身影，「片影」写孤独的身影，正是孤鴈的写照；「片影独何之」，写片影独自何往。以「片影」写孤鴈，比直写「孤鴈」更见孤独与具象——那一片孤影，正是孤鴈的孤独；「片影」二字，写孤独的身影，正是「独何之」的孤独。这一词，是此诗孤独意象的核心，与「几行归去尽」相对，一群一影，正是孤鴈的孤独——那雁群归尽，唯余片影，正是孤独的写照。
寒塘 The cold pond; the goose's reluctant resting place in the night, 'cold' carrying both the season and the bird's desolation. 「寒塘独下迟」之「寒塘」，写寒冷的池塘，是此诗凄冷意象的核心语。「寒塘」即寒冷的池塘——「寒」写寒冷，「塘」写池塘，「寒塘」写秋水寒塘，正是孤鴈下落的处所；「寒塘独下迟」，写寒塘独下迟疑。以「寒塘」写处所，比直写「池塘」更见凄冷与孤寂——那寒塘，正是孤鴈独下的凄冷之处；「寒塘」二字，写秋水寒塘，正是「独下迟」的背景。这一词，是此诗凄冷意象的核心，与「独下迟」相连，一写寒塘，一写独下，正是孤鴈的流离——那寒塘之上，孤鴈独下而迟疑，正是羁旅之人的写照。
矰缴 The arrow with attached line used for shooting birds; the hunter's weapon — and, through the Geng Lei anecdote, the fear that can kill even when no arrow is loosed. 「未必逢矰缴」之「矰缴」，用射鸟之典，是此诗警惕意象的核心语。「矰缴」即射鸟的短箭与系箭之丝——「矰」为射鸟的短箭，「缴」为系箭之丝，「矰缴」写射鸟之具，《战国策》「更羸以虚发而下之」正写矰缴射雁；「未必逢矰缴」，写未必逢着矰缴。以「矰缴」写祸患，比直写「危险」更见具体与古雅——那矰缴，正是射雁之具；「未必逢」三字，写推测，正是「孤飞自可疑」的铺垫。这一词，是此诗警惕意象的核心，与「孤飞自可疑」相连，一写祸患，一写自疑，正是孤鴈的警惕——那未必逢矰缴，而孤飞自疑，正是咏物写人的深衷。

Related Reading

孤雁 Lone Goose 杜甫 · 同为咏孤鴈之作，一写飞鸣声念群的念群一写孤飞自可疑的警惕，孤鴈母题互为映照 Both write of the lone goose, one crying out for the flock, one flinching at shadows.

Du Fu's goose 'does not drink or peck; crying as it flies, it remembers the flock' — longing is still voiced. Cui Tu's goose no longer cries; it suspects. From High Tang longing to late Tang fear, the same bird marks an age's change.

杜甫《孤雁》「孤雁不饮啄，飞鸣声念群。谁怜一片影，相失万重云」，写孤鴈念群的深情，是咏孤鴈诗的名篇；崔涂此诗「暮雨相呼失，寒塘独下迟」「孤飞自可疑」，同样咏孤鴈。一写「飞鸣声念群」的念群，一写「孤飞自可疑」的警惕；杜甫是「谁怜一片影」的哀怜，崔涂是「未必逢矰缴」的戒惧。并读两作，可见咏孤鴈这一母题的传承，也可见盛唐的孤鴈念群与晚唐的孤鴈自疑，正是身世之悲的两种深衷。

 解连环·孤雁 Jielianhuan: Lone Goose 张炎 · 同为咏孤鴈之作，一写孤飞自可疑的警惕一写写不成书的离恨，孤鴈母题互为映照 Both write of the lone goose, one in Tang verse, one in Song lyric.

Zhang Yan's goose is 'startled apart by the empty evening of the Chu river' and cannot 'finish writing a letter, only send one dot of longing'; Cui Tu's goose cannot even write — it flinches. The migration of the image from Tang poem to Song lyric.

张炎《解连环·孤雁》「楚江空晚，怅离群万里，恍然惊散」「写不成书，只寄得、相思一点」，咏孤鴈的离恨，是咏孤鴈词的名篇；崔涂此诗「片影独何之」「孤飞自可疑」，同样咏孤鴈。一写「恍然惊散」的离群，一写「孤飞自可疑」的警惕；张炎是「写不成书」的离恨，崔涂是「未必逢矰缴」的戒惧。并读两作，可见咏孤鴈从唐诗到宋词的演变，也可见「孤鴈」这一意象在诗与词中的不同情致。

 使至塞上 Mission to the Frontier 王维 · 同为写羁旅鴈意象之作，一写归雁入胡天的出使一写孤飞自可疑的羁旅，鴈意象互为映照 Both write of geese on a journey, one in vast border scenery, one in lonely night flight.

Wang Wei's 'returning geese enter the Tartar sky' against 'the great desert's lone smoke straight, the long river's round sun' is High Tang vastness; Cui Tu's goose under a cold moon is late Tang solitude. The same frontier sky, two ages.

王维《使至塞上》「征蓬出汉塞，归雁入胡天。大漠孤烟直，长河落日圆」，写出使边塞的羁旅，是唐诗的名篇；崔涂此诗「几行归去尽，片影独何之」，同样写羁旅。一写「归雁入胡天」的出使，一写「孤飞自可疑」的羁旅；王维是「大漠孤烟直」的壮阔，崔涂是「孤飞自可疑」的孤独。并读两作，可见「鴈」这一意象在唐诗中的两种情致，也可见盛唐的壮阔与晚唐的孤寂。