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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

江南逢李龟年

Meeting Li Guinian in Jiangnan

杜甫

Du Fu

感怀reflection 友情friendship

岐王宅里寻常见，崔九堂前几度闻。
正是江南好风景，落花时节又逢君。

In Prince Qi's mansion we often met; before Cui the Ninth's hall I heard you sing more than once.
Now in Jiangnan's fair scenery, in this season of falling blossoms, I meet you again.

Listen

Meaning

In former days I often saw you in Prince Qi's mansion, and heard you sing more than once before Cui the Ninth's hall. Now it chances to be Jiangnan's fair scenery, and in this season of falling blossoms I meet you again. The four lines contrast past and present, lodging boundless vicissitude in plain words.

当年在岐王府邸里，经常见到你的身影；在崔九堂前，也曾多次听到你的歌声。如今正是江南风景美好的时候，在这落花飘零的暮春时节，又与你重逢了。四句今昔对照，于平淡中寄无限沧桑。

Appreciation

This quatrain is marvellous in lifting weight with ease. The first two lines pass the flourishing Kaiyuan age and the closeness of the two men with the light words 'often' and 'more than once', without ornament yet its air shows. The last two turn with the empties 'now' and 'again', setting Jiangnan's fair scene against 'the season of falling blossoms' — the scene unchanged, the men all changed. Writing sorrow in a happy scene, 'falling blossoms' puns both the season's end and the fallen great age and the drifting late life. In twenty-eight characters it holds decades of rise and fall; the words are pale, the feeling thick, brooding and reserved — the supreme state of the quatrain.

【白话串讲】 “岐王宅里寻常见，崔九堂前几度闻”——杜甫小时候在岐王家听过李龟年唱歌。如今在江南重逢，“落花时节又逢君”——大唐已经凋零，他们也都老了。二十八个字，是一部安史之乱。【意象与手法】此诗妙在举重若轻。前二句以「寻常」「几度」轻笔带过开元盛世之繁盛与二人交游之密，不加渲染而气象自见；后二句以「正是」「又」二虚字转接，将江南好景与「落花时节」对举——风景依旧而人事全非。以乐景写哀情，以「落花」双关盛世零落与暮年飘零，二十八字暗含数十年兴亡【情感与主旨】李龟年是开元、天宝间著名宫廷乐师，深得玄宗宠遇。安史之乱后，流落江南，每遇良辰为人歌数阕，座中闻者莫不掩泣。杜甫少年时曾于洛阳岐王李范宅、崔涤（崔九）堂前听其歌唱。至大历五年暮春，二人偶然相逢于潭州，时杜甫已衰病漂泊，龟年亦零落江湖，感念世事沧桑、故人重逢，遂成此绝，为其晚年绝唱之一【名句点睛】中考高频篇目。命题要点：「落花时节」的三重含义（暮春时令、个人飘零、大唐衰颓）；「又逢君」之「又」字绾合今昔的妙处；以乐景写哀情的手法

Background

Li Guinian was a famous court musician of the Kaiyuan and Tianbao years, favoured by Xuanzong. After the An Lushan rebellion he drifted to Jiangnan, and whenever fine weather came he would sing a few stanzas, and all who heard wept. In his youth Du Fu had heard Li sing in Prince Li Fan's mansion in Luoyang and before Cui Di (Cui the Ninth)'s hall. In late spring of the fifth year of Dali (770) the two chanced to meet at Tanzhou (Changsha); Du Fu was already sick and drifting, and Li was fallen too. Moved by the world's changes and the reunion of old friends, Du Fu made this quatrain, one of his late-life swan songs, written not long before his death.

李龟年是开元、天宝年间著名宫廷乐师，深得玄宗宠遇，其歌唱名动京师。安史之乱后，两京残破，乐工流散，李龟年流落江南（今湖南一带），每遇良辰胜景，为人歌数阕，座中闻者莫不掩泣罢酒。杜甫少年时曾于洛阳岐王李范宅、崔涤（崔九）堂前听其歌唱，当时正是开元盛世，二人皆青春年少。至大历五年（770）暮春，杜甫流寓潭州（今长沙），与李龟年偶然相逢，时杜甫已衰病漂泊、将不久于人世，龟年亦零落江湖，二人执手话旧，感慨万千，遂成此绝。此诗为杜甫晚年绝唱之一，约作于逝世前不久，以二十八字写尽四十余年兴亡：由开元盛世的繁华，到安史之乱后的飘零，个人命运与国运盛衰交织，是杜甫「诗史」精神在绝句中的最凝练体现。此诗为杜甫七绝中压卷之作，历代选本无不收录，其以二十八字写数十年兴亡的「以少总多」之功，实为绝句艺术的极致，亦是理解杜诗沉郁顿挫之风的必读篇章。

Art

The poem is marvellous in lifting weight with ease. The first two lines pass the Kaiyuan flourishing and the two men's close friendship with the light words 'often' and 'more than once', no ornament yet the air shows; the last two turn with the empties 'now' and 'again', setting Jiangnan's fair scene against 'the season of falling blossoms' — the scene the same, the men all changed. Writing sorrow in a happy scene, 'falling blossoms' puns the season's end, personal drift, and the fallen dynasty. Twenty-eight characters hide decades of rise and fall; the words pale, the feeling thick, brooding and reserved — the supreme state of the quatrain.

此诗妙在举重若轻，以极平淡的语言写极深沉的感慨。前二句「岐王宅里寻常见，崔九堂前几度闻」追忆开元盛世之繁盛与二人交游之密：「寻常」「几度」二词轻笔带过，不加渲染，而当年的歌舞升平、名流雅集之气象自见——岐王、崔九皆开元年间贵盛人物，其宅第为文人雅集之所，李龟年献艺其间，正是盛世缩影。后二句「正是江南好风景，落花时节又逢君」以「正是」「又」二虚字转接：江南好景与落花时节对举，风景依旧而人事全非——以乐景写哀情，以「落花」双关盛世零落与暮年飘零。全诗不言悲而悲意弥深，不写乱而乱象自见，二十八字暗含数十年兴亡，语淡情浓，沉郁含蓄，是绝句「以少总多」的极致，被誉为杜甫七绝的压卷之作。此外，全诗以「见」「闻」「逢」三字串起四十余年的交谊，由见其人而闻其声，终至重逢，人事之变迁、情谊之绵长，尽在三字之中，针线之密，尤见诗圣章法。

Allusions

The poem uses real persons and events, not the usual allusion, yet its figures are symbols of the age: 'Prince Qi' is Li Fan, brother of Xuanzong, who loved men of letters; 'Cui the Ninth', named Di, younger brother of the favoured minister Cui Shi, lived in Luoyang with a grand house called 'Cui the Ninth's Hall'. Their mansions were gathering places of Kaiyuan literati where Li Guinian performed — a microcosm of the flourishing age. After the rebellion all became relics; the place-names and personal names themselves are a faithful record of rise and fall, needing no obscure allusion.

此诗用实人实事，非传统用典，然人物皆具时代象征意义。「岐王」指唐玄宗之弟李范，封岐王，雅好文士，礼贤下士，其宅第为开元文人雅集之地；「崔九」名涤，玄宗宠臣崔湜之弟，居洛阳，第宅豪盛，时称「崔九堂」。二人皆开元盛世的标志性人物，李龟年出入其间献艺，正是盛世繁荣的缩影；安史乱后，岐王、崔九俱成陈迹，宅第荒废，故地名与人名本身即是一部盛衰信史。李龟年本人亦由宫廷乐师沦为江南流落艺人，其遭遇即时代的缩影。「落花时节」四字尤其含蕴丰富：既点暮春时令，又喻个人飘零（如落花之无依），更深喻大唐国运之衰颓（如繁花之凋零），一语三关，不必另求僻典而意蕴自足，正是杜甫「无一字无来处」而又浑化无迹的高境。全诗以实写虚、以人写史，不着一典而自具史诗之重，正合钟嵘《诗品》所谓「文温以丽，意悲而远」，是其含蓄蕴藉风格的巅峰体现。

Commentary

Qing editor Hengtang Tuishi included this in Three Hundred Tang Poems, saying 'the meaning is unspoken, the case laid yet no verdict given'. Ming Tang Ruxun's Tang Shi Jie remarks: 'this mourns the times and the old; now meeting in the season of falling blossoms, and you adrift too — how not grieve?' Qing Huang Sheng's Du Shi Shuo calls the four lines 'holding decades of order and disorder, rise and fall — truly boundless in reserve'. Modern Yu Bixian's Shi Jing Qian Shuo says 'this poem, with all its sense of rise and fall, with ten thousand words one knows not where to begin, is all seen in the three words "meet you again"', the most exact judgment.

此诗历代评价极高。清人蘅塘退士《唐诗三百首》收录此诗，谓其「含意未申，有案无断」，言其感慨深藏而不直说。明人唐汝询《唐诗解》评：「此感时伤旧也……今逢落花之时，而君又流落，能无悲乎？」清人黄生《杜诗说》称「四句内，见数十年治乱兴衰，可谓含蓄无限」。近人俞陛云《诗境浅说》谓「此诗以多少盛衰之感，千万语无从说起，皆于『又逢君』三字中见之」，最为的评。此诗在文学史上的意义，在于以绝句之短制写史诗之内容：二十八字囊括开元盛世、安史之乱、个人飘零三重时空，是杜甫「诗史」精神的极致体现。其「以乐景写哀情」「今昔对照」的手法，更成为后世怀旧感时诗的不祧之祖，与《春望》《秋兴》等作共同构成杜甫沉郁顿挫诗风的完整谱系。其「落花时节又逢君」一句，更成为后世写故人重逢、盛衰之感的通用意象，影响及于明清乃至近代，可见其艺术生命力之持久。其评价之高、影响之远，于此可见。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain七言绝句

Rhyme Ping-shui rhyme, upper-level twelve wen group (heard, you, same rhyme; 'see' belongs departing tone, first line not entering rhyme)平水韵·上平十二文（闻、君），首句不入韵（「见」属去声）

Tone pattern First-line-not-entering-rhyme, oblique-onset oblique-close首句不入韵，仄起仄收式，前二句平仄相对，后二句以虚字领起

Reading note Uses real persons and events, much in little; a late-life swan song of Du Fu.此诗为七言绝句，押平水韵上平十二文韵，「闻」「君」二字押韵，首句不入韵（「见」字为去声，属邻韵不押）；文韵悠远深长，正合沧桑感慨之情。格律为仄起仄收式，前二句「岐王宅里寻常见，崔九堂前几度闻」平仄工稳、对仗自然，以「宅里」对「堂前」、「寻常」对「几度」，看似不经意而实为精心；后二句「正是江南好风景，落花时节又逢君」以「正是」「又」两个虚字领起，破板滞而生波折。绝句章法上，此诗前二句写昔、后二句写今，今昔对照、以乐衬哀，转在「正是」、合在「又逢君」，章法浑成而无斧凿痕。全诗用实人实事，以少总多，二十八字含数十年兴亡，是杜甫晚年绝唱，也是「诗史」精神在绝句中的最高体现。

Line by line

岐王宅里寻常见

In the Qiwang's mansion, I often saw you.

当年在岐王府邸里，经常见到你

In the old days, at the Qiwang's mansion, I used to see you often.

此句追忆开元盛世之交游，是全诗「今昔对照」之「昔」的起笔。「岐王宅」为开元年间贵盛人物岐王李范的府邸，是文人雅集、名流荟萃之地，李龟年出入其间献艺，正是盛世的缩影；「寻常」二字轻笔带过——不是隆重地提及，而是说当年「寻常」得不能再寻常，越是说得平常，越见当年之习以为常，也就越反衬出今日之沧桑。诗人于此不写一字悲叹，而以「见」字写二人交游之密：你歌唱我聆听，屡见屡闻，交谊之厚自在言外。「寻常」二字的轻描淡写，正是「举重若轻」的章法所在：以最轻的笔写最重的盛衰，为后二句的「哀」与「衰」蓄足势，欲抑先扬。

This line recalls the social days of the Kaiyuan golden age, the 'past' side of the present-past contrast. 'The Qiwang's mansion' was the house of Li Fan, a prince of Kaiyuan splendor, where literati gathered and celebrities thronged; Li Guinian sang there, the epitome of the prosperous age. The word 'often' is lightly brushed — not a solemn mention, but saying it was once 'often', the more ordinary it sounds, the more it sets off today's desolation. Not a word of grief, yet through 'saw' it writes the closeness of their acquaintance.

崔九堂前几度闻

At Lord Cui's hall, I heard your song many times.

在崔九堂前，也曾多次听到你的歌声

At Lord Cui's hall, I heard your singing on many an occasion.

此句与上句对举，写二人交游之密与李龟年歌声之盛。「崔九堂」指崔涤（崔九）的堂前，崔涤为玄宗宠臣崔湜之弟，居洛阳，第宅豪盛，与岐王宅同为开元文人雅集之所；「几度闻」写多次听到李龟年的歌唱——「几度」与上句「寻常」互文见义，皆言其多、其常。一写「见」、一写「闻」，见其人与闻其声，视听并写，当年的歌舞升平、宾主尽欢之气象自见。此句与上句以「宅里」对「堂前」、「寻常」对「几度」，对仗工稳而不见雕琢，正是杜甫「于平淡处见功夫」的笔法。两句十四字，将开元盛世的繁华与二人交谊之密轻轻带过，不加渲染而气象自见，为后二句的今昔对照蓄足情势。

This line is matched with the last, writing the closeness of the friendship and the splendor of Li Guinian's song. 'Lord Cui's hall' is the house of Cui Di, a favorite official, its mansion grand in Luoyang, a gathering place of Kaiyuan literati; 'heard your song many times' the repeated hearing, 'many times' matching 'often' above. One line 'saw', one 'heard', sight and sound together, the old splendor of song and feast, host and guest all at ease, showing themselves.

正是江南好风景

Now, in the very beauty of Jiangnan's scenery.

如今正是江南风景美好的时候

Now, just when Jiangnan's scenery is at its fairest.

此句由昔转今，是全诗转折的枢纽。「正是」二字写当下：此时此刻，江南风景正好——「正是」含强调与反讽：风景正好的时候，却正是人事全非的时候，一「正」字将乐景与哀情紧紧扣在一起。江南好风景，本是赏心乐事，然此时重逢的二人，皆已垂暮飘零，风景愈好，愈衬人事之凋零，以乐景写哀情，哀情愈深。「正是」与下句「又」两个虚字相呼应：正是好风景，又是落花时节，又是逢君——三重「正是」「又是」，将偶然的重逢写得步步惊心。此句的妙处在于不写哀而哀意自见：只说风景好，不说人事非，而人事之非已在不言之中，是「举重若轻」的典型，也是全诗由昔入今、由盛入衰的转关。

This line turns from past to present, the poem's pivot. The words 'just when' write the moment: now, this moment, Jiangnan's scenery is at its fairest — 'just when' carrying emphasis and irony: just when the scenery is fairest, the human lot is utterly changed, the one word 'just' binding joyous scene to grief. Jiangnan's fair scenery, a delight, yet the two reunited men are both old and adrift; the fairer the view, the more it sets off human decline, grief written through joyous scene, the deeper for it.

落花时节又逢君

In this season of falling blossoms, I meet you again.

在这落花飘零的暮春时节，又与你重逢了

In this falling-blossom season, I meet you once more.

此句写重逢，是全诗情感的总爆发，却以最平淡的语言出之。「落花时节」一语三关：既点暮春时令，又喻个人飘零——杜甫与李龟年皆如落花，由盛而衰、飘零无依；更深喻大唐国运之衰颓——开元盛世如繁花之盛，安史乱后如落花之衰。「又」字绾合今昔，一字千钧：昔日之逢在盛世京华，今日之逢在乱后江南，「又」字之中，昔之盛、今之衰，昔之乐、今之哀，纷至沓来。以乐景写哀情，风景愈好，愈衬出人事之凋零；相逢之喜中含着说不尽的悲凉——两个垂暮飘零之人，于落花时节相见，喜极而悲，千言万语，尽在不言。此句以少总多，含蓄无尽，是绝句「言有尽而意无穷」的典范。

This line writes the reunion, the total outbreak of feeling, yet in the plainest language. 'The falling-blossom season' has three meanings: it fixes the late-spring season; it figures the personal drifting — both Du Fu and Li Guinian are like fallen blossoms, from splendor to decline, adrift; deeper, it figures the Tang realm's decay — the Kaiyuan prosperity like full blossoms, the post-An Lushan years like fallen petals. The word 'again' ties present and past, a thousandweight: once they met in the prosperous capital, now in war-wasted Jiangnan; within 'again' rush the past's splendor and the present's decline, the past's joy and the present's grief.

Study

Word focus

又 In 'I meet you again', the word 'again' knits past and present — joy at the old friend's reunion, grief at the world's changes; one word, a thousand weight. 「落花时节又逢君」之「又」字，绾合今昔，一字千钧。「又」者，再一次也——昔日在岐王宅、崔九堂前相见，今日又在江南重逢，一个「又」字将四十余年的光阴、盛衰、聚散全部绾合在一处：重逢本是喜事，然喜中有悲，因这重逢发生在落花时节，发生在两人皆已飘零垂暮之时。昔日之逢在盛世京华，今日之逢在乱后江南，「又」字之中，昔之盛、今之衰，昔之乐、今之哀，纷至沓来，尽在不言。此字看似平常，实则千斤——若说「逢君」则只写当下，加上「又」字，则今昔对照、沧桑之感全出。杜甫炼字之工，正在于以最平常的虚字写最深厚的感情。

落花 Both marks the season and figures the fallen great age and the drifting late life; scene-word is feeling-word, boundless in reserve. 「落花时节」之「落花」，是全诗意蕴最丰富的意象，一语三关。其一，点时令：暮春时节，花落纷纷，点明重逢的时间；其二，喻个人：杜甫与李龟年皆如落花，由盛而衰、飘零无依，个人命运之凋零与落花同构；其三，喻国运：开元盛世如繁花之盛，安史乱后如落花之衰，大唐国运之颓败尽在其中。落花是景语，亦是情语、史语，景、情、史三者合一，正是杜甫「以少总多」的本领。此二字不着一「悲」字，而悲意弥漫全篇；不写乱世，而乱世沧桑自见。后世论者谓「落花时节」四字可抵一部盛衰史，实非过誉。