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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

积雨辋川庄作

In the Rain at Wangchuan Villa

王维

Wang Wei

田园Pastoral 隐居Hermit 禅意Zen Wisdom

积雨空林烟火迟，蒸藜炊黍饷东菑。
漠漠水田飞白鹭，阴阴夏木啭黄鹂。
山中习静观朝槿，松下清斋折露葵。
野老与人争席罢，海鸥何事更相疑。

Rain-soaked empty woods, smoke rises slowly;
Steaming wild herbs, cooking millet, feeding the eastern fields.
Vast, vast water fields where white egrets fly;
Dense, dense summer woods where golden orioles sing.
In the mountains I practice quiet, watching the dawn hibiscus;
Under the pines I take a pure meal, picking dew-laden mallow.
An old rustic, I have long ceased to quarrel for a seat;
Why should the seagulls still be suspicious of me?

Listen

Meaning

After a long rain, the poet observes the slow smoke from the forest, farmers taking food to the fields, egrets flying over the wet fields and orioles singing in the woods. He then describes his own meditative practice and simple vegetarian meal, and concludes that he has shed all worldly ambitions, wondering why the seagulls would still doubt him.

久雨空林里炊烟升起得迟缓，农人蒸好藜黍送往东边田亩；广阔水田上白鹭飞翔，幽深夏木中黄鹂啼啭。山中习静看朝开暮落的木槿，松下持斋折取带露的葵菜。我这野老早已与人毫无隔阂，海鸥啊又何须再起疑心。

Appreciation

The poem masterfully blends pastoral scenes with Zen-like tranquility. The second couplet is especially famous for its use of reduplicatives and contrasting colors (white egrets, yellow orioles) to create a vivid, serene picture. The later couplets shift from observation to inner cultivation, alluding to Daoist stories to emphasize the poet's detachment from worldly strife.

【白话串讲】连日雨后，王维在辋川的庄园里看白鹭飞过水田、黄鹂藏在夏木里。他过着自己的日子，说：海鸥为什么还要怀疑我呢？——写尽了归隐后的自在。【意象与手法】首联写农事烟火，以“迟”字状久雨空林之静【情感与主旨】此诗一作《秋归辋川庄作》（题中“积雨”或作“秋雨”），约作于王维晚年隐居辋川别业期间【名句点睛】必考颔联“漠漠水田飞白鹭，阴阴夏木啭黄鹂”的叠字运用与色彩映衬（白鹭黄鹂、水田夏木）

Background

This poem, also known as 'Autumn Return to Wangchuan Villa', was written during Wang Wei's later years of semi-reclusion at his Wangchuan estate in Lantian. It reflects his preference for stillness and his practice of Zen Buddhism, and is considered one of the finest Tang pastoral poems.

王维《积雨辋川庄作》约作于天宝年间至晚年隐居辋川别业时期，具体年份无确证。辋川别业在今陕西蓝田县南，原为宋之问蓝田别墅，后归王维，经其经营，成为一方山水园林。王维晚年笃信佛教，半官半隐，常居辋川，与道友裴迪游赏赋诗，此诗即写辋川久雨之后的田园景象与清修生活。诗题一作《秋归辋川庄作》，「积雨」或作「秋雨」，可见此诗或写秋日积雨后的辋川庄。首句「蒸藜炊黍饷东菑」写农事——农人蒸好藜菜、黍米，送往东边的田亩，正是积雨初晴后农忙补耕的图景。此诗以七律写田园与禅修，在王维集中别具一格：既有「漠漠水田飞白鹭」的生动画意，又有「山中习静观朝槿」的禅观自省，终以「海鸥何事更相疑」的忘机之问收束，是王维融合田园诗传统与佛禅修养的代表作。此诗题中「积雨」「秋雨」之异，或可说明诗成于夏秋之交的连雨之后，诗中所写「夏木」「朝槿」「露葵」等物象，亦可证其时令在夏秋之间。王维的辋川生活，以习静、清斋、观槿、折葵为日常，此诗正是这种生活的实录，其中「蒸藜炊黍」「争席」「狎鸥」等，又处处透出其与田夫野老、自然鸥鸟亲近无间的隐逸情怀。此诗题中「积雨」二字，点出连雨之后的特定时令，全诗所写，皆雨后辋川的清新与静穆。辋川别业为王维晚年的精神归宿，此诗所写，正是这一归宿中的日常与禅悦。

Art

The first couplet uses the word 'slow' to convey the quiet after rain. The second employs the reduplicatives 'vast, vast' and 'dense, dense' to expand the spatial depth, while the white and yellow colors of the birds add vibrancy. The last two couplets transition from the external scene to internal cultivation, weaving together landscape, action, and philosophy in a harmonious, painting-like manner.

此诗章法井然，四联各司其职。首联「积雨空林烟火迟，蒸藜炊黍饷东菑」写田家烟火：久雨之后，空气潮湿，炊烟升起得迟缓，「迟」字极写空林之静与积雨之重；农人蒸藜炊黍送往田亩，是积雨初晴后补耕的实景。颔联「漠漠水田飞白鹭，阴阴夏木啭黄鹂」写辋川夏景，是全诗名句：「漠漠」状水田之广，「阴阴」状夏木之深，白鹭翩飞、黄鹂婉转，一动一静、一白一黄，色彩与声态相映成趣。颈联「山中习静观朝槿，松下清斋折露葵」由景入人，写诗人的生活——山中习静，观朝槿之朝开暮落以悟人生无常；松下清斋，折带露之葵以持斋养性，禅意盎然。尾联「野老与人争席罢，海鸥何事更相疑」连用《庄子》《列子》两典，谓自己早已泯除机心、与人无间，海鸥何须再疑。全诗由田家而山林、由景而情、由情而禅，层层递进，浑成一体，是王维七律中田园与禅趣结合最完美的一首。就章法言，前四句写田家之景，后四句写隐者之心，景与心、田园与禅修，在「漠漠」「阴阴」的静美中悄然合一。全诗由「烟火」起，经「白鹭」「黄鹂」，至「朝槿」「露葵」，再到「争席」「海鸥」，物象由人间的烟火渐次升华为禅意的自然，层次分明而一气流转，是王维七律章法的典范。此诗以「迟」「漠漠」「阴阴」等字写雨后之静，以「飞」「啭」「折」等字写生机之动，动静相生，正是王维田园诗的高境。

Allusions

The final couplet alludes to two Daoist stories: from Zhuangzi, about Yang Zhu who after learning from the Dao stopped contending for a seat; and from Liezi, about the man who loved seagulls until he had scheming thoughts. Wang Wei implies he has abandoned all worldly scheming and achieved harmony with nature.

此诗尾联连用两典，颈联意象亦有源流。「野老与人争席罢」用《庄子·杂篇·寓言》——阳子居（杨朱）南之沛，学道于老子，去其骄矜，与众人「争席」，喻泯除隔阂、与人无间；王维以「争席罢」自谓早已放下了士大夫的矜持，与田夫野老打成一片。「海鸥何事更相疑」用《列子·黄帝篇》——海上有人狎鸥，鸥鸟亲之，其父命其捉鸥，鸥遂翔而不下，喻人有心机则鸟不相亲；王维反用其意，谓自己已「忘机」，海鸥不必再疑。「朝槿」即木槿，花朝开暮落，喻人生短暂，语本《诗经·郑风·有女同车》「颜如舜华」（舜即木槿），后世又合《庄子·逍遥游》「朝菌不知晦朔」之意，以朝槿喻无常，禅家尤喜此喻。「露葵」即葵菜，古人常食，带露而折，含清斋素食之意。颔联「水田飞白鹭，夏木啭黄鹂」，唐李肇《唐国史补》曾记为王维取李嘉祐诗，然李嘉祐年辈晚于王维，此说不可信，学界多定为王维原创。「朝槿」之喻，还可与《庄子·逍遥游》「朝菌不知晦朔」对读，一写菌之一日、一写槿之一朝，皆喻人生之短促，王维观槿以习静，正见其以禅观参透生死无常的修养。「清斋」之典，本于佛家过午不食、斋戒自持的传统，王维晚年奉佛，诗中屡见「清斋」「习静」之语，此诗亦然。「蒸藜炊黍」用《诗经·小雅·大东》以来的田家饭食传统，「饷东菑」之「菑」指初垦之田，皆古语入诗，见其取径之雅。

Commentary

Du Fu praised Wang Wei's reclusion; Ming critic Hu Yinglin called this poem 'elegant and secluded, the ultimate song of Wangchuan'. Qing scholar Zhao Diancheng noted that 'every line is a painting', affirming Wang Wei's achievement of 'poetry in painting'.

此诗为王维七律的名篇，历来评价极高。元人方回《瀛奎律髓》选入此诗，谓「漠漠」「阴阴」四字为「全篇之眼」。清人沈德潜《唐诗别裁集》评颔联「漠漠」「阴阴」叠字之妙，谓「白鹭黄鹂，特借以着色耳」。明人胡应麟《诗薮》论七律，亦举此诗为盛唐七律的典范之一。关于颔联的著作权，唐李肇《唐国史补》记王维「好取人文章嘉句」，谓「水田飞白鹭，夏木啭黄鹂」本李嘉祐诗，王维各加「漠漠」「阴阴」二字；然考李嘉祐年辈晚于王维，此说实为无稽，后世注家如清人赵殿成《王右丞集笺注》已辨其非。此诗在传播史上，被推为王维田园诗的代表，与《渭川田家》《新晴野望》等并称；「漠漠水田飞白鹭」一联更成为咏夏景的千古名句，后世化用、仿作者不绝。此诗以七律写田园，格律精严而意境冲淡，是盛唐七律由雄阔向冲和转变的一个标志。此诗对后世影响亦深，苏轼「竹杖芒鞋轻胜马」的旷达、范成大田园诗的冲淡，皆可于此诗见其先声，而「漠漠水田飞白鹭」一联，更成为后世田园诗写夏景的母题。此诗与《新晴野望》《渭川田家》并为王维田园诗的代表，后世论盛唐田园诗，必以王孟并称，而王诗之禅味，实为其独胜处。此诗以七律写田园，格律之精与意境之淡相得益彰，是盛唐七律由雄阔转冲和的标志性作品，后之韦应物、范成大辈田园诗，多受其沾溉。

Prosody

Form Seven-character regulated verse (oblique-tone pattern with rhyme on first line)七言律诗

Rhyme Rhymes with the upper level-tone 'zhi' group: chi, li, kui, yi平水韵上平四支韵，押「迟」「菑」「鹂」「葵」「疑」五韵，首句入韵

Tone pattern First couplet: 仄仄平平平仄平, 平平平仄仄平平; second couplet is especially famous for parallelism.此诗为仄起首句入韵的七律。积雨空林烟火迟（仄仄平平平仄平），蒸藜炊黍饷东菑（平平平仄仄平平），漠漠水田飞白鹭（仄仄仄平平仄仄），阴阴夏木啭黄鹂（平平仄仄仄平平），山中习静观朝槿（平平仄仄平平仄），松下清斋折露葵（平仄平平仄仄平），野老与人争席罢（仄仄仄平平仄仄），海鸥何事更相疑（仄平平仄仄平平）。

Reading note The second couplet's reduplicatives and color contrast are a hallmark of Wang Wei's 'poetry in painting' style.此诗为七言律诗，仄起首句入韵，押上平四支韵，韵脚「迟」「菑」「鹂」「葵」「疑」同部相押，一韵到底。「支」韵音色细腻柔和，读来有悠扬绵邈之感，正合辋川田园的冲淡意境。就平仄论，此诗通篇粘对工稳，是七律正格；首句「积雨空林烟火迟」为仄仄平平平仄平，第三字「空」应仄而平，属一三不论之变，第六字「火」应平而仄，以第五字「烟」平声相救，是七言常见的本句自救，于声律无碍。中二联对仗极工——颔联「漠漠」对「阴阴」、「水田」对「夏木」、「飞」对「啭」、「白鹭」对「黄鹂」，叠字、偏正、动词、名物，字字相对；颈联「山中」对「松下」、「习静」对「清斋」、「观」对「折」、「朝槿」对「露葵」，人事与物象两两相对。全诗声律精严而不失冲淡，是王维七律炉火纯青之作。颔联「漠漠」「阴阴」四字叠用，平仄相间、声韵绵长，正与水田之广、夏木之深的意境相合，是声律与画境交融的典范。全诗声情冲淡而格律精严，正是王维七律「淡而腴」的极致。

Line by line

积雨空林烟火迟

Long rains have left the empty woods; the kitchen smoke rises slowly.

久雨空林里炊烟升起得迟缓

After long rains, in the empty woods, the kitchen smoke rises slowly.

「迟」字是此句的关节。久雨之后，空气湿重，炊烟不能轻扬直上，而是迟滞地缓缓升起——一个「迟」字，既写烟火之态，又写积雨之久、空林之静、空气之湿，一字而兼写数重。以「烟火迟」写农家的晨炊，本极平常，但经「积雨」「空林」的铺垫，这迟升的烟火便有了画面的质感，也透出雨后林间特有的静谧。首句以「迟」字定下全篇缓慢、冲淡的节奏，为后文的田园图景与禅修生活张本，是全诗的起调之字。此句以景结情，与全诗由田园入禅的脉络相呼应，是「诗中有画」的又一佳例。

The word 'slowly' is the hinge of this line. After long rain, the air is heavy and wet, the kitchen smoke cannot rise lightly, but lingers and drifts up slowly — the one word 'slowly' writes at once the smoke's look, the long rain, the stillness of the empty woods, the wet air. Writing the farmer's morning cook through 'the smoke rises slowly' is ordinary enough, yet set up by 'long rains' and 'empty woods', the slow smoke gains a textured picture, and breathes the peculiar stillness of the woods after rain. The opening fixes the slow, diluted rhythm of the whole poem on the word 'slowly', preparing the pastoral picture and the Zen practice to come, the tuning word of the poem.

漠漠水田飞白鹭

Over the vast waterfields, white egrets fly.

广阔水田上白鹭飞翔

Over the boundless waterfields, white egrets take wing.

「漠漠」二字状水田之广，是此句的妙处。若仅作「水田飞白鹭」，只是寻常景致；着一「漠漠」，水田遂成一片无边的空旷，白鹭在这空旷之中翩然飞起，愈见其白、愈见其孤、愈见田之阔。「漠漠」既是视觉的（广远迷蒙），又是音感的（叠字的绵长），二字连读，仿佛水田向天际铺展。白鹭一点，漠漠千顷，点与面的对照，构成了这幅田园图画的层次。此联对仗之工、意境之美，全赖「漠漠」「阴阴」四字点染，后世论者谓此四字为「全篇之眼」，正见其点睛之妙。

The two words 'vast' describe the breadth of the waterfields, the beauty of the line. Were it only 'white egrets fly over the waterfields', a common scene; with 'vast' added, the waterfields become a boundless emptiness, and within that emptiness the egrets flutter up, the whiter for it, the more solitary, the wider the fields. 'Vast' is both visual (wide and hazy) and auditory (the doubled words' length), read together as if the fields spread to the skyline. One egret against a thousand qing of water, the point against the plane, giving the pastoral picture its layers. The couplet's craft and beauty rest on the four words 'vast' and 'deep shade', later critics calling them 'the eyes of the whole', showing the pointing art.

阴阴夏木啭黄鹂

In the deep summer trees, golden orioles sing.

幽深夏木中黄鹂啼啭

In the deep shade of summer trees, orioles warble.

「阴阴」二字状夏木之深，与上句「漠漠」对举。「阴阴」写林木的幽深浓密，夏日的树荫层层叠叠，黄鹂便隐于这浓荫深处婉转啼鸣。「啭」字写黄鹂啼声之圆转流利，与「飞」字一动一静（一为视觉之动、一为听觉之声）相对。白鹭在明处飞，黄鹂在暗处啭；「漠漠」之广衬白鹭之小，「阴阴」之深衬啼声之幽。一白一黄，色彩相映；一飞一啭，动静相生。颔联以叠字领起，兼写声、色、动、静，是王维「诗中有画」的绝佳体现，也是全诗最具画意的一联。

The two words 'deep shade' describe the thickness of the summer trees, set against 'vast' above. 'Deep shade' the dense, layered summer foliage, and within the deep shade the orioles hide, warbling their intricate song. 'Warble' the smooth, liquid note of the orioles, matched with 'fly' above, one movement one stillness (one visual motion, one auditory sound). The egret flies in the light, the oriole sings in the shade; the 'vast' breadth sets off the egret's smallness, the 'deep shade' sets off the song's dimness. One white one gold, colors answering; one fly one sing, movement and sound feeding each other. The neck couplet led by doubled words, writing sound, color, movement, stillness together, the finest example of Wang Wei's 'poetry within painting', the most pictorial couplet of the poem.

野老与人争席罢

This rustic old man has long done with contending for places.

我这野老早已与人毫无隔阂

I, a rustic old man, have long been free of worldly rivalry.

此句用《庄子》阳子居争席之典，自谓已泯除机心、与世无争。王维以「野老」自称，见其淡泊自处；「争席罢」三字，谓自己早已放下了士大夫的矜持与身段，与田夫野老同席共处、毫无隔阂。此句由写景转入写人，是尾联的自画像。一个「罢」字，写出了一种了结、放下之后的坦然，正与颈联「习静」「清斋」的禅修相呼应。此句为末句「海鸥何事更相疑」的忘机之问蓄势，也把全诗的情调由田园的闲适推向禅定的澄明，是全诗由景入禅的转折。

This line uses the Zhuangzi allusion to Yang Ziju contending for his mat, writing that he has long shed the calculating heart and worldly rivalry. Wang Wei calls himself 'a rustic old man', showing his plain retirement; 'has long done with contending' writes that he has long put off the scholar-official's reserve, sitting at the same mat as the village farmers without barrier. This line turns from scenery to the person, the self-portrait of the closing couplet. The word 'done' writes the ease after an ending, a putting-down, echoing the Zen practice of 'cultivating quiet' and 'the plain fast' in the neck couplet. It stores momentum for the closing question 'why should the seagull still suspect me?', and turns the poem's mood from pastoral ease toward the clarity of Zen stillness, the turn from scene to meditation.

Study

Word focus

迟 The word 'chi' (slow) subtly conveys the heavy moisture after rain, making the smoke rise languidly, enhancing the sense of stillness. 「迟」字写久雨后炊烟升起的迟缓，一字而兼写数重。久雨则空气湿重，故烟迟；空林则万籁俱寂，故烟之迟缓愈显；晨炊本有生气，着一「迟」字，遂化热闹为幽静。这个字既写出「积雨」与「空林」的实际物候，又暗含诗人静观的心境——唯有心闲，方能体察烟火之迟。以「迟」状烟，是王维写田家景物的独到之笔，它使首联摆脱了一般田园诗的喧闹，而带上了一种冲淡悠远的禅味，为全篇定下了缓慢而澄静的节奏。一字「迟」，实是此诗声情与意境的发端。

漠漠 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「漠漠」是叠字，状水田的广阔迷蒙。二字连读，音调绵长，仿佛水田向天际无边铺展，视觉与听觉在此合一。「漠漠」本有迷蒙、广远之意，用于水田，既写田畴之广，又写雨后水气之氤氲，田与天在水气中融为一体。有此二字，「水田飞白鹭」便不再是寻常景语，而是一幅气韵生动的广阔画卷——白鹭的「飞」因田之「漠漠」而愈显灵动，画面因之有了纵深与空灵。叠字之妙，正在以声摹景、以虚写实，此二字是颔联的灵魂，与「阴阴」相对，一阔一深，撑起全诗最精彩的一联。

阴阴 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「阴阴」是叠字，状夏木的幽深浓密，与「漠漠」对举，一写水田之广，一写林木之深。「阴阴」二字，既写树荫之浓，又写林气之幽，连读时音调沉郁，仿佛置身于层层叠叠的夏荫之中。有此二字，「夏木啭黄鹂」便有了纵深——黄鹂隐于「阴阴」深处，只闻其声，愈显林之幽、声之婉。与「漠漠」一明一暗、一阔一深，共同撑起了颔联的意境。王维加此二字，把李嘉祐旧句的平面化为立体，也把单纯的写景升华为色声交融的图画，叠字之工，于此可见。后世论此联，无不先赏此四字叠字。