All poems

唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

凉州词

Liangzhou Song

王翰

Wang Han

边塞Frontier 豪放Heroic and Unrestrained

葡萄美酒夜光杯，欲饮琵琶马上催。
醉卧沙场君莫笑，古来征战几人回。

With wine of grapes the cups of jade would glow at night;
Drinking to pipa songs, we are summoned to fight.
Don't laugh if we lay drunken on the battleground!
How many warriors ever came back safe and sound?

Listen

Meaning

The poet describes a momentary feast before battle, where soldiers indulge in wine amidst the urgent call of the pipa. He dismisses any mockery of drunkenness on the battlefield with the stark reminder that few return from war, blending heroic bravado with the tragic reality of constant death.

晶莹的夜光杯里斟满了甘醇的葡萄美酒，正要举杯痛饮，马背上急促的琵琶声却在催人出征。即便醉卧在沙场上，也请你不要笑话我；从古到今出征作战的人，又有几个能活着回来？

Appreciation

This poem contrasts the luxury of wine and cups with the urgency of war, using a seemingly carefree tone to express deep sorrow. The last line is a rhetorical question that powerfully conveys the sense of inevitable loss, making it a masterpiece of Tang frontier poetry.

【白话串讲】 “醉卧沙场君莫笑”——唐朝的边塞诗人把生死说得像喝酒一样潇洒。王翰一生放浪，这首诗却让无数人记住了盛唐将士最豪迈也最悲凉的一笑。【意象与手法】以乐写哀、以旷达写悲凉。前两句以“葡萄美酒”“夜光杯”的奢华与“琵琶马上催”的紧迫对举，盛宴与战事同时压来【情感与主旨】凉州为唐代河西重镇，凉州词乃当时流行的边塞乐府曲调。王翰生活于盛唐，为人豪放不羁【名句点睛】常考“醉卧沙场君莫笑，古来征战几人回”的悲壮豪放，于旷达中见反战之痛；以乐写哀手法

Background

Liangzhou was a key strategic town in the Hexi Corridor during the Tang dynasty. 'Liangzhou Song' was a popular yuefu tune for frontier songs. Wang Han, a bold and unrestrained poet of the High Tang, wrote this poem capturing the complex emotions of soldiers on the eve of battle, mixing revelry with a grim awareness of death.

王翰，字子羽，并州晋阳人，盛唐诗人，生卒年不详，约生活于唐睿宗至玄宗开元年间。其为人豪放不羁，喜纵酒游乐，开元中举进士，并擅长乐府歌诗。《凉州词》本为唐代乐府《凉州歌》的唱词，属近代曲辞，乃天宝间凉州（今甘肃武威）一带流行的西凉乐调，后人依调填词，多写边塞军旅与征戍之情。此诗具体创作时地已难确考，大致作于盛唐国力鼎盛、边事频仍之际，诗人或曾游历西北边陲，亲见将士出征宴饮之场面。今传文本有异文，葡萄美酒一作蒲桃美酒，欲饮琵琶马上催诸本大体一致。在文学传统上，凉州词承汉魏乐府横吹曲边塞歌咏之脉，又开盛唐七绝以短章写豪情之先声，与王之涣同题之作并称，共同构成盛唐边塞绝句中以旷达写悲凉的审美范式。凉州地处河西走廊东端，为丝绸之路咽喉，葡萄美酒、夜光杯皆西域风物，诗中物象正折射盛唐胡汉交融之开放气象。王翰存诗无多，《全唐诗》仅录其作十余首，而此篇一出即奠定边塞名家地位，足见以少胜多、片语千钧之妙。

Art

The poem employs the technique of 'using joy to express sorrow'. The first two lines set a luxurious feast against the urgent call to arms. The last two lines pretend to be carefree but underline the brutal truth of war. The contrast creates a powerful tension, typical of the 'heroic and sorrowful' style of High Tang frontier poetry.

全诗四句二十八字，章法以宴前、催发、醉语、慨叹四层推进，起承转合极为紧凑。首句葡萄美酒夜光杯以珍物铺陈盛宴之奢华，西域物产葡萄美酒与传说中夜光杯并列，色彩璀璨；次句欲饮琵琶马上催陡转，琵琶于马上急弹，将举杯之欢瞬间拉向出征之迫，乐与哀对举，以乐写哀之张力立现。三四句醉卧沙场君莫笑，古来征战几人回由叙事转入人物口吻，以醉卧沙场者自白式的旷达语翻进一层悲凉，表面是豪饮不惧死的潇洒，内里却是几人回三字对生命无常的沉痛叩问。修辞上以设问反诘收束，未直说厌战而厌战之痛自见；意象上美酒、夜光杯、琵琶、沙场层层叠加，于短章中见盛唐边塞特有的浪漫与苍凉。通篇无一字写沙场血火，而宴乐与死生的对撞已令人凛然，正是盛唐边塞诗于奢豪中见悲凉的独特审美。后世论七绝，每以二十八字具长篇之痛许之，章法之密、行气之畅，于此短章可见盛唐绝句艺术之极致。

Allusions

'Grape wine' was introduced to China from the Western Regions. 'Jade cup that glows at night' is a legendary treasure said to come from the Western Hu. The pipa is a Central Asian instrument. These exotic references immerse the reader in the frontier setting and subtly emphasize the soldiers' separation from home and the uncertainty of their fate.

诗中用事与意象多有所本。夜光杯典出《海内十洲记》，载周穆王时西域献夜光常满杯，光明夜照，此处借指边地珍贵的饮酒器皿，亦暗点凉州乃中西交通要冲，葡萄美酒皆丝路物产。琵琶本胡中马上之乐，东晋傅玄《琵琶赋》已言其起于胡人，汉魏以降成为军中马上助兴之器，所谓马上琵琶正写军旅仓促。葡萄自张骞凿空西域传入，汉司马相如《上林赋》已咏蒲陶，至唐凉州一带广植，成为边塞诗中典型物象。字词训诂方面，催字古今聚讼，或解催促出征，或解催饮劝酒，或解催发歌舞；清沈德潜《唐诗别裁》取催饮说，今人多从催人上马义。沙场即平沙列阵之地，古多指战场。要之，诗中物象虽多本胡地风俗与史传旧典，诗人却能浑化无迹，读来但觉天然，不见堆垛，正见盛唐诗人学问化入性情、故实暗附性情之高境，亦为王世贞所谓盛唐之音不假雕饰而自工之实证。

Commentary

Ming critic Wang Shizhen called this poem a 'flawless jade' among Tang quatrains. Qing scholar Shen Deqian said: 'Its seeming carefree words make the grief all the more piercing.' The poem is celebrated for its ability to express profound tragedy through a light, heroic surface.

此诗自来评家推为盛唐边塞七绝压卷之一。明人王世贞《艺苑卮言》论绝句，以蒲桃美酒一首为盛唐之音代表。清沈德潜《唐诗别裁集》评：故作豪饮之词，然悲凉之意已寓其中。近人俞陛云《诗境浅说》亦谓其作悲伤语读便浅，作谐谑语读便妙，在学人领悟。历代传播中，此诗与王翰另一首及王之涣《凉州词》并称，常被选入童蒙读物的七言绝句名篇。其经典地位在于以二十八字写尽盛宴与死生、旷达与悲凉的复杂交织，将征人视死归的豪迈与对生命无常的哀感融而为一，后人谓其无半点衰飒之气，而有万古苍凉之痛。今人治文学史，亦多以之为边塞七绝之范本，与高适、岑参歌行并观，可见盛唐边塞于绝句、歌行两体皆臻其盛。其诗虽短，而气象、情韵、手法三者俱足，故能历千载而传唱不衰，诚所谓短章而有长歌之痛者。后代诗话词话论及盛唐边塞，必引此篇以为标格，其与王之涣凉州词、王昌龄出塞鼎足，共立唐人七绝边塞之极则，影响所及，下启李益、张籍诸家，足证一篇之重可系一体之盛，非偶然也。今之读者诵其醉卧沙场之句，每于豪宕中味出苍凉，知其非真放达，乃以放达掩惊惶也，此正盛唐气象中深藏的人间悲慨，读诗者不可不察。要而言之，此诗以二十八字写尽盛唐边塞之豪与痛，片语千钧，诚不可及也。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain with level tone starting first line (平起首句入韵); originally a yuefu tune.七言绝句（依凉州词乐府旧调填词，属边塞题材）

Rhyme The Chinese original rhymes on -ui/-ei (杯,催,回).押平声灰韵，杯、催、回三句末字皆属平水韵上平十灰，首句入韵，一韵到底，声调铿锵而带悲慨。

Tone pattern First line: 平平平仄仄平平; the poem follows standard tonal patterns of Tang quatrains.平仄大致合七绝仄起首句入韵格：仄平平仄仄平平，仄仄平平仄仄平。仄仄平平平仄仄，仄平平仄仄平平。首句葡萄美酒为仄平平仄，夜光杯仄平平收平韵，格律严整。

Reading note The poem uses a buoyant rhythm that contrasts with its tragic content, enhancing the sense of forced cheerfulness.此诗虽为乐府填词，然四句二十八字暗合七绝声律，首句入韵、一韵到底，杯催回三平声在灰韵中开口度大、余音悠长，最宜抒发苍凉慨叹。平仄安排上，以平声收束的宴乐起句与以平声收束的死生慨叹呼应，乐音与哀情在声调层面达成奇异的统一，读来朗朗而终觉沉郁。盛唐七绝多讲究天然音节，此篇不刻意求工而自然合度，正是清水出芙蓉、天然去雕饰之证。其韵脚之选与格律之稳，使短章兼具歌唱之畅与吟咏之痛，宜乎千载传唱而不衰。要之，此诗声情与辞情互为表里，欢音之中藏哀响，短韵之中纳长恨，读之始觉畅达，回味乃见沉郁，正盛唐七绝不可及处。

Line by line

葡萄美酒夜光杯，欲饮琵琶马上催。

The grape's fine wine in a night-luminous cup; raising it to drink, the pipa on horseback urges us on.

晶莹的夜光杯里斟满了甘醇的葡萄美酒，正要举杯痛饮，马背上急促的琵琶声却在催人出征。

Crystalline night-luminous cups brim with the grape's rich wine; as we raise them to drink, the urgent pipa on horseback urges the soldiers to battle.

首句以葡萄美酒与夜光杯二事铺排边地盛宴之奢华绚烂，色香兼具，已先立乐境；次句欲饮二字方起而马上催三字忽至，琵琶于战马之上急弹，将宴饮之乐瞬间推向出征之迫。两句以乐与迫对举，未写沙场而杀机已在弦外，是以乐写哀之法的开端。短短十四字，盛宴与军令同时压来，时空由帐内而帐外、由酣饮而催发，节奏骤紧，为后文醉卧沙场的旷达悲凉蓄足气势，章法极见盛唐绝句中起句摄神、承句转势之妙。其以奢华之物反衬仓促之命，乐哀相生，最见盛唐边塞诗于豪中藏痛之手眼。

The opening line lays out the luxury and splendor of the border feast through the two things of the grape wine and the night-luminous cup, color and scent together, first establishing the realm of joy; the next line, the words 'raising it to drink' just begun, and the words 'urges us on' suddenly arrive — the pipa played in haste on the warhorse, pushing the feast's joy in an instant to the urgency of the campaign. The two lines set joy against urgency: not yet the battlefield, yet the killing intent is already beyond the strings, the opening of the method of 'writing grief through joy'. Fourteen words, the feast and the military order pressing at once, the space from inside the tent to outside, from the drunken drinking to the urgent summons, the rhythm suddenly tight, storing the fullest momentum for the broad, desolate 'lying drunk on the battlefield' below, the craft of the High Tang quatrain's opening that seizes the spirit and the second line that turns the momentum. Setting the luxurious against the hasty command, joy and grief feeding each other, showing to the full the High Tang frontier poem's hand of hiding pain within boldness.

醉卧沙场君莫笑，古来征战几人回。

If I lie drunk on the battlefield, smile not at me; since olden times, how many who go to war return?

即便醉卧在沙场上，也请你不要笑话我；从古到今出征作战的人，又有几个能活着回来？

If I lie drunk on the battlefield, do not laugh at me; from ancient times to now, how many who march to war have come home alive?

三四句由景事转入征人自白，以醉卧沙场的狂放语翻进一层沉痛。君莫笑三字似作旷达之辞，实则以强作笑谈掩饰死生无常之惧；古来征战几人回以问代答，于浩叹中点破边将十不存一的残酷现实。表面豪迈，内里悲凉，正是盛唐边塞诗以旷达写悲哀的典型笔法。其妙在不直诉厌战而厌战之痛自见，不呼号反战而反战之意已深，二十八字收束于千古一问，余味苍茫，令人读之凛然，乃短章而具长歌之痛者。后之论诗者每举此联，以为盛唐七绝不事雕琢而自有千钧之力之证。

The third and fourth lines turn from scene and event to the soldier's self-confession, pushing one layer deeper into grief through the wild words of lying drunk on the battlefield. The words 'smile not at me' seem a broad utterance, really covering the fear of life and death with a forced jest; 'since olden times, how many who go to war return?' the question in place of answer, sighing out the cruel reality that few of ten border generals return. On the surface bold, within desolate, the typical method of High Tang frontier verse that 'writes grief through breadth'. The beauty is that he does not directly speak his war-weariness, yet the pain shows of itself; he does not cry out against war, yet the anti-war meaning is already deep, twenty-eight words closing on a question of the ages, the aftersound vast, reading it one shivers — a short piece carrying the pain of a long song. Later critics often cite this couplet as proof that High Tang seven-syllable quatrains, unpolished, yet carry the force of a thousandweight.

Study

Word focus

催 urges (both urging to drink and urgent call to fight) 催字为全诗关捩，一字而兼乐与哀、宴与战两重张力。其义古今聚讼：或谓催人饮酒，或谓催人上马出征，或谓催发歌舞。若取催饮说，则琵琶声声助兴，与美酒夜光杯呼应成欢；若取催征说，则乐声顿作军令，将举杯之欢逼向死生之际。无论何解，催字皆以急促之动势打破首句铺陈的酣静，使诗意骤然紧张。此字以极简之形涵极富之味，正是盛唐诗人炼字于不觉处见功力者，沈德潜诸家之辨亦足见其一字可歧而全诗之妙正系于此，读来饶有余味。

沙场 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 沙场本指平沙列阵、两军交锋之地，古来多用作战场之代称。诗中醉卧沙场四字，以醉态写死地，将本是惨烈的修罗场化为征人放达之卧榻，字面柔化而内蕴愈悲。沙场与首句夜光杯之美酒盛宴形成强烈反差：前者纸醉金迷，后者白骨黄沙，一乐一哀在四句中完成陡转。此词不着血腥而杀气自生，不写伤痛而伤痛已满，足见诗人以寻常边塞语写尽征戍之痛的高手笔，亦为后世边塞诗惯用而自此篇尤见奇绝之意象，千载之下犹能动人。

凉州词