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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

云

Cloud

郑谷

Zheng Gu

咏物Object-Praising 云Cloud 七绝Seven-Character Quatrain 闲适Leisure and Ease

片片飞来静又闲，楼头江上复山前。
飘零尽日不归去，点破清光万里天。

Flake after flake they fly, still and at ease;
Past tower tops, over rivers, before mountains.
Drifting all day long, unwilling to return,
They dot and break the clear light of the vast sky.

Listen

Meaning

White clouds drift idly over towers, rivers, and mountains all day without returning; their one small touch breaks open the clear light of the vast sky—an image of untrammeled freedom and restless ease.

一片片云朵悠闲飘飞，安静又闲适；时而在高楼之上，时而在江边山前。整日飘零流荡不肯归去，恰似点破了那澄澈清朗的万里长空。

Appreciation

A quatrain of pure object-description, written with simple clean strokes, it captures the clouds' leisure and self-possession. The first line sets the tone; the second conveys their wandering through rapid spatial shifts; the third stresses their lingering; the closing 'point-breaking' transforms the clear sky into something more vivid. Beneath the surface, the poet projects his longing for a free, detached life, reflecting the late-Tang literati's taste for plainness and inner ease.

【白话串讲】 “片片飞来静又闲，楼头江上复山前”——郑谷写云：片片飞来，静又闲。“飘零尽日不归去，点破清光万里天”——它飘零一整天不回去，点破万里清光。他写云的悠闲自在。【意象与手法】首句“片片飞来静又闲”点出云轻盈舒卷的情态；次句“楼头江上复山前”以空间迅速转换写其飘游无定；末句“点破清光万里天”最为警策，以万里晴空为背景谓云之点缀令天宇更显空灵。不事雕琢，语言清淡自然，以物观物、不粘不脱。【情感与主旨】咏物小诗，于咏云中暗寓诗人对闲散自由、随遇而安境界的向往，亦折射晚唐士人疏淡自适的审美趣味。写云而不滞于云，借云以写心，小中见大、淡处藏浓。【名句点睛】常考“点破清光万里天”以点破写云之点缀生趣；“片片飞来静又闲”以静又闲写云之从容。

Background

Zheng Gu, a late-Tang poet known for refined quatrains and nicknamed 'Zheng Partridge,' composed this poem probably while traveling or in retirement. In an age of political decline and shallow literati manners, his poetry leaned toward sparse ease. The cloud becomes both a self-portrait of drift and a symbol of aloof freedom, reflecting the era's psychological mood. Reading it against Zheng Gu's own life of wandering and repeated exam failures deepens its quiet resonance.

《云》是一首咏物小诗，以简净之笔写云之闲适自在，在历代咏云诗中别具一格。郑谷为晚唐诗人，以清巧工稳著称，尤擅绝句，人称郑鹧鸪。此诗约作于其漫游或退居之时，时值晚唐季世，朝局倾颓、士风浮薄，而郑谷诗风却趋于疏淡自适，于云之从容中寄意，实含遗世独立之想。咏云一题，六朝以来多有，或写云之出岫，或写云之从龙，多涉比兴；郑谷此篇独取云之静闲飘零，不粘不脱，写物亦写心。值得注意的是，晚唐诗人身处乱世，往往于细微景物中寄托萧散之怀，郑谷此诗正其代表：一片云，既可视为诗人自身漂泊无依的影子，亦可视为其向往自由、不慕荣利的心境。读懂这一层，方知这首短章虽小，却藏着晚唐士人特有的旷达与无奈，是时代心理的一枚切片，亦为后人窥见晚唐士风留一清影。要之，读懂此诗，须将其放回具体的历史语境与诗人的身世脉络之中，方能体会字句之下的深沉寄托与时代投影。故论此诗，不可孤立视之，当与诗人一生的出处行藏相印证，其寄托乃愈见分明。要之，读懂此诗，须将其放回具体的历史语境与诗人的身世脉络之中，方能体会字句之下的深沉寄托与时代投影。故论此诗，不可孤立视之，当与诗人一生的出处行藏相印证，其寄托乃愈见分明。由此观之，此篇虽若小品，实乃时代心理与个人遭际交汇的产物，值得细加玩味。要之，读懂此诗，须将其放回具体的历史语境与诗人的身世脉络之中，方能体会字句之下的深沉寄托与时代投影。故论此诗，不可孤立视之，当与诗人一生的出处行藏相印证，其寄托乃愈见分明。由此观之，此篇虽若小品，实乃时代心理与个人遭际交汇的产物，值得细加玩味。要之，读懂此诗，须将其放回具体的历史语境与诗人的身世脉络之中，方能体会字句之下的深沉寄托与时代投影。

Art

The art lies in observing the object from within—neither clinging to nor detaching from it. The poem progresses from form to spirit: first lines depict motion and stillness, the third stresses wandering, the last yields the sudden 'point-breaking' image. Language is plain and fresh, loading quiet meaning into a small scene. Its economy of means and capacity to suggest vastness within a tiny frame foreshadows Song-dynasty object-praising poems by Su Shi and Yang Wanli.

全诗的艺术妙处在以物观物、不即不离。首句片片飞来静又闲即点出云轻盈舒卷、从容无心的情态；次句楼头江上复山前以空间之迅速转换，极写云之飘游无定、去留随意，一句之中楼、江、山三境跳换，云之自在如在目前。三句飘零尽日不归去承上而来，写其终日流连天际、了无拘束；末句点破清光万里天最为警策，以万里晴空为背景，谓云之点缀令澄澈天宇更显空灵生趣。结构上，前两句写云之态，后两句写云之趣，由形入神，层层递进。语言清淡自然，不事雕琢，于咏物中暗寓诗人对闲散自由、随遇而安境界的向往。其以少总多、小中见大，最得后来苏轼、杨万里咏物小诗之先声，亦足为晚唐小品诗存一清音，于众作喧阗中独留一缕萧散之气，形神兼备而法度自具。综而论之，此诗技法浑成，情景相生，于平淡中见匠心，足为后世取法。其章法之密、用笔之妙，正在不露痕迹处见真章，非熟于诗法者不能到。如此层层递进、虚实相生，遂使短章而有深致，小景而含远韵。

Allusions

Cloud imagery descends from the Book of Songs through Tao Qian's 'clouds rise effortlessly from the peaks.' Zheng Gu's 'still and at ease' and 'unwilling to return' quietly carries Tao's idea of the carefree recluse. The phrase 'dian po' applies painting aesthetics, like a single ink dot animating blank paper. Unlike convention of clouds as dragon-riders or sorrow-bearers, Zheng writes pure freedom, refreshing the old trope with a new, personal touch.

咏云之诗，渊源甚早。《诗经》有上天同云，雨雪雰雰，以云写天象；《楚辞》有青云衣兮白霓裳，以云喻高洁。至魏晋，陶潜《归去来兮辞》云无心以出岫，鸟倦飞而知还，以云之无心写隐逸之怀，郑谷此篇静又闲、不归去，正暗承渊明云无心之意，把云的闲适坐实为晚唐士人的萧散。又，点破一词，虽是口语，却有画理：云点于天，如墨点于纸，破一片清光而生空灵，这种以实破虚的写法，与张彦远论画所谓计白当黑同一机杼。更可玩者，云在唐诗里常作从龙之喻、寄愁之媒，郑谷偏不取，只写其飘零之自在，是翻用故典、自出手眼。一首小诗，能遥接陶潜之隐趣、近开宋人咏物之妙，其传统之深，正不在篇幅之短，而在一脉清远之趣的默默相传。综上，诗中典故与意象经诗人融裁，皆服务于题旨，足见其学养与手腕。用典之妙，在化用无痕，使古事与今情浑然一体，各有其命脉所系。借古事以写今怀，正是此诗沉厚之处，亦见作者熔裁之功。综上，诗中典故与意象经诗人融裁，皆服务于题旨，足见其学养与手腕。

Commentary

This short poem has long been valued: Wang Anshi admired Zheng Gu's purity; Hu Yinglin said it should not be dismissed for late-Tang softness. Critics cite it as a model of 'not too attached, not too distant.' The line 'drifting all day, unwilling to return' may reflect Zheng's own life of wandering and repeated exam failures. It foreshadows Song poems by Su Shi and Yang Wanli, proving that a brief quatrain can carry deep resonance and escape the usual critique of late-Tang verse as merely technically clever but spiritually weak.

此诗虽短，却历来为谈晚唐绝句者所赏。宋人王安石选唐诗，于晚唐独许郑谷清婉，此篇静闲之致，正其所喜。明人胡应麟《诗薮》论唐人绝句，谓晚唐工巧而气弱，然如郑谷《云》者，能以小景写远韵，不当以弱目之。近人论咏物诗，每标不即不离为极则，此诗正得其中三昧：写云而不滞于云，借云以写心，故能小中见大、淡处藏浓。更有论者指出，飘零尽日不归去一句，看似写云，实亦自写其身世——郑谷一生漂泊行役，屡试不第，其飘零之感，或亦寄于此云。一首二十八字的小诗，形神兼备，既为云传神，亦为晚唐士人传神。后世如苏轼《泗州僧伽塔》写云之从容，杨万里咏云诸作写云之活泼，皆可见此诗先声之影响，足资玩味，亦足证短章亦可有深致，不为晚唐气弱之说所囿。要之，此诗在文学史上影响深远，向来为论者所重，具有不可替代的地位。故后世品题此诗，多许其得体要，以为足窥作者之性情与时代之风会。读此诗者，宜知其不在于辞之丽，而在于意之真、寄之远。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain (late-Tang regulated verse)七言绝句（晚唐近体，工稳清巧）

Rhyme The rhyme falls on the Lower-Ping 'xian' (先) category: '闲', '前', and '天' rhyme throughout, giving a clear, slow cadence.前、天押下平一先韵，首句闲亦属先韵，一韵到底，声情清缓相协。

Tone pattern Approximate pattern: 仄仄平平仄仄平, 平平平仄仄平平, 平平仄仄仄平仄, 仄仄平平仄仄平. It generally follows the standard 'oblique-start, first-line-rhymed' form for a seven-character quatrain, with minor permissible variations.片片飞来平仄平，楼头江上仄平平；飘零尽日平平仄，点破清光仄仄平。大体合七绝平起首句入韵之格，晚唐律细。

Reading note Unlike Li Bai's varied ancient-style verse, Zheng Gu's 'Cloud' is a tidy seven-character quatrain, regulated in the late-Tang manner. Its smooth tonal flow and single rhyme suit the clouds' leisurely drift, making prosody and mood mutually reinforcing.与李白《上留田行》的杂言奔放不同，郑谷《云》是一首规整的七言绝句，最宜以唐人格律衡之。它押下平一先韵，前、天同韵，首句闲字亦落先韵，一韵到底，读来清缓悠长，正与云之闲适相称。平仄上，全诗大体合七绝平起首句入韵的常格，如片片飞来平仄平、点破清光仄仄平，粘对井然，可见晚唐绝句律法之细。值得注意的是，郑谷以工稳律绝写咏物小景，与盛唐李白以古体写乐府，恰成对照：一尚法度，一尚气骨。此诗声律之清，与其意境之清互为表里——韵缓故调舒，调舒故境闲。后人论晚唐绝句意弱，然此篇以清婉胜，不以雄浑争，声律与情韵高度统一，正见小诗亦可有完密之构，读来如云行水上，自然成文。

Line by line

片片飞来静又闲，楼头江上复山前。

Flake after flake, the clouds fly quietly and at leisure; now by tower, now over river, now before mountains. The juxtaposition of three places shows their free, random drifting; 'still and at ease' gives them a human, unhurried spirit, projecting the poet's own calm detachment.

一片片云朵悠闲飘飞，安静又闲适；时而在高楼之上，时而在江边山前。

Flake on flake they fly, quiet and at ease; now over the tower, now on the river, now before the hills.

这一联写云之态，是全诗的基底。片片写云之繁多轻薄，飞来写其动，静又闲写其神——动中见静，飞中见闲，正是云最迷人的矛盾。次句楼头江上复山前，以三个空间名词排比，写云去留随意、飘游无定：方在楼头，忽至江上，又到山前，一句之内三境跳换，云之自在如在目前。复字尤妙，写出云之来去不计、处处可安。这一联的好处，在不著一个情字，而闲适之情已透纸背；不写人，而人的向往已在云中。以景写心，最是咏物上乘，亦开晚唐小诗清空一路，于极简处见极从容。

This couplet writes the cloud's manner, the poem's ground. Flake on flake writes the clouds' abundance and thinness; fly writes their motion; quiet and at ease writes their spirit - stillness within motion, ease within flying, precisely the cloud's most charming contradiction. The next line, now over the tower, now on the river, now before the hills, uses three space nouns in parallel, writing the clouds' unconcerned wandering, no fixed destination: just at the tower, suddenly over the river, then before the hills; within one line three realms leap, the cloud's ease as if before the eyes. Again is most subtle, writing the clouds' coming and going without reckoning, everywhere at home. This couplet's excellence lies in not one word of feeling, yet the leisurely feeling already penetrates the page; not writing the man, yet the man's longing is already in the clouds. Writing the heart through scenery, the top grade of thing-praising; also opening the late-Tang short poem's clear, empty vein, seeing the utmost composure in the utmost simplicity.

飘零尽日不归去，点破清光万里天。

Drifting the whole day without going home, one speck breaks the clear light of myriads of miles of sky. The poem turns from description to meaning: the cloud's lingering is embraced, and the 'point breaking' enlivens the sky—a small, effortless touch that transforms emptiness into beauty.

整日飘零流荡不肯归去，恰似点破了那澄澈清朗的万里长空。

Drifting all day, unwilling to return; one fleck breaking the pure light of the ten-thousand-li sky.

这是全诗的警策，由态入趣，由形入神。飘零尽日不归去，承上写云终日流连、了无拘束，一个飘零本带漂泊之悲，诗人却以不归去写其乐此不疲，悲喜之间已见旷达。末句点破清光万里天最为精彩：万里晴空本是一片澄澈，云以一点之白，破其单调，令长空更显空灵生趣。点破二字有画理，以实破虚，以少胜多。二十字到此收束，云之魂已出，诗人遗世独立之想亦出。小中见大，淡处藏浓，是咏物诗不即不离的典范，亦足为晚唐小品留一清音，读来令人想见其旷怀，而漂泊与自在的张力正藏于此。

This is the poem's incisive stroke, passing from manner to interest, from form to spirit. Drifting all day, unwilling to return continues the above, writing the clouds' all-day lingering, utterly unconstrained; drifting originally carries the sorrow of wandering, yet the poet uses unwilling to return to write their joy in it; between sorrow and joy, openness already shows. The closing one fleck breaking the pure light of the ten-thousand-li sky is most splendid: the ten-thousand-li clear sky was one expanse of purity; the cloud, with one fleck of white, breaks its monotony, making the vast sky all the more ethereal and alive. Break has the logic of painting: using the solid to break the void, the few to triumph over the many. Twenty characters close here; the cloud's soul is out, and the poet's world-eschewing, independent thought is out too. Small see large, the faint hiding the rich - the model of thing-praising neither too close nor too far, also enough to leave a clear note among late-Tang miniatures; reading it, one imagines his open heart, and the tension between drifting and ease is hidden here.

Study

Word focus

静又闲 Still and leisurely—the key phrase giving the clouds a serene, carefree human temperament. 静又闲三字，是这首诗的诗眼，也是写云最准的二字。云本无形无声，诗人偏说它静又闲，是把人的心境赋给物：静言其不躁，闲言其不拘，合起来正是晚唐士人向往的萧散之态。这两个形容词的妙处，在把飘飞的动态，反写成从容的静态——云在飞，却飞得安静、飞得悠闲，矛盾中生出诗意。若易以轻盈或自在，便只是常语，失了那份静气。炼此二字，等于给全篇定了一个淡字，也使后面的不归去、点破都有了安顿之处，是落一字而全篇生色的范例，亦见郑谷以浅语写远韵的工力。

点破 A key expression in this poem; read it with the Chinese note below. 点破是全诗最见匠心的词，用在末句收束，力重千钧。清光万里天本是一片澄澈空明，浩漫而无变化；云以一朵之白，轻轻一点，便破其平，生其趣，这便是以实破虚、以少胜多。点字写动作的轻灵，破字写效果的豁然，二字相连，既有画理，又有禅机——如一笔落在素纸上，满纸皆活。更可玩者，点破暗含一种不费力的成全：云未曾用力，天却因之更美。诗人借以自况：士人萧散自适，不必强有所为，一点之间，便已点化世界。炼此一词，小诗遂有远韵，亦见晚唐绝句于细微处见经营的本领。

云