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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

望驿台

Gazing, at, the, Post, Terrace

白居易

Bai Juyi

思乡Homesickness 怀人Remembering someone

靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花。
两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家。

In, the, house, of, the, Jing'an, the, willows, facing, the, window,
Before, the, Post, Terrace, the, flowers, dashing, the, ground.
The, spring, light, of, the, two, places, in, the, same, day, ending,
The, dweller, thinking, of, the, guest, the, guest, thinking, of, the, home.

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Meaning

A poem of the spring and the mutual thinking, written by Bai Juyi. In the house of the Jing'an the willows facing the window, before the Post Terrace the flowers dashing the ground — the two places of the opening. The spring light of the two places in the same day ending, the dweller thinking of the guest the guest thinking of the home — the mutual thinking of the close. The poem is the spring and the mutual thinking: the willows, the flowers, and the close's thinking.

靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花。两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] In, the, house, of, the, Jing'an, the, willows, facing, the, window, before, the, Post, Terrace, the, flowers, dashing, the, ground. The, spring, light, of, the, two, places, in, the, same, day, ending, the, dweller, thinking, of, the, guest, the, guest, thinking, of, the, home. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves from the two places of the willows and the flowers, through the spring light of the same day ending, to the close's the mutual thinking of the dweller and the guest. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the close of the mutual thinking: the spring light of the two places in the same day ending, and the close's the dweller thinking of the guest the guest thinking of the home — the two places gathered in the ending and the close's thinking. [Emotional Tone] Fresh, mutual, and longing: the poem is the willows, the flowers and the close's thinking.

【白话串讲】白居易写《望驿台》：“靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花”——“两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家”——他在驿站思念家中——两处春光同日尽——居人思客，客思家——他写两地相思。【意象与手法】此诗写思亲，以春光写思念，是白居易的名篇。前二句写两处：「靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花」写靖安宅里当窗柳、望驿台前扑地花——写尽两处的春光；后二句写思念：「两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家」写两处春光同日尽、居人思客客思家——写尽两地的相思。全诗以春光写思念，写尽居人与行客的相思，是白居易的代表作。【情感与主旨】此诗写思亲，以春光写思念，是白居易的名篇。此诗为白居易寄赠元稹之作。元稹有《望驿台》诗，白居易和之。靖安宅指元稹在长安靖安坊的宅第，望驿台为途中驿馆。此诗写两处：靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花——写靖安宅里当窗柳、望驿台前扑地花，写尽两处的春光；两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家——写两处春光同日尽、居人思客客思家，写尽两地的相思。全诗以春光写思念——那「两处春光同日尽」写尽两地的春光，「居人思客客思家」写尽两地的相思，写尽居人与行客的相思，是理解白居易思念诗的重要篇章。【名句点睛】常考「靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花」写两处的春光；「两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家」写两地的相思；以及全诗以春光写思念、以两处对照写相思的手法。

Background

Bai Juyi (772-846), the great poet of the Tang, wrote this 'Gazing, at, the, Post, Terrace' of the spring and the mutual thinking — the mutual longing of the couple. The willows with the flowers, the spring light of the two places, and the close's the dweller thinking of the guest the guest thinking of the home — the poem gathers the longing of the poet, the mutuality of the love. The poem is one of the famous works of the poet's poems of the longing.

此诗写思亲，以春光写思念，是白居易的名篇。白居易（772—846），字乐天，号香山居士，下邽（今陕西渭南）人，唐代伟大的现实主义诗人，与元稹并称「元白」。此诗为白居易寄赠元稹之作。元稹《望驿台》诗写行旅思念，白居易和此诗。靖安宅指元稹在长安靖安坊的宅第，当窗柳写宅中柳树；望驿台为途中驿馆，扑地花写驿前落花。元稹之妻韦丛居于靖安宅，元稹行旅在外。此诗写两处：「靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花」写靖安宅里当窗柳、望驿台前扑地花——写尽两处的春光（靖安宅里当窗之柳，望驿台前扑地之花）；「两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家」写两处春光同日尽、居人思客客思家——写尽两地的相思（两处春光同日而尽，居人思客客思家）。全诗以春光写思念，写尽居人与行客的相思，是理解白居易思念诗的重要篇章。还应联系元白唱和的具体情境：元稹《望驿台》原诗写其行旅途中思家，白居易和此诗，正以「居人思客客思家」一句作结，将元稹之「客思家」与韦丛之「居人思客」双绾，暗示元稹归心之切亦在家人之盼。又韦丛贤淑，元稹有《遣悲怀》三首悼亡，白居易此诗写于韦丛在世时，正见元白之交谊与两家人之亲厚，可见和诗不徒为应酬，实含深切的理解与体贴。

Art

The poem's art is the art of the mutual thinking. The two places open: in, the, house, of, the, Jing'an, the, willows, facing, the, window — the willows of the Jing'an; before, the, Post, Terrace, the, flowers, dashing, the, ground — the flowers of the Post Terrace. The mutual thinking follows: the, spring, light, of, the, two, places, in, the, same, day, ending — the spring light of the two places; the, dweller, thinking, of, the, guest, the, guest, thinking, of, the, home — the thinking of the dweller and the guest — the willows, the flowers and the close's thinking, gathered in the poem.

此诗的艺术特色可从四个方面解析。其一，以对偶写两处。「靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花」以对偶写两处——那「靖安宅里」「望驿台前」写尽宅与台的对照，以对偶写尽两处的春光。其二，以春光写光阴。「两处春光同日尽」以春光写光阴——那「同日尽」写尽春光同日而尽，以春光写尽光阴的流逝。其三，以双写写相思。「居人思客客思家」以双写写相思——那「居人思客」「客思家」写尽两地的相思，以双写写尽双向的思念。其四，以总括写深挚。全诗由两处的分写，到两地的总括，以总括写尽相思的深挚。此外，此诗前二句分写两处的春光，后二句总写两地的相思，由分而总，正是和诗「即景寄情」的写法。四重手法，使此诗以春光写思念，写尽居人与行客的相思，是白居易的代表作。此诗尤可注意「同日尽」三字的匠心：靖安宅与望驿台，一在长安、一在旅途，两地相去千里，而诗人偏说春光「同日尽」——正见两地同此光阴、共此春色，以「同日」将两地绾合为一，更显出「居人思客客思家」的双向相思；而「柳」之当窗、「花」之扑地，一绿一落，正与「居人」「客」的静动相对，可见其设色之精。

Allusions

'The house of the Jing'an' (jing an zhai) is the house of the Jing'an — the house of the Jing'an, the home of the dweller; 'the Post Terrace' (yi tai) is the Post Terrace — the terrace of the post, the station of the journey; 'the dweller and the guest' (ju ren yu ke) are the dweller and the guest — the dweller of the home, the guest of the journey.

此诗的用语深植于思念与柳花的传统。「当窗柳」令人想到「柳」写柳树的意象——「靖安宅里当窗柳」正是白居易的名句，也令人想到「杨柳依依」的思亲传统——《诗经·采薇》「昔我往矣，杨柳依依」；「扑地花」令人想到「落花」写落花的意象——「望驿台前扑地花」正是白居易的名句，也令人想到「落红不是无情物」（龚自珍）的落花意象；「两处春光」令人想到「春光」写春光的意象——「两处春光同日尽」正是白居易的名句，也令人想到「春色恼人」的春光意象；「居人思客客思家」令人想到「居人」「客」写居人与行客的意象——「居人思客客思家」正是白居易的名句，也令人想到「客舍并州已十霜」（贾岛）的客意象。全诗化用当窗柳、扑地花、居人客的意象，以春光写思念，正是白居易「浅近平易」而善用典、承思念传统写相思的本领。又「当窗柳」可联系折柳送别与思念的传统：柳与「留」谐音，古人折柳赠别以寄挽留之意；而「当窗柳」更写居人倚窗见柳，柳之依依正如思之绵绵，正与《诗经》「昔我往矣，杨柳依依」的思别传统一脉相承。白居易以当窗柳写居人之思，以扑地花写行客之叹，一柳一花，皆含离思，可见其以景写情的深厚功力。

Commentary

This poem is one of the famous works of Bai Juyi's poems of the longing, quoted for the freshness of its two places and the mutuality of its close. The willows of the Jing'an, and the thinking of the dweller and the guest, are among the admired passages of the poet's poems. Critics praise the poem's mutuality: the two places gathered in the ending, to the close's thinking.

此诗历来被推为白居易思念诗的名篇，也是元和唱和诗的代表。历代论者对此诗评价极高：清人评此诗「以春光写思念，情深意切」；近人更指出「两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家」写两地的相思，是此诗的名句。在诗歌史上，此诗的特殊价值在于：它以四句的绝句写尽居人与行客的相思——那靖安宅，那当窗柳，那望驿台，那扑地花，那两处春光，那同日尽，那居人，那客，都写尽了白居易笔下的相思；那「居人思客客思家」更以双写写尽两地的相思。此诗与王维《九月九日忆山东兄弟》（「遥知兄弟登高处」）同为思念名篇，一写「遍插茱萸少一人」的重阳（九月九日忆山东兄弟），一写「居人思客客思家」的双向（望驿台）；又与李商隐《夜雨寄北》「共剪西窗烛」的思念传统一脉相承，可见中国诗写相思的双向。对于今日读者，此诗是理解白居易思念诗的窗口，也是中国诗写相思的经典——那同日尽的春光，穿越千年，仍在诉说着两地的相思。

Prosody

Form A quatrain of the longing (qi yan jue ju)诗·七言绝句

Rhyme The poem rhymes on the level of the group — the cadence of the quatrain that carries the mutual longing.七绝，押「花」「家」韵（下平六麻），一韵到底，音节流畅

Tone pattern The cadence is that of the mutual thinking: the level opening with the two places, the turning with the ending, and the close's fall with the thinking.此诗为七言绝句，押平声韵，一韵到底，音节流畅，正合思念的流畅。

Reading note The poem's sound matches its mutuality: the cadences of the quatrain, and the close — 'ju ren si ke ke si jia' — falls with the home, the sound of the mutual thinking of the separated couple.此诗为七言绝句，四句——「靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花。两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家」，押「麻」韵（花、家），一韵到底，音节流畅。全诗以春光写思念：前二句写两处的春光（靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花），后二句写两地的相思（两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家）。四句短章，前写两处，后写两地，以「居人思客客思家」写尽两地的相思，正见白居易「浅近平易」的本色。诵读此诗，宜以流畅的语调读「靖安宅里当窗柳」的春景，以深情的语调读「居人思客客思家」的相思，结句要读得低回而有余韵，方能传达出白居易的平易亲切。白居易绝句以「浅近平易」著称，此诗正是其思念绝句的典范。

Line by line

两处春光同日尽，居人思客客思家

The, spring, light, of, the, two, places, in, the, same, day, ending, the, dweller, thinking, of, the, guest, the, guest, thinking, of, the, home.

两处春光同日而尽，居人思客客思家。

Spring in two places ends on the same day; the one at home thinks of the traveler, the traveler thinks of home.

此二句是全诗写相思的核心，以两处春光同日尽写光阴，以居人思客客思家写相思，写尽两地的相思，是千古名句。「两处春光同日尽」写两处春光同日而尽——那「两处春光」写两处的春光，「同日尽」写同日而尽，写尽光阴的流逝；「居人思客客思家」写居人思客客思家——那「居人思客」写居人思客，「客思家」写客思家，写尽两地的相思。这句的深意在于：它以「两处春光同日尽」的光阴与「居人思客客思家」的相思，写尽两地的相思——两处春光同日而尽，那「两处春光同日尽」写尽光阴的流逝——靖安宅与望驿台，两处春光同日而尽，正是光阴的流逝，那「同日尽」写尽春光的同逝；居人思客客思家，那「居人思客客思家」写尽两地的相思——居人在家思客，客在途中思家，正是双向的相思，那「客思家」写尽两地的牵挂；那「两处春光同日尽」写尽光阴的流逝，那「居人思客客思家」写尽两地的相思，一写光阴，一写相思，写尽两地的相思——春光同尽而两地相思，正是分隔两地的写照；此二句以光阴、相思写尽两地的相思，也让此二句成为全诗写相思的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「我和他都互相想念」，则失其凝练；唯以「两处春光同日尽」写光阴、「居人思客客思家」写相思，写尽两地的相思，也让此二句成为全诗写相思的核心。

These two lines are the poem's core in writing mutual longing, famous through the ages. Spring in two places ends on the same day: two-places-spring-light-same-day-end names the simultaneous end of spring in the two locations (Bai Juyi at Jing'an in Chang'an, and his friend at the post terrace). The one at home thinks of the traveler, the traveler thinks of home: dweller-thinks-of-guest, guest-thinks-of-home states the reciprocal longing. The deeper pathos lies in the symmetry: the same day, the same spring's end, two thoughts flowing in opposite directions - home toward the road, road toward home. Bai Juyi's line is famous for this perfect symmetry, which makes the separation feel like a single shared grief rather than two separate ones. Compared with a plain saying we both miss each other, the same-day and the reciprocal thoughts give the mutual longing both simultaneity and balance, making this the poem's core.

靖安宅里当窗柳，望驿台前扑地花

In, the, house, of, the, Jing'an, the, willows, facing, the, window, before, the, Post, Terrace, the, flowers, dashing, the, ground.

靖安宅里当窗之柳，望驿台前扑地之花。

At the Jing'an house, willows face the window; before the Wangyi Post Terrace, flowers strew the ground.

此二句是全诗写两处的核心，以靖安宅里写宅，以望驿台前写驿，写尽两处的春光，是千古名句。「靖安宅里当窗柳」写靖安宅里当窗之柳——那「靖安宅里」写靖安宅中，「当窗柳」写当窗之柳，写尽宅中的春景；「望驿台前扑地花」写望驿台前扑地之花——那「望驿台前」写望驿台前，「扑地花」写扑地之花，写尽驿前的春景。这句的深意在于：它以「靖安宅里当窗柳」的宅与「望驿台前扑地花」的驿，写尽两处的春光——靖安宅里当窗之柳，那「靖安宅里当窗柳」写尽宅中的春景——靖安宅中，当窗之柳正绿，正是居人眼中的春色，那「当窗柳」写尽宅中的春景；望驿台前扑地之花，那「望驿台前扑地花」写尽驿前的春景——望驿台前，落花扑地，正是行客眼中的春色，那「扑地花」写尽驿前的落花；那「靖安宅里当窗柳」写尽宅中的春景，那「望驿台前扑地花」写尽驿前的春景，一写宅，一写驿，写尽两处的春光——宅中柳绿而驿前花落，正是两处的春景；此二句以宅、驿写尽两处的春光，也为后二句的相思作铺垫，也让此二句成为全诗写两处的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「他家和他路上都有春色」，则失其画面；唯以「靖安宅里当窗柳」写宅、「望驿台前扑地花」写驿，写尽两处的春光，也让此二句成为全诗写两处的核心。

These two lines are the poem's core in writing the two places, famous through the ages. At the Jing'an house, willows face the window: Jing'an-house names Bai's home, willows-facing-window names the spring scene there. Before the Wangyi Post Terrace, flowers strew the ground: Wangyi-Post-Terrace names the friend's lodging, flowers-strewing-ground names the fallen blossoms there. The deeper pathos lies in the contrast between the two scenes: at home, green willows face the window (spring still present); on the road, flowers strew the ground (spring already fallen). The two images are linked by the same day's spring end: the home scene is still green, the road scene already scattered. This couplet prepares the next line's two-places-spring-end, giving the abstraction concrete images. Compared with a plain saying there was spring scenery at my house and on the road, the window-willows and the ground-strewing flowers give the two locations both specificity and contrast, making this the poem's core.

Study

Word focus

同日尽 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「两处春光同日尽」之「同日尽」是写光阴的关键词，一个「同日尽」写尽春光的同逝。同日尽者，同一日而尽也。白居易以「两处春光同日尽」写光阴，这个「同日尽」至少有双重意味：其一，写春光之逝——那「两处春光同日尽」写两处春光同日而尽，那「同日尽」写尽春光的流逝——两处春光同日而尽，正是光阴的流逝，那「同日尽」写尽春光的同逝；其二，写两处之同——那「同日尽」更是写同——两处春光同日尽，正见宅与驿同此光阴，那「同日尽」写尽两地的同春。以「同日尽」写光阴，正是白居易写相思的枢纽——若换作「同时尽」「共尽」等词，则或失其与「两处春光」的配合，或失其写同日尽的意味；唯「同日尽」三字，以两处春光同日尽写尽春光的流逝与两地的同春，与「居人思客客思家」的居人客相合，写尽两地的相思，也让「两处春光同日尽」成为全诗写光阴的名句。

思 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「居人思客客思家」之「思」字是写相思的关键词，一个「思」字写尽两地的相思。思者，思念也。白居易以「居人思客客思家」写相思，这个「思」字至少有双重意味：其一，写相思之切——那「居人思客客思家」写居人思客客思家，那「思」字写尽相思之切——居人思客、客思家，正是思念之切，那「思」字写尽相思的殷切；其二，写双向之思——那「思」字更是写双向——居人思客、客亦思家，正是双向的思念，那「思」字写尽两地的相思。以「思」字写相思，正是白居易写深挚的枢纽——若换作「念」「忆」等字，则或失其与「居人」「客」的配合，或失其写双向的意味；唯「思」字，以居人思客客思家写尽相思之切与双向的思念，与「两处春光同日尽」的两处相合，写尽两地的相思，也让「居人思客客思家」成为全诗写相思的名句。

望驿台