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魏晋 Wei-Jin · 诗 Poem

咏怀·夜中不能寐

Song of My Heart: I Cannot Sleep at Night

阮籍

Ruan Ji

隐逸Reclusion 忧愤Melancholy and Indignation

夜中不能寐，起坐弹鸣琴。
薄帷鉴明月，清风吹我襟。
孤鸿号外野，翔鸟鸣北林。
徘徊将何见？
忧思独伤心。

In the night I cannot sleep, I rise and sit to play my lute.
Through thin curtains the bright moon shines, clear wind blows my robe.
A lone goose cries in the distant wilds, a flying bird sings in the northern wood.
I pace about—what is there to see? In sorrow alone my heart is grieved.

Listen

Meaning

Unable to sleep deep in the night, the poet rises and sits to play his lute. Through the thin curtain, the bright moon shines and the clear wind stirs his robe. Outside, a lone goose cries and a flying bird sings. He paces, but what can he see? Only deep sorrow and a wounded heart.

夜深人静却无法入眠，索性起身独坐，拨弄起鸣琴。薄薄的帐帷外，明月清辉映照；清风吹动我的衣襟。远处的荒野里，一只孤鸿在哀号；盘旋的飞鸟在北林中悲鸣。我徘徊四顾，又能见到什么？满腔忧思，唯有独自伤心而已。

Appreciation

The poem depicts a sleepless night, rising to play the lute, seeing the moon and wind, hearing the lone goose and bird, and being moved to deep melancholy by the scene.

【白话串讲】阮籍半夜睡不着，起来弹琴。“孤鸿号外野，翔鸟鸣北林”——他听着野外孤鸿的叫声，独自伤神。魏晋名士的苦闷，都在这个失眠的夜里。【意象与手法】全诗以叙事起，由「不能寐」到「弹鸣琴」，再到所见所闻，层层推进至「忧思独伤心」的结穴。写景清疏而寄意遥深，明月清风与孤鸿翔鸟构成清冷孤寂的意境。比兴手法自然浑成，孤鸿、翔鸟既是眼前实景，又是诗人自我命运的投射，言有尽而意无穷，充分体现阮籍诗「清远遥深」的格调。【情感与主旨】阮籍生活于曹魏与司马氏权力更替的险恶年代，司马氏大肆诛戮异己，名士多遭横祸。诗人为避免祸患，常以醉酒、佯狂自晦，内心却充满忧惧与苦闷。《咏怀》八十二首皆「志在刺讥，而文多隐避」，此为其一，借夜中不寐抒写身处乱世的孤危与忧思，是魏晋之际时代苦闷的典型回响。【名句点睛】默写易错：「薄帷鉴明月」之「帷」（易误作「帏」或「维」），「鉴」从金，表映照；「翔鸟鸣北林」之「翔」勿写作「祥」。理解「孤鸿」意象的比兴寄托是赏析重点。

Background

Ruan Ji lived in the perilous era of the transition from Cao Wei to Sima power. The Sima clan slaughtered dissidents, and many scholars met with disaster. To avoid harm, the poet often feigned drunkenness and madness, but was filled with fear and anguish. His 'Song of My Heart' (82 poems) all 'aim at satire but are veiled in words.' This one uses a sleepless night to express his isolation and anxiety in a chaotic age—a typical echo of the malaise of the Wei-Jin transition.

阮籍（210—263），字嗣宗，陈留尉氏人，「建安七子」之一阮瑀之子，三国魏诗人，「竹林七贤」之一，正始文学的代表作家。阮籍生活在曹魏与司马氏权力更替的险恶年代：司马懿、司马师、司马昭父子相继专权，大肆诛戮异己，「天下名士，少有全者」。阮籍本有济世之志，然「魏晋之际，天下多故，名士少有全者」，为避祸自晦，他「不与世事，遂酣饮为常」，以醉酒、佯狂、口不臧否人物来保全性命，内心却充满忧惧与苦闷，故发而为诗，皆「志在刺讥，而文多隐避」。《咏怀》八十二首是阮籍的代表作，皆五言，抒写乱世中的忧生之嗟、孤危之感与人生幻灭之思，此首「夜中不能寐」列于八十二首之首，是全组诗的总纲与序曲，借夜中不寐抒写身处乱世的孤危与忧思，是魏晋之际时代苦闷的典型回响。司马昭尝使人求婚于阮籍，籍连醉六十日不得言而止，其自晦如此，然心中块垒终不能消，遂借诗以泻，故《咏怀》诸作多托物言志、隐约其辞，读此诗可窥其全豹。

Art

The poem begins with narration, from 'cannot sleep' to 'playing the lute' to sights and sounds, building up to the climax of 'sorrow alone grieves my heart.' The scene is sparse but profound—the bright moon and clear wind contrast with the lone goose and flying bird, creating a cold, lonely atmosphere. The metaphorical technique is natural: the goose and bird are both real and symbols of the poet's own fate. The words have limited meaning but infinite implication, fully embodying Ruan Ji's style of 'pure, distant, profound.'

全诗以叙事起、以抒情结，章法严整而意境浑成。起笔「夜中不能寐，起坐弹鸣琴」直写失眠与弹琴，由「不能寐」到「起坐」再到「弹鸣琴」，动作层层递进，见出诗人胸中郁结、辗转难安之态，弹琴正是排遣忧思之举。继而「薄帷鉴明月，清风吹我襟」写室内所见所感：月光透过薄薄的帐帷照入，清风拂动衣襟，景致清冷而空灵，「鉴」字写月光如镜，炼字精警。再写室外所闻：「孤鸿号外野，翔鸟鸣北林」，孤鸿哀号于外野，翔鸟悲鸣于北林，一「号」一「鸣」，声声入耳，由静转动。末二句「徘徊将何见？忧思独伤心」由景入情，直抒胸臆，以反问带出「忧思独伤心」，收束全篇。全诗以「夜」为时间背景，由内而外、由近及远、由所见所闻到所感，层层推进，写景清疏而寄意遥深，明月清风与孤鸿翔鸟构成清冷孤寂的意境，比兴自然浑成，言有尽而意无穷，充分体现阮籍诗「清远遥深」的格调。通篇无一字直写时事，而乱世之忧自见，正是「以隐语写深情」的典范。

Allusions

The images of 'lone goose' and 'flying bird' have origins in the 'Book of Songs' and 'Chu Ci' tradition of using solitary birds as self-metaphors. Ji Kang also used flying birds to convey meaning. Ruan Ji uniquely captures the startled, lost birds crying in the wilds, making the image more desolate and establishing the 'lone goose' as a prototype for the outsider in later poetry.

诗中「孤鸿」「翔鸟」意象渊源有自，可上溯《诗经·小雅·鸿雁》「鸿雁于飞，肃肃其羽」的漂泊之叹，以及楚辞中以孤鸟自喻的哀怨传统（如《九章》「鸟飞反故乡兮」）。嵇康《赠秀才入军》「目送归鸿，手挥五弦」亦以飞鸟寄意，但写的是超然之趣；阮籍则独取「号外野」「鸣北林」的惊飞失群之象，化用前人孤禽意象而更见悲凉。「孤鸿号外野」写鸿雁失群、独栖野地而哀号，正是诗人自处乱世、孤危无依的写照；「翔鸟鸣北林」写飞鸟盘旋无枝可栖而悲鸣，暗喻士人徘徊无路、进退失据的处境。「北林」一词又见于曹植《赠白马王彪》「孤雁飞南游，过庭长哀吟」，阮籍承此而变其境。此后「孤鸿」遂成为咏怀诗中畸零者、孤独者的原型意象，影响及于陶渊明「栖栖失群鸟」、杜甫「孤雁不饮啄」一脉，可见此诗意象的原型意义。后人咏雁之作，如杜甫「孤雁不饮啄，飞鸣声念群」、张炎「写不成书，只寄得、相思一点」，皆可视为阮籍「孤鸿」意象的隔代回响。

Commentary

Zhong Rong's 'Poetry Evaluation' says Ruan Ji's poems 'speak within hearing and sight, but emotion reaches beyond the eight wilds,' and 'can cultivate the spirit and stir deep thoughts.' Li Shan's commentary quotes Yan Yanzhi: 'Ruan Ji served in a chaotic court, often fearing slander and disaster, so he expressed his worries in poems, hence the lament for life.' Shen Deqian's 'Source of Ancient Poetry' says his poems are 'repetitive and disorderly, with boundless inspiration, joyful yet sorrowful, erratic and unrestrained,' showing the subtlety of their obscurity.

此诗历来被视为《咏怀》八十二首的总纲。钟嵘《诗品》评阮籍诗「言在耳目之内，情寄八荒之表」，又谓其「可以陶性灵，发幽思」，正指这种句句眼前实景、字字身世深衷的写法。李善注《文选》引颜延年语：「嗣宗身仕乱朝，常恐罹谤遇祸，因兹发咏，故每有忧生之嗟。」沈德潜《古诗源》谓阮籍诗「反复零乱，兴寄无端，和愉哀怨，俶诡不羁」，此首虽为组诗之首，语言明白如话，然而「夜中不能寐」的忧思所指为何，历来说者纷纭——或谓刺司马氏，或谓忧生惧祸，或谓伤时念乱，正见其「文多隐避」的特点。黄节《阮步兵咏怀诗注》详考八十二首之本事，亦多存疑，正是「归趣难求」的注脚。在文学史上，此诗上承《古诗十九首》的忧生传统，下开陶渊明、庾信以降的咏怀一脉，以五言短章写尽乱世士人的孤危心境，是正始之音的代表，也是中国文人「忧患意识」的诗化结晶。故读此诗，不可泥于字句，而当于「言在耳目之内，情寄八荒之表」处求之。

Prosody

Form Five-character old-style poem (yonghuai)五言古诗（《咏怀》八十二首之一）

Rhyme mei, qin, jin, lin, xin (level tone 'qin' rhyme group, old-style poem broad rhyme)押平水韵侵部：琴、襟、林、心（「寐」以去声叶入），古体诗用韵较宽，平仄通押。

Tone pattern Old-style poem, no strict tonal patterns or parallelism, meaning-focused五言古体，不拘平仄对仗，以气运词，节奏舒缓凝重，宜于抒写深沉忧思。

Reading note The 'Song of My Heart' 82 poems are Ruan Ji's representative work; this is the first. It uses much metaphor, with deep meaning, as said 'its aim is deep and unrestrained, the ultimate message hard to find.'此诗为五言古诗，属《咏怀》八十二首之第一首。古体诗与近体诗不同，不讲究平仄黏对、不要求对仗工整，而以气韵为主，用韵亦较宽，此诗即通押侵韵（琴、襟、林、心）而「寐」字以去声叶入，可见古体用韵之自由。五言句式以「二二一」或「二一二」为基本节奏，此诗如「夜中／不能／寐，起坐／弹／鸣琴」，诵读时音节缓重，正合深夜忧思的沉郁情调。章法上，全诗八句，前四句写「我」——不能寐、弹琴、见月、吹风，后四句写「物」——孤鸿、翔鸟，终以「徘徊」「伤心」收束，由内而外、由静而动、由景入情，层次分明。诗中「薄帷鉴明月，清风吹我襟」「孤鸿号外野，翔鸟鸣北林」两组对句，对仗虽不若近体工严，却自然浑成，声情并茂。钟嵘《诗品》谓阮籍诗「言在耳目之内，情寄八荒之表」，此诗八句四十字，句句可感可闻，而字字皆有言外之旨，正是古体诗「以短章写深衷」的典范。

Line by line

夜中不能寐，起坐弹鸣琴。

Unable to sleep at night, I rise and sit to play my sounding lute. Begins directly with insomnia; 'playing the lute' expresses sorrow, setting a lonely, gloomy tone. 'Unable to sleep' points to pent-up feelings.

夜深了却无法入睡，索性起身独坐，拨弄起鸣琴。

In the deep night I cannot sleep, so I rise, sit up, and play the ringing qin.

起笔两句直写失眠与弹琴，是全诗的引子与基调。「夜中不能寐」以平实的叙述写深夜失眠——诗人不写愁苦之状，只写一个「不能寐」的事实，胸中郁结已在不言之中；「起坐弹鸣琴」写他索性起身，独坐弹琴，以琴声排遣忧思。两句连用四个动词（寐、起、坐、弹），动作如镜头般层层推进，见出诗人辗转反侧、坐卧不宁之态。值得注意的是「弹鸣琴」的深意：阮籍善琴，其《咏怀》中琴往往与忧思相伴，弹琴本是排忧之举，而「鸣琴」之声清越孤冷，正与诗人孤寂的心境相映——以琴遣忧而忧不能遣，反而在琴声中更觉孤独。两句以最平常的动作写出最深沉的心事，为全诗定下孤寂忧愤的基调。

The opening two lines state the insomnia and the qin directly, the introduction and keynote of the poem. 'In the deep night I cannot sleep' says only the fact of sleeplessness, not its shape—the congestion in the heart is understood without words. 'I rise, sit up, and play the ringing qin' shows him getting up to play and release his care. Four verbs in succession—sleep, rise, sit, play—move like a camera pushing in, rendering his tossing and turning. The significance of 'play the ringing qin' deserves note: Ruan Ji played the qin, and in his 'Singing My Heart' the instrument always accompanies anxious thought; yet the clear, cold sound of the qin matches his solitary mood—music meant to dispel care only deepens the loneliness. The most ordinary actions state the most hidden trouble, and set the poem's tone of isolated grief.

薄帷鉴明月，清风吹我襟。

Thin curtains reflect the bright moon, clear wind blows my robe. The cold moonlight and gentle breeze contrast with the solitary figure; the word 'reflect' (鉴) suggests the moon like a mirror, scene implying loneliness.

薄薄的帐帷映着明月的光辉，清风吹动我的衣襟。

The thin curtain catches the bright moon, and the clear wind stirs my lapels.

此二句写室内所见所感，是「弹鸣琴」时的环境铺写。「薄帷鉴明月」写月光透过薄薄的帐帷照入室内，「鉴」字最为精警——鉴本为镜，此处作动词，写明月如镜般照临，月光之明净、帷帐之轻薄，宛然在目；「清风吹我襟」写夜风拂动衣襟，一个「我」字点出诗人独坐其中的身影，风吹衣襟，衣袂飘飘，衬出夜的清冷与人的孤寂。两句一写月、一写风，月色清寒，风声萧萧，都是「夜中」的实景，而无一字写愁——然而薄帷、明月、清风，正是孤栖独处之人才会凝神注目的东西，景物的清冷即是心境的清冷，以景寓情，不着痕迹。此二句承上启下，由室内之景过渡到下文室外之所闻，为「孤鸿」「翔鸟」的出现作了铺垫。

These lines describe the room while the qin plays, laying out the setting. 'The thin curtain catches the bright moon': moonlight passes through the thin curtain into the room, and the word 'catches' is the most alert—originally a mirror, here a verb, as though the moon shone like a mirror, the cleanness of the light and the thinness of the curtain visible at once. 'The clear wind stirs my lapels': the night wind moves his clothing, and the single word 'my' names the poet's solitary figure within it, the sleeves stirring against the cold. One line the moon, one the wind—the moonlight cold, the wind whispering—all real sights of the deep night, yet no word names sorrow; but only someone sitting alone would notice the thin curtain, the bright moon, the clear wind, and the coldness of the scene is the coldness of the heart. The lines carry from indoor sights to outdoor sounds and prepare the lone goose and the circling bird.

孤鸿号外野，翔鸟鸣北林。

A lone goose cries in the distant wilds, a flying bird sings in the northern wood. These images are self-metaphors: the lost goose and startled bird symbolize the poet's isolation and dangerous situation, using indirect symbolism.

失群的孤鸿在野外哀号，盘旋的飞鸟在北林中悲鸣。

The lone goose cries out beyond the fields, and the circling bird laments in the northern wood.

此二句是全诗的比兴核心，由室内转到室外，由所见转到所闻，以孤鸿、翔鸟自喻。「孤鸿号外野」写鸿雁失群，独宿荒野，夜半哀号——「号」字极写其声之凄厉，孤鸿之「孤」与诗人独坐弹琴之「独」暗暗相照，失群之鸿正是乱世中孤立无援的诗人的化身；「翔鸟鸣北林」写飞鸟盘旋于北林，无枝可栖，悲鸣不止——「翔」字写其盘旋不去之态，「鸣」字写其声之哀切，无巢可归的翔鸟，正是士人进退失据、彷徨无路的写照。两句皆眼前实景，而比兴之意自在其中：孤鸿、翔鸟既是夜中所闻，又是诗人自我命运的投射，物我一体，寄托深微。以「孤鸿」对「翔鸟」、「号」对「鸣」、「外野」对「北林」，对仗工整而意境苍凉，是全诗最具象征意味的句子。

These two lines are the allegorical core, moving from room to outdoors, from sight to sound, using the goose and bird as self-images. The 'lone goose cries beyond the fields': cut from its flock, roosting alone in the waste and wailing at midnight—the word 'cries' renders its shrill sound, and the 'lone' of the goose quietly answers the 'alone' of the poet playing the qin, the lost bird the image of the friendless poet in the troubled age. The 'circling bird laments in the northern wood': hovering over the northern trees, no branch to roost on, mourning without end—the word 'circling' renders its inability to leave, the word 'laments' its cry, the bird with no nest the image of the scholar who can neither advance nor withdraw. Both are real night sounds, yet the allegory is inherent: the goose and bird are what he hears and projections of his own fate, self and thing as one. The parallelism—lone goose against circling bird, cries against laments, outer fields against northern wood—is exact and desolate, the most symbolic passage in the poem.

徘徊将何见？忧思独伤心。

I pace about—what is there to see? In sorrow alone my heart is grieved. Concludes the poem by directly expressing sorrow; the word 'alone' (独) echoes the initial solitude, leaving a lingering melancholy.

我徘徊四顾，又能见到什么呢？满腔忧思，唯有独自伤心而已。

I pace back and forth—what is there to see? Heavy with anxious thought, I grieve alone.

末二句由景入情，直抒胸臆，是全诗的结穴。「徘徊」写诗人弹琴既罢、闻声有感，起身徘徊四顾——一个徘徊的身影，写尽夜不能寐者的焦灼与无着；「将何见」以反问出之：徘徊寻觅，又能见到什么？天地茫茫，夜色沉沉，无所见、无所归、无所告，这一问把前文的孤鸿翔鸟、明月清风一并收束，一切景物都成了空。「忧思独伤心」五字直揭题旨，「忧思」点明全诗之根，「独」字一字千钧——无人可语、无人可诉、无人理解，只能独自伤心，「独」字与篇首「不能寐」、篇中「孤鸿」遥相呼应，首尾圆合。全诗以「不能寐」起、以「独伤心」结，把夜中徘徊的忧思写得含蓄不尽、余味无穷，正是阮籍「忧生之嗟」的典型表达。

The closing two lines move from scene to direct speech, the poem's conclusion. 'I pace back and forth' gives the poet, the qin played and the sounds heard, rising to walk to and fro—the pacing figure renders all the anxiety and aimlessness of the sleepless. 'What is there to see?' is a question: searching in his pacing, what can he find? Heaven and earth vast, the night deep, nothing seen, no home, no witness—and the question gathers up the goose, the bird, the moon, and the wind into a void. 'Heavy with anxious thought, I grieve alone' states the theme directly: 'anxious thought' roots the poem, and 'alone' weighs a thousand catties—no one to speak to, no one to hear, no one to understand, only solitary grief. That 'alone' answers the 'cannot sleep' at the opening and the 'lone goose' in the middle, rounding the poem. It opens on 'cannot sleep' and closes on 'grieve alone,' holding the midnight pacing in inexhaustible, lingering sorrow—the classic expression of Ruan's 'lament for the life he must lead.'

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Word focus

孤鸿 A lone goose as self-metaphor: both a scene and a symbol of the poet's isolated situation in the Wei-Jin transition, conveying deep meaning. 「孤鸿号外野」之「孤鸿」是全诗最重要的意象，以失群孤鸿自喻，比兴寄托遥深。「孤」字写其失群无伴，「鸿」即大雁，本为群居候鸟，失群而独飞，遂成「孤鸿」，其哀号于旷野，正是诗人自处乱世的写照——阮籍身处魏晋易代之际，司马氏诛戮异己，名士少有全者，诗人既不能同流合污，又不能直斥其非，如孤鸿之失群无依，孤立无援，故借孤鸿写己之孤危。「号」字更添凄厉，写孤鸿夜半哀号，声彻旷野，正是诗人内心郁结之情的物化。此后「孤鸿」遂成为中国诗歌中畸零者、孤独者的原型意象，陶渊明「栖栖失群鸟」、杜甫「孤雁不饮啄」皆承此脉，可见此二字意象的原型意义与深远影响。

鉴 Originally 'mirror', here used as verb 'to shine on'—the moon shines through the thin curtain. The word choice is precise, highlighting a cold, lonely atmosphere. 「薄帷鉴明月」之「鉴」字是全诗炼字最精之处。鉴本为铜镜，作名词；此处活用为动词，意为映照，写明月的光辉透过薄薄的帐帷照入室内，如镜般明净。「鉴」字之妙有四：一是写月光之明，明月当空，清辉洒落，非「照」字所能尽——「鉴」含镜鉴之意，月光之澄澈如镜面之莹净；二是写帷帐之薄，唯其薄，明月之光才能「鉴」入，薄帷与明月相映，意境清冷空灵；三是化静为动，明月本是静物，「鉴」字写出月光映照帷帐的动态过程，仿佛月光也在凝望室内之人；四是「鉴」字暗含「照见」之意，月光照见诗人独坐弹琴的孤影，物我相照，孤独感油然而生。一字之工，清冷孤寂的氛围全出，是阮籍「清远遥深」诗风的典型炼字。

独 The character 'du' (alone) at the end sums up the whole poem's loneliness. One word carries great weight, emphasizing the deep sorrow that no one understands. 「忧思独伤心」之「独」字，是全诗情感的收束之字，一字千钧。前文写夜不能寐、弹琴排忧，写孤鸿翔鸟、徘徊四顾，种种情景，归结于「独伤心」——「独」字道尽诗人处境的本质：无人可语、无人可诉、无人理解、无人同悲。阮籍身处乱世，「口不臧否人物」以避祸，纵有满腹忧思，亦不敢向人倾吐，只能独自消化，故「独」字既是客观处境的写照（独处、独坐、独行），更是主观心境的剖白（孤独、孤危、孤愤）。此字又与篇首「夜中不能寐」的独醒、篇中「孤鸿号外野」的失群遥相呼应，一「独」字贯通全篇，把个人之忧升华为乱世士人共同的孤危之感，收束得含蓄而沉重，余韵不尽，正是「一字立骨」的典范。