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五代 Five Dynasties · 词 Ci lyric

望江南·闲梦远

Dreaming of the South

李煜

Li Yu

愁思sorrow 怀古History 时序Theme 抒情Emotion

闲梦远，南国正芳春。
船上管弦江面绿，满城飞絮辊轻尘。
忙杀看花人。
闲梦远，南国正清秋。
千里江山寒色远，芦花深处泊孤舟。
笛在月明楼。

In idle dreams I travel far,
In the south land spring is fair.
On painted boats flutes and strings play on green river clear;
The town's full of willowdowns rolling in dust light.
Busy are flower-seers.

In idle dreams I travel far,
In the south land autumn is clear.
For miles and miles the cold hue spreads o'er hill and rill;
In the depth of reeds a lonely boat moors still.
From the moonlit tower floats a flute’s song drear.

Listen

Meaning

The poet dreams of his lost southern kingdom, first in its glorious spring and then in its lonely autumn, contrasting past joy with present sorrow.

闲梦悠远，南国正当芳春。船上传来管弦，江面一片澄绿，满城飞絮翻滚着轻尘。忙坏了那看花的人。// 闲梦悠远，南国正当清秋。千里江山寒色渺远，芦花深处停泊着一叶孤舟。笛声出自那明月楼头。

Appreciation

Li Yu wrote these two poems after his captivity, using 'idle dreams' to recall his homeland in spring and autumn. The spring scene is lively with music, green river, willowdowns, and busy flower-viewers; the autumn scene is desolate with cold mountains, reeds, a lonely boat, and a flute in moonlight. The vivid contrast between bustle and stillness, warmth and coldness, heightens the pain of loss—the more beautiful the dream, the bitterer the awakening.

【白话串讲】李煜在梦里回到南国：春天，江面绿，满城飞絮；秋天，芦花深处泊孤舟，月明楼上笛声。两个梦，一个春天一个秋天，都是他回不去的故国。【意象与手法】此二首皆以「闲梦远」领起，以梦为全篇结构枢纽，点出梦境之悠远与故国之迢递；「南国正芳春」「南国正清秋」分点时令，构成春秋对举的对称章法。春首以「船上管弦江面绿」「满城飞絮辊轻尘」的视听结合写江南春日的秾丽喧闹，秋首以「千里江山寒色远」「芦花深处泊孤舟」的疏淡笔墨写清秋的萧瑟孤寂，两幅画面一闹一静、一暖一寒，对比强烈。手法上多用乐景写哀、以声结景：「忙杀看花人」以人衬春，「笛在月明楼」以笛声收束，梦愈美而醒愈痛，正是后主后期「以血书者」的典型笔法。【情感与主旨】此二首为李煜降宋被俘后的忆故国之词，以「闲梦」追忆南唐金陵的春秋二景。表面写故国风物之美，内里是「故国不堪回首」的锥心之痛：春景愈繁华，愈见今日之凄凉；秋景愈清寂，愈见身世之孤零。词人以梦为舟，重返南国，而梦醒之后，故国依然遥不可及，乐景哀情、清景愁思交织，抒发了亡国之后深沉的故国之思与身世之感，是后主后期词「眼界始大、感慨遂深」的典范。【名句点睛】常考「闲梦远」的领起作用与「以梦写哀」的手法（梦的意象如何统摄全篇、梦醒之间的幻灭感）；「辊」字炼字之妙（写飞絮翻滚的动态，状春之喧闹）；「孤舟」之「孤」的双关意（既写秋江孤泊，更写亡国之君孑然一身）；两首春秋对举的结构艺术（一闹一静、一暖一寒，对比中见故国之思）；结句「笛在月明楼」以景结情、以声写愁的余韵。

Background

After the fall of the Southern Tang kingdom, Li Yu was taken captive to the Song capital. These two poems on the pattern 'Dreaming of the South' were written during his captivity, using dreams to recall the spring and autumn of his lost homeland. The first depicts a vibrant spring outing; the second a solitary autumn scene. The pairing of splendor and desolation is characteristic of his later works, where he writes of grief through happy or quiet scenes.

李煜（937—978），字重光，初名从嘉，号钟隐，南唐中主李璟第六子，史称南唐后主。他于961年即位，其时南唐已向宋称臣纳贡、国力日蹙；975年宋将曹彬攻破金陵，后主肉袒出降，被俘北迁汴京，封违命侯，978年七夕被宋太宗赐牵机药毒死。此《望江南·闲梦远》二首即作于被俘之后、汴京幽居的岁月，是后主「日夕只以眼泪洗面」时期的追忆故国之辞。据《南唐书》及宋人笔记，李煜被囚期间行动受制、旧臣隔绝，唯有借梦重返江南：金陵台城的春水画舫、秦淮风物、故国春秋，皆成其梦中慰藉与醒后锥痛。此二首以「闲梦」起笔，写南国芳春与清秋两幅画面，实则以梦写哀——梦愈美，醒愈痛，正与《虞美人》「故国不堪回首月明中」同一机杼。南唐立国三十九年，三主皆好文学，金陵人文荟萃，李煜前期词多写宫廷享乐与男女情爱，入宋后一变而为亡国哀音，王国维《人间词话》所谓「变伶工之词而为士大夫之词」，此二首正是其后期词风确立的明证，也是词史上「以血书者」的先声。

Art

Both poems begin with 'In idle dreams I travel far,' establishing the remoteness of the dream. The first line of each stanza sets the season: 'spring is fair' vs 'autumn is clear.' Spring is portrayed with 'flutes and strings,' 'green river,' 'willowdowns rolling in dust,' and 'busy flower-seers'—a picture of lively festivity. Autumn is portrayed with 'cold hue,' 'reeds,' 'lonely boat,' and 'flute in moonlit tower'—a scene of quiet isolation. The two tableaux—one bustling, one still; one warm, one cold—are set in sharp contrast, each evoking the unbearable memory of a lost kingdom. The language is clear and the imagery far-reaching, typical of Li Yu's later short lyrics.

此二首最见后主后期章法之妙，全在「两两对举、以梦统景」。两首皆以「闲梦远」三字领起，复以「南国正芳春」「南国正清秋」分点时令，构成一组结构严整的春秋对句；下接的景物铺写则一闹一静、一暖一寒，形成强烈的对称美学。春首写「船上管弦江面绿」以听觉（管弦）与视觉（江绿）并陈，「满城飞絮辊轻尘」以「辊」字写飞絮翻滚的动态，末句「忙杀看花人」以人衬春，把江南春日的秾丽喧闹写到极致；秋首则改以「千里江山寒色远」的疏淡远景，配「芦花深处泊孤舟」的萧瑟近景，结以「笛在月明楼」的悠远清音，由热闹陡然转入清冷。两幅画面并置，春之愈盛愈见秋之愈冷，而无论盛景冷景，皆出自同一场「闲梦」——以乐景写哀，哀更其哀；以清景写愁，愁更其深。写法上，二首皆由远而近、由面到点，先铺陈大背景（江、城、千里江山），再聚焦细节（管弦、飞絮、孤舟、笛声），收束处皆以人（看花人、明月楼）作结，视角始终在「梦」中游移，如电影镜头般推拉摇移，把故国之思写得既阔大又细腻，是后主后期「以血书者」词风的典型章法。

Allusions

'Dreaming of the South' was originally a Tang dance tune made famous by Bai Juyi's lyrics on Jiangnan. 'South land' here alludes to the ancient Chu tradition (e.g., 'The Orange Tree' in *Chu Ci*: 'Born in the south, it cannot be transplanted') and to the poet's own fallen kingdom, the Southern Tang. 'Lonely boat in reeds' and 'flute in moonlit tower' evoke Zhang Ji's 'Mooring by Maple Bridge at Night' and Li Bai's flute imagery, conveying exile and solitude. The entire piece uses Jiangnan dreamscapes to express the grief of national ruin, with images that are pure and distant.

此二首用典不着痕迹，而以意象传统取胜。「望江南」本为唐教坊曲名，白居易依其调作《忆江南》三首（「江南好，风景旧曾谙」），始以「江南」入题，后主借旧调写故国江南，正是乐府「借题发挥」之遗意，却把白词的山水清赏翻为亡国血泪。「南国」一词上承《楚辞·橘颂》「受命不迁，生南国兮」，本写忠贞不迁之志，此处反用其意——南国已亡，诗人身陷北地而魂系南国，愈见「不迁」之痛。「闲梦」则承六朝以来「梦江南」诗脉，唐人皇甫松《梦江南》「兰烬落，屏上暗红蕉。闲梦江南梅熟日」已开「闲梦江南」之先，后主「闲梦远」三字直从此出，然皇甫松之梦尚是闲适之梦，后主之梦却是故国之梦，一闲一痛，境界迥异。至于「芦花深处泊孤舟」，化用张继《枫桥夜泊》的夜泊意象而更添孤寒；「笛在月明楼」遥承李白《春夜洛城闻笛》「谁家玉笛暗飞声」的闻笛思乡传统，以笛声结全篇，余韵悠长。满城飞絮又与谢道韫「未若柳絮因风起」的咏絮之才暗通，写尽江南春日风物之盛。诸般意象皆唐人习用，而后主以亡国之身重铸之，遂使旧意象尽染新哀，故唐圭璋谓其「表面闲梦，内里血泪」。

Commentary

Wang Guowei in *Notes on Lyrics* said that Li Yu's lyrics are 'written with blood.' Although these two pieces speak of dreams, every word is about his lost kingdom, embodying what Wang called 'widened horizons and deepened feelings.' Modern scholar Tang Guizhang observed that 'beneath the surface of idle dreams lie tears of blood.' They rank with 'The Beautiful Lady Yu' as masterpieces of Li Yu's later period.

王国维《人间词话》论李煜，谓「词至李后主而眼界始大，感慨遂深，遂变伶工之词而为士大夫之词」，又极称「后主之词，真所谓以血书者也」。此《望江南·闲梦远》二首虽为小令短章，却字字从血泪中浸出：表面写「闲梦」之悠远，内里是「故国不堪回首」的锥心，正合「眼界始大，感慨遂深」之评。近人唐圭璋《唐宋词简释》拈出此二首「以梦写哀」之妙，谓其「表面闲梦，内里血泪」；俞平伯亦赏其春秋对举、以景结情的章法，以为后主小令在极短篇幅内完成境界转换，功力不在长调之下。就文学史而言，此二首的价值有三：其一，把词从花间樽前的艳科中解放出来，赋予小令以家国之痛、身世之悲的厚重内涵，开南渡后辛弃疾、陆游以词写忧国情怀的先声；其二，以「梦」为结构枢纽、以春秋对举为章法，为后世「忆江南」类词（如温庭筠、皇甫松、苏轼）提供了新的抒情范式；其三，「乐景写哀」「以声结情」诸法，直接影响宋人悼亡、怀古诸词。故今人选录五代词，此二首与《虞美人》《浪淘沙》并列为后主后期绝唱，堪称以血书者的小令典范。

Prosody

Form Five-Dynasty lyric to the tune 'Dreaming of the South' (monostich 27 characters, two stanzas)词·《望江南》（单调小令，二十七字，五句三平韵）

Rhyme First stanza rhymes 'far, fair, clear, dust, chairs' (assonance); second stanza rhymes 'far, clear, rill, still, drear' (assonance)春首韵脚为远、春、尘、人，皆平声真文类韵，一韵到底；秋首韵脚为远、秋、舟、楼，皆平声尤侯类韵，一韵到底。两首皆以「闲梦远」入韵起句，平声韵脚舒缓悠远。

Tone pattern Level-tone opening and closing; short lyric with pattern 3-5-7-5-7句式三、五、七、五、七言相间，短长错落。首句三字起调，次句五字、三句七字、四句五字、结句七字，节奏由短入长、再由长收束，如流水蜿蜒。

Reading note One of Li Yu's later pieces recalling his fallen kingdom, pairing spring and autumn《望江南》又名《忆江南》《梦江南》，本唐教坊曲，白居易依调作《忆江南》三首，始以「江南」为咏题，五代词人争相倚声，李煜此作即依白词体制而更翻新境。此调为单调小令，二十七字，五句，句式三、五、七、五、七，句句押韵（首句入韵），平韵一韵到底，声情舒缓悠扬，本宜写江南风物之清丽；后主却借其清丽之声写亡国之痛，以声情之柔写愁情之重，形成「声与情反」的特殊张力。两首对举，各自成篇而章法全同：皆以「闲梦远」三字起句定调，第二句五字点出时令（芳春或清秋），三四句七言、五言铺陈景物，结句五字以景收束，结构严整如双璧。韵脚上，春首押真文类平声韵（春、尘、人），音色明亮绵长，正合春景之秾丽；秋首押尤侯类平声韵（秋、舟、楼），音色悠远清冷，正合秋景之萧疏——声韵与情景高度统一，可见后主倚声之工。此调体小而韵密，最忌堆砌，而后主以二十七字写尽故国春秋两幅画卷，虚实相生、情景交融，足证其小令造诣之深，实开宋人令词先声。

Line by line

闲梦远，南国正芳春。

In idle dreams I travel far; the southern kingdom is in its fragrant spring.

闲适的梦境飘向悠远之处，故国江南正当芳菲烂漫的春天。

An idle dream drifts far away; in the southern homeland it is now the lush, fragrant spring.

起句「闲梦远」三字是全词的题眼与总纲。「闲」字表面写梦境的从容闲适，实则是被俘后主在汴京幽居中百无聊赖的写照——身困北地、行动受制，唯有一缕残梦尚可自由飞越千里，回到南国；「远」字既写梦程之迢递（从汴京到金陵），更写故国与现实的遥不可及，梦愈远则国愈遥、痛愈深。「南国正芳春」点出梦境所归之时令与地点，一个「正」字见出记忆的鲜明定格——故国的春天在诗人记忆中永远定格在芳菲最盛的那一刻。开篇五字定下「以梦写哀」的总基调，看似闲淡，实则字字含悲，为下文铺写江南春景预作铺垫，也与第二首「南国正清秋」形成春秋对举的结构呼应，共同构成后主梦中故国的完整时空。

The opening three characters 'idle dream far' are the thesis and framework of the whole. The word 'idle' seems to write the leisure of the dream, but in truth is the picture of the captive Later Lord, bored and helpless in his Bianjing confinement—body trapped in the north, movement constrained, only a thread of dream may freely fly a thousand li home to the south. The word 'far' writes both the length of the dream's journey (from Bianjing to Jinling) and the unattainable distance between homeland and reality; the farther the dream, the more remote the kingdom, the deeper the pain. 'The southern kingdom is in its fragrant spring' fixes the season and place where the dream arrives, the word 'now' showing the vivid freeze of memory—the homeland's spring forever frozen in the poet's memory at the moment of fullest blossom. The five opening characters fix the general keynote of 'writing grief through the dream,' seeming idle yet every character laden with grief, preparing the Jiangnan spring scenes below and echoing the paired second lyric's 'the southern kingdom is in its clear autumn,' together forming the complete time and space of the homeland in the captive's dream.

船上管弦江面绿，满城飞絮辊轻尘。

On the boats strings and pipes play; the river is green; all the city's flying catkins roll the light dust.

游船上传出管弦乐声，江面一片澄绿；满城飘飞的柳絮随着轻尘翻滚。

Music of strings and pipes drifts from the pleasure boats; the river surface is a clear green. Flying catkins fill the city, rolling and eddying in the light dust.

此二句以视听结合之笔写尽江南春日的秾丽喧闹。「船上管弦」从听觉落笔，写秦淮画舫笙歌之盛；「江面绿」从视觉落笔，以「绿」字写春江澄碧之色，声色并陈，春意满江。「满城飞絮辊轻尘」更以「辊」字写柳絮裹着轻尘翻滚的动态，把春日飞絮之盛写到扑面而来之境，一个「满」字见出春色之浓烈无孔不入。表面是极热闹的春景，然此景只存在于「闲梦」之中——越是把故国之春写得秾丽，越见现实囚居之凄凉；以乐景写哀，一倍增其哀。而「辊轻尘」暗含尘土之象，繁华中已透出邈远之思，为下句「忙杀看花人」的热闹场面添上一层时光流转的怅惘，是后主「乐景写哀」笔法的典型运用。

These two lines write the lush, bustling Jiangnan spring through sight and sound. 'On the boats strings and pipes play' begins with hearing, the music of painted pleasure boats on the Qinhuai; 'the river is green' begins with sight, the word 'green' writing the spring river's clear blue, sound and color together, spring filling the stream. 'All the city's flying catkins roll the light dust' uses the word 'roll' to write catkins wrapped in light dust tumbling, the flying spring catkins pressing to the face, the word 'all' showing spring's intensity penetrating everywhere. On the surface a most lively spring scene, yet this scene exists only in the 'idle dream'—the more lush the homeland's spring is written, the more desolate the real captivity shows; joyous scenery doubling grief. And 'roll the light dust' secretly carries the image of dust, decay already glimpsed within the splendor, adding a layer of wistfulness at the passage of time to the bustle of 'the flower-watchers frantic' below—the typical use of Li Yu's 'grief through joy.'

千里江山寒色远，芦花深处泊孤舟。

A thousand li of hills and rivers, the cold hue stretching far; deep in the flowered rushes, a lone boat lies moored.

千里江山笼罩在渺远的寒色之中，芦花深处停泊着一叶孤舟。

For a thousand li, hills and rivers lie veiled in a distant, cold light; deep among the blossoming reeds, a solitary boat is moored.

秋首由春之喧闹陡然转入秋之清寂。「千里江山寒色远」以大笔泼墨写故国山河的全景，一个「寒」字兼写秋令之寒与心境之寒，「远」字更把江山推到渺远难即之处——江山依旧在，而故国已非我有，千里山河不过是梦中遥遥一瞥。「芦花深处泊孤舟」则由远及近，聚焦于芦花深处的一叶孤舟，「深」字写芦花之密、舟之隐，「孤」字更是全词的词眼：孤舟既是秋江实景，更是被俘后主孑然一身、漂泊无依的自画像。两句一大一小、一远一近，以空阔衬孤微，以寒色映孤舟，把亡国之君的孤寂写得既阔大又沉痛。此二句与春首的「船上管弦」形成冷暖、闹静、群乐与孤泊的鲜明对照，是两首对举章法的枢纽。

The autumn lyric turns suddenly from spring's bustle to autumn's stillness. 'A thousand li of hills and rivers, the cold hue stretching far' uses broad brush to paint the panorama of the homeland's mountains and streams, the word 'cold' bearing both the chill of autumn and the cold of heart, the word 'far' pushing the rivers and hills to the remote and unattainable—the hills remain, yet the kingdom is no longer his, and the thousand-li landscape is only a far glimpse in the dream. 'Deep among the blossoming reeds, a lone boat lies moored' pulls back from far to near, focusing on a single lone boat deep in the rushes; 'deep' writes the density of the rushes and the hiding of the boat, and the word 'lone' is the thesis of the whole—the lone boat is both the real autumn river and the self-portrait of the captive Later Lord, alone and adrift. The two lines, one large one small, one far one near, set the small and lone against the vast and cold, writing the solitude of the fallen ruler as at once grand and stricken. They contrast sharply with the spring lyric's 'music from the boats' in warmth and cold, bustle and stillness, shared delight and lonely mooring—the hinge of the paired structure.

笛在月明楼。

The flute sounds from the tower in the moonlight.

笛声从那明月朗照的楼头传来。

A flute drifts down from the moonlit tower.

结句五字以声结景，是全词余韵所在。「笛在月明楼」不写吹笛之人，不写笛声之曲，只写笛声「在」明月楼头——一个「在」字把笛声写得有处可寻、萦绕不去，如月光般洒满楼头，又似故国之音隔着时空遥遥传来。月明楼是江南常见的清丽意象，配以笛声，遂成一幅极清远的秋夜图；然此楼是故国之楼，此笛是梦中之笛，越是清丽悠远，越见醒后之悲。与上句「孤舟」并看，芦花孤舟写水上之孤，月楼笛声写楼上之寂，上下呼应，构成秋景的完整画面。全词以「闲梦远」起、以「笛在月明楼」结，梦自远而近、自春而秋，最终凝于一声笛响，余音袅袅，令人低回不尽。此五字以景结情、以声写愁的手法，为后世「忆江南」词提供了经典范本。

The closing five characters end in sound, the lingering echo of the whole. 'The flute sounds from the moonlit tower' writes not the player nor the tune, only that the flute 'is' at the moonlit tower—the single word 'is' gives the sound a place to rest, lingering like moonlight flooding the tower, like the music of the homeland carried across time and space. The moonlit tower is a typical clear, beautiful image of Jiangnan, paired with the flute to form an exceedingly remote autumn night scene; yet this tower is the homeland's tower, this flute the dream's flute, and the clearer and farther they are, the sharper the waking grief. Read with the previous line's 'lone boat,' the rushes and lone boat write the solitude on the water, the moonlit tower and flute the stillness above, answering each other to complete the autumn picture. The whole opens on 'idle dream far' and closes on 'the flute in the moonlit tower,' the dream moving from far to near, from spring to autumn, finally congealing in a single flute note, the lingering sound calling one to brood without end. This method of ending feeling in scenery and writing grief in sound set the classic model for later 'Remembering Jiangnan' verses.

Study

Word focus

闲 idle, leisurely — but here implies helplessness; writing of pain through calm 「闲梦远」之「闲」字，是全词的题眼，亦后主炼字最见功力处。「闲」表面状梦之从容闲适，与「远」字连用，写梦境悠悠飘向故国，仿佛游子无事闲游；然细味之，「闲」实含三重深意：其一，囚居汴京的后主日无所事，唯以做梦遣日，「闲」正是其被俘后百无聊赖、形同幽禁的生活实态；其二，梦「闲」而心不闲，越是写梦之悠闲，越见现实之煎熬，以闲淡写沉痛，是后主「愈平淡愈悲苦」的典型笔法；其三，「闲」字暗含无可奈何——故国不可归，唯剩梦中一「闲」，此闲实为至痛。与第二首「闲梦远」重复使用，构成重章复沓之势，更见其梦魂萦绕、挥之不去。一个「闲」字，把亡国之君的无望与自遣写尽，堪称一字千金。

辊 to roll — vivid verb describing willowdowns tumbling in dust, enlivening the spring scene 「满城飞絮辊轻尘」之「辊」字，是后主炼字之精妙所在。「辊」本义为车轮滚动，此处移以写柳絮，谓满城飞絮裹着轻尘翻滚扑面，把春日飞絮漫天、随风卷地的动态写得跃然纸上。此字之妙有三：其一，以动写盛——飞絮本轻飘，用「辊」则见其数量之多、来势之猛，仿佛整个春天的柳絮都在城中滚动翻涌；其二，以尘衬絮——「轻尘」与「飞絮」本皆轻细之物，二者相辊相随，写出春日风起尘扬、絮雪纷飞的具体质感，视觉与触觉兼到；其三，「辊」字暗含杂乱喧嚣之感，与「满城」呼应，把江南春日写到极闹，而极闹正是为了反衬后文「忙杀看花人」的热闹场面的极致，进而反衬现实囚居的极静极冷。以一字写尽春之动态，非后主不能为。

孤 lonely — describes both the boat and the poet's solitude after losing his kingdom; scene conveys emotion 「芦花深处泊孤舟」之「孤」字，是秋首乃至全词的情感支点。「孤舟」本为秋江常见之景，然此「孤」字有三重指向：其一，写舟之孤——芦花深处，一叶扁舟独泊，四周空阔无人，孤舟是实景；其二，写人之孤——孤舟正是被俘后主孑然一身、飘零北地的自况，昔为南唐之主，今为阶下之囚，正如孤舟之在江湖，无人相傍；其三，写国运之孤——南唐已亡，宗庙丘墟，故国江山只剩梦中寒色，孤舟亦即亡国之象。且「孤」与春首的热闹（管弦、飞絮、看花人）形成冷暖对照，与「千里江山寒色远」的空阔互为映衬，愈见其孤。一字双关，景中寓情，是后主以物写心、托物言志的典范。