All poems

五代 Five Dynasties · 词 Ci lyric

谒金门·空相忆

Knocking at the Golden Gate · Vain Longing

冯延巳

Feng Yansi

爱情love 感怀reflection

空相忆，无计得传消息。
天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅？
新睡觉来无力，不忍把伊书迹。
满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧。

Vainly I long, with no way to send a word.
The moon goddess in heaven none can know—where shall I seek a messenger to bear my letter?
I wake from a new sleep weary and weak, loath to touch the handwriting she left.
The courtyard full of fallen blooms, spring silent and still; the green grass breaks my heart.

Listen

Meaning

Vainly I think of her and long, yet find no way to pass on a message. The moon goddess in heaven no one can recognize—where then shall I look for a wild goose to carry my letter? I have just woken from sleep, weak and without strength, loath to turn over the handwriting of her old letters. The courtyard is full of fallen flowers, spring a silent stillness; that lush green grass quite breaks my heart.

白白地相思相忆，却没有办法把消息传递。天上的嫦娥无人识得，我又到何处去寻觅可以寄书的雁字？刚刚睡醒起来浑身无力，不忍心去翻看她留下的书信字迹。满院落花，春色一片寂寂；那萋萋芳草，直教人柔肠寸断。

Appreciation

This lyric is sustained throughout by the word 'vain'. It moves from feeling to scene, from thought to sight, turning layer upon layer. The upper stanza, 'Vainly I long, with no way to send a word', states the helplessness directly; 'The moon goddess in heaven none can know' flashes a strange fancy, writing the failure of seeking a goose to bear the letter. The lower stanza, 'I wake from a new sleep weary and weak, loath to touch the handwriting she left', writes the tender, winding psychology of seeing the thing and thinking of the person, pain deepening the more it unfolds—most delicate; 'The courtyard full of fallen blooms, spring silent and still; the green grass breaks my heart' closes on scene to end feeling.

【白话串讲】 “空相忆，无计得传消息”——冯延巳写：白白想念，没法传递消息。“天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅”——嫦娥都联系不上，信往哪寄？“满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧”——满院落花，芳草碧绿，断肠。【意象与手法】全词以“空”字贯串始终，由情及景、由想及见，层层递转。上片“空相忆”“无计得传消息”直抒无奈【情感与主旨】冯延巳（一作冯延己），字正中，南唐中主李璟朝宰相，为花间词后向北宋词过渡的关键人物，词多写闺情离思，开晏殊、欧阳修含【名句点睛】中高考若考此词，常从：一、炼字，开篇“空”字如何统摄全篇；二、心理刻画，“不忍把伊书迹”的婉曲深情

Background

Feng Yansi, also written Feng Yanji, courtesy Zhengzhong, was a minister under Li Jing, the middle lord of the Southern Tang, and a key figure bridging the Hua Jian school and the Northern Song lyric; most of his lyrics write boudoir feeling and separation, opening the reserved, implicit manner of Yan Shu and Ouyang Xiu. This lyric speaks for a lady in her empty chamber, writing the grievance of long longing and broken messages. It is likely a projection of the age's frequent wars, blocked passes, and severed news; it also shows the common 'speaking for another' mode of literati lyric.

《谒金门·空相忆》为五代冯延巳所作，是写相思之情的词。冯延巳（903—960），字正中，广陵人，五代南唐词人。此词：空相忆，无计得传消息。天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅？新睡觉来无力，不忍把伊书迹。满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧。全词写相思难寄、睹物伤情，是冯延巳词的代表作。

Art

The whole lyric is threaded by the word 'vain', moving from feeling to scene, from thought to sight, turning layer upon layer. The upper stanza, 'Vainly I long, with no way to send a word', states the helplessness directly; 'The moon goddess in heaven none can know' flashes a strange fancy, writing the failure of seeking a goose to bear the letter. The lower stanza, 'I wake from a new sleep weary and weak, loath to touch the handwriting she left', writes the delicate, winding psychology of seeing the thing and thinking of the person, pain deepening the more it unfolds—most fine; 'The courtyard full of fallen blooms, spring silent and still; the green grass breaks my heart' ends feeling through scene.

《谒金门·空相忆》艺术上以空际传神的笔法与含蓄深婉的情致见长。全词八句，层层写来：上片写相忆难寄——“空相忆，无计得传消息”写空自相忆、无计传信，“天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅”写嫦娥不识、寄书无处；下片写睹物伤情——“新睡觉来无力，不忍把伊书迹”写睡起无力、不忍把书迹，“满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧”写落花寂寂、芳草断肠。全词以空际传神写相思，正是冯延巳词含蓄深婉的笔法。

Allusions

The 'moon goddess' uses the myth of the moon palace immortal; the wit here is 'none can know'—it means both that the divine and mortal are parted and no one can be entrusted, and hints that the longed-for one is as far and hard to find as the moon goddess; together with 'bear a letter' it echoes the old tale of the wild goose carrying news. Also, 'green grass' transforms the line from the Chu Ci·Summoning the Hidden One, 'the prince wanders and will not return, spring grass grows lush', using the lush grass to write the broken heart of awaiting return, allusive yet seamless.

《谒金门·空相忆》用典在“天上嫦娥”。“天上嫦娥人不识”用嫦娥奔月之典，写想托嫦娥传信而人不相识；”断肠芳草“用《楚辞》“王孙游兮不归，春草生兮萋萋”之意，写芳草断肠。全词以这些典故与意象写相思难寄，用典自然而含蓄自深，正是冯延巳词的笔法。

Commentary

Wang Guowei in the Ren Jian Ci Hua says of Feng Yansi's lyrics 'the hall is vast, opening the manner of the Northern Song'; he also says 'though Feng Zhengzhong keeps the Five Dynasties style, his hall is vast, standing outside the Hua Jian range'. Moderns say this lyric 'led by the word vain, with feeling reaching deep', and that the lower line 'loath to touch the handwriting she left' is the most gentle and reserved, a representative of the later Hua Jian strength.

《谒金门·空相忆》是冯延巳词的代表作，也是五代词中写相思的名篇。此词写相思难寄、睹物伤情，向为论者称道。论者多赏其空际传神的笔法——“天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅”写想托嫦娥传信而人不相识，空际传神；“满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧”写落花芳草，更见断肠。冯延巳为南唐词人，其词以“深美闳约”著称，此词正是其代表——以含蓄深婉写相思，正是其词风。

Prosody

Form Lyric, 'Knocking at the Golden Gate' (Ye Jin Men), double-tune short form词·谒金门

Rhyme Oblique-tone rhyme; upper and lower stanzas rhyme on 'message, seek, weak, trace, still, green' (entering-tone words)《谒金门·空相忆》为双调词，押仄声韵。此词用韵：忆、息、识、觅（职部）、力、迹、寂、碧（锡部），上下片各一韵，音节低回。

Tone pattern Short form, short clauses and quick beats, fitting the grievance谒金门为双调词，音节低回而深婉。此词写相思难寄，音节低回而含蓄。全词以仄声押韵，声调与相思之情的内容相合，是五代词中含蓄深婉的一路。

Reading note Also called 'Vain Longing' or 'Flowers Fall Alone'; Feng Yansi wrote boudoir feeling in this tune, opening the Northern Song's reserved manner.《谒金门·空相忆》为五代冯延巳所作，是写相思之情的词。此词以“空相忆，无计得传消息”写相忆难寄，以“天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅”写寄书无处，以“不忍把伊书迹”写睹物伤情，以“满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧”写落花芳草断肠。以含蓄深婉写相思，正是冯延巳词的代表作。

Line by line

空相忆，无计得传消息。天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅？

Vainly I remember—no way to send a word. The moon goddess Chang'e in the sky is unknown to men; where shall I seek to send my letter?

空自相忆，没有办法传递消息。天上的嫦娥人也不相识，寄书到哪里去寻找？

In vain I think of you, and there is no way to send a message. The Moon Goddess in the sky is a stranger to us; where on earth could a letter be sent?

上片写相忆难寄，是全词相思之情的起点。“空相忆，无计得传消息”写相忆无计——“空相忆”写空自相忆，“无计得传消息”写没有办法传递消息——空自相忆，无计传信；“天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅”写寄书无处——“天上嫦娥人不识”用嫦娥奔月之典，写天上的嫦娥人也不相识，“寄书何处觅”写寄书到哪里寻找——嫦娥不识，寄书无处。四句写相忆难寄：空相忆、无计传消息，嫦娥不识、寄书无处觅。以“空相忆，无计得传消息”写相忆之切而无计传信，以“天上嫦娥人不识，寄书何处觅”写想托嫦娥传信而其人不相识，正是冯延巳词写相思难寄的笔法——相思欲寄，无计可传。

The first stanza writes the longing that cannot be sent, the starting point of the lyric's love. 'Vainly I remember—no way to send a word' writes the remembrance without means. 'The moon goddess Chang'e in the sky is unknown to men; where shall I seek to send my letter?' uses the allusion to Chang'e flying to the moon, writing that the heavenly Chang'e is unknown and no letter is to be found. Four lines write the longing and the blocked message: vain remembrance, no word to send; Chang'e unknown, no place for the letter. It is Feng Yan's way of writing love that cannot be transmitted—longing to send it, yet no means to send it.

新睡觉来无力，不忍把伊书迹。满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧。

Waking from fresh sleep, strengthless; I cannot bear to take up her handwriting. The courtyard is full of fallen blossoms, the spring hushed; the heart-breaking fragrant grass is green.

新睡醒来，浑身无力，不忍拿起她的书迹。满院落花，春意寂寂，断肠的芳草一片碧绿。

Waking from my nap, I feel utterly drained; I cannot bring myself to look at your handwriting. The courtyard is heaped with fallen petals, the spring silent; heart-broken, the fragrant grass lies green.

下片写睹物伤情，是全词相思之情的归结。“新睡觉来无力，不忍把伊书迹”写睡起无力、不忍把书迹——“新睡觉来无力”写新睡醒来浑身无力，“不忍把伊书迹”写不忍拿起她的书迹——睡起无力，不忍把书迹；“满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧”写落花芳草——“满院落花春寂寂”写满院落花、春意寂寂，“断肠芳草碧”写断肠的芳草一片碧绿——落花寂寂，芳草断肠。四句写睹物伤情：睡起无力、不忍把书迹，落花寂寂、芳草断肠。以“不忍把伊书迹”写睹物伤情、触目心惊，以“满院落花春寂寂，断肠芳草碧”写落花芳草之景，正是冯延巳词写相思之情的归结——见其书迹而不忍把，见落花芳草而断肠。

The lower stanza writes grief at the sight of things, the conclusion of the lyric's love. 'Waking from fresh sleep, strengthless; I cannot bear to take up her handwriting' writes waking weak and unable to bear the letters. 'The courtyard is full of fallen blossoms, the spring hushed; the heart-breaking fragrant grass is green' writes the fallen blossoms and the grass. Four lines write the grief at things: waking weak, unable to bear the handwriting; blossoms hushed, the grass heart-breaking. It is Feng Yan's conclusion of the love—seeing her handwriting and unable to take it up, seeing the fallen blossoms and the fragrant grass and heart-breaking.

Study

Word focus

空相忆 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “空相忆”之“空相忆”，写空自相忆，是全词写相思无着落的关键词。“空”写徒然、白白，“相忆”写彼此相忆——空自相忆。这一词写相思之态：不是有计之忆，而空相忆；不是可寄之情，而徒然之忆。以“空相忆”起笔，正是冯延巳词写相思无着落的笔法——空忆无凭，情何以堪。

无计 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “无计得传消息”之“无计”，写没有办法，是全词写相思难寄的关键词。“无计”写没有计策办法——没有办法传递消息。这一词写传信之难：不是不想传，而无计；不是可传之道，而计无所出。以“无计得传消息”写相思难寄，正是冯延巳词写无计传信的笔法——纵有相思，无计可传。

不忍把 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. “不忍把伊书迹”之“不忍把”，写不忍拿起，是全词写睹物伤情的关键词。“不忍”写不忍心，“把”写拿起——不忍拿起她的书迹。这一词写睹物之态：不是不愿看，而不忍把；不是无情之书，而触情之迹。以“不忍把伊书迹”写睹物伤情，正是冯延巳词写见其书迹而心伤不忍的笔法——书迹犹在，人已难见。

断肠 The closing 'the green grass breaks my heart' ends with the utmost sorrow, set against the green grass in a warm-cold contrast. “断肠芳草碧”之“断肠”，写伤心至极，是全词写相思之痛的归结词。“断肠”写肝肠寸断——断肠的芳草一片碧绿。这一词写相思之痛：不是寻常之愁，而断肠；不是可解之痛，而寸断之肠。以“断肠芳草碧”写见芳草而断肠，正是冯延巳词写相思之痛的归结——芳草萋萋，见之断肠。