All poems

元 Yuan · 曲 Qu song

沉醉东风·渔父词

Drunk in the East Wind: Song of the Fisherman

白朴

Bai Pu

隐逸Seclusion 渔父Fisherman 山水Landscape 散曲小令Sanqu Short Lyric

黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头。
虽无刎颈交，却有忘机友，点秋江白鹭沙鸥。
傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟。

Yellow reeds along the bank, white duckweed at the ferry;
Green willows on the dike, red smartweed on the shoals.
Though I have no friends sworn to death,
I have companions free of schemes—
White gulls and egrets dotting the autumn river.
I scorn all the lords of the human world,
An illiterate angler on the misty waves.

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Meaning

The poet adopts the persona of a fisherman who enjoys freedom and communion with nature, scorning earthly rank and wealth. It expresses the author's personal choice of reclusion during a time of dynastic change.

金黄的芦苇铺满江岸，白色的浮萍飘在渡口；碧绿的杨柳立在江堤，红艳的蓼花染着滩头。虽然没有生死之交，却有毫无机心的朋友，那便是点缀秋江的白鹭与沙鸥。鄙视那人间高官显贵，我这个不识字的江上钓鱼老翁。

Appreciation

This Sanqu masterpiece celebrates the eremitic ideal through vivid autumn scenery and proud self-assertion. The opening couplet impresses with four colors, while the closing contrast between 'marquises' and an 'illiterate angler' delivers a powerful statement of transcendent freedom.

【白话串讲】 “黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头”——白朴写渔父：黄芦白苹，绿柳红蓼。“虽无刎颈交，却有忘机友，点秋江白鹭沙鸥”——他的朋友是白鹭沙鸥。“傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟”——不识字的渔翁，傲视王侯。【意象与手法】色彩映衬与意象对比匠心独运。起笔“黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头”以黄白绿红四色点染芦、苹、柳、蓼，构成斑斓明净的秋江图；“虽无刎颈交，却有忘机友”由景及人，以白鹭沙鸥为友，摒绝世俗机心。语言清丽俊逸，意象鲜明。【情感与主旨】以渔父自况，既写自然山水之可亲，更写蔑视功名、甘于淡泊的胸襟。结句“傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟”将江湖之傲推向极致。白朴由金入元终身不仕，此曲正是他放情山水、傲岸自守的人生写照，集中体现元散曲本色自然、酣畅淋漓的艺术精神。【名句点睛】常考“黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头”四色对举的设色之妙；“傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟”以渔父自况抒写傲视功名之志。

Background

Bai Pu (1226–c. 1306) was born at the end of the Jin dynasty and lived through its fall to the Mongol Yuan dynasty. Having suffered the loss of his mother in the chaos of war, he never sought office under the Yuan regime, spending his later years in Jinling (Nanjing) among like-minded loyalists. This song, written during his wandering life on rivers and lakes, reflects his rejection of worldly ambition and his identification with the fisherman as a symbol of eremitic purity, a tradition stretching back to Qu Yuan and Zhang Zhihe. It embodies the deep-seated refusal of many Song and Jin remnants to serve the new dynasty.

白朴（1226—约1306），原名恒，字仁甫，后改名朴，字太素，号兰谷，祖籍隩州，后徙真定，晚岁寓居金陵，终身未仕，与关汉卿、马致远、郑光祖并称元曲四大家。他生于金末，幼年遭逢战乱，仓皇失母，亲历亡国之痛，故一生淡于功名，不愿出仕元朝。据载，白朴晚年常与诸遗老放情山水间，放浪形骸，期于适意。这首《沉醉东风·渔父词》正作于其寓居金陵、悠游江湖的时期，是他人生选择与精神世界的自我写照。渔父形象在中国文学中源远流长，自屈原《渔父》问沧浪之水，到张志和《渔歌子》自号烟波钓徒，渔父早已成为隐逸高洁的象征。白朴身处易代之际，借渔父之口说傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟，既是对功名富贵的蔑视，也是对自我乱世持守的确认，包含着遗民文人拒斥新朝、保全气节的深沉寄托。白朴由金入元幼经丧乱终身不仕晚岁寓居金陵放情山水。渔父形象自屈原渔父张志和渔歌子以来即为隐逸高洁之符号白朴借以自况，傲杀万户侯正写遗民文人拒斥新朝保全气节之孤怀非徒闲适山水而已，是易代之际士人精神之写照。

Art

The most striking feature is the deliberate use of color contrast and image pairing. The opening line juxtaposes yellow, white, green, and red—coloring reeds, duckweed, willows, and smartweed—to create a brilliant autumn river scene that also suggests the purity and naturalness of the fisherman's world. The middle lines contrast 'sworn friends' with 'cunning-free friends', emphasizing the superiority of natural companionship over worldly social bonds. The final couplet uses the colloquial 'ao sha' (utterly scorn) to deliver a bold, unfettered expression of pride, and the self-deprecating 'illiterate' ironically celebrates freedom from the constraints of learning and officialdom. The piece moves smoothly from scenery to feeling to character, with clear layers and elegant yet forceful language, embodying the essence of Yuan Sanqu.

此曲艺术上最醒目的是色彩映衬与意象对比的匠心。开篇黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头，作者精心选取黄、白、绿、红四种颜料，分别点染芦、苹、柳、蓼四种水边植物，再配以岸、渡、堤、滩四种空间，构成一幅色彩斑斓、生意盎然的秋江图。这不仅是写景，更是为渔父活动布置一个纯净脱俗的环境，暗喻其品格的高洁。中间虽无刎颈交，却有忘机友，以否定带出肯定，刎颈交写世俗功利之友的稀缺，忘机友写与自然禽鸟的无心相契，对比中见出渔父的孤高。结句傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟，以渔父自呼，傲杀二字极具散曲酣畅之气，不识字则以反语写傲世，痛快淋漓。全曲由景及人、由物及心，层次分明，语言清丽而骨力遒劲，充分体现了元散曲写景如画、抒情痛快的本色。开篇四色对举黄白绿红点染芦苹柳蓼如一幅秋江彩绘为渔父布置纯净脱俗之境。中间以忘机友代沙鸥白鹭反衬世俗交游之功利，末以傲杀不识字直抒傲世痛快淋漓。全曲由景及人由物及心语言清丽而骨力遒劲极见元散曲本色当行之妙，景情相生。

Allusions

The fisherman image derives directly from Qu Yuan's 'The Fisherman' and Zhang Zhihe's self-title 'Misty-Wave Fisherman'. The phrase 'forget-cunning friends' comes from Li Bai's poem 'Descending Zhongnan Mountain' where he speaks of being carefree and forgetting all cunning, and the gulls and egrets recall Li Bai's and Du Fu's verse about birds as unguarded companions. 'Sworn friends' refers to the famous story of Lin Xiangru and Lian Po in the Records of the Grand Historian, where they became friends unto death. 'Wanhu hou' (marquis of ten thousand households) was a title for high nobles and officials. Bai Pu revitalizes these allusions to express his own defiant integrity as a loyalist refusing to serve a new dynasty, transforming conventional references into a personal spiritual statement.

本曲用典虽少而皆有渊源。渔父意象直接承屈原《渔父》中鼓枻而去、与世推移的隐者，以及张志和《渔歌子》烟波钓徒的自号，白朴结句不识字烟波钓叟显然化用张志和烟波钓徒，却以不识字三字更显傲岸率真。忘机友出自李白《下终南山过斛斯山人宿置酒》我醉君复乐，陶然共忘机，指摒弃机心、与自然相契的纯真之交；白鹭沙鸥则遥接李白天清江月白，心静海鸥知及杜甫舍南舍北皆春水，但见群鸥日日来之句，以鸥鹭喻无心机之友。刎颈交典出《史记·廉颇蔺相如列传》卒相与欢，为刎颈之交，白朴故意以这种世俗至交的缺失，反衬与禽鸟忘机之乐的可贵。万户侯本指汉代食邑万户之侯，此处泛指高官显贵。全曲于熟典中翻新意，以隐逸传统写遗民气节，意象渊源清晰而寄托深远。不识字烟波钓叟化用张志和烟波钓徒，忘机友出李白陶然共忘机以鸥鹭喻无心机之友，刎颈交典出史记廉蔺。万户侯泛指贵显。白朴于熟典中翻新意以隐逸传统写遗民气节意象渊源清晰而寄托深远，非泛泛闲适之作，实为拒仕新朝之精神自白。

Commentary

Despite its brevity of only seven lines, the piece is carefully structured: the first two lines paint the scene, the next three describe the fisherman's companions, and the last two reveal his inner character. The word 'dot' in 'dotting the autumn river' animates the white birds against the river, while 'ao sha' delivers a blunt, proud dismissal of worldly honor. The self-mocking 'illiterate' is actually a sharp satire on those who pursued rank and fame through scholarship. The whole song blends scenery, emotion, and personality, showcasing the subtle yet unrestrained charm of Yuan Sanqu, and stands as one of the finest expressions of the fisherman-eremite theme.

全曲虽仅七句，却章法井然，情景心三层递转。首二句黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头，纯为写景，四色四物四地，如对仗工整的彩绘，先布下秋江明丽的舞台；其中黄白绿红不仅写草木本色，更暗含秋光之绚烂，与渔父淡泊之心相映成趣。中间三句虽无刎颈交，却有忘机友，点秋江白鹭沙鸥，由景转入渔父的交游：他不要世俗的生死之交，只要秋江上自在的白鹭沙鸥为伴，点字活化了禽鸟点缀江天的灵动，也写出渔父无机无猜的胸襟。末二句傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟，以渔父自道作结，傲杀写其蔑视权贵之态，不识字烟波钓叟则以自嘲语写尽傲世之姿，表面说自己不通文墨，实则暗讽那些追名逐利的读书做官之人。通篇由外景到内情，由物色到人格，短章之中具见元曲小令含蓄而酣畅的独特魅力。七句小令章法井然，首二句布景中三句写交游末二句写人格。点秋江白鹭沙鸥之点字活化禽鸟傲杀二字尽散曲酣畅。表面写渔父之乐实写不合作之傲。与马致远秋思之漂泊断肠相较此曲是主动的隐逸自得同为元曲写江湖之双璧而取向迥异，各具风神。

Prosody

Reading note The opening couplet uses a neat four-color parallel; the middle three lines vary in length, creating a lively rhythm; the final couplet mirrors the opening in syntactic parallelism, lending overall balance. The colloquial 'ao sha' at the start of the final section gives a bold, dramatic accent typical of Sanqu.《沉醉东风》属双调，元散曲常用小令与带过曲格式，句式为七七、三三、七、七七，共七句，押平仄韵皆可，此曲依《中原音韵》押尤侯韵。首二句黄芦岸白苹渡口（平平仄仄平平仄），绿柳堤红蓼滩头（仄仄平平平仄平），为工整的七言对仗，平仄大体相协，四色四物相对，声情明快；中间三句虽无刎颈交（平平仄仄平），却有忘机友（平仄平平仄），点秋江白鹭沙鸥（仄平平仄仄平平），由四字对转七字散句，节奏由稳而活；末二句傲杀人间万户侯（仄仄平平仄仄平），不识字烟波钓叟（仄仄仄平平仄仄），以七字对收束，傲杀为去声领字，声情激越。全曲句式长短错落，对仗与散句相间，于严整中见流动，充分体现了北曲小令节奏明快、用韵疏宕、宜于酣畅抒情的特点，与词之婉约形成鲜明对照。

Line by line

黄芦岸白苹渡口，绿柳堤红蓼滩头。

These opening lines paint a vivid autumn river scene with four colors: yellow reeds along the bank, white duckweed at the ferry, green willows on the dike, and red smartweed on the shoals. The symmetrical construction creates a colorful, serene backdrop for the fisherman's life.

Yellow reeds line the bank; white water-fern grows at the ferry. Green willows fringe the embankment; red smartweed spreads on the shoal.

这是元曲中著名的彩色对句，也是全曲写景的灵魂。作者刻意选取黄、白、绿、红四种鲜明的颜色，分别涂抹在芦、苹、柳、蓼四种水边植物上，再安置于岸、渡口、堤、滩头四个江畔空间，构成一幅明丽斑斓、动静相宜的秋江画卷。这种以色彩入曲、以丽句写淡怀的手法，在散曲中别具一格：它既展现了大自然的丰盈之美，也暗示了渔父所栖身的环境之纯净脱俗，与后面傲杀万户侯的孤高形成呼应。更妙的是，黄白绿红皆为草木本真之色，不假雕饰，正契合渔父自然无机的生命状态。这一联对仗工稳而气韵流动，是白朴炼色成境的典范，也是元散曲写景如画的集中体现。

This is one of Yuan qu's famous colored couplets, the soul of the song's scenery. The poet deliberately takes four vivid colors — yellow, white, green, red — and lays them on four waterside plants: reeds, fern, willow, smartweed, set in four riverine spaces: bank, ferry, embankment, shoal — a bright, rich autumn river scroll, moving and still. Coloring in qu, fine lines for a quiet heart, is distinctive among sanqu: it shows the abundance of nature, and hints the fisherman's pure, unstained dwelling, echoing the later solitary pride over 'the lords of ten thousand households.' Yellow, white, green, red are the native colors of the plants, unadorned, matching the fisherman's natural, artless life. The balanced couplet flows with breath — Bai Pu's model of coloring into mood, and the very picture of Yuan sanqu's painted scenery.

傲杀人间万户侯，不识字烟波钓叟。

The final couplet declares the fisherman's proud disdain for earthly nobility: an illiterate old man fishing on the misty waves is superior to a marquis. The self-deprecating 'illiterate' actually celebrates freedom from the entanglements of worldly knowledge.

I utterly scorn the lords of ten thousand households of this world — I am but the fisherman of misty waves, who cannot read a word.

这是全曲的眼目与高潮，以渔父口吻直抒胸臆，将隐逸之傲推向极致。傲杀意为鄙视、压倒，一个杀字尽显散曲酣畅淋漓、不留余地的痛快气概；人间万户侯泛指一切高官显贵、功名利禄的拥有者，渔父竟以之微不足道，则其精神之自由可知。不识字烟波钓叟是自谓，表面说自己不通文墨、只是江上钓翁，实则暗含反讽：那些识文断字、求取功名的读书人，反被世俗羁绊；而自己不识字，却得了最大的自由。这一结句把前面所有的秋江美景、忘机之友，统统收束为一份傲世的自得，既是白朴终身不仕、放情山水的真实写照，也凝聚了元曲作家群体对功名富贵的普遍疏离与嘲弄，具有时代的典型意义。

This is the song's eye and climax, the fisherman speaking his heart, pushing recluse pride to the utmost. 'Utterly scorn' means despise, overtop; the particle pours out the sanqu's unsparing, thorough satisfaction; 'the lords of ten thousand households of this world' stands for all high officials and owners of fame and profit — the fisherman counts them as nothing, and his freedom of spirit is known. 'I am but the fisherman of misty waves, who cannot read' is self-naming: on the surface, a plain angler who knows no letters; within, the irony runs — the lettered scholars who pursued office are tangled in the world's bonds, while he, illiterate, has won the greatest freedom. The close gathers all the autumn beauty and the unworldly friends into one prideful self-content: at once the true portrait of Bai Pu, who never served and gave himself to hills and streams, and the gathered aloofness and mockery of fame among Yuan qu writers — a voice of its age.

Study

Word focus

忘机友 Forget-cunning friend: a friend with whom one shares no scheming or ulterior motives, derived from the Daoist idea of 'wangji'—discarding cunning and living in harmony with nature. Here it refers to the white egrets and gulls, symbolizing uncorrupted companionship. 忘机友三字是全曲 midpoint 的灵魂词。忘机出自《庄子》与李白诗，指消除机心、摒弃算计的自然状态；友则把白鹭沙鸥拟作知己。渔父虽无刎颈交这等世俗的生死之交，却有这些毫无机巧之心的禽鸟为伴，恰好反衬出人世交游的功利与虚伪。一个忘字，点出渔父与自然的契合不在形式而在心性——禽鸟不知名利，故可为真友；世人多有机心，反难成挚交。白朴以忘机友代指沙鸥白鹭，既扣合隐逸传统中鸥鹭忘机的典故，又写出了乱世遗民宁可托身自然、不与新朝周旋的孤高。此词之妙，全在此三字将前面的景、后面的傲贯通为一气，是炼意而非炼字的至高范例。

傲杀 To scorn utterly; a colloquial expression in Yuan qu meaning to look down upon completely, adding boldness and unrestrained vigor. Here it forcefully expresses the fisherman's contempt for high officials. 傲杀是元曲中极有魄力的口语词，意为傲视、鄙夷到极点，杀为程度副词，带有散曲特有的酣畅与泼辣。白朴以此二字领起对人间万户侯的蔑视，比起诗词中常用的不屑、耻与等委婉说法，傲杀更具直截了当的痛快与力度，正合散曲当行本色的审美——不吞吞吐吐，不转弯抹角。这一个词把渔父（亦即作者自己）的孤高傲岸写得活灵活现，也把元曲小令敢于直抒、敢于骂世的特质发挥到极致。它与结尾不识字烟波钓叟的自嘲相映，一傲一谦，表面谦退而内里倨傲，把遗民文人不合作、不慕荣利的气节，浓缩成两个极具生命力的字，足见白朴驱遣口语入曲的功力。