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元 Yuan · 散曲 Sanqu song

清江引·老王将军

Clear River Song · Old General Wang

张可久

Zhang Kejiu

感怀reflection 人物portrait 身世Theme

纶巾紫髯风满把，老向辕门下。
霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕，江边草青闲战马。

Silk cap, purple beard, a fistful of wind; grown old by the army gate.
Frost brightens the sword's flowering; dust dims the silver saddle-cloth,
by the river, green grass, an idle war-horse.

Listen

Meaning

Silk kerchief on, purple beard blown into a fistful by the wind—Old General Wang, aged, can only lean idle by the army gate. Frost makes bright the pattern on his treasured sword; dust dims the silver cloth on his saddle. By the river the green grass grows, and a war-horse crops it at leisure.

头戴丝帛头巾，紫色的长须被风满满吹起一束，老王将军垂老却只能闲靠在军营门边。寒霜映照得宝剑刃上花纹分明，尘土暗暗蒙住了银鞍上的垫子。江边青草萋萋，一匹战马正悠闲地啃着青草。

Appreciation

The song is cleverly conceived: it writes the man directly in only two lines, 'Silk cap, purple beard, a fistful of wind; grown old by the army gate'; the next three lines all write objects and horse, setting off the figure by the side. 'Frost brightens the sword's flowering; dust dims the silver saddle-cloth' is a fine antithesis; the words 'bright' and 'dim' write both the long-disuse of the gear and hint the general's long abandonment. The close 'by the river, green grass, an idle war-horse' uses the horse's leisure to counter the master's unspent ambition—loose without, tense within; scene-language is all feeling-language, gloomy within the clear, meaning beyond the words.

【白话串讲】一个老将军，紫髯满把，守在辕门下。“霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕”——剑已蒙霜，鞍已落尘。“江边草青闲战马”——战马都闲着吃草了。英雄老去的寂寞。【意象与手法】此曲构思巧妙，正面写人仅「纶巾紫髯风满把，老向辕门下」两句，以下三句全写器物战马，以侧笔烘托人物。「霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕」一联对仗精工，「明」「暗」二字既写器物久置之状，又暗示将军被弃之久。结句「江边草青闲战马」以战马之悠闲反衬主人壮志难酬，外松内紧，景语皆情语，于清丽中见沉郁，意在言外。【情感与主旨】张可久（约1270—1348后），字小山，庆元（今浙江宁波）人，元代散曲清丽派代表，与乔吉并称「双璧」，存小令八百余首为元人之冠。他一生仕途失意，久为路吏、首领官之类下僚，时官时隐。此曲写一位「饱经风霜、久战沙场却被闲置」的老将军，或有所见，或系虚构以自况，抒发了英雄暮年、怀才不遇的牢骚，亦是其自身沉沦下僚的写照。【名句点睛】本曲为元散曲写人佳作，中高考可考：一、形象鉴赏，分析老将军「苍老闲置、壮志未已」的形象；二、侧面烘托的手法——以剑、鞍、马写人；三、「明」「暗」「闲」等字的炼字之妙。

Background

Zhang Kejiu (c. 1270–after 1348), style Xiaoshan, of Qingyuan (today's Ningbo, Zhejiang), a representative of the Yuan sanqu clear-and-lovely school, ranked with Qiao Ji as the 'twin jewels', with over eight hundred small lyrics extant, the most of any Yuan writer. All his life he failed in office, long a low clerk, now official now retired. This song writes an old general 'weather-beaten, long campaigned yet left idle'—perhaps someone he saw, perhaps fictional to mirror himself, voicing the grievance of talents late and unspent, and also a self-portrait of his own sinking in low posts.

张可久（约1270—1348后），字小山，庆元（今浙江宁波）人，元代散曲清丽派代表作家，与乔吉并称「双璧」，存小令八百余首、套数九套，为元人散曲存世作品之冠。他一生仕途失意，只做过路吏、首领官之类的下僚，「以清才而屈于下僚」，时官时隐，晚年穷愁潦倒。张可久生活的元代中后期，科举废弛、仕途壅塞，汉族文人多沉沦下僚或隐逸山林，他的散曲正是这种失意士人情怀的艺术结晶。此曲题曰《老王将军》，写一位「饱经风霜、久战沙场却被闲置」的老将军：头戴纶巾，紫髯飘拂，垂老却只能闲靠在辕门之下；宝剑蒙霜、银鞍积尘，战马在江边悠闲吃草。这位老将军或为张可久所见之真人，或系虚构以自况——英雄暮年、怀才不遇的感慨，既是写老将军，也是写诗人自己：老将军沙场闲置，正如张可久下僚沉沦；宝剑生锈，正如才士无用于世。曲以「老王将军」为题而暗写身世，正是元代文人「借他人酒杯，浇自己块垒」的典型写法。

Art

此曲艺术之妙，在「以侧笔写人」的构思与「明暗对照」的炼字。正面写人仅「纶巾紫髯风满把，老向辕门下」两句：纶巾写其儒雅风度——这位将军不是赳赳武夫，而是颇具名士气象的儒将；紫髯写其苍老英武——紫色的长须被风吹起满满一把，须发虽白（紫髯实写苍老中的威猛），英气犹存；「老向辕门下」的「老」字与「向」字写出其垂老闲置的处境——只能闲靠在军营门边，百无聊赖。以下三句全写器物战马，以侧笔烘托人物：「霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕」一联对仗精工，「霜明」写寒霜映照宝剑，刃上花纹（剑花）历历分明，「尘暗」写尘土暗暗蒙住银鞍垫子，「明」「暗」二字既写器物久置之状（剑因霜而愈明，鞍因尘而愈暗），又暗示将军被弃之久（剑久未用而蒙霜，鞍久未骑而积尘）。结句「江边草青闲战马」以战马之悠闲反衬主人之闲置：战马本是冲锋陷阵的坐骑，如今却在江边悠闲吃草——马之闲正是主之闲，马之无用武之地正是主之无用武之地，外松内紧，景语皆情语，于清丽中见沉郁，意在言外。全曲由人及物、由物及马，层层侧写，而人物形象与情感主题皆在不言之中。

Allusions

The song uses no obvious allusion, pure white description of the figure. 'Silk cap' (lun jin) was the silk kerchief worn by Zhuge Liang of the Three Kingdoms and the famous scholars of Wei-Jin, here on the old general hinting his 'scholar-general' identity and easy grace; 'army gate' (yuan men) comes from the Rites of Zhou 'set the chariot-palace army gate', later meaning the commander's camp gate, marking the soldier's identity. The song borrows no canon yet has its own spirit, conveying through details of objects (sword, saddle, horse), its craft seen in the smallest.

此曲用典极淡，纯以白描刻画人物，而意象皆有渊源。「纶巾」本为三国诸葛亮、魏晋名士所服之丝帛头巾（如苏轼《念奴娇·赤壁怀古》「羽扇纶巾，谈笑间，樯橹灰飞烟灭」），此处写老将军头戴纶巾，暗点其「儒将」身份与闲雅气度——沙场老将而服名士之巾，英武与风雅兼而有之；「紫髯」暗用孙权「紫髯碧眼」的典故——史载孙权「紫髯将军」，有帝王之气，此处以「紫髯」写老将军的威仪，虽老而雄风犹存；「辕门」出自《周礼·天官》「设车宫辕门」——古代帝王巡狩以车为营，仰两车辕相对如门，后泛指将帅营门，点明人物身份；「宝剑」「银鞍」「战马」更是写将军的经典器物意象——剑是杀敌之器、鞍是驰骋之具、马是征伐之骑，三者皆蒙尘闲置，正见将军无用武之地。全曲不假典实而风神自具，以器物细节传神，体物之工见于毫末，正是张可久「清丽」曲风的体现。全曲以器物写人、以马写人，层层侧写而不着一字议论，正是元散曲写人物的最高境界。

Commentary

Mr. Sui Shusen praised this song as 'a vivid portrait of a war general', 'the small lyric breathes a heroic, majestic air, rare among Yuan songs'. Modern talk of Zhang Kejiu mostly says he leads with clear, fine craft, yet this piece is 'stern and sorrowful, terse and vivid', a distinct voice among Xiaoshan's collected lyrics, enough to show his brush, too, has its stern and stirring side.

此曲历代论者评价甚高，被视为元散曲写人的名篇。隋树森《元曲选外编》评此曲「是一幅战将的生动画像」，称其「小令透出一股英武壮美的气息，在元曲中属于难见的题材」——元散曲多以山水隐逸、儿女情长为题，写英雄人物者极少，此曲写老将军的苍凉形象，在元曲中别具一格。近人论张可久，多谓其以清丽工巧为主，而此篇「苍劲悲凉，凝炼传神」，于小山集中别具一格，足见其笔下亦有风骨郁勃之处。此曲的艺术成就，在于「以少总多」：五句小令，不写老将军的一句话、一个动作（除「老向辕门下」外），而仅凭纶巾紫髯的形貌与剑鞍战马的器物，便写尽了一位沙场老将的平生与现状——从「宝剑霜明」可想见其当年杀敌之勇，从「银鞍尘暗」可想见其今日闲置之久，从「江边闲马」可想见其英雄失路之悲，留白之妙、侧写之工，堪称元曲中的写人绝技。此曲对后世（如明代散曲写英雄、清代诗词写老将）亦有影响，是理解元代文人「怀才不遇」心态的窗口。

Prosody

Form Sanqu · double-mode Clear River Song (small lyric)散曲·双调《清江引》（小令）

Rhyme Rhymes on 'fistful, gate, cloth, horse' (jia-ma rhyme; northern song level-oblique mixed)押「把、下、帕、马」四韵，属北曲家麻韵，平仄混押（北曲入声派入三声），句句押韵，韵密而促，正合小令短章之体。

Tone pattern Double mode; line-pattern 7,5,5,5,7双调，句式为七、五、五、五、七：首句七言（纶巾紫髯风满把）起势舒展，次句五言（老向辕门下）顿挫，中二句五言对句（霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕）整饬，末句七言（江边草青闲战马）收束。

Reading note Clear River Song has short lines and dense rhymes, fit for small scenes and figure sketches.《清江引》为北曲双调常用曲牌，又名《江儿水》，句短韵密，宜于小景与人物速写，是元散曲中写景抒情的小令名调。此曲在格律上的特点有三：一是句句押韵——《清江引》五句四韵（首句入韵），韵脚密布（把、下、帕、马），读来音节短促紧凑，如击节而歌，正合人物速写的节奏；二是句式长短相济——首句七言舒展，写出老将军迎风而立的形貌，次句五言顿挫，写出其闲倚辕门的落寞，中二句五言对仗（霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕），整饬精工，是曲中对联的典范，末句七言回环收束，如一声长叹；三是北曲的声情特点——《清江引》为北曲，入声派入三声，平仄混押，音律较为自由疏放，正合元曲「天然去雕饰」的本色，也与全曲「外松内紧、意在言外」的笔致相表里。张可久以清丽之笔写此苍劲之题，曲调之短促与人物之苍凉相得益彰，是元散曲「以短章写大人物」的典范，也是研究北曲曲牌格律与声情关系的绝佳样本。

Line by line

纶巾紫髯风满把

Silk cap, purple beard, a fistful of wind

头戴丝帛头巾，紫色的长须被风满满吹起一束。

Silk cap, purple beard, the wind lifts a fistful of it.

首句写老将军的形貌，是全曲人物的「亮相」。「纶巾」是名士之巾——这位老将军不是寻常武夫，而是颇具儒雅气度的将领，头戴纶巾，暗含「羽扇纶巾」的名士风流；「紫髯」写其苍老中的英武——紫色的长须，是征战岁月留下的印记，暗用孙权「紫髯将军」之典，虽老而威仪不减；「风满把」写风势——长须被风吹起满满一把，一个「满」字写出须之浓密与风之劲健，也写出老将军迎风而立的姿态，苍劲之中自有雄风。此句的妙处在于「以形写神」：不写老将军的内心，而写其须发被风吹动的瞬间，一位久历沙场、风骨凛然的老将形象已跃然纸上；「纶巾」与「紫髯」的搭配，儒雅与英武并见，为全曲定下了苍劲悲凉的基调。

The opening writes the old general's appearance, the 'entrance' of the song's figure. 'Silk cap' is the cap of the scholar-gentleman — this old general no common warrior, but a commander of scholarly bearing, the dark allusion to 'feather fan and silk cap' writing the belletrist's grace; 'purple beard' his martial old age, the long purple beard, the mark of war years, the quiet allusion to Sun Quan, the 'purple-bearded general,' his majesty undimmed by years; 'the wind lifts a fistful' the force of the wind — the beard caught up in a full fistful, the word 'full' rendering the beard's thickness and the wind's strength, the old general standing into the wind, unbowed. The genius lies in 'writing spirit through form': not his heart, but the instant his beard moves in the wind — a veteran of a hundred battles, his figure already on the page; 'silk cap' with 'purple beard,' grace and martial force together, fixing the song's stern, desolate tone.

老向辕门下

Grown old by the army gate

垂老却只能闲靠在军营门边。

Old now, he idles beside the camp gate.

次句写老将军的处境，是全曲由「形」入「神」的关键。「老」字直点其年迈——与上句「紫髯」呼应，须髯之苍老与年岁之苍老相印证；「向」字写其姿态——向着辕门，靠在门边，一个「向」字写出其无所事事的闲倚之态；「辕门下」点明地点——将帅营门之下，本是发号施令之处，而老将军只能「向」着辕门闲站，正是「投闲置散」的写照。此句的妙处在于「以处写境」：辕门是将军的本位，而老将军却只能站在辕门「下」——不是辕门内（发号施令之位），而是辕门下（闲散无职之列），一个「下」字写尽地位之失落与闲置之悲哀。此句与上句对照：纶巾紫髯的英武形貌，与「老向辕门下」的落寞处境，形成强烈的反差——越是写其形貌之英武，越见其处境之悲凉，为下文器物战马的侧写作了铺垫。

The second line writes the old general's plight, the turning from 'form' to 'spirit.' The word 'old' directly names his age — answering 'purple beard,' the beard's age and the years' age confirming each other; 'beside' writes his posture — toward the camp gate, leaning at the door, the word writing his idle, empty leaning; 'the camp gate' marks the place — the commander's gate, where orders issued, where the old general can only stand and lean, the very picture of being shelved. The genius lies in 'writing circumstance through place': the camp gate is the general's station, yet he stands 'below' the gate — not within (where commands issue), but below (the rank of the idle, unposted); the word 'below' writes the loss of standing and the grief of being set aside. The line sets against the first: the martial figure of silk cap and purple beard against the loneliness of 'old now, beside the camp gate' — the more martial the figure, the more desolate the plight, priming the side-brush of gear and warhorse below.

霜明宝剑花，尘暗银鞍帕

Frost brightens the sword's flowering; dust dims the silver saddle-cloth

寒霜映照得宝剑刃上花纹分明，尘土暗暗蒙住了银鞍上的垫子。

Frost brightens the sword's etched flower; dust dims the saddle's silver cloth.

此联写器物，是全曲的侧笔烘托处，对仗精工而寓意深长。「霜明宝剑花」写宝剑——寒霜映照之下，剑刃上的花纹（剑花）历历分明：剑是宝刀，锋刃如新，霜光与剑光相映，英气逼人；「尘暗银鞍帕」写银鞍——尘土暗暗蒙住了银鞍上的垫子：鞍是银鞍，华贵如新，却被尘封日久。此联的妙处在于「明暗对照」：「明」写剑因霜而愈见其锋，「暗」写鞍因尘而愈见其旧，一明一暗，一锐一钝，正是器物久置不用的一体两面——剑虽明而无人用，鞍虽贵而无人骑，明暗之间，见出将军被弃之久、闲置之深。更妙的是，「霜明」「尘暗」皆非人为，而是岁月的侵蚀：宝剑蒙霜、银鞍积尘，无人擦拭、无人使用，正是英雄无用武之地的物化象征。以物写人，不著一字而悲凉自见。

This couplet writes the gear, the song's side-brush foil, balanced and deeply meant. 'Frost brightens the sword's etched flower' — the sword: in frostlight, the etchings on the blade stand clear; the blade is a treasure, its edge new, frost-light answering sword-light, martial breath pressing; 'dust dims the saddle's silver cloth' — the saddle: dust secretly covers the silver saddlecloth; the saddle is silver, costly as new, yet long buried in dust. The couplet's genius is the 'light-dark contrast': 'bright' the sword the more keen for frost, 'dim' the saddle the older for dust — bright and dim, sharp and blunt, the two faces of gear long unused: the sword bright, yet none to draw it; the saddle costly, yet none to ride it — between bright and dim, the length of the general's abandonment. Better still, 'frost brightens' and 'dust dims' are no man's doing, but the erosion of years: the sword frosted, the saddle dusty, wiped by no hand, used by none — the object-made symbol of the hero with no field for his strength. Writing the man through things, not one word of grief, grief self-evident.

江边草青闲战马

By the river, green grass, an idle war-horse

江边青草萋萋，一匹战马正悠闲地啃着青草。

By the river, the grass is green; the warhorse idles.

结句写战马，是全曲情感的收束，也是全曲的题眼。「江边草青」写景——江边青草萋萋，是春日（或泛指）的闲适风光；「闲战马」写马——一匹战马正悠闲地啃着青草。此句的妙处在于「以马写人」：战马本是冲锋陷阵的坐骑，如今却在江边悠闲吃草——马的「闲」，正是主人的「闲」；马的无用武之地，正是主人的无用武之地。马犹如此，人何以堪？将军老去，战马闲置，昔日的金戈铁马，如今只剩下江边的青草与悠闲的马影。此句的「闲」字是全曲诗眼：表面写马的悠闲自得，实则写人的闲废悲凉，外松内紧，景语皆情语；「江边草青」的明媚与「老向辕门下」的落寞遥相映照，明媚的风景反衬出落寞的心境，以乐景写哀情，意在言外，余味不尽。结句以一幅江边闲马图收束全曲，如画之留白，把英雄暮年的悲凉留给了读者。

The closing writes the warhorse, the gathering of the song's feeling and its eye. 'By the river, the grass is green' — the scene: lush green grass by the river, an idle day; 'the warhorse idles' — the horse: a battle charger grazing at leisure. The genius lies in 'writing the man through the horse': the warhorse was bred to charge the ranks, yet now grazes idly by the river — the horse's 'idle' is the master's 'idle'; the horse's no field for strength is the master's. If the horse is so, what of the man? The general old, the charger idle, the gold and spears of old reduced now to green riverside grass and the horse's idle shadow. The word 'idle' is the poem's eye: on the surface the horse's contented grazing, within the man's shelved grief, loose without and tight within, all scenery feeling; the bright 'green riverside grass' answers the loneliness of 'old now, beside the camp gate' from afar, bright scenery setting off a lonely heart, sorrow written through joy, meaning beyond words, the aftertone lingering. The song closes on a picture of an idle horse by the river, like the blank space of a painting, leaving the hero's desolate evening to the reader.

Study

Word focus

明 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「霜明宝剑花」之「明」字，写寒霜映照下宝剑花纹的鲜明，是全曲「明暗对照」中的亮色之笔。「明」字的妙处在于「以亮写废」：剑本是杀敌之器，久经沙场则霜迹斑斑；如今寒霜映照，剑花反而历历分明——不是有人擦拭，而是无人使用，剑锋闲置日久，霜光与剑光相映，愈明愈见其无用武之地。若剑在征战中，则霜痕与血痕交织，何来此「明」？唯其久置匣中，方有此霜光明澈之象。「明」字还与下句「尘暗银鞍帕」的「暗」字构成全曲最要紧的对照：剑愈明而无人用，鞍愈暗而无人骑，一明一暗，都是闲置的证明。此字看似写物之光洁，实则写人之被弃，以亮写废、以明写悲，正是张可久炼字「于清丽中见沉郁」的典范。

暗 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「尘暗银鞍帕」之「暗」字，写尘土暗暗蒙住银鞍垫子，与「明」字对照，是全曲写闲置的关键字。「暗」字有多层意味：一是写物之状态——银鞍本是华贵的亮物，却被尘土蒙住，光泽暗淡，是久未使用的证明；二是写久置的时间——尘土不是一天蒙上的，「暗」字暗示岁月的累积，鞍已尘封多年；三是写心境的投影——鞍之「暗」，正是主人心境之「暗」：老将军闲置辕门之下，心情正如这蒙尘的银鞍，暗淡无光。「暗」字与「明」字的对照尤为精妙：剑因霜而明，鞍因尘而暗，同是久置之物，一明一暗，正见将军心境中「壮志未已」与「英雄迟暮」的交织——剑还亮着，说明心还未冷；鞍已暗了，说明身已老去。一字而写尽物态与人情，是炼字的点睛之笔。

闲 The word 'idle' writes the war-horse at leisure; in truth it counters the master's grief of having no use for his valour—a keen, alert choice. 「江边草青闲战马」之「闲」字，是全曲的诗眼，写战马的悠闲，实写主人的闲置。「闲」字表面写马——战马在江边悠闲吃草，无战事可赴，无征途可奔，何等安逸；深层写人——战马之闲，正是主人之闲：将军老向辕门之下，战马闲于江边青草，人与马同被投闲置散，同是无用武之地。「闲」字的妙处在于「以乐写悲」：悠闲本是好事，而战马之闲、将军之闲，却是英雄失路的悲哀——金戈铁马的岁月已经远去，剩下的只有江边的青草与悠闲。此字还暗含「反讽」：老将军本应驰骋沙场，如今却只能与马同闲，「闲」字越是轻描淡写，越见其沉重。结句以此字收束全曲，外松内紧，看似写景闲适，实则悲凉入骨，是「景语皆情语」的典范。