All poems

元 Yuan · 曲 Qu song

小桃红·杂咏

Little Pink: Miscellaneous Verses

盍西村

He Xicun

元曲Yuan Qu 山水Landscape 秋景Autumn Scene 闲适Leisurely

绿杨堤畔蓼花洲，可爱溪山秀，烟水茫茫晚凉后。
捕鱼舟，冲开万顷玻璃皱。
乱云不收，残霞妆就，一片洞庭秋。

On green willow bank by smartweed islet,
lovely streams and hills so fair.
After evening cool, misty waters stretch afar.
A fishing boat
parts the ten-thousand-acre glassy ripples.
Scattered clouds linger, evening glow adorns the scene —
a slice of Dongting autumn.

Listen

Meaning

The poem depicts a charming autumn evening on the Dongting Lake region: green willows, smartweed islets, clear streams, misty waters, a fishing boat cutting through glassy ripples, and clouds and sunset glow painting a picture of autumn.

绿杨掩映的堤畔是开满蓼花的沙洲，可爱的溪山清秀如画，烟水茫茫，在那晚凉渐起之后。打鱼的轻舟，冲开万顷如玻璃般明净的水面、泛起层层涟漪。乱云收不住，残霞却妆点成景，一片洞庭秋色尽收眼底。

Appreciation

This sanqu captures the tranquility and beauty of a southern autumn evening. The imagery is vivid and refreshing, with dynamic description of the boat and static beauty of the scenery. The final lines personify the clouds and sunset, creating a lyrical, expansive mood.

【白话串讲】晚凉的烟水、冲开波纹的渔船、没收走的乱云和残霞——盍西村把洞庭湖的秋色，装进了一首轻快的小令。【意象与手法】此曲以画入曲，章法如展卷：「绿杨堤畔蓼花洲，可爱溪山秀」先设点景与总评，「烟水茫茫晚凉后」拓开时空；「捕鱼舟，冲开万顷玻璃皱」以「玻璃」喻水、以「冲开」写动，静中见活；结句「乱云不收，残霞妆就，一片洞庭秋」以拟人收束，云霞皆成画工。全曲设色淡雅、动静相生，炼字如「皱」「妆」极见巧思，是「曲中有画」的范例。【情感与主旨】盍西村为元前期散曲家，生平不详，与白朴、王恽等同时，所作多写江南山水与田园闲适，《小桃红·杂咏》为其组曲。此首写洞庭秋暮，当是其游赏江南时所作，于秋景中见从容，体现了元人写自然小令「不即不离、清远闲放」的审美取向。【名句点睛】常考「捕鱼舟，冲开万顷玻璃皱」的比喻（以玻璃喻水）与以动写静；「乱云不收，残霞妆就」的拟人手法；以及全曲「以画入曲」、疏淡苍茫的秋景意境。

Background

He Xicun was a Yuan dynasty sanqu writer whose life details are scarce. He composed a series under the title 'Miscellaneous Verses' (Zayong), often depicting Jiangnan landscapes and idyllic life. This piece describes autumn on Dongting Lake, reflecting the Yuan literati's aesthetic of clear, leisurely natural description.

盍西村为元前期散曲作家，生平事迹记载极少，仅知其活动于元世祖至元年间前后，与白朴、王恽、卢挚等同时，有《小桃红·杂咏》八首等散曲传世，多写江南山水与田园闲适之趣。《小桃红》为越调曲牌，此首为组曲中写秋景的一篇，当是作者游赏江南时所作。元代散曲「模山范水」之作极盛：曲家于曲中写景，追求如画之意境与自然之趣，与唐诗宋词的写景传统一脉相承，又因散曲多用于歌筵酒席，故格调更为轻快洒脱、不避俚俗。盍西村以清丽之笔写江南风物，此曲于秋暮烟水中见从容闲适，恰体现了元人写自然小令「不即不离、清远闲放」的典型审美取向，也反映出元代文人于仕隐之间寄情山水、以审美的眼光观照自然的普遍心态。散曲作为新兴文体，于诗词之外另辟蹊径，其小令写景追求即景成趣、脱口而出，不事雕琢而天趣自呈，盍西村此曲正是这一文体观念的生动实践。

Art

This piece is painterly in structure: first setting the scene with colors (green, red), then expanding into misty vastness, then introducing a dynamic element (boat) against stillness, and concluding with personified clouds and sunset. The use of 'glassy' to describe water ripples is a striking metaphor. The rhythm is natural and unhurried, typical of the yuediao mode.

此曲以画入曲，章法如展画卷轴。「绿杨堤畔蓼花洲，可爱溪山秀」先设近景点景：绿杨、蓼花、沙洲，着以青翠与淡红，色彩明丽，随即以「可爱」二字直抒总评，闲适之情已立。「烟水茫茫晚凉后」拓开时空：由近景推向烟水茫茫的远景，并以「晚凉后」点明时序，画面由明而暗、由实而虚，渐入苍茫。「捕鱼舟，冲开万顷玻璃皱」是全文最灵动处：以「玻璃」喻水之澄澈明净，以「冲开」写轻舟之迅捷，万顷平波被一叶扁舟划破，泛起细密的涟漪，静水中见动，画面顿时活了起来。「乱云不收，残霞妆就，一片洞庭秋」以拟人收束：乱云不收拢，残霞如美人梳妆，妆点出一片洞庭秋色。全曲由点景而总评、由总评而拓境、由拓境而点染、由点染而总收，设色淡雅、动静相生，炼字如「皱」「妆」极见巧思，是「曲中有画」的典范之作。全曲八句层层展开，每句皆是一景，如卷轴徐徐打开，而结句「一片洞庭秋」以五字收拢全篇，散而不乱、疏而不空，正见元人小令「以小见大、以少总多」的章法功力。

Allusions

'Smartweed islet' (liaohua zhou) is a common imagery in Tang-Song poetry for riverside autumn scenery. 'Dongting' refers to Dongting Lake, a classic symbol of autumn waters since Qu Yuan's poem 'The Lady of the Xiang' ('Dongting waves and falling leaves'). The concluding line evokes this cultural resonance.

「蓼花洲」指生长红蓼的水中小洲，红蓼入秋而盛，为江乡秋色的典型意象，唐宋诗词多用以写水乡清景，如苏轼「蓼岸荻花中」、范成大「蓼花洲」诸句，盍西村取以入曲，即承此江乡秋色传统。「洞庭」本指洞庭湖，后泛称江南水面，自屈原《九歌·湘夫人》「袅袅兮秋风，洞庭波兮木叶下」以来，洞庭即成为秋水苍茫、远人怀思的代名词，唐人许棠「洞庭秋色满」、宋人刘攽「青草烟波洞庭秋」皆承此脉。结句「一片洞庭秋」以洞庭代指眼前水乡，化用不着痕迹，把小景纳入千古洞庭秋意的文化谱系之中，以小见大；「乱云」「残霞」则取传统写景意象而赋以拟人新意，全曲用典化句皆融于自然景物，正见元曲家「以俗为雅、化故为新」的造语功夫。又「玻璃」喻水之澄明，自唐宋以来屡见诗咏，此曲以「万顷玻璃皱」翻出新意，把传统意象化入新的情境；「乱云」「残霞」亦自谢朓「余霞散成绮」等句脱化而来，作者于故实中自出机杼，故典为我用而不见痕迹。

Commentary

The Ming critic Zhu Quan praised He Xicun's style as 'like clear breeze and pleasant sound' (Qingfeng shuangai). Ren Ne noted his xiaoling 'mostly depict Jiangnan scenery, clear and leisurely.' This piece exemplifies the Yuan miniature landscape song without heavy emotion, just pure observation.

明人朱权《太和正音谱》评盍西村词「如清风爽籁」，谓其曲风清丽自然、如清风过耳；近人任讷辑校散曲，亦称其小令「多写江南风物，清远闲放」。此曲模山范水而不滞于景：绿杨蓼花之明丽、烟水残霞之苍茫、渔舟涟漪之灵动，层层点染而归于「一片洞庭秋」的浑融之境，于淡彩中见秋魂，正是元人写自然小令「清而不寒、丽而不甜」的造诣所在。在文学史上，此曲的价值在于以极省净的笔墨写出秋暮水乡的完整意境，体现了散曲小令在写景抒情上「以少总多、清丽天成」的审美追求，与白朴《天净沙·秋》、卢挚《沉醉东风·秋景》同属元人秋景小令的上乘，为后人认识元代散曲的山水题材提供了绝佳的范本。后世曲选多录此曲，其清丽自然的格调，与白朴、卢挚诸家并称元曲写景小令的代表；「捕鱼舟，冲开万顷玻璃皱」等句更成为散曲设喻造语的经典，足见其在文学史上稳定的经典地位。

Prosody

Form Yue diao · Xiaotaohong (xiaoling)北曲·越调·小桃红（小令）

Rhyme Rhyme scheme: zhou, xiu, hou, zhou, zhou, shou, jiu, qiu (you-hou rhyme, level and oblique mixed in Northern Qu)押尤侯韵（北曲平仄通押），韵脚：洲、秀、后、舟、皱、收、就、秋。

Tone pattern Mainly seven-character lines with occasional three- or five-character lines, creating a relaxed rhythm句式以七字句为主，间以五字句与三字句：「捕鱼舟」三字短句领起，节奏顿挫；「乱云不收，残霞妆就」为四字对句，音节齐整。全曲八句，长短相间，读来疏朗从容，与清丽闲适的秋景相谐。

Reading note The piece progresses from close-up to distant view, with a broad closing.《小桃红》为北曲越调曲牌，多用于写景抒情，句式灵活，兼有诗词的凝练与曲的洒脱。此曲全篇八句，除「捕鱼舟」「乱云不收」「残霞妆就」外，多为七字长句，间以三字、四字短句，长短错落，节奏疏朗；句句押韵，一韵到底，韵脚皆平声（尤侯韵），声情悠扬舒缓，恰合秋暮烟水的从容之境。北曲用韵平仄通押，不似诗词之严格区分，故「秀」（去声）、「皱」（去声）等仄声字亦可入韵，读来更觉自然流转。全曲由点景着色到境界开阔，末以「一片洞庭秋」五字总收，疏淡苍茫，正见越调小令「清景闲情、节奏从容」的体制之美，是元人秋景小令中音律与意境兼胜的一篇。

Line by line

绿杨堤畔蓼花洲，可爱溪山秀，

On the green willow bank by the smartweed islet, lovely streams and hills are so beautiful. This opening paints a colorful scene with direct admiration, setting the leisurely tone.

绿杨掩映的堤畔是开满蓼花的沙洲，可爱的溪山清秀如画。

The bank screened by green willows, the isle bright with smartweed; lovely the grace of stream and hill.

起笔设点景，以画师着色的笔法开卷。「绿杨堤畔蓼花洲」一句叠用三个物象：绿杨是堤边的垂杨，蓼花是沙洲上的红蓼，绿与红相映，色彩明丽而清新；「溪山秀」则放开视野，以「秀」字总评溪山之清秀，如画图题跋。此句妙在以「可爱」二字直抒——不事雕琢的平常语，恰恰写出作者赏爱之真，正是散曲本色。两句由近而远、由物及评，已经把「秋暮水乡」这幅画卷的点景人物与总评题款一并写足，闲适从容的情调油然而生。

The opening fixes the scene, opening in the painter's coloring brush. 'By the green willow dyke, the smartweed isle' stacks three things: green willows on the bank, red smartweed on the isle, green and red answering, the colors bright and fresh; 'the grace of stream and hill' opens the view, the word 'grace' as the overall verdict on the hills and waters, like a colophon on a painting. The genius lies in the outright 'lovely' — an uncarved common word, precisely writing the poet's true delight, the native manner of sanqu. Two lines, near to far, thing to verdict, already setting the 'autumn-dusk water country' picture's fixed scenery and colophon in full, the leisurely mood rising of itself.

烟水茫茫晚凉后。

Misty waters stretch far and wide after the cool evening. This line expands the spatial scope and establishes the time, leading into the tranquil atmosphere.

烟水茫茫，在那晚凉渐起之后。

The misty waters stretch vast; after the evening cool has risen.

此句拓开时空，由近景转入远景、由实景转入虚境。「烟水茫茫」写水气升腾、水天相接，视野忽然开阔，由绿杨蓼花的明丽转为烟波的苍茫；「晚凉后」点明时间，暮色四合、凉意渐生，为画面笼上一层清凉的秋意。此句虽短，却是全曲章法的枢纽：前句是近景点染，此句是远景铺开，一明一暗、一实一虚，画面由此获得纵深与时间感。古人以「晚凉」写秋，往往暗含一种清寂的心境，而此处只淡淡写出，不着一情字，闲适之外别有从容，正是元人写景「不即不离」的笔法。

This line opens time and space, from near view to far, from solid scene to void mood. 'Misty waters, vast and boundless' the water-steam rising, water and sky meeting, the view suddenly open, turning from the brightness of green willow and red smartweed to the vastness of misty waves; 'after the evening cool has come' marks the time, dusk gathering, coolness growing, laying a layer of cool autumn over the picture. The line though short is the song's structural hinge: the last line the near touch, this the far spread, one bright one dark, one solid one void, the picture gaining depth and time. The ancients writing autumn in 'evening cool' often held a quiet mood; here it is written plainly, not one word of feeling, a calm beyond leisure, the Yuan art of scenery 'neither close nor far.'

捕鱼舟，冲开万顷玻璃皱。

A fishing boat parts the ten-thousand-acre glassy ripples. The metaphor 'glassy ripples' vividly describes the clear water; the action verb 'parts' brings motion into stillness, enlivening the scene.

打鱼的轻舟，冲开万顷如玻璃般明净的水面、泛起层层涟漪。

The fishing skiff drives through ten thousand acres of glass, crinkling the smooth water.

此句是全曲最灵动处，以动写静、设喻精绝。「玻璃」喻水之澄澈明净，万顷碧波如一面巨大的玻璃镜，将天光云影尽收其中；「冲开」写轻舟破水之迅捷，「皱」字尤为传神——玻璃般平滑的水面被舟首划破，泛起细密涟漪，如镜面起皱，静中见动，画面顿时活了起来。「捕鱼舟」三字置于句首，点出画面中的人，舟小、水阔、境静，而一「冲」一「皱」，生机顿现。以玻璃喻水，唐人已有，而置于万顷与一叶的对比中，愈见水之澄、舟之轻；动静相生，正是「曲中有画、画中有动」的妙笔。

This line is the song's most living stroke, writing stillness through motion, the metaphor exquisite. 'Glass' the water's limpid clarity, the ten-thousand-acre green waves like a great glass mirror, holding sky-light and cloud-shadow; 'breaks through' the skiff's swiftness through the water; the word 'ripples' especially vivid — the glass-smooth surface cut by the bow, fine ripples rising, like a mirror crinkled, motion seen in stillness, the picture suddenly alive. 'The fishing boat' at the line's head names the person in the picture, the boat small, the water vast, the realm still, and one 'break' and 'ripple,' life suddenly rising. Glass for water was known to the Tang, yet set within the contrast of ten thousand acres and one leaf, the more showing the water's clarity, the boat's light; motion and stillness born of each other, the fine brush of 'painting within the song, motion within the painting.'

乱云不收，残霞妆就，一片洞庭秋。

Scattered clouds linger, evening glow adorns the scene — a slice of Dongting autumn. Personification of clouds and sunset, with a broad closing that conveys the full autumn mood.

乱云收不住，残霞却妆点成景，一片洞庭秋色尽收眼底。

Wild clouds will not settle; the sunset glow has dressed itself up — one whole stretch of Dongting autumn.

结句以拟人收束，总揽全曲秋意。「乱云不收」写晚云散乱、无意收敛，一种自由散漫之态；「残霞妆就」以「妆」字拟人，写残霞如美人梳妆点染，把天边装扮得绚烂——云自乱、霞自妆，皆任其自然，正是闲适心境的外化。末句「一片洞庭秋」以五字总收：眼前溪山、烟水、渔舟、云霞，尽归于这一片秋色之中，「洞庭」点出地域之阔，又暗含《楚辞》以来洞庭秋水的文化意蕴，以小见大。全曲由近及远、由静到动、由实到虚，至此浑然收拢，疏淡中见苍茫，正是元人写秋小令的典型收法。

The closing gathers the song's autumn feeling in personification. 'Wild clouds that will not gather' the evening clouds scattered, no wish to close, a free, stray mood; 'the sunset glow, made up like a painting' the word 'made up' personifying, the glow like a beauty at her toilet, dressing the horizon in splendor — clouds of themselves wild, glow of itself dressed, all left to nature, the externalization of a leisurely heart. The last words, 'one stretch of Dongting autumn,' gather in five characters: the stream and hill before the eyes, the misty water, the fishing boat, the clouds and glow, all gathered into this one stretch of autumn; 'Dongting' marking the breadth of the place, and darkly holding the cultural sense of Dongting autumn waters since the Songs of Chu, the small writing the great. The song, near to far, still to moving, solid to void, now gathered whole, the vast within the sparse, the typical close of Yuan autumn short songs.

Study

Word focus

玻璃皱 Glassy ripples: a metaphor for the clear water surface. The character '皱' (wrinkle) vividly describes fine ripples, showing the poet's fresh coinage. 「冲开万顷玻璃皱」五字，是全曲炼字的结晶。「玻璃」喻水，取其澄澈明净、平滑如镜之态，万顷碧波仿佛一块巨大的透明玻璃；「皱」字更妙，写轻舟破水后在镜面上划出的细密涟漪，如玻璃起皱，把水波的动态写得可触可感。以「玻璃」喻水，唐人有「潭清疑水浅，荷动知鱼散」之清，宋人有「水如碧玉山如黛」之丽，而「玻璃皱」将静态之喻与动态之状合一，既写水之明净，又写舟之轻快、波之涟漪，五字写尽水光舟影。此词设喻新奇而贴切，正是散曲「造语尖新」的本色，一字「皱」，境界全出。

妆就 Adorned: personifies the evening glow as a lady dressing up, adding a touch of delicate beauty to the scene. 「残霞妆就」之「妆就」二字，以拟人写晚霞，是全曲最见巧思的炼字。「妆」本为女子梳妆打扮，「就」表完成，合言残霞如美人梳妆完毕，把天边妆点得绚烂动人。以妆写霞，把无生命的云霞化为有情之物，既写出晚霞铺展天际的形态之美，又暗含一种从容自得的情趣——云乱而霞妆，各任其性，正是闲适心境的外化。此字俏丽而不甜腻，与「乱云不收」的散漫形成对照：一乱一妆、一收一就，动静互映，画面由此生色。若易为「残霞染就」「残霞映就」等熟语，则失其神韵；「妆就」之妙，正在以人的梳妆移写天的晚妆。

可爱 Lovely: a simple, direct expression of admiration, reflecting the spontaneous and unadorned style of Yuan sanqu. 「可爱溪山秀」之「可爱」二字，以最平常的语词直抒感受，反见作者赏爱之真。诗词写景，或以工笔细描，或以典故铺陈；此处偏偏用了最口语化的「可爱」——溪山之秀不待形容，一个「可爱」已把由衷的欢喜和盘托出，如见其人拊掌赞叹。这种不假雕饰的直评，正是散曲「以俗为雅」的本色：元曲与诗词不同，本可运用口语俚语入曲，「可爱」一词脱口而出，亲切自然，反使画面带上主观的温度。它与「秀」字配合，先评后景、以情摄景，为全曲定下欢愉闲适的基调；后世读此，如闻曲家当日的笑音，正是「平字见奇、俗字见雅」的范例。