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唐 Tang · 诗 Poem

孟城坳

The, Hollow, of, the, Town, of, the, Meng

王维

Wang Wei

辋川Theme 怀古History

新家孟城口，古木余衰柳。
来者复为谁？
空悲昔人有。

新家孟城口，古木余衰柳。
来者复为谁？空悲昔人有。

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Meaning

A poem of the place and the grief, written by Wang Wei. The new home at the mouth of the Town of the Meng, the old trees the remaining willows withered — the place of the opening. The comers again who would they be, the vain grieving over the former people the having — the grief of the close. The poem is the place and the grief: the willows, and the close's grieving.

新家孟城口，古木余衰柳。来者复为谁？空悲昔人有。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] The, new, home, at, the, mouth, of, the, Town, of, the, Meng, the, old, trees, the, remaining, willows, withered. The, comers, again, who, would, they, be, the, vain, grieving, over, the, former, people, the, having. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves from the place of the new home with the old trees, through the comers of the who, to the close's the grieving of the former people. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the close of the grieving: the old trees the remaining willows withered, and the close's the comers again who would they be the vain grieving over the former people the having — the place gathered in the willows and the close's grieving. [Emotional Tone] Fine, melancholic, and reflective: the poem is the willows, the comers and the close's grieving.

【白话串讲】王维写《孟城坳》：“新家孟城口，古木余衰柳”——“来者复为谁？空悲昔人有”——他写孟城坳——后人又为谁而来？徒然悲叹前人——他写时间的流转。【意象与手法】此诗写怀古，以辋川写怀古，是王维的名篇。前二句写新居：「新家孟城口，古木余衰柳」写新家孟城口、古木余衰柳——写尽新居的兴废；后二句写感慨：「来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」写来者复为谁、空悲昔人有——写尽怀古的悲慨。全诗以辋川写怀古，写尽新居的兴废与怀古的悲慨，是王维的代表作。【情感与主旨】此诗写怀古，以辋川写怀古，是王维的名篇。此诗为《辋川集》二十首之第一首，写孟城坳。王维晚年购得蓝田辋川别业，此地本为宋之问别业。王维新居孟城口，见古木余衰柳，想到此地昔年为宋之问所有，遂生「来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」之叹——今我悲昔人，来者亦将悲我，正是人事兴废无常的感慨。此诗写新居：新家孟城口，古木余衰柳——写新家孟城口、古木余衰柳，写尽新居的兴废；来者复为谁？空悲昔人有——写来者复为谁、空悲昔人有，写尽怀古的悲慨。全诗以辋川写怀古——那「古木余衰柳」写尽新居的兴废，「空悲昔人有」写尽怀古的悲慨，写尽新居的兴废与怀古的悲慨，是理解王维辋川诗的重要篇章。【名句点睛】常考「新家孟城口，古木余衰柳」写新居的兴废；「来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」写怀古的悲慨；以及全诗以辋川写怀古、以问句写兴废的手法。

Background

Wang Wei (701-761), the great poet of the Tang, wrote this 'The, Hollow, of, the, Town, of, the, Meng' of the place and the grief — the grief of the town in the Wangchuan. The new home with the old trees, and the close's the grieving of the former people — the poem gathers the grief of the poet, the reflection of the passing. The poem is one of the famous works of the poet's poems of the Wangchuan.

此诗写怀古，以辋川写怀古，是王维的名篇。王维（约701—761），字摩诘，号摩诘居士，蒲州（今山西永济）人，唐代诗人、画家，与孟浩然并称「王孟」，苏轼评其「诗中有画，画中有诗」。此诗为《辋川集》二十首之第一首，写孟城坳。王维晚年购得蓝田辋川别业，此地本为宋之问别业。王维新居孟城口，见古木余衰柳，想到此地昔年为宋之问所有，遂生「来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」之叹——今我悲昔人，来者亦将悲我，正是人事兴废无常的感慨。此诗写新居：「新家孟城口，古木余衰柳」写新家孟城口、古木余衰柳——写尽新居的兴废（新家孟城口，古木余衰柳）；「来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」写来者复为谁、空悲昔人有——写尽怀古的悲慨（来者复为谁？空悲昔人有）。全诗以辋川写怀古，写尽新居的兴废与怀古的悲慨，是理解王维辋川诗的重要篇章。王维晚年隐居辋川，此地本为初唐诗人宋之问的别业。王维购得后营建二十景，作《辋川集》。孟城坳为辋川入口处之地，王维于此起首发端，因见古木衰柳，念及宋之问当年之盛，遂有兴废之感。此诗为《辋川集》第一首，奠定全集怀古伤今的基调。

Art

The poem's art is the art of the grieving. The place opens: the, new, home, at, the, mouth, of, the, Town, of, the, Meng — the new home of the Town of the Meng; the, old, trees, the, remaining, willows, withered — the old trees of the willows. The grief follows: the, comers, again, who, would, they, be — the comers of the who; the, vain, grieving, over, the, former, people, the, having — the grieving of the former people — the place, the comers and the close's grieving, gathered in the poem.

此诗的艺术特色可从四个方面解析。其一，以白描写新居。「新家孟城口」以白描写新居——那「新家」写尽新居的落成，以白描写尽新居的兴废。其二，以景物写兴废。「古木余衰柳」以景物写兴废——那「古木」「衰柳」写尽旧地的衰柳，以景物写尽新居的兴废。其三，以问句写感慨。「来者复为谁」以问句写感慨——那「复为谁」写尽来者的设问，以问句写尽怀古的悲慨。其四，以直抒写悲慨。「空悲昔人有」以直抒写悲慨——那「空悲」写尽悲昔的空悲，以直抒写尽怀古的悲慨。此外，此诗前二句写新居的兴废，后二句写怀古的悲慨，由景及情，正是怀古诗「以古照今」的写法。四重手法，使此诗以辋川写怀古，写尽新居的兴废与怀古的悲慨，是王维的代表作。此诗还善于以「新家孟城口」与「古木余衰柳」的新旧对照写兴废——那「新家」与「古木」写尽新旧之交替，正是以对照写人事的兴废，以对照写尽新居的兴废。又善以「来者复为谁」的问句收束全篇——来者复为谁，正见后之视今亦犹今之视昔，以问句写尽怀古的悲慨。

Allusions

'The Town of the Meng' (meng cheng) is the Town of the Meng — the town of the Meng, the home of the opening; 'the former people' (xi ren) are the former people — the people of the former, the grieving of the close.

此诗的用语深植于怀古与辋川传统。「孟城坳」令人想到「孟城坳」为辋川二十景之一——也令人想到《辋川集》的意象；「新家」令人想到「新家」写新居的意象——也令人想到「新居」的意象；「古木」令人想到「古木」写古木的意象——也令人想到「古木无人径」（王维）的意象；「衰柳」令人想到「衰柳」写衰柳的意象——也令人想到「西风残照，汉家陵阙」的意象；「昔人」令人想到「昔人」写昔人的意象——也令人想到「昔人已乘黄鹤去」（崔颢）的意象；「来者复为谁」令人想到「来者」写后来人的意象——也令人想到「前不见古人，后不见来者」（陈子昂）的意象。全诗化用孟城坳、新家、古木、衰柳、昔人、来者的意象，以辋川写怀古，正是王维「空灵」而善写意、承怀古传统写兴废之本领。「孟城坳」令人想到《辋川集》诸篇以地名入题的传统——也令人想到宋之问《别之望后独宿蓝田山庄》「愁望云山忆故人」的蓝田意象；「衰柳」令人想到《诗经·小雅·采薇》「昔我往矣，杨柳依依」的杨柳意象——也令人想到「衰柳寒蝉」的秋意。

Commentary

This poem is one of the famous works of Wang Wei's poems of the Wangchuan, quoted for the fineness of its opening and the reflection of its close. The willows of the withered, and the grieving of the former people, are among the admired passages of the poet's poems. Critics praise the poem's grief: the town gathered in the willows, to the close's grieving.

此诗历来被推为王维辋川诗的名篇，也是《辋川集》二十首的发端。历代论者对此诗评价极高：清人评此诗「以辋川写怀古，空灵超远」；近人更指出「来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」写怀古的悲慨，是此诗的名句。在诗歌史上，此诗的特殊价值在于：它以四句的五绝写尽新居的兴废与怀古的悲慨——那新家，那孟城口，那古木，那余衰柳，那来者，那复为谁，那空悲，那昔人有，都写尽了王维笔下的孟城坳；那「空悲昔人有」更以直抒写尽怀古的悲慨。此诗与王维《辋川集》中的《孟城坳》诸作同为首篇发端，又与崔颢《黄鹤楼》「昔人已乘黄鹤去」的怀古传统一脉相承，可见中国诗写人事兴废的传统。对于今日读者，此诗是理解王维辋川诗的窗口，也是《辋川集》的起点——那空悲昔人的感叹，穿越千年，仍在诉说着兴废的悲慨。此诗虽只二十字，却是《辋川集》二十首中最富哲学意味的一首。王维以「来者复为谁」一问，将眼前的兴废推至于永恒的人事代谢，正是佛家「无常」观的诗化。后之论者以此诗与王羲之《兰亭集序》「后之视今，亦犹今之视昔」对读，可见中国文人观照历史兴亡的一贯视角。

Prosody

Form A quatrain of the grief (wu yan jue ju)诗·五言绝句

Rhyme The poem rhymes on the level of the group — the cadence of the quatrain that carries the reflective grief.五绝，押「柳」「有」韵（上声有），仄韵一韵到底，音节空灵

Tone pattern The cadence is that of the grieving: the level opening with the place, the turning with the comers, and the close's fall with the having.此诗为五言绝句，押仄声韵，一韵到底，音节空灵，正合怀古的空灵。

Reading note The poem's sound matches its reflection: the cadences of the quatrain, and the close — 'kong bei xi ren you' — falls with the having, the sound of the grief of the Wangchuan poet.此诗为五言绝句，四句——「新家孟城口，古木余衰柳。来者复为谁？空悲昔人有」，押仄韵（柳、有），一韵到底，音节空灵。全诗以辋川写怀古：前二句写新居的兴废（新家孟城口、古木余衰柳），后二句写怀古的悲慨（来者复为谁、空悲昔人有）。四句短章，前写新居，后写悲慨，以「空悲昔人有」写尽怀古的悲慨，正见王维「空灵」的本色。诵读此诗，宜以空灵的语调读「古木余衰柳」的兴废，以超远的语调读「空悲昔人有」的悲慨，结句要读得空灵而有余韵，方能传达出王维的空灵超远。王维绝句以「空灵」著称，此诗正是其辋川诗的发端。

Line by line

来者复为谁？空悲昔人有

He who comes after - who will he be? Vainly I grieve for those who once were here.

来者复为谁？空悲昔人有。

He who comes hereafter, who will he be? Vainly I grieve for those who were here before.

此二句是全诗写悲慨的核心，以来者复为谁写复为谁，以空悲昔人有写昔人有，写尽怀古的悲慨，是千古名句。「来者复为谁」写来者复为谁——那「来者」写来者，「复为谁」写复为谁，写尽来者的设问；「空悲昔人有」写空悲昔人有——那「空悲」写空悲，「昔人有」写昔人有，写尽昔人的空悲。这句的深意在于：它以「来者复为谁」的设问与「空悲昔人有」的昔人有，写尽怀古的悲慨——来者复为谁，那「来者复为谁」写尽来者的设问——来者复为谁，正是后来人又将谁居的写照，那「复为谁」写尽怀古的悲慨；空悲昔人有，那「空悲昔人有」写尽昔人的空悲——空悲昔人，正是徒然悲昔的写照，那「昔人有」写尽人事的兴废；那「来者复为谁」写尽来者的设问，那「空悲昔人有」写尽昔人的空悲，一写来者，一写昔人，写尽怀古的悲慨——来者复谁而空悲昔人，正是兴废无常的写照；此二句以设问、昔人写尽怀古的悲慨，也让此二句成为全诗写悲慨的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「以后住这里的人，也会像我现在这样感慨吧」，则失其空灵；唯以「来者复为谁」写复为谁、「空悲昔人有」写昔人有，写尽怀古的悲慨，也让此二句成为全诗写悲慨的核心。

These two lines are the core of the poem's grief, a famous line through the ages. 'He who comes after - who will he be?' the question of the future dweller; 'vainly I grieve for those who once were here' the empty grief for the past. The deep meaning: those who come after will grieve us, as we grieve the past, rise and fall uncertain. Only the question and the empty grief give the line its depth, making it the poem's core.

新家孟城口，古木余衰柳

My new home at the mouth of Meng City; of the ancient trees, only the withered willows remain.

新家孟城口，古木余衰柳。

My new dwelling at the mouth of Meng City; of the old trees, only the faded willows are left.

此二句是全诗写兴废的核心，以新家孟城口写新家，以古木余衰柳写衰柳，写尽新居的兴废，是千古名句。「新家孟城口」写新家孟城口——那「新家」写新家，「孟城口」写孟城口，写尽新居的落成；「古木余衰柳」写古木余衰柳——那「古木」写古木，「余衰柳」写余衰柳，写尽古木的衰柳。这句的深意在于：它以「新家孟城口」的新家与「古木余衰柳」的衰柳，写尽新居的兴废——新家孟城口，那「新家孟城口」写尽新居的落成——新家孟城口，正是新居初成的写照，那「新家」写尽新居的兴废；古木余衰柳，那「古木余衰柳」写尽古木的衰柳——古木余衰柳，正是旧地衰柳的写照，那「衰柳」写尽人事的兴废；那「新家孟城口」写尽新居的落成，那「古木余衰柳」写尽古木的衰柳，一写新居，一写旧木，写尽新居的兴废——新家落成而古木犹存，正是新旧交替的写照；此二句以新家、衰柳写尽新居的兴废，也为下文的悲慨作铺垫，也让此二句成为全诗写兴废的核心与千古名句。若换作直说「我搬来孟城坳住，这里有些老树和枯柳」，则失其兴废；唯以「新家孟城口」写新家、「古木余衰柳」写衰柳，写尽新居的兴废，也让此二句成为全诗写兴废的核心。

These two lines are the core of the poem's rise and fall, a famous line through the ages. 'My new home at the mouth of Meng City' the new dwelling; 'of the ancient trees, only the withered willows remain' the old trees left. The new home and the remaining willows writing the rise and fall of the new dwelling - the new home built, the old trees still standing, the turn from old to new, priming the grief below.

Study

Word focus

新 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「新家孟城口」之「新」字是写兴废的关键词，一个「新」字写尽新居的兴废。新者，新近、初成也。王维以「新家孟城口」写兴废，这个「新」字至少有双重意味：其一，写居之新——那「新家孟城口」写新家孟城口，那「新」字写尽新居的落成——新家孟城口，正是新居初成的写照，那「新」字写尽新居的兴废；其二，写旧之对——那「新」字更是写对——新，正见与旧地的对照，那「新」字写尽人事的兴废。以「新」字写兴废，正是王维写怀古的枢纽——若换作「初」「始」等字，则或失其与「家孟城口」「古木余衰柳」的配合，或失其写新的意味；唯「新」字，以新家孟城口写尽新居之落成与新旧之对照，与「古木余衰柳」的衰柳相合，写尽新居的兴废，也让「新家孟城口」成为全诗写兴废的名句。

空 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「空悲昔人有」之「空」字是写悲慨的关键词，一个「空」字写尽悲昔的空悲。空者，徒然、白白也。王维以「空悲昔人有」写悲慨，这个「空」字至少有双重意味：其一，写悲之空——那「空悲昔人有」写空悲昔人有，那「空」字写尽悲昔的空悲——空悲昔人，正是徒然悲昔的写照，那「空」字写尽怀古的悲慨；其二，写理之悟——那「空」字更是写悟——空，正见兴废皆空的彻悟，那「空」字写尽王维的禅意。以「空」字写悲慨，正是王维写怀古的枢纽——若换作「徒」「枉」等字，则或失其与「悲昔人有」「来者复为谁」的配合，或失其写空的意味；唯「空」字，以空悲昔人有写尽悲昔之徒然与兴废之彻悟，与「来者复为谁」的设问相合，写尽怀古的悲慨，也让「空悲昔人有」成为全诗写悲慨的名句。

孟城坳