Tang poem · seven-character regulated verse唐诗 · 七言律诗

dú独bú不jiàn见

shěn沈quán佺qī期Shen Quanqi · Tang唐

Longing Unseen

lú卢jiā家shào少fù妇yù郁jīn金táng堂

hǎi海yàn燕shuāng双qī栖dài玳mào瑁liáng梁

jiǔ九yuè月hán寒zhēn砧cuī催mù木yè叶

shí十nián年zhēng征shù戍yì忆liáo辽yáng阳

bái白láng狼hé河běi北yīn音shū书duàn断

dān丹fèng凤chéng城nán南qiū秋yè夜cháng长

shuí谁wèi为hán含chóu愁dú独bú不jiàn见

gèng更jiào教míng明yuè月zhào照liú流huáng黄

Underlined words have notes: tap one. The Pinyin button below shows or hides all pinyin. 一 and 不 are marked with the tone you actually say.字下有虚线的，点开有注释。下方的“拼音”按钮可以显示或隐藏全部拼音。“一”“不”标的是实际读出来的变调。

This poem is also titled "Old Feelings, Sent to Censor Qiao Zhizhi". The database lists it among folk-song lyrics, and its text differs in a few places: "young wife", "tree leaves", "for whom" and "still makes the moon" are all worded differently there. This page follows the common Three Hundred Tang Poems text.

这首诗又题作《古意呈补阙乔知之》。资料库本题作《杂曲歌辞·独不见》，正文有几处不同：“小妇”通行本作“少妇”，“催下叶”作“催木叶”，“谁知含愁”作“谁为含愁”，“使妾明月”作“更教明月”。这里用通行的《唐诗三百首》本。

Line by line逐句翻译

卢家少妇郁金堂The young wife of the Lu family lives in a fragrant, splendid hall.卢家的年轻媳妇住在芳香华美的郁金堂里。
海燕双栖玳瑁梁A pair of swallows nests together on the tortoiseshell beams.一对燕子成双成对地栖息在玳瑁装饰的房梁上。
九月寒砧催木叶In the ninth month, the sound of cloth being pounded in the cold hurries the leaves down.九月里，寒秋的捶衣声催着树叶纷纷落下。
十年征戍忆辽阳Her husband has been away at the border for ten years, and she keeps thinking of far Liaoyang.丈夫出征守边已经十年，她日夜思念着辽阳。
白狼河北音书断North of the White Wolf River, his letters stopped long ago.白狼河北边，他的书信早已断了。
丹凤城南秋夜长South of the capital, the autumn night feels so long.长安城南，秋天的夜晚显得那么漫长。
谁为含愁独不见For whom is she so full of sorrow, yet still cannot see him?她是为谁满怀忧愁，却只是见不到他？
更教明月照流黄And still the bright moon is made to shine on her silk bed curtains.偏偏还让明月照在床前的帷帐上。

Words字词注释

卢家少妇lú jiā shào fù: lú jiā shào fù: the young wife of the Lu family. An old song tells of a girl who married into the Lu family at fifteen, so later poems use the phrase for a young wife in a rich home.卢家少妇：卢家的年轻媳妇。古诗里有“十五嫁为卢家妇”的句子，后来就用“卢家少妇”指富贵人家的年轻妻子。
郁金堂yù jīn táng: yù jīn táng: a hall with walls rubbed with fragrant turmeric, a fine and sweet-smelling room.郁金堂：用郁金香料涂墙的屋子，形容房子华美芳香。
海燕hǎi yàn: hǎi yàn: swallows. People of old thought swallows came flying in from the sea.海燕：燕子。古人以为燕子从海上飞来。
双栖shuāng qī: shuāng qī: nesting together in pairs.双栖：成双成对地住在一起。
玳瑁梁dài mào liáng: dài mào liáng: roof beams decorated with tortoiseshell, the lovely shell of a kind of sea turtle.玳瑁梁：用玳瑁装饰的房梁。玳瑁是一种海龟，壳很漂亮。
寒砧hán zhēn: hán zhēn: the stone for pounding cloth in the cold autumn. Women beat cloth on it to make winter clothes for men far away.寒砧：寒秋里捶衣服的石头。古时妇女秋天在砧石上捶布，给远方的人做冬衣。
催木叶cuī mù yè: cuī mù yè: the pounding sounds seem to hurry the leaves to fall.催木叶：捶衣声好像在催树叶落下。
征戍zhēng shù: zhēng shù: going away to guard the border.征戍：出征去守边。
辽阳liáo yáng: liáo yáng: an area in today's Liaoning, on the northeastern border of the Tang.辽阳：在今天辽宁一带，唐朝的东北边疆。
白狼河bái láng hé: bái láng hé: today's Daling River in Liaoning, on the frontier.白狼河：今天辽宁的大凌河，在边疆。
音书断yīn shū duàn: yīn shū duàn: the letters have stopped and there is no news.音书断：书信断了，没有消息。
丹凤城dān fèng chéng: dān fèng chéng: the capital, Chang'an.丹凤城：指京城长安。
含愁hán chóu: hán chóu: full of sorrow.含愁：满怀忧愁。
独不见dú bú jiàn: dú bù jiàn: simply cannot see the one she longs for. It is also an old folk-song title about longing for someone you cannot see.独不见：只是见不到想念的人。“独不见”也是古代乐府诗的一个题目，专写相思见不到人。
流黄liú huáng: liú huáng: yellow-brown silk. Here, the bed curtains made of it.流黄：黄褐色的丝绢，这里指用它做的帷帐。

How to read it读音

少shào: Here it means young, so it is read shào.少妇是年轻的妻子，“少”读 shào。
为wèi: Here it is usually read wèi, meaning for whom or because of whom.谁为的“为”一般读 wèi，意思是“为了谁、因为谁”。
教jiào: Here it means to make or to let, so it is read jiào.教在这里是“使、让”的意思，读 jiào。

Background创作背景

"Longing Unseen" was an old folk-song title for poems about missing someone you cannot see. Shen Quanqi used this old title to write about a young wife in Chang'an. Her husband has been guarding the northeastern border for ten years, and no letters come. On an autumn night she misses him alone. The Tang fought on its borders for years on end, and many families were parted this way. We do not know which year the poem was written.

《独不见》本是古代乐府诗的题目，专门写思念一个人却见不到。沈佺期用这个旧题，写一位住在长安的年轻妻子，丈夫去东北边疆守边十年，音信全无，她在秋夜里独自思念。唐代常年在边疆打仗，很多家庭都是这样分离的。这首诗具体写于哪一年，不清楚。

The poet作者

Shen Quanqi (about 656–about 715) was an early Tang poet. He and Song Zhiwen are called Shen and Song. The two of them made the rules of regulated verse tighter and helped this form grow up in the Tang. This poem is an early and very polished seven-character regulated verse. Some Ming dynasty critics even called it the best of all Tang poems in this form.

沈佺期（约656—约715），初唐诗人，和宋之问合称“沈宋”。他们俩把律诗的格律定得更规整，对唐代律诗的成熟贡献很大。这首诗是早期很成熟的七言律诗，明代有评论家甚至推它为唐人七律第一。

The mood意境

The poem opens with wealth and happiness: a fragrant room, swallows in pairs on the beams. But the swallows are two and she is one, and from that contrast her loneliness appears. Then comes autumn. The pounding of cloth, beat after beat, seems to hurry the leaves to fall, and to hurry her thoughts toward her husband far away. Ten years, and he has not come home. Lines five and six are a famous matched pair. He is north of the White Wolf River, she is south of the capital. On his side the letters have stopped; on hers the autumn night is long. Two places and two feelings line up neatly. At the end she asks: I am this sad and cannot see him, so why does the moon still shine on my curtains? Blaming the moon shows how helpless she feels.

开头写的是富贵和美满：芳香的屋子，梁上成双的燕子。可燕子成双，人却是一个，这一对比，孤单就出来了。接着写秋天：捶衣声一下一下，好像在催树叶落，也在催她想念远方的丈夫；十年了，人还没回来。五、六句是有名的对句：一个在白狼河北，一个在长安城南，一边“音书断”，一边“秋夜长”，两个地方、两种心情，对得很工整。最后她问：我这样发愁，却见不到人，为什么月亮还偏偏来照我的帷帐？把怨气撒到月亮上，更显得无可奈何。