Tang poem · five-character regulated verse唐诗 · 五言律诗

shū书biān边shì事

zhāng张qiáo乔Zhang Qiao · Tang唐

Writing of the Frontier

tiáo调jiǎo角duàn断qīng清qiū秋

zhēng征rén人yǐ倚shù戍lóu楼

chūn春fēng风duì对qīng青zhǒng冢

bái白rì日luò落liáng梁zhōu州

dà大hàn汉wú无bīng兵zǔ阻

qióng穷biān边yǒu有kè客yóu游

fān蕃qíng情sì似cǐ此shuǐ水

cháng长yuàn愿xiàng向nán南liú流

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。

Line by line逐句翻译

调角断清秋Horn calls break and drift through the clear autumn air.号角声在清冷的秋空里断断续续，
征人倚戍楼A soldier leans on the watchtower.守边的士兵靠在瞭望楼上。
春风对青冢Spring winds blow over the Green Tomb,春风吹拂着王昭君的青冢，
白日落梁州and the white sun sinks over Liangzhou.太阳慢慢落在梁州的西边。
大汉无兵阻No armies bar the way in our great land,大唐的边境没有战争阻隔，
穷边有客游and travellers roam even the farthest border.连最远的边地也有游客来往。
蕃情似此水The hearts of the border peoples are like this river:边地各族的心意，就像这河水，
长愿向南流may they flow south toward us forever.愿它永远向着南方流淌。

Words字词注释

调角tiáo jiǎo: tiáo jiǎo: to blow the horn. Armies used horns to mark the time and give orders.调角：吹响号角。号角是军队里用来报时、传令的乐器。
断清秋duàn qīng qiū: duàn qīng qiū: the horn's notes break off and drift through the clear, cold autumn air.断清秋：号角声在清冷的秋空里断断续续地传开。
征人zhēng rén: zhēng rén: soldiers guarding the frontier.征人：守边的士兵。
戍楼shù lóu: shù lóu: a watchtower on the border.戍楼：边防上用来瞭望的楼。
青冢qīng zhǒng: qīng zhǒng: the Green Tomb of Wang Zhaojun, near today's Hohhot in Inner Mongolia. Legend says the grass all around was pale, and only the grass on her tomb stayed green.青冢：王昭君的坟，在今天内蒙古呼和浩特附近。传说那一带草都发白，只有她坟上的草是青的，所以叫青冢。
梁州liáng zhōu: liáng zhōu: a Tang prefecture. Some take it to mean Liangzhou with a different character, around today's Wuwei in Gansu, in the northwest borderland.梁州：唐代州名。一说指凉州，在今天甘肃武威一带，是西北边地。
大汉dà hàn: dà hàn: the great Han, used to mean the Tang dynasty.大汉：用汉朝代指唐朝。
无兵阻wú bīng zǔ: wú bīng zǔ: no armies block the way. The border is at peace.无兵阻：没有打仗的军队挡路，边境太平。
穷边qióng biān: qióng biān: the farthest borderland.穷边：最远的边地。
蕃情fān qíng: fān qíng: the feelings of the border peoples.蕃情：边地各民族的心意。
长愿cháng yuàn: cháng yuàn: to hope it stays so forever.长愿：希望永远。

How to read it读音

调tiáo: Here it means to play an instrument, so it is read tiáo.调角：吹奏号角。这里“调”是吹奏、演奏的意思，读 tiáo。
蕃fān: Here it means the peoples of the west and north, such as the Tibetan empire, and is read fān. The empire's own name is read tǔ bō today.蕃：这里指吐蕃等西部、北部的民族，读 fān。“吐蕃”一词今天读 tǔ bō。

Background创作背景

This poem describes a rare time of peace on the Tang's northwest border. After the An Lushan Rebellion, the Tibetan empire held the Hexi region for many years. In the Dazhong years of Emperor Xuanzong, Zhang Yichao of Shazhou led the local people to drive the Tibetans out and gave Hexi back to the Tang. It is usually thought that Zhang Qiao travelled to the border after this, saw the peace there, and wrote this poem.

这首诗写的是唐朝后期西北边境一段难得的和平。安史之乱以后，河西一带被吐蕃占领了很多年。唐宣宗大中年间，沙州人张议潮带领百姓赶走吐蕃，把河西献给唐朝。一般认为，张乔就是在这以后到边地游历，看到边境安定，写下了这首诗。

The poet作者

Zhang Qiao was a late Tang poet from Chizhou, in today's Anhui. His dates of birth and death are not known. In the Xiantong years he was counted among the "Ten Worthies of Xiantong", a group of poets. He sat the top exam many times and never passed. During the Huang Chao Rebellion he went to live in hiding on Mount Jiuhua, and stayed there into old age.

张乔，晚唐诗人，池州（今安徽）人，生卒年不详。唐懿宗咸通年间，他和一些诗人一起被称为“咸通十哲”。他多次考进士都没考中。黄巢起义时，他躲进九华山隐居，一直到老。

The mood意境

Most frontier poems are about battles, homesickness, sandstorms and death. This one is quiet. Horns sound, and a soldier leans on the tower as if there is nothing to worry about. The Green Tomb brings to mind the old Han-era peace made by marrying Wang Zhaojun to a Xiongnu chief, and the sun setting in the west makes the land feel huge and far away. Lines five and six say it straight out: there is no war on the border, and travellers can go to its farthest corners. The last two lines are the most charming. The poet watches the river flowing south and hopes the hearts of the border peoples will always turn toward the central land, just like the water. The whole poem carries a hope for lasting peace.

一般的边塞诗，写的多是打仗、思乡、风沙和死亡。这首诗却很安静。号角声响着，士兵靠在楼上，好像没什么紧张的事。昭君的坟让人想起汉朝和匈奴和亲的往事，太阳落在西边，景色又大又远。五六句直接说：边境没有战争，连游客都能走到最远的地方。最后两句最有意思：诗人看着眼前向南流的河水，希望边地各族的心也像河水一样，永远向着中原。整首诗写出了人们对和平的盼望。