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

tí题dà大yǔ庾lǐng岭běi北yì驿

sòng宋zhī之wèn问Song Zhiwen · Tang唐

Written at the Post Station North of Dayu Ridge

yáng阳yuè月nán南fēi飞yàn雁

chuán传wén闻zhì至cǐ此huí回

wǒ我xíng行shū殊wèi未yǐ已

hé何rì日fù复guī归lái来

jiāng江jìng静cháo潮chū初luò落

lín林hūn昏zhàng瘴bù不kāi开

míng明zhāo朝wàng望xiāng乡chù处

yīng应jiàn见lǒng陇tóu头méi梅

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

阳月南飞雁In the tenth month the wild geese fly south;十月里，大雁往南飞，
传闻至此回they say that here they turn back.听说飞到这里就回头了。
我行殊未已But my journey is far from over.可我的路还远远没有走完，
何日复归来On what day will I come home again?哪一天才能再回家呢？
江静潮初落The river is still; the tide has just gone out.江水平静，潮水刚刚退去；
林昏瘴不开The woods are dim, and the fever mist will not lift.林子昏暗，瘴气久久不散。
明朝望乡处Tomorrow morning, where I look back toward home,明天早上，在岭上回望家乡的地方，
应见陇头梅I shall surely see the plum blossoms on the ridge.我应该会看到岭头的梅花吧。

Words字词注释

阳月yáng yuè: yáng yuè: the tenth month of the old Chinese calendar.阳月：农历十月。
传闻chuán wén: chuán wén: people say, it is said.传闻：听人说。
至此回zhì cǐ huí: zhì cǐ huí: on reaching here, they turn back. Legend says wild geese flying south stop at Dayu Ridge and go no farther.至此回：飞到这里就往回飞。传说北方的大雁南飞，到大庾岭就不再往南了。
殊未已shū wèi yǐ: shū wèi yǐ: still far from over. Shū means very.殊未已：还远远没有结束。殊，很、极。
昏hūn: hūn: dim, dark.昏：昏暗。
瘴zhàng: zhàng: a hot, damp mist in southern forests. People long ago thought it made you ill.瘴：瘴气，南方山林里湿热的雾气，古人认为会让人生病。
明朝míng zhāo: míng zhāo: tomorrow morning.明朝：明天早上。
望乡处wàng xiāng chù: wàng xiāng chù: the spot where you look back toward home, here the top of the ridge.望乡处：回头眺望家乡的地方，指岭头。
陇头梅lǒng tóu méi: lǒng tóu méi: plum blossoms on the ridge. Here lǒng tóu means the top of the ridge. Dayu Ridge has so many plum trees that it is also called Plum Ridge.陇头梅：山岭上的梅花。陇头，这里指岭头。大庾岭上梅花很多，所以又叫梅岭。

How to read it读音

朝zhāo: Míng zhāo means tomorrow morning, so this is read zhāo, not cháo.“明朝”是明天早上，“朝”读 zhāo，不读 cháo。

Background创作背景

This poem is usually dated to 705, when Song Zhiwen was sent away in disgrace. He had sided with the Zhang brothers, favorites of Empress Wu Zetian, so he was banished to Longzhou, far in the south. On the way he stopped at a post station north of Dayu Ridge and wrote this poem. A post station was a rest stop for travelers and messengers. Dayu Ridge lies where today's Jiangxi and Guangdong meet. People long ago saw it as the line between the heartland and the far south.

一般认为，这首诗是唐中宗神龙元年（705年）宋之问被贬时写的。他因为依附武则天的宠臣张易之兄弟，被贬到岭南的泷州，路过大庾岭北面的驿站时写下了这首诗。大庾岭在今天江西和广东交界的地方，古人把它看作中原和岭南的分界。

The poet作者

Song Zhiwen (about 656–712) was an early Tang poet. He was as famous as Shen Quanqi, and the two were called "Shen and Song". They did much to set the rules of regulated verse. Song Zhiwen was very gifted, but later people often criticized his character. Late in life he was banished again, and in the end he was ordered to die.

宋之问（约656—712），唐代初期诗人，和沈佺期齐名，人称“沈宋”。他们对律诗的格式定型有很大贡献。宋之问很有才华，但为人常被后人批评。他晚年再次被流放，最后被赐死。

The mood意境

The poem opens by comparing the poet with the geese. The geese can turn back home here, but he must go even farther south and does not know when he can return. A man worse off than a bird: the sadness comes at once. The middle lines show the scene before him. The tide has gone out and the river is still. The woods are dark and the fever mist hangs on. The scene is lonely and frightening, just like his feeling about an unknown future. At the end he pictures climbing the ridge tomorrow and looking back toward home, seeing only plum blossoms. Plum blossoms are lovely, but here they only make him miss home more.

诗一开头就拿大雁和自己比：大雁飞到这里就能回家，可我还得往更远的南方走，不知哪天才能回来。人不如雁，这份伤心一下子就出来了。中间两句写眼前的景：潮水退了，江面安静；林子昏暗，瘴气不散。这些景物又冷清又让人害怕，正像他前途渺茫的心情。最后他想象明天登上岭头回望家乡，只能看到满山梅花。梅花本来美丽，在这里却让人更想家。