Tang poem · five-character old-style poem唐诗 · 五言古诗

xī溪jū居

liǔ柳zōng宗yuán元Liu Zongyuan · Tang唐

Living by the Stream

jiǔ久wéi为zān簪zǔ组lěi累

xìng幸cǐ此nán南yí夷zhé谪

xián闲yī依nóng农pǔ圃lín邻

ǒu偶sì似shān山lín林kè客

xiǎo晓gēng耕fān翻lù露cǎo草

yè夜bàng榜xiǎng响xī溪shí石

lái来wǎng往bù不féng逢rén人

cháng长gē歌chǔ楚tiān天bì碧

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

久为簪组累For a long time I was tied down by official life.我长久被官职拖累，
幸此南夷谪Luckily, I have been sent away to this far southern land.幸好被贬到这南方偏远的地方。
闲依农圃邻In my free time I live as a neighbor of farmers.闲着的时候，和种田的农民做邻居，
偶似山林客At times I seem like a hermit of the hills and woods.有时候我好像一个山林里的隐士。
晓耕翻露草At dawn I till the land, turning over the dewy grass.清早去耕地，锄掉带露水的野草，
夜榜响溪石At night I row, and my oars knock on the stream's stones.夜里划船，船桨碰响溪中的石头。
来往不逢人Coming and going, I meet no one at all,来来去去，碰不到一个人，
长歌楚天碧so I sing out loud under the blue sky of Chu.我放声高歌，头上是楚地碧蓝的天。

Words字词注释

簪组zān zǔ: zān zǔ: a hatpin and the cord of an official seal, both worn by officials. Together they mean holding office.簪组：簪，古代官员别帽子用的长针；组，系官印的带子。合起来指做官。
累lěi: lěi: to tie down, to burden.累：拖累，束缚。
幸xìng: xìng: luckily. He says it with irony; really he feels wronged.幸：幸好。这是反话，其实心里有委屈。
南夷nán yí: nán yí: the far, wild south, meaning Yongzhou in today's Hunan.南夷：南方偏远的地方，指永州，在今天湖南。
谪zhé: zhé: to be demoted and sent far away.谪：被贬官，被调到远方。
农圃nóng pǔ: nóng pǔ: fields and vegetable gardens; here, the farmers.农圃：种田种菜的地方，这里指农民。
偶似ǒu sì: ǒu sì: at times it seems.偶似：有时好像。
山林客shān lín kè: shān lín kè: a hermit living in the hills and woods.山林客：住在山林里的隐士。
翻露草fān lù cǎo: fān lù cǎo: turning over dewy grass, that is, hoeing the field.翻露草：翻动带着露水的草，就是锄草耕地。
夜榜yè bàng: yè bàng: rowing at night.夜榜：夜里划船。
响溪石xiǎng xī shí: xiǎng xī shí: the oars knock against the stones in the stream.响溪石：船桨碰到溪里的石头，发出声响。
长歌cháng gē: cháng gē: to sing out loud and long.长歌：放声唱歌。
楚天chǔ tiān: chǔ tiān: Yongzhou was once part of the land of Chu, so this is the sky over it.楚天：永州古代属于楚地，楚天就是这里的天空。

How to read it读音

为wéi: Here the phrase means to be burdened by something. This passive use is read wéi.这里“为……累”是“被……拖累”的意思，“为”表示被动，读 wéi。
累lěi: Here it means to tie down or burden, read lěi. Some read it lèi.“累”是牵累、拖累的意思，读 lěi。一说读 lèi。
榜bàng: Here it means to row a boat, read bàng, not bǎng.“榜”这里是划船的意思，读 bàng，不读 bǎng。

Background创作背景

Under Emperor Shunzong, Liu Zongyuan joined a reform movement led by Wang Shuwen and others. When it failed, he was demoted in 805 to a minor post in Yongzhou, in today's Hunan, a remote place then. He lived there for ten years and later made his home beside a small stream outside the town, which he named Foolish Stream. This poem describes his life by the stream, usually thought to be written after he moved there.

唐顺宗时，柳宗元参加了王叔文等人主持的改革，改革失败后，他在805年被贬为永州司马。永州在今天的湖南，当时很偏僻。他在永州住了十年，后来在城外一条小溪边安了家，给小溪取名“愚溪”。这首诗写的就是他在溪边的生活，一般认为写于他搬到溪边以后。

The poet作者

Liu Zongyuan (773–819) was a Tang writer, one of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song. He became an official young and wanted reform, but for that he was sent south for more than ten years. In Yongzhou he wrote many works about nature, such as "River Snow" and "The Little Stone Pond". His quiet scenes often hide loneliness and a sense of injustice.

柳宗元（773—819），唐代文学家，“唐宋八大家”之一。他年轻时就做了官，想要改革，却因此被贬到南方，一贬就是十几年。他在永州写了很多山水诗文，比如《江雪》和《小石潭记》，常常在安静的景色里藏着孤独和不平。

The mood意境

On the surface the poem sounds relaxed. No more office work, how lucky. He lives among farmers like a hermit. He farms in the morning and rows at night, free and easy. But read closely and you hear something else. How could being exiled to a remote place be lucky? He says it with a bitter smile. "Coming and going, I meet no one" shows he has no friend to talk to. In the end he can only sing out loud to the blue sky. His song holds freedom, but also a loneliness and hurt he cannot put into words.

这首诗表面上很轻松：不用做官了，真幸运；和农民做邻居，像个隐士；早上种地，晚上划船，自由自在。可是仔细读，就能听出别的味道。被贬到偏远地方，哪里是“幸”呢？这是苦笑着说的反话。“来往不逢人”，说明他身边没有一个可以说话的朋友。最后他只好对着碧蓝的天空放声唱歌，歌声里有洒脱，也有说不出的孤独和委屈。