Tang poem · seven-character old-style poem (yuefu song)唐诗 · 七言古诗（乐府）

yàn雁mén门tài太shǒu守xíng行

lǐ李hè贺Li He · Tang唐

Song of the Governor of Yanmen

hēi黑yún云yā压chéng城chéng城yù欲cuī摧

jiǎ甲guāng光xiàng向rì日jīn金lín鳞kāi开

jiǎo角shēng声mǎn满tiān天qiū秋sè色lǐ里

sài塞shàng上yān燕zhī脂níng凝yè夜zǐ紫

bàn半juǎn卷hóng红qí旗lín临yì易shuǐ水

shuāng霜zhòng重gǔ鼓hán寒shēng声bù不qǐ起

bào报jūn君huáng黄jīn金tái台shàng上yì意

tí提xié携yù玉lóng龙wèi为jūn君sǐ死

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。

In the source text, the second line says the armor faces the moon, and the fourth line writes the word for rouge with a different second character. Current school textbooks say the armor faces the sun and use the other spelling for rouge. This page follows the textbook. Both spellings mean rouge.

语料里第二句作“甲光向月金鳞开”，第四句作“塞上燕支凝夜紫”。现行统编版语文教材作“甲光向日金鳞开”“塞上燕脂凝夜紫”，这里按教材。“燕支”“燕脂”都是胭脂的意思。

Line by line逐句翻译

黑云压城城欲摧Dark clouds press on the city, as if the walls will soon break.乌云黑沉沉地压在城头，城墙好像就要被压塌了；
甲光向日金鳞开The soldiers' armor faces the sun, flashing like golden scales.战士们的铠甲对着太阳，像金色的鱼鳞一样闪闪发光。
角声满天秋色里In the autumn scene, the call of horns fills the sky.秋天的景色里，号角声响遍天空；
塞上燕脂凝夜紫The frontier earth, red as rouge, thickens to purple in the night.边塞的泥土像胭脂一样红，在夜色里凝成暗紫色。
半卷红旗临易水Red flags half rolled up, the army comes quietly to the Yi River.半卷着红旗，援军悄悄来到易水边；
霜重鼓寒声不起The frost is heavy, the drums are cold, and their beat will not ring out.霜太重，鼓皮又冷，鼓声怎么也敲不响。
报君黄金台上意To repay the ruler's kindness, like the gold on the terrace,为了报答君王在黄金台上招贤的恩情，
提携玉龙为君死I grip my sword and gladly die for him.我手握宝剑，甘愿为君王战死。

Words字词注释

黑云压城hēi yún yā chéng: hēi yún yā chéng: dark clouds pressing down on the city, also a picture of the fierce enemy army closing in.黑云压城：乌云低低地压在城头上，也比喻敌军来势很凶。
欲摧yù cuī: yù cuī: about to be crushed. Cuī means to break down.欲摧：快要被压垮了。摧，毁坏。
甲光jiǎ guāng: jiǎ guāng: light shining off armor. Armor was a soldier's protective suit made of metal plates.甲光：铠甲反射的光。铠甲是古代士兵穿的护身衣，用金属片做成。
向日xiàng rì: xiàng rì: facing the sun.向日：对着太阳。
金鳞开jīn lín kāi: jīn lín kāi: the metal plates of the armor flash like golden fish scales.金鳞开：铠甲上的金属片像金色的鱼鳞一样闪闪发光。
角jiǎo: jiǎo: the army horn, blown to give orders.角：号角，古代军中吹的乐器，用来发号令。
塞上sài shàng: sài shàng: on the frontier.塞上：边塞上。
燕脂yān zhī: yān zhī: rouge, a red color. Here it describes the color of the earth, and hints at soldiers' blood.燕脂：就是胭脂，一种红色的颜料。这里形容泥土的颜色，也暗指战士的血迹。
凝夜紫níng yè zǐ: níng yè zǐ: thickened into dark purple in the night.凝夜紫：在夜色中凝成了暗紫色。
半卷红旗bàn juǎn hóng qí: bàn juǎn hóng qí: red flags half rolled up, so the army can move quietly without being seen.半卷红旗：把红旗卷起一半，是为了悄悄行军，不让敌人发现。
临lín: lín: to come near, to reach.临：到达、靠近。
易水yì shuǐ: yì shuǐ: a river in today's Yi County, Hebei. In ancient times the hero Jing Ke said farewell here before he set out to kill the King of Qin.易水：河名，在今河北易县一带。战国时荆轲在这里告别燕国太子，去刺杀秦王。
霜重鼓寒shuāng zhòng gǔ hán: shuāng zhòng gǔ hán: the frost is heavy and the drums are cold and damp.霜重鼓寒：霜很重，鼓皮又冷又湿。
声不起shēng bù qǐ: shēng bù qǐ: the drums sound dull and will not ring out.声不起：鼓声沉闷，敲不响。
报bào: bào: to repay.报：报答。
君jūn: jūn: the ruler.君：君王。
黄金台huáng jīn tái: huáng jīn tái: a tall terrace built by King Zhao of Yan in ancient times, with gold placed on it to invite talented people. Here it means the ruler's kindness in trusting good men.黄金台：战国时燕昭王建的高台，上面放着黄金，用来招请天下人才。这里指君王重用人才的恩情。
意yì: yì: kindness, goodwill.意：心意、恩情。
提携tí xié: tí xié: to hold, to carry in the hand.提携：拿着、握着。
玉龙yù lóng: yù lóng: a fine sword.玉龙：宝剑。
为君死wèi jūn sǐ: wèi jūn sǐ: to die for the ruler.为君死：为君王去死。

How to read it读音

燕yān: Here the word means rouge and is read yān.“燕脂”就是胭脂，这里读 yān。
角jiǎo: As in the army horn, read jiǎo.号角的“角”，读 jiǎo。

Background创作背景

"Song of the Governor of Yanmen" is an old yuefu song title. Yanmen was a frontier region in the far north, in today's northern Shanxi. Li He used this old title to write about a frontier battle: the enemy surrounds a city, the defenders fight hard, help arrives quietly at night, and the soldiers vow to give their lives for their country. Which real battle it describes is debated. Some think it is linked to the Tang wars against rebel regional governors. A story says the great writer Han Yu loved the first two lines when he read them, but the story may not be true.

《雁门太守行》是乐府旧题，雁门是古代北方的边郡，在今山西北部。李贺借这个老题目写一场边塞战争：敌军围城，守军苦战，援军夜里悄悄赶到，战士们决心报国。这首诗写的是哪一次战事，说法不一，有人认为和唐朝讨伐割据藩镇的战争有关。传说韩愈读了开头两句，非常欣赏，但这个故事未必可靠。

The poet作者

Li He (790–816), also called Changji, was a distant relative of the Tang royal family. His father's name had a character that sounded like the jin in jinshi, the top exam degree, so people blocked him from taking that exam. He never got ahead, and he lived only twenty-seven years by the old Chinese way of counting age. His poems are full of strange imagination and strong colors, so he is called the Ghost of Poetry.

李贺（790—816），字长吉，是唐朝皇族的远房后代。因为父亲名字里有“晋”字，和进士的“进”同音，他被人阻挠，没能参加进士考试。他一生不得志，按旧时的算法只活了二十七岁。他的诗想象奇特，用色浓烈，人称“诗鬼”。

The mood意境

What makes this poem special is its colors. Black clouds, golden armor light, rouge-red earth, dark purple in the night, half-rolled red flags, white frost. Put together, these strong colors are like a bold oil painting, and at once you feel the tension and the courage of the battlefield. The opening, dark clouds pressing on the city, makes you hold your breath. Then the armor flashes in the sun, and the soldiers' spirits are high. Next, help hurries through the night, the frost is heavy and the drums are muffled, and things look hard. The last two lines are a soldier's vow: to repay the ruler's trust, he will gladly die with sword in hand. The poem moves from heavy gloom to burning courage, and it stirs your blood.

这首诗最特别的是颜色。黑色的云，金色的甲光，胭脂红的泥土，夜里的暗紫色，半卷的红旗，白白的霜。这些浓烈的颜色放在一起，像一幅很有冲击力的油画，让人一下子感到战场的紧张和悲壮。开头“黑云压城”，压得人喘不过气；接着“甲光向日”，阳光照在铠甲上，战士们士气高昂。后面写夜里援军赶路，霜重鼓哑，处境艰难。最后两句是战士的誓言：为了报答君王的信任，宁愿拿着宝剑战死。全诗从压抑到激昂，读起来热血沸腾。