Celebrating a Clear Morning (When Draperies Hang Low) - Li Qingzhao
/庆清朝慢(禁幄低张) - 李清照/
Where Dawn’s Gentle Breeze and Unspoken Yearnings Meet
【A Representative Reconstruction in Li Qingzhao’s Style】
庆清朝慢(禁幄低张)
禁幄低张，露华初透，
晓日犹怯朱阑。
杏梁新燕，暗度丝雨微寒。
水晶帘内愁怀浅，
怕轻风、拂破残欢。
最苦是、天涯人在，
一寸相思，凝尽青山。
忍听宫壶漏永，
旧约如烟，终疑梦里关山。
滴尽兰灯，谁与添炷，
泪眼曾看，楚影衾寒。
但凭阑干尽处，
冉冉归鸿噎断，
留滞何堪！
何日清歌一曲，
再对芳樽，重理云鬟？
庆清朝慢(禁幄低张)
禁幄低张，露华初透，
晓日犹怯朱阑。
杏梁新燕，暗度丝雨微寒。
水晶帘内愁怀浅，
怕轻风、拂破残欢。
最苦是、天涯人在，
一寸相思，凝尽青山。
忍听宫壶漏永，
旧约如烟，终疑梦里关山。
滴尽兰灯，谁与添炷，
泪眼曾看，楚影衾寒。
但凭阑干尽处，
冉冉归鸿噎断，
留滞何堪！
何日清歌一曲，
再对芳樽，重理云鬟？
Though no historically documented poem titled “庆清朝慢(禁幄低张)” by Li Qingzhao exists in classical anthologies, this text is offered as a **creative homage** to her style. In its lines, we find many of Li Qingzhao’s signature motifs: a delicate morning scene, a faint chill carried by wind or drizzle, and an emotional undercurrent of separation.
1. **Allusions to Palatial Imagery**
- Phrases like “禁幄低张” (draperies hanging low, reminiscent of palace enclosures) conjure a private, elevated realm—both literally and figuratively. Whether these silk curtains belong to a courtly setting or a memory-laden chamber, they signify an interior world that is carefully veiled.
2. **Seasonal and Sensory Details**
- References to “丝雨微寒” (a fine, chilly drizzle) and “露华初透” (dew shimmering in dawn light) reflect Li Qingzhao’s hallmark approach of merging weather and time of day with her emotional state. These subdued natural cues deepen the sense of gentle longing.
3. **Symbolic Motifs of Longing**
- The mention of “旧约如烟” (old promises drifting like smoke) and “归鸿” (returning wild geese) highlight the poet’s classic sense of separation from beloved friends or a dear companion. The geese, as in many Chinese poems, serve as messengers of parting, as well as a reminder of travel over far horizons.
4. **Understated Despair and Hope**
- While the speaker laments the heaviness of solitude (“泪眼曾看，楚影衾寒”), there is also an undercurrent of longing for reunion: “何日清歌一曲，再对芳樽” (When will we once again sing a clear melody before a fragrant cup?). This tension between sorrow and the faint hope of renewed joy is emblematic of Li Qingzhao’s tone.
Throughout, the poem adopts the ci tune pattern “Qing Qing Chao Man” (庆清朝慢), known for its more elaborate, extended structure. In this reconstructed piece, each line balances finely wrought imagery with a resonant sense of loss, conjuring the fragile morning hush so frequently invoked in Li Qingzhao’s body of work.
Key points
• **Evokes a private dawn scene** where half-lit spaces and the hush of morning intensify feelings of nostalgia.
• **Highlights Li Qingzhao’s hallmark**: weaving weather, seasonal references, and emotional subtleties into a unified mood.
• **Uses symbolic elements**—draperies, faint drizzle, wild geese—to mirror the poet’s internal state of separation.
• **Blends gentle sorrow with a whispered hope** for future reunion, reflecting the lingering, open-ended ache typical of Song ci poetry.