現代學者對清代長篇章回小說《鏡花緣》的論述甚夥，特別是第八回至四十回，《鏡花緣》的世界隨唐敖等人的遠洋遊蹤而繞出天朝「門戶山」，移至海外絕域之國、殊類之人，最後止泊於杳無人蹤的海外極南之境──小蓬萊，尤其引發學者們諸多面向的討論。然則這長達三十幾回的外域遊歷故事，在全書結構上的定位及其幽隱的寓意，實仍有探索的空間。本文試圖透過「淪降──遐昇」的多重論辯，將《鏡花緣》這趟千迴百轉而始終定向於天朝的遐荒之旅，定位為「鏡花水月」──所望終虛的天路歷程。一方面接引書中兩大主線──淪降下界的百名才女奔赴天朝、逞才競豔的人文盛會，以及忠義之師反正「錯亂陰陽」的偽天朝、重建李唐天朝正統的勤王大業；另一方面，迂迴地寄寓並終結了功名蹇滯的傳統文人在天朝的神聖光照下，所作的一場最普遍也最無法懸解於心的登昇大夢。

　　　　　Many contemporary scholars have written about the traditional Chinese novel Ching-hua Yuan, Flowers in the Mirror: in particular, the account of the sea-bound voyage of T'ang Ao and his companions-who sail from Mt. Man-hu in the Heavenly Kingdom to many foreign lands to finally alight on the desolate fairyland of Hsiao P'eng-lai (chaps. 8-40)─ has attracted the attention of many critics. However, much remains to be investigated about this fantastic journey that spans over some thirty chapters and about its very important position in the overall structure of the book. The present essay tries to map out the process from Exile to Ascent and narrates how Exile and Ascent connect the two main narrative threads of the novel. On one hand, we have the arrival to Earth of the one hundred exiled flower-fairies and the gathering of literary talents who pursue both self-fulfillment and fame in the Heavenly Kingdom. On the other, we see the exiled loyalists who enact the restoration of the orthodox Earthly Kingdom, namely the T'ang dynasty. This intricate voyage, which begins and ends with the Heavenly Kingdom, also examines the destinies of the two protagonists, T'ang Ao and T'ang Hsiao-shan, who both go from exile to ascent, albeit by different means. Moreover, this journey depicts a world full of illusions in which the quest for life is destined to be in vain. The characters' final move far away from the Earthly Kingdom symbolizes an idealistic and hopeless quest for self-fulfillment and orthodoxy, quest which arises from the author's deepest desires and frustrations.