Chapter IX: Part IV: are appropriate, it will be observed, to sacrifices offered to (4)

[1. The statement that 'God spake to king Wan,' repeated in stanza 7, vexes the Chinese critics, and they find in it simply an intimation that Wan's conduct was 'in accordance with the will of Heaven.' I am not prepared to object to that view of the meaning; but it is plain that the writer, in giving such a form to his meaning, must have conceived of God as a personal Being, knowing men's hearts, and able to influence them.

2. Mî or Mî-hsü was a state in the present King-ning Kâu, of Phing-liang department, Kan-sû.

3. Yüan was a state adjacent to Mî,--the present King Kâu, and Kung must have been a place or district in it.

4 Wan, it appears, made now a small change in the site of his capital, but did not move to Fang, where he finally settled.]

the Wei, The centre of all the states, The resort of the lower people.

God said to king Wei, 'I am pleased with your intelligent virtue, Not loudly proclaimed nor pourtrayed, Without extravagance or changeableness, Without consciousness of effort on your part, In accordance with the pattern of God.' God said to king Wan, 'Take measures against the country of your foes. Along with your 'brethren, Get ready your scaling ladders, And your engines of onfall and assault, To attack the walls of Khung[1].'

The engines of onfall and assault were (at first) gently plied, Against the walls of Khung high and great; Captives for the question were brought in, one after another; The left ears (of the slain) were taken leisurely [2]. He had sacrificed to God and to the Father of War [3], Thus seeking to induce

[1. Khung was a state, in the present district of Hû, department Hsî-an, Shen-hsî. His conquest of Khung was an important event in the history of king Win. He moved his capital to it, advancing so much farther towards the east, nearer to the domain of-Shang. According to Sze-mg Khien the marquis of Khung had slandered the lord of Kâu, who was president of the states of the west, to Kâu-hsin, the king of Shang, and our hero was put in prison. His friends succeeded in effecting his deliverance by means of various gifts to the tyrant, and he was reinstated In the west with more than his former power. Three years afterwards he attacked the marquis of Khung.

2. So far the siege was prosecuted slowly and, so to say, tenderly, Wan hoping that the enemy would be induced to surrender without great sacrifice of life.

3. The sacrifice to God had been offered in Kâu, at the commencement of the expedition; that to the Father of War, on the army's arriving at the borders of Khung. We can hardly tell who is intended by the Father of War. Kû Hsî and others would require the plural 'Fathers,' saying the sacrifice was to Hwang Tî and Khih Yû, who are found engaged in hostilities far back in the mythical period of Chinese history. But Khih Yû appears as a rebel, or opposed to the One man in all the country who was then fit to rule. It is difficult to imagine how they could be associated, and sacrificed to together.]

submission, And throughout the region none had dared to insult him. The engines of onfall and assault were (then) vigorously plied, Against the walls of Khung very strong. He attacked it, and let loose all his forces; He extinguished (its sacrifices) [1], and made an end of its existence; And throughout the kingdom none dared to oppose him.

ODE 9. THE HSIÂ WÛ.

IN PRAISE OF KING WÛ, WALKING IN THE WAYS OF HIS FOREFATHERS,
AND BY HIS FILIAL PIETY SECURING THE THRONE TO HIMSELF AND HIS
POSTERITY.

Successors tread in the steps (of their predecessors) in our Kâu. For generations there had been wise kings; The three sovereigns were in heaven [2]; And king (Wû) was their worthy successor in his capital [3].

King (Wû) was their worthy successor in his capital, Rousing himself to seek for the hereditary virtue, Always striving to be in accordance with the

[1. The extinction of its sacrifices was the final act in the extinction of a state. Any members of its ruling House who might survive could no longer sacrifice to their ancestors as having been men of princely dignity. The family was reduced to the ranks of the people.

2. 'The three sovereigns,' or 'wise kings,' are to be understood of the three celebrated in ode 7,--Thâi, Kî, and Wan. We are thus obliged, with all Chinese scholars, to understand this ode of king Wû. The statement that 'the three kings were in heaven' is very express.

3. The capital here is Hâo, to which Wû removed in B.C. 1134, the year after his father's death. It was on the east of the river Fang, and only about eight miles from Wan's capital of Fang.]

will (of Heaven); And thus he secured the confidence due to a king.

He secured the confidence due to a king, And became the pattern of all below him. Ever thinking how to be filial, His filial mind was the model (which he supplied).

Men loved him, the One man, And responded (to his example) with a docile virtue. Ever thinking how to be filial, He brilliantly continued the doings (of his fathers).

Brilliantly! and his posterity, Continuing to walk in the steps of their forefathers, For myriads of years, Will receive the blessing of Heaven.

They will receive the blessing of Heaven, And from the four quarters (of the kingdom) will felicitations come to them. For myriads of years Will there not be their helpers?

ODE 10. THE WAN WANG YÛ SHANG.

THE PRAISE OF KINGS WAN AND WÛ:-HOW THE FORMER DISPLAYED HIS
MILITARY PROWESS ONLY TO SECURE THE TRANQUILLITY OF THE PEOPLE;
AND HOW THE LATTER, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE RESULTS OF
DIVINATION, ENTERED IN HIS NEW CAPITAL OF HÂO, INTO THE
SOVEREIGNTY OF THE KINGDOM WITH THE SINCERE GOOD WILL OF ALL THE
PEOPLE.

King Win is famous; Yea, he is very famous. What he sought was the repose (of the people); What he saw was the completion (of his work). A sovereign true was king Wan!

King Win received the appointment (from Heaven), And achieved his martial success. Having overthrown Khung[1]. He fixed his (capital) city in Fang [2]. A sovereign true was king Wan!

[1. As related in ode 7.

2. Fang had, probably, been the capital of Khung, and Wan removed to it, simply making the necessary repairs and alterations. This explains how we find nothing about the divinations which should have preceded so important a step as the founding of a new capital.]

He repaired the walls along the (old) moat. His establishing himself in Fang was according to (the pattern of his forefathers), It was not that lie was in haste to gratify his wishes;--It was to show the filial duty that had come down to him. A sovereign true was the royal prince!

His royal merit was brightly displayed By those walls of Fang. There were collected (the sympathies of the people of) the four quarters, Who regarded the royal prince as their protector. A sovereign true was the royal prince!

The Fang-water flowed on to the east (of the city), Through the meritorious labour of Yü. There were collected (the sympathies of the people of) the four quarters, Who would have the great king as their ruler. A sovereign true was the great king

In the capital of Hâo he built his hall with its circlet of water [2]. From the west to the east, From the south to the north, There was not a thought but did him homage. A sovereign true was the great king!

He examined and divined, did the king, About settling in the capital of Hâo. The tortoise-shell decided the site[3], And king Wû completed the city. A sovereign true was king Wû!

[1. The writer has passed on to Wû, who did actually become king.

2. See on the third of the Praise Odes of Lû in Part IV.

3. Hâo was built by Wû, and hence we have the account of his divining About the site and the undertaking.]

By the Fang-water grows the white millet[1];--Did not king Wû show wisdom in his employment of officers? He would leave his plans to his descendants, And secure comfort and support to his son. A sovereign true was king Wû!

The Second Decade, or that of Shang Min.

ODE 1. THE SHANG MIN.

THE LEGEND OF HÂU-KÎ:--HIS CONCEPTION; HIS BIRTH; THE PERILS OF
HIS INFANCY; HIS BOYISH HABITS OF AGRICULTURE; HIS SUBSEQUENT
METHODS AND TEACHING OF AGRICULTURE; HIS FOUNDING OF CERTAIN
SACRIFICES; AND THE HONOURS OF SACRIFICE PAID TO HIM BY THE
HOUSE OF KÂU.

Of Hâu-kî there is some notice on the tenth ode of the first decade of the Sacrificial Odes of Kâu. To him the kings of Kâu traced their lineage. Of Kiang Yüan, his mother, our knowledge is very scanty. It is said that she was a daughter of the House of Thâi, which traced its lineage up to Shan-nung in prehistoric times. From the first stanza of this piece it appears that she was married, and had been so for some time without having any child. But who her husband was it is impossible to say with certainty. As the Kâu surname was Ki, he must have been one of the descendants of Hwang Tî.

The first birth of (our) people[2] Was from Kiang Yüan. How did she give birth to (our) people She had presented a pure offering and sacrificed[3],

[1. 'The white millet,' a valuable species, grown near the Fang, suggests to the writer the idea of all the men of ability whom Wû collected around him.

2. Our 'people' is of course the people of Kâu. The whole piece is about the individual from whom the House of Kâu sprang, of which were the kings of the dynasty so called.

3. To whom Kiang Yüan sacrificed and prayed we are not told, but I receive the impression that it was to God,--see the next stanza,--and that she did so all alone with the special object which is mentioned.]

That her childlessness might be taken away. She then trod on a toe-print made by God, and was moved[1], In the large place where she rested. She became pregnant; she dwelt retired; She gave birth to, and nourished (a son), Who was Hâu-kî.

When she had fulfilled her months, Her firstborn son (came forth) like a lamb. There was no bursting, nor rending, No injury, no hurt; Showing how wonderful he would be. Did not God give her the comfort? Had he not accepted her pure offering and sacrifice, So that thus easily she brought forth her son?

He was placed in a narrow lane, But the sheep and oxen protected him with loving care[2]. He was placed in a wide forest, Where he was met with by the wood-cutters. He was placed on the cold ice, And a bird screened and supported him with its wings. When the bird went away, Hâu-kî began to wail. His cry was long and loud, So that his voice filled the whole way[2].

[1. The 'toe-print made by God' has occasioned much speculation of the critics. We may simply draw the conclusion that the poet meant to have his readers believe with him that the conception of his hero was supernatural. We saw in the third of the Sacrificial Odes of Shang that there was also a legend assigning a præternatural birth to the father of the House of Shang.

2 It does not appear from the ode who exposed the infant to these various perils; nor did Chinese tradition ever fashion any story on the subject. Mâo makes the exposure to have been made by Mang Yüan's husband, dissatisfied with what had taken place; Kang, by the mother herself, to show the more the wonderful character of her child. Readers will compare the accounts with the Roman legends about Romulus and Remus, their mother and her father; but the two legends differ according to the different characters, of the Chinese and Roman peoples.]

When he was able to crawl, He looked majestic and intelligent. When he was able to feed himself, He fell to planting beans. The beans grew luxuriantly; His rows of paddy shot up beautifully; His hemp and wheat grew strong and close; His gourds yielded abundantly.

The husbandry of Hâu-kî Proceeded on the plan of helping (the growth). Having cleared away the thick grass, He sowed the ground with the yellow cereals. He managed the living grain, till it was ready to burst; Then he used it as seed, and it sprang up; It grew and came into car; It became strong and good; It hung down, every grain complete; And thus he was appointed lord of Thâi[1].

He gave (his people) the beautiful grains;-The black millet and the double-kernelled, The tall red and the white. They planted extensively the black and the double-kernelled, Which were reaped and stacked on the ground. They planted extensively the tall red and the white, Which were carried on their shoulders and backs, Home for the sacrifices which he founded[1].

And how as to our sacrifices (continued from him)?

[1. Hâu-kî's mother, we have seen, was a princess of Thâi, in the present district of Wû-kung, Khien Kau, Shen-hsî. This may have led to his appointment to that principality, and the transference of the lordship from Kiangs to Kîs. Evidently he was appointed to that dignity for his services in the promotion of agriculture. Still be has not displaced the older Shan-nung, with whom on his father's side he had a connexion, as 'the Father of Husbandry.'

2. This is not to be understood of sacrifice in general, as if there had been no such thing before Hâu-kî; but of the sacrifices of the of House of Kâu,--those in the ancestral temple and others,--which began with him as its great ancestor.]

Some hull (the grain); some take it from the mortar; Some sift it; some tread it. It is rattling in the dishes; It is distilled, and the steam floats about. We consult[1]; we observe the rites of purification; We take southernwood and offer it with the fat; We sacrifice a ram to the spirit of the path[2]; We offer roast flesh and broiled:--And thus introduce the coming year[3].

We load the stands with the offerings, The stands both of wood and of earthenware. As soon as the fragrance ascends, God, well pleased, smells the sweet savour. Fragrant it is, and in its due season[4]. Hâu-kî founded our sacrifices, And no one, we presume, has given occasion for blame or regret in regard to them, Down to the present day.

ODE 2. THE HSIN WEI.

A FESTAL ODE, CELEBRATING SOME ENTERTAINMENT GIVEN BY THE KING
TO HIS RELATIVES, WITH THE TRIAL OF ARCHERY AFTER THE FEAST;
CELEBRATING ESPECIALLY THE HONOUR DONE ON SUCH OCCASIONS TO THE
AGED.

This ode is given here, because it is commonly taken as a prelude to the next. Kû Hsî interprets it of the feast, given by, the

[1. That is, we divine about the day, and choose the officers to take part in the service.

2. A sacrifice was offered to the spirit of the road on commencing a journey, and we see here that it was offered also in connexion with the king's going to the ancestral temple or the border altar.

3. It does not appear clearly what sacrifices the poet had in view here. I think they must be all those in which the kings of Kâu appeared as the principals or sacrificers. The concluding line is understood to intimate that the kings were not to forget that a prosperous agriculture was the foundation of their prosperity.

4. In this stanza we have the peculiar honour paid to Kâu-kî by his descendants at one of the great border sacrifices to God,--the same to which the last ode in the first decade of the Sacrificial Odes of Kâu belongs.]

king, at the close of the sacrifice in the ancestral temple, to the princes of his own surname. There are difficulties in the interpretation of the piece on this view, which, however, is to be preferred to any other.

In thick patches are those rushes, Springing by the way-side:--Let not the cattle and sheep trample them. Anon they will grow up; anon they will be completely formed, With their leaves soft and glossy[1]. Closely related are brethren; Let none be absent, let all be near. For some there are mats spread; For some there are given Stools [2].

The mats are spread, and a second one above; The stools are given, and there are plenty of servants. (The guests) are pledged, and they pledge (the host) in return; He rinses the cups (and refills them, but the guests) put them down, Sauces and pickles are brought in, With roasted meat and broiled. Excellent provisions there are of tripe and palates; With singing to lutes, and with drums.

The ornamented bows are strong, And the four arrows are all balanced. They discharge the arrows, and all hit, And the guests are arranged according to their skill. The ornamented bows are drawn to the full, And the arrows are grasped in the hand. They go straight to the mark as if planted

[1. In the rushes growing up densely from a common root we have an emblem of brothers all sprung from the same ancestor; and in the plants developing. so finely, when preserved from injury, an emblem of the happy fellowships of consanguinity, when nothing is allowed to interfere with mutual confidence and good, feeling.

2. In a previous note I have said that chairs and tables had not come into use in those early times. Guests sat and feasts were spread on mats on the floor; for the aged, however, stools were. placed on which they could lean forward.]

in it, And the guests are arranged according to the humble propriety of their behaviour.

The distant descendant presides over the feast; His sweet spirits are strong. He fills their cups from a large vase, And prays for the hoary old (among his guests):--That with hoary age and wrinkled back, They may lead on one another (to virtue), and' support one another (in it); That so their old age may be blessed, And their bright happiness ever increased.

ODE 3. THE KÎ ZUI.

RESPONSIVE TO THE LAST:--THE UNCLES AND BRETHREN OF THE KING
EXPRESS THEIR SENSE OF HIS KINDNESS, AND THEIR WISHES FOR HIS
HAPPINESS, MOSTLY IN THE WORDS IN WHICH THE PERSONATORS OF THE
DEPARTED ANCESTORS HAD CONVEYED THEIR SATISFACTION WITH THE
SACRIFICE OFFERED TO THEM, AND PROMISED TO HIM THEIR BLESSING.

You have made us drink to the full of your spirit; You have satiated us with your kindness. May you enjoy, O our lord,, myriads of years! May your bright happiness (ever) be increased!

You have made us drink to the full of your spirits; Your viands were set out before us. May you enjoy, O our lord, myriads of years! May your bright intelligence ever be increased!

May your bright intelligence become perfect, High and brilliant, leading to a good end! That good end has (now) its beginning:--The personators of your ancestors announced it in their blessing.

What was their announcement? '(The offerings) in your dishes of bamboo and wood are clean and fine. Your friends [1], assisting in the service, Have done their part with reverent demeanour.

'Your reverent demeanour was altogether what the occasion required; And also that of your filial son [2]. For such filial piety, continued without ceasing, There will. ever be conferred blessings upon you.'

What will the blessings be? 'That along the passages of your palace, You shall move for ten thousand years, And there will be granted to you for ever dignity and posterity.'

How as to your posterity? 'Heaven invests you with your dignity; Yea, for ten thousand years, The bright appointment is attached (to your line).'

How is it attached? 'There is given you a heroic wife. There is given you a heroic wife, And from her shall come the (line of) descendants.'

ODE 4. THE HÛ Î.

AN ODE APPROPRIATE TO THE FEAST GIVEN TO THE PERSONATORS OF THE
DEPARTED, ON THE DAY AFTER THE SACRIFICE IN THE ANCESTRAL TEMPLE.

This supplementary sacrifice on the day after the principal service in the temple appeared in the ninth Book of the fourth Part of the Shû; and of the feast after it to the personators of the dead I have spoken on p. 301.

The wild-ducks and widgeons are on the King[2];

[1. That is, the guests, visitors, and officers of the court.

2. Towards the end of the sacrificial service, the eldest son of the king joined in pledging the representatives of their ancestors.

3. The King is an affluent of the Wei, not far from Wû's capital of Hâo. The birds, feeling at home in its waters, on its sands, &c., serve to introduce the parties feasted, in a situation where they might relax from the gravity of the preceding day, and be happy.]

The personators of your ancestors feast and are happy. Your spirits are clear; Your viands are fragrant. The personators of your ancestors feast and drink;--Their happiness and dignity are made complete.

The wild-ducks and widgeons are on the sand; The personators of the dead enjoy the feast, their appropriate tribute. Your spirits are abundant; Your viands are good. The personators of your ancestors feast and drink;--Happiness and dignity lend them their aids.

The wild-ducks and widgeons are on the islets; The personators of your ancestors feast and enjoy themselves. Your spirits are strained; Your viands are in slices. The personators of your ancestors feast and drink;--Happiness and dignity descend on them.

The wild-ducks and widgeons are where the waters meet; The personators of your ancestors feast and are honoured. The feast is spread in the ancestral temple. The place where happiness and dignity descend. The personators of your ancestors feast and drink;--Their happiness and dignity are at the highest point.

The wild-ducks and widgeons are in the gorge; The personators of your ancestors rest, full of complacency. The fine spirits are delicious; Your meat, roast and broiled, is fragrant. The personators of your ancestors feast and drink;--No troubles will be theirs after this.

ODE 5, STANZA 1. THE KIÂ LO.

IN PRAISE OF SOME KING, WHOSE VIRTUE SECURED TO HIM THE FAVOUR
OF HEAVEN.

Perhaps the response of the feasted personators of the ancestors.

Of our admirable, amiable sovereign Most illustrious is the excellent virtue. He orders rightly the people, orders rightly the officers, And receives his dignity from Heaven, Which protects and helps him, and (confirms) his appointment, By repeated acts of renewal from heaven.

ODE 8. THE KHÜAN Â.

ADDRESSED, PROBABLY, BY THE DUKE OF SHÂO TO KING KHANG, DESIRING
FOR HIM LONG PROSPERITY, AND CONGRATULATING HIM, IN ORDER TO
ADMONISH HIM, ON THE HAPPINESS OF HIS PEOPLE, THE NUMBER OF HIS
ADMIRABLE OFFICERS, AND THE AUSPICIOUS OMEN ARISING FROM THE
APPEARANCE OF THE PHŒNIX.

The duke of Shâo was the famous Shih, who appears in the fifth and other Books of the fifth Part of the Shû, the colleague of the duke of Kin in the early days of the Kâu dynasty. This piece may have been composed by him, but there is no evidence in it that it was so. The assigning it to him rests entirely on the authority of the preface. The language, however, is that in which an old statesman of that time might express his complacency in his young sovereign.

Into the recesses of the large mound Came the wind, whirling from the south. There was (our) happy, courteous sovereign, Rambling and singing; And I took occasion to give forth my notes.

'Full of spirits you ramble; Full of satisfaction you rest. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, And end them like your ancestors!'

'Your territory is great and glorious, And perfectly secure. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, As the host of all the spirits[1]!

'You have received the appointment long acknowledged, With peace around your happiness and dignity. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, With pure happiness your constant possession!

'You have helpers and supporters, Men of filial piety and' of virtue, To lead you on, and act as wings to you, (So that), O happy and courteous sovereign, You are a pattern to the four quarters (of the kingdom).

Full of dignity and majesty (are they), Like a

[1. 'Host of the hundred--i.e., of all--the spirits' is one of the titles of the sovereign of China. It was and is his prerogative to offer the great 'border sacrifices' to Heaven and Earth, or, as Confucius explains. them, to God, and to the spirits of his ancestors in his ancestral temple; and in his progresses (now neglected), among the states, to the spirits of the hills and 'rivers throughout the kingdom. Every feudal prince could only sacrifice to the hills and streams within his own territory. Under the changed conditions of the government of China, the sacrificial ritual of the emperor still retains the substance of whatever belonged to the sovereigns in this respect from the earliest dynasties. On the text here, Khung Ying-tâ of the Thang dynasty said, 'He who possesses all under the sky, sacrifices to all the spirits, and thus he is the host of them all.' Kû Hsî said on it, 'And always be the host of (the spirits of) Heaven and Earth, of the hills and rivers, and of the departed.' The term 'host' does not imply any superiority of rank on the part of the entertainer. In the greatest sacrifices the emperor acknowledges himself as 'the servant or subject of Heaven.' See the prayer of the first of the present Manchâu line of emperors, in announcing that he had ascended the throne, at the altar of Heaven and Earth, in 1644, as translated by the Rev. Dr. Edkins in the chapter on Imperial Worship, in the recent edition of his 'Religion in China.']

jade-mace(in its purity), The subject of praise, the contemplation of hope. O happy and courteous sovereign, (Through them) the four quarters (of the kingdom) are guided by you.

'The male and female phœnix fly about [1], Their wings rustling, While they settle in their proper resting-place. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Ready to be employed by you, Loving you, the Son of Heaven.

'The male and female phœnix fly about, Their wings rustling, As they soar up to heaven. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Waiting for your commands, And loving the multitudes of the people, The male and female phœnix give out their notes, On that lofty ridge. The dryandras grow, On those eastern slopes. They grow luxuriantly; And harmoniously the notes resound.

[1. The phœnix (so the creature has been named) is a fabulous bird, 'the chief of the 360 classes of the winged tribes.' It is mentioned in the fourth Book of the second Part of the Shû, as appearing in the courtyard of Shun; and the appearance of a pair of them has always been understood to denote a sage on the throne and prosperity in the country. Even Confucius (Analects, IX, viii) could not express his hopelessness about his own times more strongly than by saying that 'the phœnix did not make its appearance.' He was himself also called 'a phœnix,' in derision, by one of the recluses of his time (Analects, XVIII, v). The type of' the bird was, perhaps, the Argus pheasant, but the descriptions of it are of a monstrous creature, having' a fowl's head, a swallow's chin, a serpent's neck, a fish's tail,' &c. It only lights on the dryandra cordifolia, of which tree also many marvellous stories are related. The poet is not to be understood as saying that the phœnix actually appeared; but that the king was Age and his government prosperous, as if it had appeared.]

'Your chariots, O sovereign, Are numerous, many. Your horses, O sovereign, Are well trained and fleet. I have made my few verses, In prolongation of your song.'

ODE 9, STANZA 1. THE MIN LÂO.

IN A TIME OF DISORDER AND SUFFERING, SOME OFFICER OF,
DISTINCTION CALLS ON HIS FELLOWS TO JOIN WITH HIM TO EFFECT A
REFORMATION IN THE CAPITAL, AND PUT AWAY THE PARTIES WHO WERE
THE CAUSE OF THE PREVAILING MISERY.

With the Khüan Â, what are called the 'correct' odes of Part III, or those belonging to a period of good government, and the composition of which is ascribed mainly to the duke of Kâu, come to an end; and those that follow are the 'changed' Major Odes of the Kingdom, or those belonging to a degenerate period, commencing with this. Some among them, however, are equal to any of the former class. The Min Lâo has been assigned to duke Mû of Shâo, a descendant of duke Khang, the Shih of the Shû, the reputed author of the Khüan Â, and was directed against king Lî, B.C. 878 to 828.

The people indeed are heavily burdened, But perhaps a little relief may be got for them. Let us cherish this centre of the kingdom, To secure the repose of the four quarters of it. Let us give no indulgence to the wily and obsequious, In order to make the unconscientious careful, And to repress robbers and oppressors, Who have no fear of the clear will (of Heaven)[1]. Then let us show kindness to those who are distant, And help those who are near,--Thus establishing (the throne of) our king.

[1. 'The clear will,' according to Kû Hsî, is 'the clear appointment of Heaven;' according to Kû Kung-khien, 'correct principle.' They both mean the law of human duty, as gathered from the nature of man's moral constitution conferred by Heaven.]

ODE 10. THE PAN.

AN OFFICER OF EXPERIENCE MOURNS OVER THE PREVAILING MISERY;
COMPLAINS OF THE WANT OF SYMPATHY WITH HIM SHOWN BY OTHER
OFFICERS; ADMONISHES THEM, AND SETS FORTH THE DUTY REQUIRED OF
THEM, ESPECIALLY IN THE ANGRY MOOD IN WHICH IT MIGHT SEEM THAT
HEAVEN WAS.

This piece, like the last, is assigned to the time of king Lî.

God has reversed (his usual course of procedure)[1], And the lower people are full of distress. The words which you utter are not right; The plans which you form are not far-reaching. As there are not sages, you think you have no guidance;--You have no real sincerity. (Thus) your plans do not reach far, And I therefore strongly admonish you.

Heaven is now sending down calamities;--Do not be so complacent. Heaven is now producing such movements;--Do not be so indifferent. If your words were harmonious, The people would become united. If your words were gentle and kind, The people would be settled.

Though my duties are different from yours, I am your fellow-servant. I come to advise with you, And you hear me with contemptuous indifference, My words are about the (present urgent) affairs;--Do not think them matter for laughter. The ancients had a saying:--'Consult the gatherers of grass and firewood[2].'

[1. The proof of God's having reversed his usual course of procedure was to be found in the universal misery of the people, whose good He was understood to desire, and for the securing of which government by, righteous kings was maintained by him.

2 If ancient worthies thought that persons in such mean employments were to he consulted surely, the advice of the writer deserved to be taken into account by his comrades.]

Heaven is now exercising oppression;--Do not in such a way make a mock of things. An old man, (I speak) with entire sincerity; But you, my juniors, are full of pride. It is not that my words are those of age, But you make a joke of what is sad. But the troubles will multiply like flames, Till they are beyond help or remedy.

Heaven is now displaying its anger;--Do not be either boastful or flattering, Utterly departing from all propriety of demeanour, Till good men are reduced to personators of the dead [1]. The people now sigh and groan, And we dare not examine (into the causes of their trouble). The ruin and disorder are exhausting all their means of living, And we show no kindness to our multitudes.

Heaven enlightens the people [2], As the bamboo flute responds to the earthen whistle; As two half-maces form a whole one; As you take a thing, and bring it away in your hand, Bringing it away, without any more ado. The enlightenment of the people is very easy. They have (now) many perversities;--Do not you set up your perversity before them.

Good men are a fence; The multitudes of the people are a wall; Great states are screens; Great families are buttresses;--The cherishing of virtue

[1. During all the time of the sacrifice, the personators of the dead said not a word, but only ate and drank. To the semblance of them good men were now reduced.

2. The meaning is, that Heaven has so attuned the mind to virtue, that, if good example were set before the people, they would certainly and readily follow it. This is illustrated by various instances of things, in which the one succeeded the other freely and as it necessarily; so that government by virtue was really very easy.]

secures repose; The circle of (the king's) relatives is a fortified wall. We must not let the fortified wall get destroyed; We must not let (the king) be solitary and consumed with terrors.

Revere the anger of Heaven, And presume not to make sport or be idle. Revere the changing moods of Heaven, And presume not to drive about (at your pleasure). Great Heaven is intelligent, And is with you in all your goings. Great Heaven is clear-seeing, And is with you in your wanderings and indulgences.

The Third Decade, or that of Tang.

ODE 1. THE TANG.

WARNINGS, SUPPOSED TO BE ADDRESSED TO KING LÎ, ON THE ISSUES OF
THE COURSE WHICH HE WAS PURSUING, SHOWING THAT THE MISERIES OF
THE TIME AND THE IMMINENT DANGER OF RUIN WERE TO BE ATTRIBUTED,
NOT TO HEAVEN, BUT TO HIMSELF AND HIS MINISTERS.

This ode, like the ninth of the second decade, is attributed to duke Mû of Shâo. The structure of the piece is peculiar, for, after the first stanza, we have king Win introduced delivering a series of warnings to Kâu-hsin, the last king of the Shang dynasty. They are put into Win's mouth, in the hope that Lî, if, indeed, he was the monarch whom the writer had in view, would transfer the figure of Kâu-hsin to himself, and alter his course so as to avoid a similar ruin.

How vast is God, The ruler of men below! How arrayed in terrors is God, With many things irregular in his ordinations. Heaven gave birth to the multitudes of the people, But the nature it confers is not to be depended on. All are (good) at first, But few prove themselves to be so at the last[1].

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you sovereign of Shang, That you should have such violently oppressive ministers, That you should have such extortionate exactors, That you should have them in offices, That you should have them in the conduct of affairs! "Heaven made them with their insolent dispositions;" But it is you who employ them, and give them strength.'

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, You ought to employ such as are good, But (you employ instead) violent oppressors, who cause many dissatisfactions. They respond to you with baseless stories, And (thus) robbers and thieves are in your court. Hence come oaths and curses, Without limit, without end.'

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, You show a strong fierce will in the centre of the kingdom, And consider the contracting of enmities a proof of virtue. All-unintelligent are you. Of your (proper) virtue, And so, you have no (good) men behind you, nor by your side. Without any intelligence of your (proper) virtue, You have no (good) intimate adviser or minister.'

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, It is not Heaven that flushes your face with spirits, So that you follow what is evil and imitate it. You go wrong in all your conduct; You make no distinction between the light and the

[1. The meaning seems to be that, whatever miseries might prevail, and be ignorantly ascribed to God, they were in reality owing to men's neglect of the law of Heaven inscribed on their hearts.]

darkness; But amid clamour and shouting, You turn the day into night[1].'

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, (All round you) is like the noise of cicadas, Or like the bubbling of boiling soup. Affairs, great and small, are approaching to ruin, And still you (and your creatures) go on in this course. Indignation is rife against you here in the Middle Kingdom, And extends to the demon regions [2].'

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, It is not God that has caused this evil time, But it arises from Yin's not using the old (ways). Although you have not old experienced men, There are still the ancient statutes and laws. But you will not listen to them, And so your great appointment is being overthrown.'

King Wan said, 'Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Shang, People have a saying, "When a tree falls utterly, While its branches and leaves are yet uninjured, It must first have been uprooted." The beacon of Yin is not far distant;--It is in the age of the (last) sovereign of Hsiâ.'

[1. We speak of 'turning night into day.' The tyrant of Shang turned day into night, Excesses, generally committed in darkness, were by him done openly.

2 These 'demon regions' are understood to mean the seat of the Turkic tribes to the north of China, known from the earliest times by various names-'The hill Zung,' 'the northern Lî,' 'the Hsien-yun,' &c. Towards the beginning of our era, they were called Hsiung-nû, from which, perhaps, came the name Huns; and some centuries later, Thû-küeh (Thuh-küeh), from which came Turk. We are told in the Yî, under the diagram Kî-kî, that Kâo Zung (B.C. 1324-1266) conducted an expedition against the demon regions, and in three years subdued them.]

ODE 2. THE YÎ.

CONTAINING VARIOUS COUNSELS WHICH DUKE WÛ OF WEI MADE TO
ADMONISH HIMSELF, WHEN HE WAS OVER HIS NINETIETH YEAR;
ESPECIALLY ON THE DUTY OF A RULER TO BE CAREFUL OF HIS OUTWARD
DEMEANOUR, FEELING THAT HE IS EVER UNDER THE INSPECTION OF
SPIRITUAL BEINGS, AND TO RECEIVE WITH DOCILITY INSTRUCTIONS
DELIVERED TO HIM.

The sixth ode in the seventh decade of the Minor Odes of the Kingdom is attributed to the same duke of Wei as this; and the two bear traces of having proceeded from the same writer. The external authorities for assigning this piece to duke Wû are the statement of the preface and an article in the 'Narratives of the States,' a work already referred to as belonging to the period of the Kâu dynasty. That article relates how Wû, at the age of ninety-five, insisted on all his ministers and officers being instant, in season and out of season, to admonish him on his conduct, and that 'he made the warnings in the Î to admonish himself.' The Î is understood to be only another name for this Yî. Thus the speaker throughout the piece is Wû, and 'the young Son,' whom he sometimes addresses, is himself also. The conception of the writer in taking such a method to admonish himself, and give forth the lessons of his long life, is very remarkable; and the execution of it is successful.

Outward demeanour, cautious and grave, Is an indication of the (inward) virtue. People have the saying, 'There is no wise man who is not (also) stupid.' The stupidity of the ordinary man Is determined by his (natural) defects. The stupidity of the wise man Is from his doing violence (to his proper character).

What is most powerful is the being the man [1];--

[1. Wû writes as the marquis of Wei, the ruler of a state; but what he says is susceptible of universal application. In every smaller sphere, and in the largest, 'being the man,' displaying, that is, the proper qualities of humanity, will be appreciated and felt.]

In all quarters (of the state) men are influenced by it. To an upright virtuous conduct All in the four quarters of the state render obedient homage. With great counsels and determinate orders, With far-reaching plans and timely announcements, And with reverent care of his outward demeanour, One will become the pattern of the people.

As for the circumstances of the present time, You are bent on error and confusion in your government. Your virtue is subverted; You are besotted by drink [1]. Although you thus pursue nothing but pleasure, How is it you do not think of your relation to the past, And do not widely study the former kings, That you might hold fast their wise laws?

Shall not those whom great Heaven does not approve of, Surely as the waters flow from a spring, Sink down together in ruin? Rise early and go to bed late, Sprinkle and sweep your courtyard;--So as to be a pattern to the people [2]. Have in good order your chariots and horses, Your bows and arrows, and (other) weapons of war;--To be prepared for warlike action, To keep at a distance (the hordes of) the south.

Perfect what concerns your officers and people;

[1. Han Ying (who has been mentioned in the Introduction) says that Wû made the sixth ode of the seventh decade of the former Part against drunkenness, when he was repenting of his own giving way to that vice. His mention of the habit here, at the age of ninety-five, must be understood as a warning to other rulers.

2. Line 3 describes things important to the cultivation of one's self; and line 4, things important to the regulation of one's family. They may seem unimportant, it is said,. as compared with the defence of the state, spoken of in the last four lines of the stanza; but the ruler ought not to neglect them.]

Be careful of your duties as a prince (of the kingdom). To be prepared for unforeseen dangers, Be cautious of what you say; Be reverentially careful of your outward behaviour; In all things be mild and correct. A flaw in a mace of white jade May be ground away; But for a flaw in speech Nothing can be done.

Do not speak lightly; your words are your own[1]. Do not say, 'This is of little importance; No one can hold my tongue for me.' Words are not to be cast away. Every word finds its answer; Every good deed has its recompense. If you are gracious among your friends, And to the people, as if they were you: children, Your descendants will continue in unbroken line, And all the people will surely be obedient to you.

Looked at in friendly intercourse with superior men, You make your countenance harmonious and mild; Anxious not to do anything wrong. Looked at in your chamber, You ought to be equally free from shame before the light which shines in. Do not say, 'This place is not public; No one can see me here.' The approaches of spiritual beings Cannot be calculated beforehand; But the more should they not be slighted [2].

[1. And therefore every one is himself responsible for his words.

2 Kû Hsî says that from the fourth line this stanza only speaks of the constant care there should be in watching over one's thoughts; but in saying so, be overlooks the consideration by which such watchful care is enforced. Compare what is said of king Wan in the third stanza of the sixth ode of the first decade. King Wan and duke Wû were both influenced by the consideration that their inmost thoughts, even when 'unseen by men,' were open to the inspection of spiritual beings.]

O prince, let your practice of virtue Be entirely good and admirable. Watch well over your behaviour, And allow nothing wrong in your demeanour. Committing no excess, doing nothing injurious, There are few who will not in such a case take you for their pattern. When one throws to me a peach, I return to him a plum [1]. To look for horns on a young ram Will only weary you, my son [2].

The tough and elastic wood Can be fitted with the silken string [3]. The mild and respectful man Possesses the foundation of virtue. There is a wise man;--I tell him good words, And he yields to them the practice of docile virtue. There is a stupid man;--He says on the contrary that my words are not true:--So different are people's minds.

Oh! my son, When you did not know what was good, and what was not good, Not only did I lead you by the hand, But I showed the difference between them by appealing to instances. Not (only) did I charge you face to face, But I held you by the ear [4]. And still perhaps you do not know, Although you have held a son in your arms. If people be not self-sufficient, Who comes to a late maturity after early instruction?

Great Heaven is very intelligent, And I pass,

[1. That is, every deed, in fact, meets with its recompense.

2. See the conclusion of duke Wû's ode against drunkenness. Horns grow as the young ram grows. Effects must not be expected where there have not been the conditions from which they naturally spring.

3. Such wood is the proper material for a bow.

4. That is, to secure your attention.]

my life without pleasure. When I see you so dark and stupid, My heart is full of pain. I taught you with assiduous repetition, And you listened to me with contempt. You would not consider me as your teacher, But regarded me as troublesome. Still perhaps you do not know;--But you are very old.

Oh! my son, I have told you the old ways. Hear and follow my counsels:--Then shall you have no cause for great regret. Heaven is now inflicting calamities, And is destroying the state. My illustrations are not taken from things remote:--Great Heaven makes no mistakes. If you go on to deteriorate in your virtue, You will bring the people to great distress.

ODE 3, STANZAS 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 7. THE SANG ZÂU.

THE WRITER MOURNS OVER THE MISERY AND DISORDER OF THE TIMES,
WITH A VIEW TO REPREHEND THE MISGOVERNMENT OF KING LÎ, APPEALING
ALSO TO HEAVEN TO HAVE COMPASSION.

King Lî is not mentioned by name in the piece, but the second line of stanza 7 can only be explained of him. He was driven from the throne, in consequence of his misgovernment, in B.C. 842, and only saved his life by flying to Kih, a place in the present Ho Kâu, department Phing-yang, Shan-hsî, where he remained till his death in B.C. 828. The government in the meantime was carried on by the dukes of Shâo and Kâu, whose administration, called the period of 'Mutual Harmony,' forms an important chronological era in Chinese history. On the authority of a reference in the Zo Kwan, the piece is ascribed to an earl of Zui.

Luxuriant is that young mulberry tree, And beneath it wide is the shade; But they will pluck its leaves till it is quite destroyed[1]. The distress

[1. These three lines are metaphorical of the once flourishing kingdom, which was now brought to the verge of ruin.]

inflicted on these (multitudes of the) people, Is an unceasing sorrow to my heart; My commiseration fills (my breast). O thou bright and great Heaven, Shouldest thou not have compassion on us?

The four steeds (gallop about), eager and strong[1]; The tortoise-and-serpent and the falcon banners fly about. Disorder grows, and no peace can be secured. Every state is being ruined; There are no black heads among the people[2]. Everything is reduced to ashes by calamity. Oh! alas! The doom of the kingdom hurries on.

There is nothing to arrest the doom of the kingdom; Heaven does not nourish us. There is no place in which to stop securely; There is no place to which to go. Superior men are the bonds (Of the social state)[3], Allowing no love of strife in their hearts. Who reared the steps of the dissatisfaction [4], Which has reached the present distress?

The grief of my heart is extreme, And I dwell on (the condition of) our land. I was born at an unhappy time, To meet with the severe anger of Heaven. From the west to the east, There is no quiet place of abiding. Many are the distresses I meet with; Very urgent is the trouble on our borders.

Heaven is sending down death and disorder, And

[1. That is, the war-chariots, each drawn by its team of four horses.

2. The young and able-bodied of the people were slain or absent on distant expeditions, and only old and gray-headed men were to be seen.

3. Intimating that no such men were now to be found in office.

4. Meaning the king by his misgovernment and employment of bad men.]

has put an end to our king. It is (now) sending down those devourers of the grain, So that the husbandry is all in evil case. Alas for our middle states [1]! All is in peril and going to ruin. I have no strength (to do anything), And think of (the Power in) the azure vault.

ODE 4. THE YUN HAN.

KING HSÜAN, ON OCCASION OF A GREAT DROUGHT, EXPOSTULATES WITH
GOD AND ALL THE SPIRITS, WHO MIGHT BE EXPECTED TO HELP HIM AND
HIS PEOPLE; ASKS THEM WHEREFORE THEY WERE CONTENDING WITH HIM;
AND DETAILS THE MEASURES HE HAD TAKEN, AND WAS STILL TAKING, FOR
THE REMOVAL OF THE CALAMITY.

King Hsüan does not occur by name in the ode, though the remarkable prayer which it relates is ascribed to a king in stanza 1. All critics have admitted the statement of the Preface that the piece was made, in admiration of king Hsüan, by Zang Shû, a great officer, we may presume, of the court. The standard chronology places the commencement of the drought in B.C. 822, the sixth year of Hsüan's reign. How long it continued we cannot tell.

Bright was the milky way, Shining and revolving in the sky. The king said, 'Oh! What crime is chargeable on us now, That Heaven (thus) sends down death and disorder? Famine comes again and again. There is no spirit I have not sacrificed to[2]; There is no victim I have grudged; Our

[1. We must translate here in the plural, 'the middle states' meaning all the states subject to the sovereign of Kâu.

2. In the Official Book of Kâu, among the duties of the Minister of Instruction, or, as Biot translates the title, 'the Director of the Multitudes,' it is stated that one of the things he has-to do, on occurrences of famine, is 'to seek out the spirits,' that is, as explained by the commentators, to see that sacrifices are offered to all the spirits, even such as may have been discontinued. This rule had, no doubt, been acted on during the drought which this ode describes.]

jade symbols, oblong and round, are exhausted[1];--How is it that I am not heard?

'The drought is excessive; Its fervours become more and more tormenting. I have not ceased offering pure sacrifices; From the border altars I have gone to the ancestral temple [2]. To the (Powers) above and below I have presented my offerings and then' buried them[3];--There is no spirit whom I have not honoured. Hâu-kî is not equal to the occasion; God does not come to us. This wasting and ruin of our country,--Would that it fell (only) on me!

'The drought is excessive, And I may not try to excuse myself. I am full of terror, and feel the peril, Like the clap of thunder or the roll. Of the remnant of Kâu, among the black-haired people, There will not be half a man left; Nor will God from his great heaven exempt (even) me. Shall

[1. We have, in the sixth Book of the fifth Part of the Shû, an instance of the use of the symbols here mentioned in sacrificing to the spirits of departed kings. The Official Book, among the duties of the Minister of Religion, mentions the use of these and other symbols--in all six, of different shapes and colours--at the different sacrifices.

2. By 'the border altars' we are to understand the altars in the suburbs of the capital, where Heaven and Earth were sacrificed to -the great services at the solstices, and any other seasons. The mention of Hâu-kî in the seventh line makes us think especially of the service in the spring, to pray for a good year, when Hâu-kî was associated with God.