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III. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM.

PIECES AND STANZAS ILLUSTRATING THE RELIGIOUS VIEWS AND PRACTICES OF THE
WRITERS AND THEIR TIMES.

The First Decade, or that of Wan Wang.

ODE 1. THE WAN WANG.

CELEBRATING KING WAN, DEAD AND ALIVE, AS THE FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF KĀU,
SHOWING HOW HIS VIRTUES DREW TO HIM THE FAVOURING REGARD Or HEAVEN OR GOD,
AND MADE HIM A BRIGHT PATTERN TO HIS DESCENDANTS AND THEIR MINISTERS.

The composition of this and the other pieces of this decade is
attributed to the duke of Kāu, king Wan's son, and was intended by him
for the benefit of his nephew, the young king Khang. Wan, it must be
borne in mind, was never actually king of China. He laid the
foundations of the kingly power, which was established by his son king
Wū, and consolidated by the duke of Kāu. The title of king was given
to him and to others by the duke, according to the view of filial
piety, that has been referred to on p. 299.

King Wan is on high. Oh! bright is he in heaven. Although Kāu was an
old country, The (favouring) appointment lighted on it recently'.
Illustrious was the House of Kāu, And the

[1. The family of Kāu, according to its traditions, was very ancient,
but it did not. occupy the territory of Kāu, from which it
subsequently took its name, till B.C. 1326; and it was not till the
time of Wan (B.C. 1231 to 1135) that the divine purpose concerning its
supremacy in the kingdom was fully manifested.]

appointment of God came at the proper season. King Wan ascends and
descends On the left and the right of God[1].

Full of earnest activity was king Wan, And his fame is without end.
The gifts (of God) to Kāu Extend to the descendants of king Wan, In
the direct line and the collateral branches for a hundred
generations[2]. All the officers of Kāu Shall (also) be illustrious
from age to age.

They shall be illustrious from age to age, Zealously and reverently
pursuing their plans. Admirable are the many officers, Born in this
royal kingdom. The royal kingdom is able to produce them, The
supporters of (the House of) Kāu. Numerous is the array of officers,
And by them king Wan enjoys his repose.

Profound was king Wan; Oh! continuous and bright was his feeling of
reverence. Great is the appointment of Heaven! There were the
descendants of (the sovereigns of) Shang,-The descendants of the
sovereigns of Shang Were in number more

[1. According to Kū Hsī, the first and last two lines of this stanza
are to be taken of the spirit of Wan in heaven. Attempts have been
made to explain them otherwise, or rather to explain them away. But
language could not more expressly intimate the existence of a supreme
personal God, and the continued existence of the human spirit.

2. The text, literally, is, 'The root and the branches:' the root (and
stem) denoting the eldest sons, by the recognised queen, succeeding to
the throne; and the branches, the other sons by the queen and
concubines. The former would grow up directly from the root; and the
latter, the chief nobles of the kingdom, would constitute the branches
of the great Kāu tree.

3. The Shang or Yin dynasty of kings superseded by Kāu.]

than hundreds of thousands. But when God gave the command, They became
subject to Kāu.

They became subject to Kāu, (For) the appointment of Heaven is not
unchangeable. The officers of Yin, admirable and alert, Assist at the
libations in our capital[1]. They assist at those libations, Always
wearing the hatchet-figures on their lower garments and their peculiar
cap[2]. O ye loyal ministers of the king, Ever think of your ancestor!

Ever think of your ancestor, Cultivating your virtue, Always seeking
to accord with the will (of Heaven):-So shall you be seeking for much
happiness, Before Yin lost the multitudes, (Its kings) were the
correlates of God'. Look to Yin as a beacon i The great appointment is
not easily preserved.

The appointment is not easily (preserved):--Do not cause your own
extinction. Display and make bright your righteousness and fame, And
look at (the fate of) Yin in the light of Heaven. The doings of high
Heaven Have neither sound nor

[1. These officers of Yin would be the descendants of the Yin kings
and of their principal nobles, scions likewise of the, Yin stock. They
would assist, at the court of Kāu, at the services in the ancestral
temple, which began with a libation of fragrant spirits to bring down
the spirits of the departed.

2 These, differing from the dress worn by the representatives of the
ruling House, were still worn by the officers of Yin or Shang, by way
of honour, and also by way of warning.

3 There was God in heaven hating none, desiring the good of all the
people; there were the sovereigns on earth, God's vicegerents,
maintained by him so long as they carried out in their government his
purpose of good.]

smell[1]. Take your pattern from king Wan, And the myriad regions will
repose confidence in you.

ODE 2. THE TĀ MING.

HOW THE APPOINTMENT OF HEAVEN OR GOD CAME FROM HIS FATHER TO KING WAN, AND
DESCENDED TO HIS SON, KING WŪ, WHO OVERTHREW THE DYNASTY OF SHANG BY HIS
VICTORY AT MŪ; CELEBRATING ALSO THE MOTHER AND WIFE OF KING WAN.

The illustration of illustrious (virtue) is required below, And the
dread majesty is or, high[2]. Heaven is not readily to be relied on;
It is not easy to be king. Yin's rightful heir to the heavenly seat
Was not permitted to possess the kingdom.

Zan, the second of the princesses of Kih[3], From (the domain of)
Yin-shang, Came to be married to (the prince of) Kāu, And became his
wife in his

[1. These two lines are quoted in the last paragraph of the Doctrine
of the Mean, as representing the ideal of perfect virtue. They are
indicative of Power, operating silently, and not to be perceived by
the senses, but resistless in its operations.

2. 'The first two lines,' says the commentator Yen Zhan, 'contain a
general sentiment, expressing the principle that governs the relation
between Heaven and men. According to line 1, the good or evil of a
ruler cannot be-concealed; according to 2, Heaven, in giving its
favour or taking it away, acts with strict decision. When below there
is the illustrious illustration (of virtue), that reaches up on high.
When above there is the awful majesty, that exercises a survey below.
The relation between Heaven and men ought to excite our awe.'

3. The state of Kih must have been somewhere in the royal domain of
Yin. Its lords had the surname of Zan, and the second daughter of the
House became the wife of Kī of Kāu. She is called in the eighth line
Thāi-zan, by which name she is still famous in China. 'She commenced,'
it is said, 'the instruction of her child when he was still in her
womb, looking on no improper sight, listening to no licentious sound,
uttering no word of pride.']

capital. Both she and king Kī Were entirely virtuous. (Then) Thāi-zan
became pregnant, And gave birth to our king Wan.

This king Wan, Watchfully and reverently, With entire intelligence
served God, And so secured the great blessing. His virtue was without
deflection; And in consequence he received (the allegiance of) the
states from all quarters.

Heaven surveyed this lower world; And its appointment lighted (on king
Wan). In his early years, It made for him a mate[1];--On the north of
the Hsiā, On the banks of the Wei. When king Wan would marry, There
was the lady in a large state[2].

In a large state was the lady, Like a fair denizen of heaven. The
ceremonies determined the auspiciousness (of the union) [3], And in
person he met her on the Wei. Over it he made a bridge of boats; The
glory (of the occasion) was illustrious.

The favouring appointment was from Heaven, Giving the throne to our
kin Wan, In the capital of Kāu. The lady-successor was from Hsin, Its
eldest daughter, who came to marry him. She was blessed to give birth
to king Wū, Who was preserved, and helped, and received (also) the.
appointment,

[1. Heaven is here represented as arranging for the fulfilment of its
purposes beforehand.

2. The name of the state was Hsin, and it must have been near the Hsiā
and the Wei, somewhere in the south-east of the present Shen-hsī.

3. 'The ceremonies' would be various; first of all, divination by
means of the tortoise-shell.]

And in accordance with it smote the great Shang.

The troops of Yin-shang Were collected like a forest, And marshalled
in the wilderness of Mū. We rose (to the crisis); 'God is with you,'
(said Shang-fū to the king), 'Have no doubts in your heart[1].'

The wilderness of Mū spread out extensive; Bright shone the chariots
of sandal; The teams of bays, black-maned and white-bellied, galloped
along; The Grand-Master Shang-fū. Was like an eagle on the wing,
Assisting king Wū, Who at one onset smote the great Shang. That
morning's encounter was followed by a clear, bright (day).

ODE 3. THE MIEN.

SMALL BEGINNINGS AND SUBSEQUENT GROWTH OF THE HOUSE OF KĀU IN KĀU. ITS
REMOVAL FROM PIN UNDER THAN-FŪ, WITH ITS FIRST SETTLEMENT IN KĀU, WITH THE
PLACE THEN GIVEN TO THE BUILDING OF THE ANCESTRAL TEMPLE, AND THE ALTAR TO
THE SPIRITS OF THE LAND. CONSOLIDATION OF ITS FORTUNES BY KING WAN.

'The ancient duke Than-fū' was the grandfather of king Wan, and was
canonized by the duke of Kāu as 'king Thāi.' As mentioned in a note on
p. 316, he was the first of his family to settle in Kāu, removing
there from Pin. the site of their earlier settlement, 'the country
about the Khü and the Khī.'

In long trains ever increasing grow the gourds[2]. When (our) people
first sprang, From the country about the Khü and the Khī[1], The
ancient duke

[1. See the account of the battle of Mū in the third Book of the fifth
Part of the Shū. Shang-fū was one of Wū's principal leaders and
counsellors, his 'Grand-Master Shang-fū' in the next stanza.

2. As a gourd grows and extends, with a vast development of its
tendrils and leaves, so had the House of Kāu increased.

3. These were two rivers in the territory of Pin, which name still
remains in the small department of Pin Kāu, in Shen-hsī. The Khü flows
into the Lo, and the Khī into the Wei.]

Than-fū Made for them kiln-like huts and caves, Ere they had yet any
houses [1].

The ancient duke Than-fū Came in the morning, galloping his horses,
Along the banks of the western rivers, To the foot of mount Khī[2];
And there he and the lady Kiang[3] Came and together looked out for a
site.

The plain of Kāu looked beautiful and rich, With its violets, and
sowthistles (sweet) as dumplings. There he began by consulting (with
his followers); There he singed the tortoise-shell, (and divined). The
responses were there to stay and then; And they proceeded there to
build[4].

He encouraged the people, and settled them; Here on the left, there on
the right. He divided the ground, and subdivided it; If he dug the
ditches; he defined the acres. From the east to the west, There was
nothing which he did not take in hand [5].

[1. According to this ode then, up to the time of Than-fū, the Kāu
people had only had the dwellings here described; but this is not
easily reconciled with other accounts, or even with other stanzas of
this piece.

2. See a graphic account of the circumstances in which this migration
took place, in the fifteenth chapter of the second Part of the first
Book of Mencius, very much to the honour of the ancient duke.

3. This lady is known as Thāi-kiang, the worthy predecessor of
Thāi-zan.

4. This stanza has reference to the choice--by council and
divination--of a site for what should be the chief town of the new
settlement.

5. This stanza describes the general arrangements for the occupancy
and cultivation of the plain of Kāu, and the distribution of the
people over it.]

He called his Superintendent of Works; He called his Minister of
Instruction; And charged them with the rearing of the houses. With the
line they made everything straight; They bound the frame-boards tight,
so that they should rise regularly uprose the ancestral temple in its
solemn grandeur[1].

Crowds brought the earth in baskets; They threw it with shouts into
the frames; They beat it with responsive blows. They pared the walls
repeatedly, till they sounded strong. Five thousand cubits of them
arose together, So that the roll of the great drums did not overpower
(the noise of the builders)[2].

They reared the outer gate (of the palace), Which rose in lofty state.
They set up the gate of audience, Which rose severe and exact. They
reared the great altar to the spirits of the land, From which all
great movements should proceed[3].

[1. This stanza describes the preparations and processes for erecting
the buildings of the new city. The whole took place under the
direction of two officers, in whom we have the germ probably of the
Six Heads of the Boards or Departments, whose functions are described
in the Shū and the Official Book of Kāu. The materials of the
buildings were earth and lime pounded together in frames, as is still
to be seen in many parts of the country. The first great building
taken in hand was the ancestral temple. Than-fit would make a home for
the spirits of his fathers, before he made one for himself. However
imperfectly directed, the religious feeling asserted the supremacy
which it ought to possess.

2. The bustle and order of the building all over the city is here
graphically set forth.

3. Than-fū was now at leisure to build the palace for himself, which
appears to have been not a very large building, though the Chinese
names of its gates are those belonging to the two which were peculiar
to the palaces of the kings of Kāu in the subsequent times of the
dynasty. Outside the palace were the altars appropriate to the spirits
of the four quarters of the land, the 'great' or royal altar being
peculiar to the kings, though the one built by Than-fū is here so
named. All great undertakings, and such as required the co-operation
of all the people, were preceded by a solemn sacrifice at this altar.]

Thus though he could not prevent the rage of his foes[1], He did not
let fall his own fame. The oaks and the buckthorns were (gradually)
thinned, And roads for travellers were opened. The hordes of the Khwan
disappeared, Startled and panting.

(The chiefs of) Yü and Zui [2] were brought to an agreement By king
Wan's stimulating their natural virtue. Then, I may say, some came to
him, previously not knowing him; Some, drawn the last by the first;
Some, drawn by his rapid successes; And some by his defence (of the
weak) from insult.

[1. Referring to Than-fū's relations with the wild hordes, described
by Mencius, and which obliged him to leave Pin. As the new settlement
in Kāu grew, they did not dare to trouble it.

2. The poet passes on here to the time of king Wan. The story of the
chiefs of Yü and Zui (two states on the east of the Ho) is this:--They
had a quarrel about a strip of territory, to which each of them laid
claim. Going to lay their dispute before the lord of Kāu, as soon as
they entered his territory, they saw the ploughers readily yielding
the furrow, and travellers yielding the path, while men and women
avoided one another on the road, and old people had no burdens to
carry. At his court, they beheld the officers of each inferior grade
giving place to those above them. They became ashamed of their own
quarrel, agreed to let the disputed ground be an open territory, and
withdrew without presuming to appear, before Wan. When this affair was
noised abroad, more than forty states, it is said, tendered their
submission to Kāu.]

ODE 4, STANZAS I AND 2. THE YĪ PHO.

IN PRAISE OF KING WAN, CELEBRATING HIS INFLUENCE, DIGNITY IN THE TEMPLE
SERVICES, ACTIVITY, AND CAPACITY TO RULE.

Abundant is the growth of the buckthorn and shrubby trees, Supplying
firewood; yea, stores of it[1]. Elegant and dignified was our prince
and king; On the left and the right they hastened to him.

Elegant and dignified was our prince and king; On his left and his
right they bore their half-mace (libation-cups)[2]:--They bore them
with solemn gravity, As beseemed such eminent officers.

ODE 5. THE HAN LŪ.

IN PRAISE OF THE VIRTUE OF KING WAN, BLESSED BY HIS ANCESTORS, AND RAISED TO
THE HIGHEST DIGNITY WITHOUT' SEEKING OF HIS OWN.

Look at the foot of the Han[3], How abundantly grow the hazel and
arrow-thorn[4]. Easy and self-possessed was our prince, In his pursuit
of dignity (still) easy and self-possessed.

Massive is that libation-cup of jade, With the

[1. It is difficult to trace the connexion between-these allusive
lines and the rest of the piece.

2. Here we have the lord of Kāu in his ancestral temple, assisted by
his ministers or great officers in pouring out the libations to the
spirits of the departed. The libation-cup was fitted with a handle of
jade, that used by the king having a complete kwei, the obelisk-like
symbol of rank, while the cups used by a minister had for a handle
only half a kwei.

3. Where mount Han was cannot now be determined.

4 As the foot of the hill was favourable to vegetable growth, so were
king Wan's natural qualities to his distinction and advancement.]

yellow liquid sparkling in it[1]. Easy and self-possessed was our
prince, The fit recipient of blessing and dignity.

The hawk flies up to heaven, The fishes leap in the deep [2]. Easy and
self-possessed was our prince:--Did he not exert an influence on men?

His clear spirits were in the vessels; His red bull was ready[3];--To
offer, to sacrifice, To increase his bright happiness.

Thick grow the oaks and the buckthorn, Which the people use for fuel
[4]. Easy and self-possessed was our prince, Cheered and encouraged by
the spirits [4].

Luxuriant are the dolichos and other creepers, Clinging to the
branches and stems. Easy and self-possessed was our prince, Seeking
for happiness by no crooked ways.

ODE 6. THE SZE KĀI.

THE VIRTUE OF WAN, WITH HIS FILIAL PIETY AND CONSTANT REVERENCE, AND THEIR
WONDERFUL EFFECTS. THE EXCELLENT CHARACTER OF HIS MOTHER AND WIFE.

Pure and reverent was Thāi Zan[5], The mother of king Wan. Loving was
she to Kāu Kiang [6];--

[1. As a cup of such quality was the proper receptacle for the yellow,
herb-flavoured spirits, so was the character of Wan such that all
blessing must accrue to him.

2. It is the nature of the hawk to fly and of fishes to swim, and so
there went out an influence from Wan unconsciously to himself.

3. Red, we have seen, was the proper colour for victims in the
ancestral temple of Kāu.

4. As it was natural for the people to take the wood and use it, so it
was natural for the spirits of his ancestors, and spiritual beings
generally, to bless king Wan.

5. Thāi Zan is celebrated, above, in the second ode.

6. Kāu Kiang is 'the lady Kiang' of ode 3, the wife of Than-fū or king
Thāi, who came with him from Pin. She is here called Kāu, as having
married the lord of Kāu.]

A wife becoming the House of Kāu. Thāi Sze [1] inherited her excellent
fame, And from her came a hundred sons [2].

He conformed to the example of his ancestors, And their spirits had no
occasion for complaint. Their spirits had no occasion for
dissatisfaction; And his example acted on his wife, Extended to his
brethren, And was felt by all the clans and states.

Full of harmony was he in his palace; Full of reverence in the
ancestral temple. Unseen (by men), he still felt that he was under
inspection[3]: Unweariedly he maintained his virtue.

Though he could not prevent (some) great calamities, His brightness
and magnanimity were without stain. Without previous instruction he
did what was right; Without admonition he went on (in the path of
goodness).

So, grown. up men became virtuous (through him), And young men made
(constant) attainments. (Our) ancient prince never felt weariness, And
from him were the fame and eminence of his officers.

[1. Thāi Sze, the wife of Wan, we are told in ode 2, was from the
state of Hsin. The surname Sze shows that its lords must have been
descended from the Great Yü.

2. We are not to suppose that Thāi Sze had herself a hundred sons. She
had ten, and her freedom from jealousy so encouraged the fruitfulness
of the harem, that all the sons born in it are ascribed to her.

3. Where there was no human eye to observe him, Wan still felt that he
was open to the observation of spiritual beings.]

ODE 7. THE HWANG Ī.

SHOWING THE RISE OF THE HOUSE OF KĀU TO THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE KINGDOM
THROUGH THE FAVOUR OF GOD, THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF KINGS THĀI AND KĪ, AND
ESPECIALLY OF KING WAN.

Great is God, Beholding this lower world in majesty. He surveyed the
four quarters (of the kingdom), Seeking for some one to give
establishment to the people. Those two earlier dynasties [1] Had
failed to satisfy him with their government; So, throughout the
various states, He sought and considered For one on whom he might
confer the rule. Hating all the great states, He turned his kind
regards on the west, And there gave a settlement (to king Thāi).

(King Thāi) raised up and removed The dead trunks and the fallen
trees. He dressed and regulated The bushy clumps and the (tangled)
rows. He opened up and cleared The tamarisk trees and the stave trees.
He hewed and thinned The mountain mulberry trees. God having brought
about the removal thither of this intelligent ruler, The Kwan hordes
fled away[2]. Heaven had raised up a helpmeet for him, And the
appointment he had received was made sure.

God surveyed the hills, Where the oaks and the buckthorn were thinned,
And paths made through the firs and cypresses. God, who had raised the

[1. Those of Hsiā and Shang.

2. The same as 'the hordes of the Khwan' in ode 3. Mr. T. W. Kingsmill
says that 'Kwan' here should be 'Chun,' and charges the
transliteration Kwan with error (journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
for April, 1878). He had not consulted his dictionary for the proper
pronunciation of the Chinese character.]

state, raised up a proper ruler[1] for it,--From the time of Thāi-po
and king Kī (this was done) [1]. Now this king Kī In his heart was
full of brotherly duty. Full of duty to his elder brother, He gave
himself the more to promote the prosperity (of the country), And
secured to him the glory (of his act) [2]. He accepted his dignity and
did not lose it, And (ere long his family) possessed the whole
kingdom.

This king Kī Was gifted by God with the power of judgment, So that the
fame of his virtue silently grew. His virtue was highly
intelligent,--Highly intelligent, and of rare discrimination; Able to
lead, able to rule, To rule over this great country; Rendering a
cordial submission, effecting a cordial union [3]. When (the sway)
came to king Wan, His

[1. King Wan is 'the proper ruler' intended here, and the next line
intimates that this was determined before there was any likelihood of
his becoming the ruler even of the territory of Kāu; another instance
of the foreseeing providence ascribed to God. Thāi-po was the eldest
son of king Thai, and king Kī was, perhaps, only the third. The
succession ought to have come to Thai-po; but he, seeing the sage
virtues of Khang (afterwards king Wan), the son of Kī, and seeing also
that king Thai was anxious that this boy should ultimately become
ruler of Kāu, voluntarily withdrew from Kau altogether, and left the
state to Kī and his son. See the remark of Confucius on Thāi-po's
conduct, in the Analects, VIII, i.

2 .The lines from six to ten speak of king Kī in his relation to his
elder brother. He accepted Thāi-po's act without -any failure of his
own duty to him, and by his own improvement of it, made his brother
more glorious through it. His feeling of brotherly duty was simply the
natural instinct of his heart. Having accepted the act, it only made
him the more anxious to promote the good of the state, and thus he
made his brother more glorious by showing what advantages accrued from
his resignation and withdrawal from Kau.

3. This line refers to Kī's maintenance of his own loyal duty to the
dynasty of Shang, and his making all the states under his presidency
loyal also.]

virtue left nothing to be dissatisfied with, He received the blessing
of God, And it was extended to his descendants.

God said to king Wan [1], 'Be not like those who reject this and cling
to that; Be not like those who are ruled by their likings and
desires;' So he grandly ascended before others to the height (of
virtue). The people of Mī [2] were disobedient, Daring to oppose our
great country, And invaded Yüan, marching to Kung[3]. The king rose,
majestic in his wrath; He marshalled his troops, To stop the invading
foes; To consolidate the prosperity of Kāu; To meet the expectations
of all under heaven.

He remained quietly in the capital, But (his troops) went on from the
borders of Yüan. They ascended our lofty ridges, And (the enemy)
arrayed no forces on our hills, On our hills, small or large, Nor
drank at our springs, Our springs or our pools. He then determined the
finest of the plains, And settled on the south of Khī[4], On the banks
of

[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. Mī or Mī-hsü was a state in the present King-ning Kāu, of
Phing-liang department, Kan-sū.

3. Yüan was a state adjacent to Mī,--the present King Kāu, 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 Hū, department
Hsī-an, Shen-hsī. 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 Kāu, who
was president of the states of the west, to Kāu-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 Kāu, 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. Kū Hsī and others would require the plural 'Fathers,'
saying the sacrifice was to Hwang Tī and Khih Yū, who are found
engaged in hostilities far back in the mythical period of Chinese
history. But Khih Yū 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 HSIĀ WŪ.

IN PRAISE OF KING WŪ, 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 Kāu. For
generations there had been wise kings; The three sovereigns were in
heaven [2]; And king (Wū) was their worthy successor in his capital
[3].

King (Wū) 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,--Thāi, Kī, and Wan. We are thus
obliged, with all Chinese scholars, to understand this ode of king Wū.
The statement that 'the three kings were in heaven' is very express.

3. The capital here is Hāo, to which Wū 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 YŪ SHANG.

THE PRAISE OF KINGS WAN AND WŪ:-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
HĀO, 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 Hāo 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 Hāo. The tortoise-shell decided the site[3], And king Wū completed
the city. A sovereign true was king Wū!

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

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

3. Hāo was built by Wū, 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 Wū 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 Wū!

The Second Decade, or that of Shang Min.

ODE 1. THE SHANG MIN.

THE LEGEND OF HĀU-KĪ:--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 KĀU.

Of Hāu-kī there is some notice on the tenth ode of the first decade of
the Sacrificial Odes of Kāu. To him the kings of Kāu 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 Thāi, 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 Kāu surname was Ki, he must
have been one of the descendants of Hwang Tī.

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 Wū
collected around him.

2. Our 'people' is of course the people of Kāu. The whole piece is
about the individual from whom the House of Kāu 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 Hāu-kī.

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,
Hāu-kī 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 pręternatural 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. Māo 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 Hāu-kī 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 Thāi[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. Hāu-kī's mother, we have seen, was a princess of Thāi, in the
present district of Wū-kung, Khien Kau, Shen-hsī. This may have led to
his appointment to that principality, and the transference of the
lordship from Kiangs to Kīs. 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 Hāu-kī; but of the sacrifices of the of
House of Kāu,--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].
Hāu-kī 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. Kū Hsī 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 Kāu
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 Kāu-kī 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 Kāu
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 KĪ 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 HŪ Ī.

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 Shū;
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 Wū's capital of
Hāo. 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 KIĀ 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 Ā.

ADDRESSED, PROBABLY, BY THE DUKE OF SHĀO 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 Shāo was the famous Shih, who appears in the fifth and
other Books of the fifth Part of the Shū, the colleague of the duke of
Kin in the early days of the Kāu 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-tā
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.'
Kū Hsī 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 Manchāu 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 Shū, 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 LĀO.

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 Ā, 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 Kāu, 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 Lāo has
been assigned to duke Mū of Shāo, a descendant of duke Khang, the Shih
of the Shū, the reputed author of the Khüan Ā, and was directed
against king Lī, 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 Kū Hsī, is 'the clear appointment
of Heaven;' according to Kū 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 Lī.

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 LĪ, 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
Mū of Shāo. The structure of the piece is peculiar, for, after the
first stanza, we have king Win introduced delivering a series of
warnings to Kāu-hsin, the last king of the Shang dynasty. They are put
into Win's mouth, in the hope that Lī, if, indeed, he was the monarch
whom the writer had in view, would transfer the figure of Kāu-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 Hsiā.'

[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 Lī,' 'the Hsien-yun,' &c. Towards
the beginning of our era, they were called Hsiung-nū, from which,
perhaps, came the name Huns; and some centuries later, Thū-küeh
(Thuh-küeh), from which came Turk. We are told in the Yī, under the
diagram Kī-kī, that Kāo Zung (B.C. 1324-1266) conducted an expedition
against the demon regions, and in three years subdued them.]

ODE 2. THE YĪ.

CONTAINING VARIOUS COUNSELS WHICH DUKE WŪ 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 Wū 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 Kāu dynasty. That article relates
how Wū, 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 Ī to admonish
himself.' The Ī is understood to be only another name for this Yī.
Thus the speaker throughout the piece is Wū, 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. Wū 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 Wū
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 Kū Hsī 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 Wū 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 Wū'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 ZĀU.

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

King Lī 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 Kāu, department
Phing-yang, Shan-hsī, where he remained till his death in B.C. 828.
The government in the meantime was carried on by the dukes of Shāo and
Kāu, 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 Shū, 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 Kāu.

2. In the Official Book of Kāu, 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. Hāu-kī 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 Kāu, 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 Shū, 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
Hāu-kī in the seventh line makes us think especially of the service in
the spring, to pray for a good year, when Hāu-kī was associated with
God.

3. 'The (Powers) above and below' are Heaven and Earth. The offerings,
during the progress of the service, were placed on the ground, or on
the altars, and buried in the earth at the close of it. This explains
what the king says in the first stanza about the offerings of jade
being exhausted.]

we not mingle our fears together? (The sacrifices to) my ancestors
will be extinguished[1].

'The drought is excessive, And it -cannot be stopped. More fierce and
fiery, It is leaving me no place. My end is near;--I have none to look
up, none to look round, to. The many dukes and their ministers of the
past [2] Give me no help. O ye parents and (nearer) ancestors [3], How
can ye bear to see me thus?

'The drought is excessive;--Parched are the hills, and the streams are
dried. The demon of drought exercises his oppression, As if scattering
flames and fire [4] My heart is terrified with the heat;--My sorrowing
heart is as if on fire. The

[1. Equivalent to the extinction of the dynasty.

2. The king had sacrificed to all the early lords of Kāu. 'The many
dukes' may comprehend kings Thāi and Kī. He had also sacrificed to
their ministers. Compare what Pan-kang says in the Shū, p. 109, about
his predecessors and their ministers. Some take 'the many dukes, and
the ministers,' of all princes of states who had signalised themselves
by services to the people and kingdom.

3. The king could hardly hope that his father, the oppressive Lī,
would in his spirit-state give him any aid; but we need only find in
his words the expression of natural feeling. Probably it was the
consideration of the character of Lī which has made some critics
understand by 'parents' and 'ancestors' the same individuals, namely,
kings Wan and Wū, 'the ancestors' of Hsüan, and who had truly been
'the parents' of the people.

4. Khung Ying-tā, from 'the Book of Spirits and Marvels,' gives the
following account of 'the demon of drought:'--'In the southern regions
there is a man, two or three cubits in height, with the upper part of
his body bare, and his eyes in the top of his head. He runs with the
speed of the wind, and is named Po. In whatever state he appears,
there ensues a great drought.' The Book of Spirits and Marvels,
however, as it now exists, cannot be older, than our fourth or fifth
century.]

many dukes and their ministers of the past Do not hear me. O God, from
thy great heaven, Grant me the liberty to withdraw (into
retirement[1]).

'The drought is excessive;--I struggle and fear to go away. How is it
that I am afflicted with this drought? I cannot ascertain the cause of
it. In praying for a good year I was abundantly early [2]. I was not
late (in sacrificing) to (the spirits of) the four quarters and of the
land [3]. God in great heaven Does not consider me. Reverent to the
intelligent spirits, I ought not to be thus the object of their anger.

'The drought is excessive;--All is dispersion, and the bonds of
government are relaxed. Reduced to extremities are the heads of
departments; Full of distress are my chief ministers, The Master of
the Horse, the Commander of the Guards, The chief Cook[4], and my
attendants. There is no one who has not (tried to) help (the people);
They have not refrained on the ground of being unable. I look up to
the great heaven;--Why am I plunged in this sorrow?

'I look up to the great heaven, But its stars sparkle bright. My great
officers and excellent men, Ye have reverently drawn near (to Heaven)
with all

[1. That is, to withdraw and give place to a more worthy sovereign.

2. This was the border sacrifice to God, when Hāu-kī was associated
with him. Some critics add a sacrifice in -the first month of winter,
for a blessing on the ensuing year, offered to 'the honoured ones of
heaven,'--the sun, moon, and zodiacal constellations.

3. See note 2 on p. 371.

4. See note 1 On p. 356.]

your powers. Death is approaching, But do not cast away what you have
done. You are seeking not for me only, But to give rest to all our
departments. I look up to the great heaven;--When shall I be favoured
with repose?'

ODE 5, STANZAS 1, 2, AND 4. THE SUNG KĀO.

CELEBRATING THE APPOINTMENT BY KING HSÜAN OF A RELATIVE TO BE THE MARQUIS OF
SHAN, AND DEFENDER OF THE SOUTHERN BORDER OF THE KINGDOM, WITH THE
ARRANGEMENTS MADE FOR HIS ENTERING ON HIS CHARGE.

That the king who appears in this piece was king Hsüan is sufficiently
established. He appears in it commissioning 'his great uncle,' an
elder brother, that is, of his mother, to go and rule, as marquis of
Shan, and chief or president of the states in the south of the
kingdom, to defend the borders against the encroaching hordes of the
south, headed by the princes of Khū, whose lords bad been rebellious
against the middle states even in the time of the Shang dynasty;--see
the last of the Sacrificial Odes of Shang.

Grandly lofty are the mountains, With their large masses reaching to
the heavens. From those mountains was sent down a spirit, Who produced
the birth of (the princes of) Fū and Shan [1]. Fū and

[1. Shan was a small marquisate, a part of what is the present
department of Nan-yang, Ho-nan. Fū, which was also called Lü, was
another small territory, not far from Shan. The princes of both were
Kiangs, descended from the chief minister of Yāo, called in the first
Book of the Shū, 'the Four Mountains.' Other states were ruled by his
descendants, particularly the great state of Khī. When it is said here
that a spirit was sent down from the great mountains, and produced the
birth of (the princes of) Fū and Shan, we have, probably, a legendary
tradition concerning the birth of Yāo's minister, which was current
among all his descendants; and with which we may compare the legends
that have come under our notice about the supernatural births of the
ancestors of the founders of the Houses of Shang and Kau. The
character for mountains' in lines 1 and 3 is the same that occurs in
the title of Yāo's minister. On the statement about the mountains
sending 'down a spirit, Hwang Hsün, a critic of the Sung dynasty, says
that it is merely a personification of the poet, to show how high
Heaven had a mind to revive the fortunes of Kau, and that we need not
trouble ourselves about whether there was such a spirit or not!]

Shan Are the support of Kāu, Screens to all the states, Diffusing
(their influence) over the four quarters of the kingdom.

Full of activity is the chief of Shin, And the king would employ him
to continue the services (of his fathers), With his capital in Hsieh
[1], Where he should be a pattern to the states of the south. The king
gave charge to the earl of Shāo, To arrange all about the residence of
the chief of Shin, Where he should do what was necessary for the
regions of the south, And where his posterity might maintain his
merit.

Of the services of the chief of Shan The foundation was laid by the
earl of Shāo, Who first built the walls (of his city), And then
completed his ancestral temple [2]. When the temple was completed,
wide and grand, The king conferred on the chief of Shāo Four noble
steeds, With the hooks for the trappings of the breast-bands,
glittering bright[3].

[1. Hsieh was in the present Fang Kāu of the department of Nan-yang.

2. Compare with this the account given, in ode 3 of the first decade,
of the settling of 'the ancient duke Than-fū' in the plain of Kāu.
Here, as there, the great religious edifice, the ancestral temple,
takes precedence of all other buildings in the new city.

3. The steeds with their equipments were tokens of the royal favour,
usually granted on occasions of investiture. The. conferring of them
was followed immediately by the departure of the newly-invested prince
to his charge.]

ODE 6, STANZAS 1 AND 7. THE KANG MIN.

CELEBRATING THE VIRTUES OF KUNG SHAN-FŪ, WHO APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN ONE OF THE
PRINCIPAL MINISTERS OF KING HSÜAN, AND HIS DESPATCH TO THE EAST, TO FORTIFY
THE CAPITAL OF TIM STATE OF KHĪ.

Heaven, in giving birth to the multitudes of the people, To every
faculty and relationship annexed its law. The people possess this
normal nature, And they (consequently) love its normal virtue [1].
Heaven beheld the ruler of Kāu, Brilliantly affecting it by his
conduct below, And to maintain him, its Son, Gave birth to Kung
Shan-fū [2].

Kung Shan-fū went forth, having sacrificed to the spirit of the road
[3]. His four steeds were strong;

[1. We get an idea of the meaning which has been attached to these
four lines from a very early time by Mencius' quotation of them (VI,
i, ch. 6) in support of his doctrine of the goodness of human nature,
and the remark on the piece which he 'attributes to Confucius, that
'the maker of it knew indeed the constitution (of our nature).' Every
faculty, bodily or mental, has its function to fulfil, and every
relationship its duty to be discharged. The function and the duty are
the things which the human being has to observe:--the seeing clearly,
for instance, with the eyes, and bearing distinctly with the ears; the
maintenance of righteousness between ruler and minister, and of
affection between parent and child. This is the 'normal nature,' and
the 'normal virtue' is the nature fulfilling the various laws of its
constitution.

2 The connexion between these four lines and those that precede is
this:--that while Heaven produces all men with the good nature there
described, on occasions it produces others with virtue and powers in a
super-eminent degree. Such an occasion was presented by the case of
king Hsüan, and therefore, to mark its appreciation of him, and for
his help,, it now produced Kung Shan-fū.

3 This was a special sacrifice at the commencement of a journey, or of
an expedition. See note 2 on p. 399.]

His men were alert, He was always anxious lest he should not be equal
to his commission; His steeds went on without stopping, To the
tinkling of their eight bells. The king had given charge to Kung
Shan-fū, To fortify the city there in the east.

ODE 7, STANZAS I AND PART OF 3. THE HAN YĪ.

CELEBRATING THE MARQUIS OF HAN:--HIS INVESTITURE, AND THE KING S CHARGE TO
HIM; THE GIFTS HE RECEIVED, AND THE PARTING FEAST AT THE COURT; HIS
MARRIAGE; THE EXCELLENCE OF HIS TERRITORY; AND HIS SWAY OVER THE REGIONS OF
THE NORTH.

Only one line--the first of stanza 3--in this interesting piece serves
to illustrate the religious practices of the time, and needs no
further note than what has been given on the first line of stanza 7 in
the preceding ode. The name of the marquisate of Han remains in the
district of Han-khang, department of Hsī-an, Shen-hsī, in which also
is mount Liang.

Very grand is the mountain of Liang, Which was made cultivable by Yü.
Bright is the way from it, (Along which came) the marquis of Han to
receive investiture. The king in person gave the charge:--'Continue
the services of your ancestors; Let not my charge to you come to
nought. Be diligent early and late, And reverently discharge your
duties:--So shall my appointment of you not change. Be a support
against those princes who do not come to court, Thus assisting your
sovereign.'

When the marquis of Han left the court, he sacrificed to the spirit of
the road. He went forth, and lodged for the night in Tū.

ODE 8, STANZAS 4 AND 5. THE KIANG HAN.

CELEBRATING AN EXPEDITION AGAINST THE SOUTHERN TRIBES OF THE HWĀI, AND THE
WORK DONE FOR THE KING IN THEIR COUNTRY, BY HŪ, THE EARL OF SHĀO, WITH THE
MANNER IN WHICH THE KING REWARDED HIM, AND HE RESPONDED TO THE ROYAL FAVOUR.

Hū was probably the same earl of Shāo, who is mentioned in ode 5, as
building his capital of Hsieh for the new marquis of Shan. The lords
of Shāo had been distinguished in the service of Kāu ever since the
rise of the dynasty.

The king gave charge to Hū of Shāo:--'You have everywhere made known
(and carried out my orders). When (the kings) Wan and Wū received
their appointment, The duke of Shāo was their strong support. You not
(only) have a regard to me the little child But you try to resemble
that duke of Shāo. You have commenced and earnestly displayed your
merit; And I will make you happy.

'I give you a large libation-cup of jade[1], And a jar of
herb-flavoured spirits from the black millet[2]. I have made
announcement to the Accomplished one[3], And confer on you hills,
lands, and fields. In (Khī-)kāu shall you receive investiture,
According as your ancestor received his.' Hū bowed with

[1. See note 2 on p. 386.

2. The cup and the spirits would be used by the earl when sacrificing
in his ancestral temple. Compare the similar gift from king Khang to
the duke of Kāu, in the Shū, p. 194. More substantial gifts are
immediately specified.

3. 'The Accomplished one' is understood to be king Wan (= 'the
Accomplished king'). He was the founder of the Kāu dynasty. To him the
kingdom had first come by the appointment and gift of Heaven. It was
the duty therefore of his successors, in making grants of territory to
meritorious officers, to announce them to him in Khī-kāu, the old
territory of the family, and obtain, as it were, his leave for what
they were doing.]

his head to the ground (and said), 'May the Son of Heaven live for
ever!'

ODE 10, STANZAS 1, 5, 6, AND 7. THE KAN ZANG.

THE WRITER DEPLORES, WITH AN APPEALING WAIL TO HEAVEN, THE MISERY AND
OPPRESSION THAT PREVAILED, AND INTIMATES THAT THEY WERE CAUSED BY THE
INTERFERENCE OF WOMEN AND EUNUCHS IN THE GOVERNMENT.

The king addressed in this piece was most probably Yū. It suits his
character and reign.

I look up to great Heaven, But it shows us no kindness. Very long have
we been disquieted, And these great calamities are sent down (upon
us). There is nothing settled in the country; Officers and people are
in distress. Through the insects from without and from within, There
is no peace or limit (to our misery). The net of crime is not taken
up[1], And there is no peace nor cure (for our state).

Why is it that Heaven is (thus) reproving (you)? Why is it that Heaven
is not blessing (you)? You neglect your great barbarian (foes), And
regard me with hatred. You are regardless of the evil omens (that
abound [2]), And your demeanour is all unseemly. (Good) men are going
away, And the country is sure to go to ruin.

Heaven is letting down its net, And many (are the calamities in it).
(Good) men are going away, And my heart is sorrowful. Heaven is
letting down

[1. By 'the net of crime' we are to understand the multitude of penal
laws, to whose doom people were exposed. In stanza 6, Heaven is
represented as letting it down.

2. Compare ode 9 of the fourth decade in the former Part.]

its net, And soon (all will be caught in it). (Good) men are going
away, And my heart is sad.

Right from the spring comes the water bubbling, Revealing its depth.
The sorrow of my heart,--Is it (only) of to-day? Why were these things
not, before me? Or why were they not after me? But mysteriously great
Heaven Is able to strengthen anything. Do not disgrace your great
ancestors This will save your posterity[1].

ODE 11, STANZAS 1 AND 2. THE SHĀO MIN.

THE WRITER APPEALS TO HEAVEN, BEMOANING THE MISERY AND RUIN WHICH WERE GOING
ON, AND SHOWING HOW THEY WERE DUE TO THE KING'S EMPLOYMENT OF MEAN AND
WORTHLESS CREATURES.

Compassionate Heaven is arrayed in angry terrors. Heaven is indeed
sending down ruin, Afflicting us with famine, So that the people are
all wandering fugitives. In the settled regions, and on the borders,
all is desolation.

Heaven sends down its net of crime;--Devouring insects, who weary and
confuse men's minds, Ignorant, oppressive, negligent, Breeders of
confusion, utterly perverse:--These are the men employed.

[1. The writer in these concluding lines ventures to summon the king
to repentance, and to hold out a hope that there might come a change
in their state. He does this, believing that all things are possible
with Heaven.]
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Next: Part IV: Lessons from the States