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PART IV. THE BOOKS OF SHANG.

BOOK I. THE SPEECH OF THANG.

SHANG was the name under which the dynasty that superseded Hsiā (B.C.
1766) held the kingdom for fully 300 years. Yin then began to be used
as well as Shang, and the dynasty was called indifferently Shang or
Yin, and sometimes Yin-Shang by a combination of the two names. The
ruling House traced its origin into the remote times of antiquity,
through Hsieh, whose appointment by Shun to be Minister of Instruction
is related in the Canon of Shun. For his services Hsieh was invested
with the principality of Shang, corresponding to the present small
department of the same name in Shen-hsī. From Hsieh to Thang, thc
founder of the dynasty, there are reckoned fourteen generations, and
we find Thang, when he first becomes prominent in history, a long way
from the ancestral fief, in 'the southern Po,' corresponding to the
present district of Shang-khiū, department Kwei-teh, Ho-nan. The tide
of the dynasty, however, was derived from the original Shang.

There were in the Shū, when the collection was formed, thirty-one
documents of Shang in forty Books, of which only eleven remain in
seventeen Books, two of them containing each three parts or sections.
The Speech of Thang, that is now the first Book in the Part, was
originally only the sixth. Thang was the destination of the hero whose
surname, dating from Hsieh, was Dze, and name Lī. Thang may be
translated, 'the Glorious One! His common style in history is as Khang
Thang, 'Thang the Completer,' or 'Thang the Successful.'

He had summoned his people to take the field with him against Kieh,
the cruel and doomed sovereign of Hsiā, and finding them backward to
the enterprise, he sets forth in this Book his reasons for attacking
the tyrant, argues against their reluctance, using in the end both
promises and threats to induce them to obey his orders.

The king said, 'Come, ye multitudes of the people., listen all to my
words. It is not I, the little child [1], who dare to undertake a
rebellious enterprise; but for the many crimes of the sovereign of
Hsiā, Heaven has given the charge to destroy him. *

'Now, ye multitudes, you are saying, "Our prince does not
compassionate us, but (is calling us) away from our husbandry to
attack and punish Hsiā." I have indeed heard (these) words of you all;
(but) the sovereign of Hsiā is guilty, and. as I fear God, I dare not
but punish him.*

'Now you are saying, "What are the crimes of Hsiā to us?" The king of
Hsiā in every way exhausts the strength of his people, and exercises
oppression in the cities of Hsiā. His multitudes are become entirely
indifferent (to his service), and feel no bond of union'(to him). They
are saying, "When wilt thou, O sun, expire? We will all perish with
thee[2]." Such is the course of (the sovereign) of Hsiā, and now I
must go (and punish him).

Assist, I pray you, me, the One man, to carry out the punishment
appointed by Heaven. I will greatly reward you. On no account
disbelieve me;--will not eat my words. If you do not obey the words
which I have thus spoken to you, I will put

[1. 'The little child' is a designation used humbly of themselves by
the kings of Shang and Kāu. It is given also to them and others by
such great ministers as Ī Yin and the duke of Kāu.

2 Kieh, it is said, had on one occasion, when told of the danger he
was incurring by his cruelties, pointed to the sun, and said that as
surely as the sun was in the heavens, so firm was he on the throne.]

your children to death with you;--you shall find no forgiveness.'

BOOK II. THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF KUNG-HUI

This Book is the first of the 'Announcements,' which form a large
class of the documents in the Shū. They are distinguished from the
Speeches, as being made in a general assembly, or published, for the
information of all, whereas the Speeches were made to an army.

Kung-hui, of an old family, whose surname was Zan, with its seat in
the territory of Hsieh, corresponding to the present district of
Thang, department Yen-kāu, Shan-tung, was a minister of Thang. Thang
has been successful against Kieh, and dethroned him, but is haunted by
some feeling of remorse, and afraid that what he has done may be
appealed to in future ages as an apology for rebellion. This gives
occasion to the Announcement, in which. Kung-hui vindicates the
proceeding of the king, showing, first, that he had only obeyed the
guidance of Heaven, and, then, that men consented with Heaven in the
matter. He concludes with various counsels addressed to the king.

1. When Thang the Successful was keeping Kieh in banishment in
Nan-khāo[1], he had a feeling of shame on account of his conduct, and
said, 'I am afraid that in future ages men will fill their mouths with
me, (as an apology for their rebellious proceedings.)'

2. On this Kung-hui made the following announcement: 'Oh! Heaven gives
birth to the people with (such) desires. that without a ruler they
must fall into all disorders; and Heaven again gives birth

[1. Nan-khāo is identified with the present district of Khāo,
department Lū-kāu, An-hui.]

to the man of intelligence to regulate them.* The sovereign of Hsiā
had his virtue all-obscured, and the people were (as if they had
fallen) amid mire and (burning) charcoal. Heaven hereupon gifted (our)
king with valour and prudence, to serve as a sign and director to the
myriad regions, and to continue the old ways of Yü. You are now (only)
following the proper course, honouring and obeying the appointment of
Heaven. The king of Hsiā was an offender, falsely and calumniously
alleging the sanction of supreme Heaven, to spread abroad his commands
among the people. On this account God viewed him with disapprobation,
caused our Shang to receive his appointment, and employed (you) to
enlighten the multitudes (of the people).'

3. 'Contemners of the worthy and parasites of the powerful,--many such
followers he had indeed: (but) from the first our country was to the
sovereign of Hsiā like weeds among the springing corn, and blasted
grains among the good. (Our people), great and small, were in constant
apprehension, fearful though they were guilty of no crime. How much
more was this the case, when our (prince's) virtues became a theme
(eagerly) listened to! Our king did not approach to (dissolute) music
and women; he did not seek to accumulate property and wealth. To great
virtue he gave great offices, and to great merit great rewards. He
employed others as if (their excellences) were his own; he was not
slow to change his errors. Rightly indulgent and rightly benevolent,
from the display, (of such virtue), confidence was reposed in him by
the millions of the people.

'When the earl of Ko [1] showed his enmity to the provision-carriers,
the work of punishment began with Ko. When it went on in the east, the
wild tribes of the west murmured; when it went on in the south, those
of the north murmured:--they said, "Why does he make us alone the
last?" To whatever people he went, they congratulated one another in
their families, saying, "We have waited for our prince; our prince is
come, and we revive." The people's honouring our Shang is a thing of
long existence.'

4. 'Show favour to the able and right-principled (among the princes),
and aid the virtuous; distinguish the loyal, and let the good have
free course. Absorb the weak, and punish the wilfully blind; take
their states from the disorderly, and deal summarily with those going
to ruin. When you (thus) accelerate the end of what is (of itself)
ready to perish, and strengthen what is itself strong to live, how
will the states all flourish! When (a sovereign's) virtue is daily
being renewed, he is cherished throughout the myriad regions; when his
mind is full (only) of himself, he is abandoned by the nine branches
of his kindred. Exert yourself, O king, to make your virtue (still
more) illustrious, and set up (the standard of) the Mean before the
people. Order your affairs

[1. Ko was a principality corresponding to the present district of
Ning-ling, department of Kwei-teh, Ho-nan. It was thus near the
southern Po, which belonged to Thang. Mencius tells us (III, ii, ch.
3) that Thang sent a multitude of his people to assist the farmers of
Ko, about the poor produce of which their chief had lamented to him.
That chief, however, instead of showing any gratitude, surprised and
robbed those who were carrying provisions from Po to the labourers in
the field, and committed various atrocities upon them. This aroused
Thang's indignation, and he made him the .first object of his punitive
justice.]

by righteousness; order your heart by propriety;--so shall you
transmit a grand example to posterity. I have heard the saying, "He
who finds instructors for himself, comes to the supreme dominion; he
who says that others are not equal to himself, comes to ruin. He who
likes to put questions, becomes enlarged; he who uses only his own
views, becomes smaller (than he was)." Oh! he who would take care for
the end must be attentive to the beginning. There is establishment for
the observers of propriety, and overthrow for the blinded and wantonly
indifferent. To revere and honour the path prescribed by Heaven is the
way ever to preserve the favouring appointment of Heaven.'*

BOOK III. THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF THANG.

THANG had made an end of the dynasty of Hsiā, and returned to Po, when
he issued this Announcement, which may be considered as a solemn
inauguration of the new dynasty. He shows bow he had taken possession
of the throne in reverent submission to the will of Heaven, what
appreciation he had of the duties devolving on him, and the spirit in
which he would discharge them. In the end he calls on the princes and
the people to sympathize and co-operate with him.

I. When the king returned from vanquishing Hsiā and came to Po, he
made a grand announcement to the myriad regions.

2. The king said, 'Ah! ye multitudes of the myriad regions, listen
clearly to the announcement of me, the One man'. The great God has
conferred

[1. 'The One man' has occurred before, in the Songs of the Five Sons,
as a designation of the soveregn. It continues to be so to the present
day.]

(even) on the inferior people a moral sense, compliance with which
would show their nature invariably right.* To make them tranquilly
pursue the course which it would indicate is the work of the
sovereign.

'The king of Hsiā extinguished his virtue, and played the tyrant,
extending his oppression over you, the people of the myriad regions.
Suffering from his cruel injuries, and unable to endure the wormwood
and poison, you protested with one accord your innocence to the
spirits of heaven and earth." The way of Heaven is to bless the good,
and make the bad miserable. It sent down calamities on (the House of)
Hsiā, to make manifest its guilt. Therefore I, the little child,
charged with the decree of Heaven and its bright terrors, did not dare
to forgive (the criminal). I presumed to use a dark-coloured
victim-bull, and, making clear announcement to the Spiritual Sovereign
in the high heavens', requested leave to deal with the ruler of Hsiā
as a criminal.* Then I sought for the great Sage [2], with whom I
might unite my strength, to request the favour (of Heaven) for you, my
multitudes. High Heaven truly showed its favour to the inferior
people, and the criminal has been degraded and subjected. What Heaven
appoints is without error;-brilliantly (now), like the blossoming of
plants and trees, the millions of the people show a true reviving.' *

3. 'It is given to me, the One man, to secure the

[1. For 'the Spiritual Sovereign in the high heavens,' we have in the
Confucian Analects, XX, 1, professing to quote this passage, the most
great and Sovereign God.'

2 'The great Sage' must be Ī Yin, Thang's chief adviser and minister,
who appears prominently in the next Book.]

harmony and tranquillity of your states and clans and now I know not
whether I may not offend against (the Powers) above and below.* I am
fearful and trembling, as if I were in danger of falling into a deep
abyss. Throughout all the regions that enter on a new life under me,
do not, (ye princes), follow lawless ways; make no approach to
insolence and dissoluteness; let every one be careful to keep his
statutes;-that so we may receive the favour of Heaven.* The good in
you I will not dare to keep concealed; and for the evil in me I will
not dare to forgive myself. I will examine these things in harmony
with the mind of God.* When guilt is found anywhere in you who occupy
the myriad regions, let it rest on me, the One man [1]. When guilt is
found in me, the One man, it shall not attach to you who occupy the
myriad regions.

'Oh! let us attain to be sincere in these things, and so we shall
likewise have a (happy) consummation.'

[1. There was a tradition in the Kāu dynasty, given with variations by
Hsün-Dze, Sze-ma Khien, and others, which may be quoted to illustrate
these noble sentiments of Thang. For seven years after his accession
to the throne, B.C. 1766-1760, there was a great drought and famine.
It was suggested at last that some human being should be offered in
sacrifice to Heaven, and prayer made for rain. Thang said, 'If a man
must be the victim, I will be he.' He fasted; cut off his hair and
nails, and in a plain carriage, drawn by white horses, clad in rushes,
in the guise of a sacrificial victim, he proceeded to a forest of
mulberry trees, and there prayed, asking to what error or crime of his
the calamity was owing. He had not done speaking when a copious rain
fell.]

BOOK IV. THE INSTRUCTIONS OF Ī

THANG died in B.C. 1754 or 1753, and was succeeded, so far as the
evidence of the Shū goes, by his grandson, known as Thāi Kiā. The
chief minister of Thang had been Ī Yin, who delivers these
Instructions to his young sovereign soon after his accession. was a
great and wise man, 'a great sage,' as Thang calls him in the last
Book, and is classed by Mencius among other celebrated ministers as
'the one most inclined to take office.' He reasons thus:--'Heaven's
plan with mankind is that they who are first informed should instruct
those who are later in being informed, and they who first apprehend
principles should instruct those who are later in doing so.' He
thought he was one of the former class, and a fire burned within him,
impelling him to see], for office with a view to benefit the ignorant
and erring. There were many legends about him in the times of Kāu. He
was surnamed Ī, from having been born near the river of that name, an
affluent of the Ho. His name is said to have been Kih, and also Ā-hang
(see the beginning of next Book). Yin was his designation. Thang had,
probably, entrusted to him the guardianship of his grandson, and so he
now went over the history of the kingdom from Yü, till it was
transferred from the line of Hsiā to that of Shang, celebrated the
virtues of Thang and his government, and warned the young king of the
fate that he must incur if he neglected the instructions given to him.

1. In the twelfth month of the first year, on (the day) Yī-khāu, Ī Yin
sacrificed to the former king, and presented the heir-king reverently
before (the shrine of) his grandfather.* All the princes from the
domain of the nobles and the royal domain were present; all the
officers (also), each continuing to discharge his particular duties,
were there to receive the orders of the chief minister. Ī Yin then
clearly described the complete virtue of the Meritorious Ancestor for
the instruction of the (young) king.

2. He said, 'Oh! of old the former kings of Hsiā cultivated earnestly
their virtue, and then there were no calamities from Heaven. The
spirits of the hills and rivers likewise were all in tranquillity; and
the birds and beasts, the fishes and tortoises, all enjoyed their
existence according to their nature.* But their descendant did not
follow (their example), and great Heaven sent down calamities,
employing the agency of our (ruler) who was in possession of its
favouring appointment.* The attack (on Hsiā) may be traced to (the
orgies in) Ming-thiāo[1], but our (rise) began in Po. Our king of
Shang brilliantly displayed his sagely prowess; for oppression he
substituted his generous gentleness; and the millions of the people
gave him their hearts. Now your Majesty is entering on the inheritance
of his virtue;-all depends on (how) you commence your reign. To set up
love, it is for you to love (your relations); to set up respect, it is
for you to respect (your elders). The commencement is in the family
and the- state; the consummation is in (all within) the four seas.'

3. 'Oh! the former king began with careful attention to the bonds that
hold men together. He listened to expostulation, and did not seek to
resist it; he conformed to (the wisdom. of) the ancients; occupying
the highest position, he displayed intelligence; occupying an inferior
position, he displayed his loyalty; he allowed (the good qualities of)
the men (whom he employed), and did

[1. Ming-thiāo was a place not far from the capital of Kieh (in the
present district of An-yī, Hāi Kāu, Shan-hsī). He had a palace there,
where the vilest orgies were celebrated that alienated the minds of
the people from him.]

not seek that they should have every talent; in the government of
himself, he seemed to think that he could never (sufficiently) attain.
It was thus he arrived at the possession of the myriad regions.--How
painstaking was he in these things!

'He extensively sought out wise men, who should be helpful to you, his
descendant and heir. He laid down the punishments for officers, And
warned those who were in authority, saying, "If you dare to have
constant dancing in your palaces, and drunken singing in your
chambers,--that is called the fashion of sorcerers; if you dare, to
set your hearts on wealth and women, and abandon yourselves to
wandering about or to the chase,--that is called the fashion of
extravagance; if you dare to despise sage words, to resist the loyal
and upright, to put far from you the aged and virtuous, and to seek
the company of procacious youths,--that is called the fashion of
disorder. Now if a high noble or officer be addicted to one of these
three fashions with their ten evil ways[1], his family will surely
come to ruin; if the prince of a country bc so addicted, his state
will surely come to ruin. The minister who does not (try to) correct
(such vices in the sovereign) shall be punished with branding." These
rules were minutely inculcated (also) on the sons of officers and
nobles in their lessons.'

4. 'Oh! do you who now succeed to the throne, revere (these warnings)
in your person. Think of

[1. The 'ten evil ways' are those mentioned in connexion with the
three evil fashions;--two under the sorcerers' fashion, and four
tinder each of the other two fashions.]

them!--sacred counsels of vast importance, admirable words forcibly
set forth! (The ways) of God are not invariable:--on the good-doer he
sends down all blessings, and on the evil-doer he sends down all
miseries.* Do you but be virtuous, be it in small things (or in
large), and the myriad regions will have cause for rejoicing. If you
be not virtuous, be it in large things (or in small), it will bring
the ruin of your ancestral temple.'

BOOK V. THE THĀI KIĀ.

THIS Book also belongs to the class of 'Lessons or Instructions,' and
is called 'the Thāi Kiā,' because the Instructions were addressed to
the young monarch so named. It is divided into three sections or
parts. Ī Yin finds the young sovereign disobedient to his counsels,
and proceeds to a high-handed measure. He removes him from his palace
and companions, and keeps him in a sort of easy confinement, near the
grave of his grandfather, all the period of mourning; and Thāi Kiā
becomes sincerely penitent and virtuous. This is related in the first
section. In the second, Ī Yin brings the king back with honour to Po,
to undertake the duties of the government, and congratulates him on
his reformation, The king responds suitably, and asks the minister to
continue to afford him his counsels, which the other at once proceeds
to do. The third section is all occupied with further and important
counsels.

Section 1.

I. The king, on succeeding to the throne, did not follow (the advice
of) Ā-hang[1]. (Ā-hang or) Ī Yin

[1. A-hang, it is said by Sze-mā Khien, was the name of Ī. Others make
it the title of the chief minister under the dynasty of Shang, = 'the
Support and Steelyard,' 'the Buttress and Director.']

then made the following writing[1]:--'The former king kept his eye
continually on the bright requirements of Heaven, and so he maintained
the worship of the spirits of heaven and earth, of those presiding
over the land and the grain, and of those of the ancestral
temple;--all with a sincere reverence.* Heaven took notice of his
virtue, and caused its great appointment to light on him, that he
should soothe and tranquillize the myriad regions.* Ī Yin, then gave
my assistance to my sovereign in the settlement of the people; and
thus it is that you, O heir-king, have received the great inheritance.
I have seen it myself in Hsiā with its western capital[2], that when
its rulers went through a prosperous course to the end, their
ministers also did the same, and afterwards, when their successors
could not attain to such a consummation, neither did their ministers.
Take warning, O heir-king. Reverently use your sovereignty. If you do
not play the sovereign, as the name requires, you will disgrace your
grandfather.'

2. The king would not think (of these words), nor listen to them. On
this Ī Yin said, 'The former king, before it was light, sought to have
large and clear views, and then sat waiting for the dawn (to carry
them into practice). He (also) sought on every side for men of ability
and virtue, to instruct and guide his posterity. Do not frustrate his
charge (to me), and bring on yourself your own overthrow. Be careful
to strive after the virtue

[1. This is the first direct statement in the Shū of a communication
made in writing.

2 An-yī, the capital of Hsiā, might be described as 'western,' from
the standpoint of Po.]

of self-restraint, and cherish far-reaching plans. Be like the
forester, who, when he has adjusted the spring, goes to examine the
end of the arrow, whether it be placed according to rule, and then
lets I go; reverently determine your aim, and follow the ways of your
grandfather. Thus I shall be delighted, and be able to show to all
ages that I have discharged my trust.'

3. The king was not yet able to change (his course). Yin said (to
himself), 'This is (real) unrighteousness, and is becoming by practice
(a second) nature. I cannot bear to be near (so) disobedient (a
person). I will build (a place) in the palace at Thung [1], where he
can be in silence near (the grave of) the former king. This will be a
lesson which will keep him from going astray all his life.' The king
went (accordingly) to the palace at Thung, and dwelt during the period
of mourning. In the end he became sincerely virtuous.

Section 2.

1. On the first day of the twelfth month of his third year, Ī Yin
escorted the young king in the royal cap and robes back to Po. (At the
same time) he made the following writing:--

'Without the sovereign, the people cannot have that guidance which is
necessary to (the comfort of) their lives; without the people, the
sovereign would have no sway over the four quarters (of the kingdom).

[1. Thung was the place where Thang's tomb was; probably in the
present district of Yung-ho, department of Phū-kāu, Shan-hsī. The site
or supposed site of the grave there was washed away in an overflow of
the Fān river under the Yüan dynasty, and a stone coffin was removed
to another position, near which a royal tomb has been built.]

Great Heaven has graciously favoured the House of Shang, and granted
to you, O young king, at last to become virtuous.* This is indeed a
blessing that will extend without limit to ten thousand generations.'

2. The king did obeisance with his face to his hands and his head to
the ground, saying, 'I, the little child, was without understanding of
what was virtuous, and was making myself one of the unworthy. By my
desires I was setting at nought all rules of conduct, and violating by
my self-indulgence all rules of propriety, and the result must have
been speedy ruin to my person. Calamities sent by Heaven may be
avoided, but from calamities brought on by one's self there is no
escape." Heretofore I turned my back on the instructions of you, my
tutor and guardian;-my beginning has been marked by incompetency. Let
me still rely on your correcting and preserving virtue, keeping this
in view that my end may be good!"

3. Ī Yin did obeisance with his face to his hands and his head on the
ground, and said, 'To cultivate his person, and by being sincerely
virtuous, bring (all) below to harmonious concord with him; this is
the work of the intelligent sovereign. The former king was kind to the
distressed and suffering, as if they were his children, and the people
submitted to his commands,-all with sincere delight. Even in the
states of the neighbouring princes, (the people) said, "We are waiting
for our sovereign; when our sovereign comes, we shall not suffer the
punishments (that we, now do)."

'O king, zealously cultivate your virtue. Regard (the example of) your
meritorious grandfather. At no time allow yourself in pleasure and
idleness. In worshipping your ancestors, think how you can prove your
filial piety;* in receiving your ministers, think how you can show
yourself respectful; in looking to what is distant. Try to get clear
views; have your ears ever open to lessons of virtue;-then shall I
acknowledge (and respond to) the excellence of your majesty with an
untiring (devotion to your service).

Section 3.

1. Ī Yin again made an announcement to the king, saying, 'Oh! Heaven
has no (partial) affection;--only to those who are reverent does it
show affection.* The people are not constant to those whom they
cherish;--they cherish (only) him who is benevolent. The spirits do
not always accept the sacrifices that are offered to them;--they
accept only the sacrifices of the sincere.* A place of difficulty is
the Heaven-(conferred) seat. When there are (those) virtues, good
government is realized; when they are not, disorder comes. To maintain
the same principles as those who secured good government will surely
lead to prosperity; to pursue the courses of disorder will surely lead
to ruin. He who at last, as at first, is careful as to whom and what
he follows is a truly intelligent sovereign. The former king was
always zealous in the reverent cultivation of his virtue, so that he
was the fellow of God[1].* Now O king, you have entered on the
inheritance of his excellent line;--fix your inspection on him.'

2. '(Your course must be) as when in ascending

[1. This phrase is used, as here, with reference to the virtue of a
sovereign, making him as it were the mate of God, ruling on earth as
He rules above; and with reference to the honours paid to a departed
sovereign, when he is associated with God in the great sacrificial
services.]

high you begin from where it is low, and when in travelling far you
begin from where it is near. Do not slight-the occupations of the
people;--think of their difficulties. Do not yield to a feeling of
repose on your throne;--think of its perils. Be careful for the end
at. the beginning. When you hear words that are distasteful to your
mind, you must enquire whether they be not right; when you hear words
that accord with your own views, you must enquire whether they be not
contrary to what is right. Oh! what attainment can be made without
anxious thought? what achievement can be made without earnest effort?
Let the One man be greatly good, and the myriad regions will be
rectified by him.'

3. When the sovereign does not with disputatious words throw the old
rules of government into confusion, and the minister does not, for
favour and gain, continue in an office whose work is done,--then the
country will lastingly and surely enjoy happiness.'

BOOK VI. THE COMMON POSSESSION OF PURE VIRTUE.

This is the last of the 'Instructions' of Ī Yin;--addressed, like
those of the last two Books, to Thāi Kiā, but at a later period when
the great minister wished to retire from the toils of administration.
He now disappears from the stage of history, though according to
Sze-mā Khien, and a notice in the Preface to the Shū, he lived on to
B. C. 1713, the eighth year of Thāi Kiā's son and successor.

In this Book, his subject is 'Pure or Single-eyed Virtue,' and the
importance of it to the ruler of the kingdom. He dwells on the fall of
Kieh through his want of this virtue, and the elevation of Thang
through his possession of it; treats generally on its nature and
results; and urges the cultivation of it on Thāi Kiā.

1. Ī Yin, having returned the government into the hands of his
sovereign, and being about to announce his retirement, set forth
admonitions on the subject of virtue.

2. He said, 'Oh! it is difficult to rely on Heaven;--its appointments
are not constant. * (But if the sovereign see to it that) his virtue
be constant, he will preserve his throne; if his virtue be not
constant, the nine provinces will be lost by him. The king of Hsiā
could not maintain the virtue (of his ancestors) unchanged, but
contemned the spirits and oppressed the. people. Great Heaven no
(longer) extended its protection to him. It looked out among the
myriad regions to give its guidance to one who should receive its
favouring appointment, fondly seeking (a possessor of) pure virtue;
whom it might make lord of all the spirits.* Then there were I, Yin,
and Thang, both possessed of pure virtue, and able to satisfy the mind
of Heaven. He received (in consequence) the bright favour of Heaven,
so as to become possessor of the multitudes of the nine provinces, and
proceeded to change Hsiā's commencement of the year. It was not that
Heaven had any private partiality for the lord of Shang;--it simply
gave its favour to pure virtue.* It was not that Shang sought (the
allegiance of) the lower people;--the people simply turned to pure
virtue. Where (the sovereign's) virtue is pure, his enterprizes are
all fortunate; where his virtue is wavering and uncertain, his
enterprizes are all unfortunate. Good and evil do not wrongly befal
men, but Heaven sends down misery or happiness according to their
conduct.' *

3. 'Now, O young king, you are newly entering on your (great)
appointment,--you should be seeking to make new your virtue. At last,
as at first, have this as your one object, so shall you make a daily
renovation. Let the officers whom you employ be men of virtue and
ability, and let the ministers about you be the right men. The
minister, in relation to (his sovereign) above him, has to promote his
virtue, and, in relation to the (people) beneath him, has to seek
their good. How hard must it be (to find the proper man)! what careful
attention must be required! (Thereafter) there must be harmony
(cultivated with him), and a oneness (of confidence placed in him).

'There is no invariable model of virtue;--a supreme regard to what is
good gives the model of it. There is no invariable characteristic of
what is good that is to be supremely regarded;--it is found where
there is a conformity to the uniform consciousness (in regard to what
is good). (Such virtue) will make the people with their myriad
surnames all say, How great are the words of the king!" and also, "How
single and pure is the king's heart!" It will avail to maintain in
tranquillity the rich possession of the former king, and to Secure for
ever the (happy) life of the multitudes of the people.'

4. 'Oh! (to retain a place) in the seven-shrined temple[1] of
ancestors is a sufficient witness of virtue.* To be acknowledged as
chief by the myriad heads of families is a sufficient evidence of
one's government.

[1. It is beyond a doubt that the ancestral temple of the kings of Kāu
contained seven shrines or seven small temples, for the occupancy of
which, by the spirit-tablets of such and such kings, there were
definite rules, as the line of sovereigns increased. It would appear
from the text that a similar practice prevailed in the time of the
Shang dynasty.]

The sovereign without the people has none whom he can employ; and the
people without the sovereign have none whom they can serve. Do not
think yourself so large as to deem others small. If ordinary men and
women do not find the opportunity to give full development to their
ability, the people's lord will be without the proper aids to complete
his merit.'

BOOK VII. THE PAN-KANG.

PAN-KANG was the seventeenth sovereign in the line of Thang. From Thāi
Kiā to him, therefore, there was a space of 321 years. which are a gap
in the history of the Shang dynasty, so far as the existing documents
of the Shū are concerned. When the collection was complete, there were
seven other documents between 'the Common Possession of Pure, Virtue'
and 'the Pan-kang,' but the latest of them belonged to the reign Of
Zū-yi, B.C. 1525-1507.

The reign of Pan-kang extended from B.C. 1401 to 1374, and is
remarkable as that in which the dynasty began to be called Yin,
instead of Shang. The Book belongs to the class of 'Announcements,'
and is divided into three sections.

The contents Centre round the removal of the capital from the north of
the Ho to Yin on the south of it. The king saw that the removal was
necessary, but had to contend with the unwillingness of the people to
adopt such a step, and the opposition of the great families. The first
section relates how he endeavoured to vindicate the measure, and
contains two addresses, to the people and to those in high places,
respectively, designed to secure their cordial co-operation. The
second section brings before us the removal in progress, but there
continue to be dissatisfactions, which the king endeavours to remove
by a long and earnest defence of his course. The third section opens
with the removal accomplished. The new city has been founded, and the
plan of it laid out. The king makes a fresh appeal to the people and
chiefs, to forget all their heart-burnings, and join, with him in
building up in the new capital a great destiny for the dynasty.

Section 1.

1. Pan-kang wished to remove (the capital) to Yin, but the people
would not go to dwell there. He therefore appealed to all the
discontented, and made the following protestations. 'Our king,
(Zū-yī), came, and fixed on this (Kang for his capital). He did so
from a deep concern for our people, and not because he would have them
all die, where they cannot (now) help one another to preserve their
lives. I have consulted the tortoise-shell, and obtained the
reply--"This is no place for us." When the former kings had any
(important) business, they gave reverent heed to the commands of
Heaven.* In a case like this especially they did not indulge (the wish
for) constant repose,-they did not abide ever in the same city. Up to
this time (the capital has been) in five regions [2]. If we do not
follow (the example):of these old times, we shall be refusing to
acknowledge that Heaven is making an end of our dynasty (here);--how
little can it be said of us that we are following the meritorious
course of the former kings! As from the stump of a felled tree there
are sprouts and shoots, Heaven will perpetuate its decree in our
favour in this new city;--the great inheritance of the former kings
will be continued and renewed, and tranquillity will be secured to the
four quarters (of the kingdom).'*

[1. The removal was probably necessitated by an inundation of the Ho.
Kang had been fixed on by Zū-yi for his capital. The Yin to which
Pan-kang removed was in the present district of Yen-sze, department
Ho-nan, Ho-nan.

2 This fact--the frequent change of capital--does not give us a great
idea of the stability and resources of the Shang dynasty.]

2. Pan-kang, in making the people aware of his views, began with those
who were in (high) places, and took the constantly-recurring
circumstances of former times to lay down the right law and measure
(for the present emergency), saying, 'Let none of you dare to suppress
the remonstrances of the poor people.' The king commanded all to come
to him in the courtyard (of his palace).

The king spoke to this effect:--'Come, all of you; I will announce to
you my instructions. Take counsel how to put away your (selfish)
thoughts. Do not with haughty (disregard of me) follow after your own
ease. Of old, our former kings planned like me how to employ the men
of old families to share in (the labours of) government. When they
wished to proclaim and announce what was to be attended to, these did
not conceal the royal views; and on this account the kings greatly
respected them. They did not exceed the truth (in their communications
with the people), and on this account the people became greatly
changed (in their views). Now, (however), you keep clamouring, and get
the confidence (of the people) by alarming and shallow speeches;--I do
not know what you are wrangling about. (In this movement) I am not
myself abandoning my proper virtue, but you conceal the goodness of my
intentions, and do not stand in awe of me, the One man. I see you as
clearly as one sees a fire; but I, likewise, by my undecided plans,
have produced your error.

'When the net has its line, there is order and not confusion; and when
the husbandman labours upon his fields, and reaps with all his might,
there is the (abundant) harvest. If you can put away your (selfish)
thoughts, and bestow real good upon the people, reaching (also) to
your own relatives and friends, you may boldly venture to make your
words great, and say that you have accumulated merit. But you do not
fear the great evils which (through our not removing) are extending
far and near; (you are like) idle husbandmen, who yield themselves to
ease, and are not strong to toil and labour on their acres, so that
they cannot get their crop of millets. You do not speak in a spirit of
harmony and goodness to the people, and are only giving birth to
bitter evils for yourselves. You play the part of destroyers and
authors of calamity, of villains and traitors, to bring down misery on
your own persons. You set the example of evil, and must feel its
smart;--what will it avail you (then) to repent? Look at the poor
people;--they are still able to look to one another and give
expression to their remonstrances, but when they begin to speak, you
are ready with your extravagant talk;--how much more ought you to have
me before your eyes, with whom it is to make your lives long or short!
Why do you not report (their words) to me, but go about to excite one
another by empty speeches, frightening and involving the multitudes in
misery? When a fire is blazing in the flames so that it cannot be
approached, can it still be beaten out? So, it will not be I who will
be to blame, that you all cause dispeace in this way, (and must suffer
the consequences.)

'Khin Zan[1] has said, "In men we seek those of old families; in
vessels, we do not seek old ones,

[1. Who Khin Zan was is not known. The general opinion is, that he was
an ancient historiographer. A Kin Zan is introduced in a similar way
in the Confucian Analects, XVI, i.]

but new." Of old, the kings, my predecessors, and your forefathers and
fathers shared together the ease and labours (of the government);--how
should I dare to lay undeserved afflictions on you? For generations
the toils of your (fathers) have been approved, and I will not conceal
your goodness. Now when I offer the great sacrifices to my
predecessors, your forefathers are present to share in them.* (They
all observe) the happiness I confer and the sufferings I inflict, and
I cannot dare to reward virtue that does not exist.

'I have announced to you the difficulties (of the intended movement),
being bent on it, like an archer (whose only thought is to hit). Do
not you despise the: old and experienced, and do not make little of
the helpless and young. Seek every one long continuance in this (new
city), which is to be your abode; exert yourselves and put out your
strength (in furthering the removal), and listen to the plans of me,
the One man. I will make no distinction between men as being more
distantly or more nearly related to me;--the criminal (in this matter)
shall die the death, and the good-doer shall have his virtue
distinguished. The prosperity of the country (ought to) come from you
all. If it fail of prosperity, that must arise from me, the One man,
erring in the application of punishment. Be sure, all of you, to make
known this announcement. From this time forward, attend respectfully
to your business; have (the duties of) your offices regularly
adjusted; bring your tongues under the rule of law:--lest punishment
come upon you, when repentance will be of no avail.'

Section 2.

1. Pan-king arose, and (was about to) cross the Ho with the people,
moving (to the new capital). Accordingly, he addressed himself to
those of them who were (still) dissatisfied, and made a full
announcement to their multitudes, to induce a sincere acquiescence (in
the measure). 'They all attended, and (being charged) to take no
liberties in the royal courtyard, he called them near, and said,
'Listen clearly to my words, and do not disregard my commands.

'Oh! of old time my royal predecessors cherished, every one and above
every other thing, a respectful care of the people, who (again) upheld
their sovereign with a mutual sympathy. Seldom was it that they were
not superior to any (calamitous) time sent by Heaven. When great
calamities came down on Yin, the former kings did not fondly remain in
their place. What they did was with a view to the people's advantage,
and therefore they moved (their capitals). Why do you not reflect that
I, according to what I have heard of the ancient sovereigns, in my
care of you and actings towards you, am only wishing to rejoice with
you in a common repose? It is not that any guilt attaches to you, so
that (this movement) should be like a punishment. If I call upon you
to cherish this new city, it is simply in your account, and as an act
of great accordance with your wishes. My present undertaking to remove
with you, is to give repose and stability to the country. You,
(however), have no sympathy with the anxieties of my mind; but you all
keep a great reserve in declaring your minds, (when you might)
respectfully think by your sincerity to move me, the One man. You only
exhaust and distress yourselves. The case is like that of sailing in a
boat -if you do not cross the stream (at the proper time), you will
destroy all the cargo. Your sincerity does not respond to mine, and we
are in danger of going together to destruction. You, notwithstanding,
will not examine the matter;--though you anger yourselves, what cure
will that bring?

'You do not consult for a distant day, nor think of the calamity that
must befal you (from not removing). You greatly encourage one another
in what must prove to your sorrow. Now you have the present, but you
will not have the future;--what prolongation of life can you look for
from above? My measures are forecast to prolong your (lease of) life
from Heaven;--do I force you by the terrors of my power? My object is
to support and nourish you all. I think of my ancestors, (who are now)
the spiritual sovereigns;* when they made your forefathers toil (on
similar occasions it was only for their good), and I would be enabled
in the same way greatly to nourish you and cherish you.'

2. 'Were I to err in my government, and remain long here, my high
sovereign, (the founder of our dynasty), would send down on me great
punishment for my crime, and say, "Why do you oppress my people?" * If
you, the myriads of the people, do not attend to the perpetuation of
your lives, and cherish one mind with me, the One man, in my plans,
the former kings will send down on you great punishment for your
crime, and say, "Why do you not agree with our young grandson, but go
on to forfeit your virtue?" When they punish you from above, you will
have no way of escape.* Of old, my royal predecessors made your
ancestors and fathers toil (only for their good). You are equally the
people whom I (wish to) cherish. But your conduct is injurious;-it is
cherished in your hearts. Whereas my royal predecessors made your
ancestors and fathers happy, they, your ancestors and fathers, will
(now) cut you off and abandon you, and not save you from death.* Here
are those ministers of my government, who share with me in the offices
(of the kingdom);--and yet they (only think of hoarding up) cowries
and gems. Their ancestors and fathers earnestly represent (their
course) to my high sovereign, saying, "Execute great punishments on
our descendants." So do they advise my high sovereign to send down
great calamities (on those men).' *

3. 'Oh! I have now told you my unchangeable purpose;-do you
perpetually respect (my) great anxiety; let us not get alienated and
removed from one another; share in my plans and thoughts, and think
(only) of following me; let every one of you set up the true rule of
conduct in his heart. If there be bad and unprincipled men,
precipitously or carelessly disrespectful (to my orders), and taking
advantage of this brief season to play the part of villains or
traitors, I will cut off their noses, or utterly exterminate them. I
will leave none of their children. I will not let them perpetuate
their seed in this new city.

'Go! preserve and continue your lives. I will now transfer you (to the
new capital), and (there) establish your families for ever.'

Section 3.

I. Pan-kang having completed the removal, and settled the places of
residence, proceeded to adjust the several positions (of all classes
at an assembly); and then he soothed and comforted the multitudes,
saying to them, 'Do not play nor be idle, but exert yourselves to
build (here) a great destiny (for us).

'Now I have disclosed my heart and belly, my reins and bowels, and
fully declared to you, my people, all my mind. I will not treat any of
you as offenders; and do not you (any more) help one another to be
angry, and form parties to defame me, the One man.

'Of old, my royal predecessor, (Thang), that his merit might exceed
that of those who were before him, proceeded to the hill-site[1].
Thereby he removed our evils, and accomplished admirable good for our
country. Now you, my people, were by (your position) dissipated and
separated, so that you had no abiding place. (And yet) you asked why I
was troubling your myriads and requiring you to remove. But God, being
about to renew the virtuous service of my high ancestor, and secure
the good order of our kingdom, 1, with the sincere and respectful (of
my ministers), felt a reverent care for the lives of the people, and
have made a lasting settlement in (this) new city.*

'I, a youth, did not neglect your counsels;--I (only) used the best of
them. Nor did any of

[1. It is supposed that this 'hill-site' of Thang was the same as that
which Pan-kang had fixed on, but this does not clearly appear in the
text.]

you presumptuously oppose the decision of the tortoise-shell;--so we
are here to enlarge our great inheritance.' *

2. 'Oh! ye chiefs of regions, ye heads of departments, all ye, the
hundreds of officers, would that ye had a sympathy,(with my people)! I
will exert myself in the choice and guiding of you;--do ye think
reverently of my multitudes. I will not employ those who are-fond of,
enriching themselves; but will use and revere those who are
vigorously, yet reverently, labouring for the lives and increase of
the people, nourishing them and planning for their enduring
settlement.

I have now brought forward and announced to you my mind, whom I
approve and whom I disallow;-let none of you but reverence (my will).
Do not seek to accumulate wealth and precious things, but in fostering
the life of the people, seek to find your merit. Reverently display
your virtue in behalf of the people. For ever maintain this one
purpose in your hearts.'

BOOK VIII. THE CHARGE TO YÜEH.

AFTER Pan-kang came the reigns of Hsiāo-hsin and Hsiāo-yī, of which we
have no accounts in the Shū. Hsiāo-yī was followed by Wū-ting (B.C.
1324-1264), to the commencement of whose reign this Book, in three
sections, belongs. His name is not in it, but that he is the king
intended appears from the prefatory notice, and the Confucian
Analects, XIV, xliii. The Book is the first of the 'Charges' of the
Shū. They relate the designation by the king of some officer to a
particular charge or to some fief, with the address delivered by him
on the occasion. Here the charge is to Yüeh, in the first section, on
his appointment to be chief minister. In the other two sections Yüeh
is the principal speaker, and not the king. They partake more of the
nature of the 'Counsels.' Yüeh had been a recluse, living in
obscurity. The king's attention was drawn to him in the manner related
in the Book, and he was discovered in Fū-yen, or amidst 'the Crags of
Fū' from which he was afterwards called Fū Yüeh, as if Fū had been his
surname.

The first section tells us how the king met with Yüeh, and appointed
him to be his chief minister, and how Yüeh responded to the charge
that he received. In the second section, Yüeh counsels the king on a
variety of points, and the king responds admiringly. In the third, the
king introduces himself as a pupil at the feet of Yüeh, and is
lectured on the subject of enlarging his knowledge. In the end the
king says that he looks to Yüeh as another Ī Yin, to make him another
Thang.

Section 1.

1. The king passed the season of sorrow in the mourning shed for three
years [1], and when the period of mourning was over, he (still) did
not speak (to give any commands). All the ministers remonstrated with
him, saying, 'Oh! him who is (the first) to apprehend we pronounce
intelligent, and the intelligent man is the model for others. The Son
of Heaven rules over the myriad regions, and all the officers look up
to and reverence him. They are the king's words which form the
commands (for them). If he do not speak, the ministers have no way to
receive their orders.' On this the king made a writing, for their
information, to the following effect:--'As it is mine to serve as the

[1. A young king, mourning for his father, had to 'afflict' himself in
various ways for twenty-five months, nominally for three years. Among
other privations, he had to exchange the comforts of a palace for a
rough shed in one of the courtyards. During the time of mourning, the
direction of affairs was left to the chief minister.]

director for the four quarters (of the kingdom), I have been afraid
that my virtue is not equal to (that of my predecessors), and
therefore have not spoken. (But) while I was reverently and silently
thinking of the (right) way, I dreamt that God gave me a good
assistant who should speak for me.'* He then minutely recalled the
appearance (of the person whom he had seen), and caused search to be
made for him everywhere by means of a picture. Yüeh, a builder in the
wild country of Fū-yen, was found like to it.

2. On this the king raised and made (Yüeh) his prime minister, keeping
him (also) at his side.

He charged him, saying, 'Morning and evening present your instructions
to aid my virtue. Suppose me a weapon of steel;--I will use you for a
whetstone. Suppose me crossing a great stream;--I will use you for a
boat with its oars. Suppose me in a year of great drought;--I will use
you as a copious rain. Open your mind, and enrich my mind. (Be you)
like medicine, which must distress the patient, in order to cure his
sickness. (Think of we) as one walking barefoot, whose feet are sure
to be wounded, if he do not see the ground.

'Do you and your companions all cherish the same mind to assist your*
sovereign, that I may follow my royal predecessors, and tread in the
steps of my high ancestor, to give repose to the millions of the
people. Oh! respect this charge of mine;--so shall you bring your work
to a (good) end.'

3. Yüeh replied to the king, saying, 'Wood by the use of the line is
made straight, and the sovereign who follows reproof is made sage.
When the sovereign can (thus) make himself sage, his ministers,
without being specially commanded, anticipate his orders;--who would
dare not to act in respectful compliance with this excellent charge of
your Majesty?'

Section 2.

1. Yüeh having received his charge, and taken the presidency of all
the officers, he presented himself before the king, and said, 'Oh!
intelligent kings act in reverent accordance with the ways of Heaven.
The founding of states and the setting up of capitals, the appointing
of sovereign kings, of dukes and other nobles, with their great
officers and heads of departments, were not designed to minister to
the idleness and pleasures (of one), but for the good government of
the people. It is Heaven which is all-intelligent and observing;--let
the sage (king) take it as his pattern.* Then his ministers will
reverently accord with him, and the people consequently will be well
governed.

'It is the mouth that gives occasion for shame; they are the coat of
mail and helmet that give occasion to war. The upper robes and lower
garments (for reward should not be lightly taken from) their chests;
before spear and shield are used, one should examine himself. If your
Majesty will be cautious in regard to these things, and, believing
this about them, attain to the intelligent use of them, (your
government) will in everything be excellent. Good government and bad
depend on the various officers. Offices should not be given to men
because they are favourites, but only to men of ability. Dignities
should not be conferred on men of evil practices, but only on men of
worth.

'Anxious thought about what will be best should precede your
movements, which also should be taken at the time proper for them.
Indulging the consciousness of being good is the way to lose that
goodness; being vain of one's ability is the way to lose the merit it
might produce.

'For all affairs let there be adequate preparation; with preparation
there will be no calamitous issue. Do not open the door for
favourites, from whom you will receive contempt. Do not be ashamed of
mistakes, and (go on to) make them crimes. Let your mind rest in its
proper objects, and the affairs of your government will be pure.
Officiousness in sacrificing is called irreverence; * and multiplying
ceremonies leads to disorder. To serve the spirits acceptably (in this
way) is difficult.'*

2. The king said, 'Excellent! your words, O Yüeh, should indeed be put
in practice (by me). If you were not so good in counsel, I should not
have heard these rules for my conduct." Yüeh did obeisance with his
head to the ground, and said, 'It is not the knowing that is
difficult, but the doing. (But) since your Majesty truly knows this,
there will not be the difficulty, and you will become really equal in
complete virtue to our first king. Wherein I, Yüeh, refrain from
speaking (what I ought to speak), the blame will rest with me.'

Section 3.

1. The king said, 'Come, O Yüeh. I, the little one, first learned with
Kan Pan [1]. Afterwards I lived

[1. From Part V, XVI, 2, we learn that Kan Pan was a great minister of
Wū-ting. It is supposed that he had been minister to Wū-ting's father,
and died during the king's period of mourning.]

concealed among the rude countrymen, and then I went to (the country)
inside the Ho, and lived there'. From the Ho I went to Po;--and the
result has been that I am unenlightened. Do you teach me what should
be my aims. Be to me as the yeast and the malt in making sweet
spirits, as the salt and the prunes in making agreeable soup. Use
various methods to cultivate me; do not cast me away;--so shall I
attain to practise your instructions.'

Yüeh said, 'O king, a ruler should seek to learn much (from his
ministers), with a view to establish his affairs; but to learn the
lessons of the ancients is the way to attain this. That the affairs of
one, not making the ancients his masters, can be perpetuated for
generations, is what I have not heard.

'In learning there should be a humble mind and the maintenance of a
constant earnestness;--in such a case (the learner's) improvement will
surely come. He who sincerely cherishes these things will find all
truth accumulating in his person. Teaching is the half of learning;
when a man's thoughts from first to last are constantly fixed on
learning, his virtuous cultivation comes unperceived.

'Survey the perfect pattern of our first king;--so shall you for ever
be preserved from error. Then shall I be able reverently to meet your
views, and on every side to look out for men of eminence to place in
the various offices.'

2. The king said, 'Oh! Yüeh, that all within the four

[1. We do not know the events of Wū-ting's early life sufficiently to
explain his language here. His living concealed among the rude people
of the country, and then crossing to the north of the Ho, was owing
probably to troubles in the kingdom.]

seas look up to my virtue is owing to you. As his legs and arms form
the man, so does a good minister form the sage (king). Formerly, there
was the first premier of our dynasty, Pāo-hang [1], who raised up and
formed its royal founder. He said, "If I cannot make my sovereign like
Yāo or Shun, I shall feel ashamed in my heart, as if I were beaten in
the market-place." If any common man did not get (all he should
desire), he said, "It is my fault." (Thus) he assisted my meritorious
ancestor, so that he became equal to great Heaven.* Do you give your
intelligent and preserving aid to me, and let not Ā-hang engross all
the good service to the House of Shang.

'The sovereign should share his government with none but worthy
officers. The worthy officer should accept his support from none but
the proper sovereign. May you now succeed in making your sovereign a
(true) successor of the founder of his line, and in securing the
lasting happiness of the people!'

Yüeh did obeisance with his head to the ground, and said, 'I will
venture to respond to. and display abroad, your Majesty's excellent
charge.'

BOOK IX. THE DAY OF THE SUPPLEMENTARY SACRIFICE TO KĀO ZUNG.

KĀO ZUNG was the title given to Wū-ting, after his death, in the
ancestral temple. A supplementary sacrifice was offered on the day
following the regular and more solemn service. What special idea was
connected with it, it would be difficult to say;

[1. Styled Ā-hang in the beginning of 'the Thāi-kiā.' Pāo-hang = 'the
Protector and Steelyard.']

but at the close of it, the representatives or personators of the dead
in the sacrifice of the preceding day were all feasted.

The title of this short Book leaves it uncertain whether the sacrifice
was offered to Wū-ting or by him. The prefatory notice proceeds on the
former view. Many critics of great intelligence decide for the latter,
which a renewed consideration of the text has induced me to adopt. The
king then is Zū-kang, Wū-ting's son. Something irregular or excessive
in his sacrificing to his father was the thing which his monitor
Zū-kang wished to censure, taking occasion to do so from the incident
mentioned in the first sentence.

On the day of the supplementary sacrifice of Kāo Zung, there appeared
a crowing pheasant[1]. Zo Kī said, 'To rectify this affair, the king
must first be corrected.' He delivered accordingly a lesson to the
king, saying, 'In its inspection of men below, Heaven's first
consideration is of their righteousness, and it bestows on them
(accordingly) length of years or the contrary.* It is not Heaven that
cuts short men's lives; they bring them to an end themselves. Some men
who have not complied with virtue will yet not acknowledge their
offences, and when Heaven has by evident tokens charged them to
correct their conduct, they still say, "What are these things to us?"

'Oh! our Majesty's business is to care reverently for the people. And
all (your ancestors) were the heirs of (the kingdom by the gift of
Heaven;--in attending to the sacrifices (to them), be not so excessive
in those to your father.' *

[1. Sze-mā Khien, after the prefatory notice, says that the pheasant
sat on the ear--one of the handles--of a tripod.]

BOOK X. THE CHIEF OF THE WEST'S CONQUEST OF LĪ.

THE reigns of seven more kings of Yin or Shang have passed, and this
Book brings us to the time of Kāu-hsin or Shāu, its last sovereign,
B.C. 1154-1123. The House of Kāu begins to come to the front, for 'the
Chief of the West' was one of the acknowledged founders of the Kāu
dynasty;--whether Khang, known as king Wan, or his son Fā, known as
king Wū, is uncertain. Khang's father, the duke of Kāu in the present
department of Fang-hsiang, Shen-hsī, had been appointed Chief of the
West, that is, of all the western portion of the kingdom, embracing
Yü's provinces of Yung, Liang, and King. The same jurisdiction
descended to his son and grandson. The state of Lī, the conquest of
which is mentioned, was in the present department of Lū-an, Shan-hsī,
within the royal domain, so that the Chief of the West was no longer
confining himself to the west, but threatening the king himself.

Zū Ī, a loyal officer, bears of the conquest of Lī, and hurries away
to inform the king and warn him of the danger threatening the dynasty
through his evil conduct. The kin gives no heed to his remonstrances,
and Zū Ī retires, sighing over the ruin, which he sees is not to be
averted.

The Book is classed, it would be hard to tell why, among the
'Announcements.'

The Chief of the West having subdued Lī, Zū was afraid, and hastened
to report it to the king.

He said, 'Son of Heaven, Heaven is bringing to an end the dynasty of
Yin;* the wisest men and the shell of the great tortoise do not
presume to know anything fortunate for it.* It is not that the former
kings do not aid us, the men of this later time but by your
dissoluteness and sport you are bringing on the end yourself. On this
account Heaven has cast us off, and there are no good harvests to
supply us with food.* Men have no regard to their heavenly nature, and
pay no obedience to the statutes (of the kingdom). (Yea), our people
now all wish (the dynasty) to perish, saying, "Why does not Heaven
send down its indignation? Why does not (some one with) its great
appointment make his appearance? What has the present king to do with
us?"'

The king said, 'Oh! was not my birth in accordance with the
appointment of Heaven (in favour of my House)?' (On this) Zū Ī
returned (to his own city), and said, 'Your, crimes, which are many,
are registered above, and can you still appeal to the appointment of
Heaven in your favour? * Yin will perish very shortly. As to all your
deeds, can they but bring ruin on your country?'

BOOK XI. THE COUNT OF WEI.

THE conversation recorded here--called, like the last Book, and with
as little reason, an 'Announcement '--is referred to B.C. 1123, the
year in which the dynasty of Shang perished.

Wei was a principality in the royal domain, corresponding to the
present district of Lū-khang, department Lū-an, Shan-hsī, the lords of
which were counts. The count who appears here was, most probably, an
elder brother of the king, and by the same mother, who was, however,
only a concubine when the count was born, but raised to be queen
before the birth of Kāu-hsin. Saddened with the thought of the
impending ruin of the dynasty, the count seeks the counsel of two
other high nobles, and asks them to tell him what was to be done. One
of them replies to him in still stronger language about the condition
and prospects of the kingdom, and concludes by advising the count to
make his escape, and declaring that he himself would remain at his
post, and share in the unavoidable ruin.

1. The Count of Wei spoke to the following effect:--'Grand-Master and
Junior-Master[1], (the House of) Yin, we may conclude, can no longer
exercise rule over the four quarters (of the kingdom). The great deeds
of our founder were displayed in former ages, but by our maddened
indulgence in spirits, we have destroyed (the effects of) his virtue
in these after-times. (The people of) Yin, small and great, are given
to highway robberies, villainies, and treachery. The nobles and
officers imitate one another in violating the laws, and there is no
certainty that criminals will be apprehended. The smaller people
(consequently) rise up, and commit violent outrages on one another.
Yin is now sinking in ruin;--its condition is like that of one
crossing a stream, who can find neither ford nor bank. That Yin should
be hurrying to ruin at the present pace!'

He added, 'Grand-Master and junior-Master, we are manifesting
insanity. The most venerable members of our families are withdrawn to
the wilds; and you indicate no course (to be taken), but (only) tell
me of the impending ruin --what is to be done?'

2. The Grand-Master made about the following reply:--'O son of our
(former) king, Heaven in anger is sending down calamities, and wasting
the country of Yin.* Hence has arisen that mad indulgence in spirits.
(The king) has no reverence

[1. For high ministers with these titles under the Kāu dynasty, see
next Part, Book xx. The individuals whom the count of Wei consulted
were probably the count of Kī and Pī-kāu, who are classed with him in
the Confucian Analects, XVIII, x.]

for things which he ought to reverenced but does despite to the
venerable aged, the men who have long been in office. The people of
Yin will now steal even the pure and perfect victims devoted to the
spirits of heaven and earth; * and their conduct is connived at, and
though they proceed to eat the victims, they suffer no punishment. (On
the other hand), when I look down and survey the people of Yin, the
methods by which they are governed are hateful exactions, which call
forth outrages and hatred;-and this without ceasing. Such crimes
equally belong to all in authority, and multitudes are starving with
none to whom to appeal. Now is the time of Shang's calamity;--I will
arise and share in its ruin. When ruin overtakes Shang, I will not be
the servant (of another House). (But) I tell you, O king's son, to go
away, as being the, course (for you). Formerly I injured you by what I
said; if you do not (now) go away, our (sacrifices) will entirely
perish. Let us rest quietly (in our several parts), and each present
himself to the former kings [1] (as having done so).* I do not think
of making my escape.'

[1. It is understood that the former king, the father of both Khī and
Kāu-hsin, had wished to leave the throne to Khī, and that the
Grand-Master had advocated such a measure;--thereby injuring Khī when
it did not take effect, through making Kāu-hsin jealous of him.]
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Next: Part V: The Books of Kau