The Lî Kî, Books I–X — Sacred Books of China Part III, SBE Vol. 27 (trans. James Legge, 1885)

10. The people are forbidden to cut down the indigo plant to use it in dyeing?,

11. Or to burn wood for charcoal, or to bleach cloth in the sun.

12. The gates of cities and villages should not be shut’, nor should vexatious inquiries be instituted at the barrier gates or in the markets.

1 The first and last of the three sacrificial services in the paragraph were subsidiary to the second, the great praying for rain to God by the sovereign; the motive is not mentioned in the text, but only he could conduct a service to God. Callery renders :— ‘En méme temps l’empereur invoque le ciel avec grand apparat (afin d’obtenir de la pluie), et cette cérémonie est accompagnée de grande musique.’ All Chinese commentators admit that the performer was the sovereign. Kang Khang-A#ang says: ‘For this sacrifice to God, they made an altar (or altars) by the side of the (grand altar in the) southern suburb, and sacrificed to the five essential (or elemental) gods with the former rulers as their assessors,’ But the K/ien-lung editors insist on the text’s having ‘ God,’ and not ‘five gods,’ and that the correct view is that the sacrifice was to the one God dwelling in the bright sky, or, as Williams renders the phrase, ‘the Shang Tt of the glorious heaven.’

* The plant would not yet be fully fit for use.

® Every facility should be afforded for the circulation of air during the summer heats.

SECT. II. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 275

13. Leniency should be shown to prisoners charged (even) with great crimes, and their allowance of food be increased},

14. Impregnated mares are collected in herds by themselves, and the fiery stallions are tied up. The rules for the rearing of horses are given out.

15. In this month the longest day arrives. The influences in nature of darkness and decay and those of brightness and growth struggle together; the tendencies to death and life are divided*. Superior men give themselves to vigil and fasting. They keep retired in their houses, avoid all violent exercise, restrain their indulgence in music and beautiful sights, eschew the society of their wives, make their diet spare, use no piquant condiments, keep their desires under rule, and maintain their spirits free from excitement. The various magistrates keep things quiet and inflict no punishments *;—to bring about that state of settled quiet in which the influence of darkness and decay shall obtain its full development.

16. Deershedtheir horns. Cicadas begin to sing.
The midsummer herb is produced. The tree hibiscus flowers‘,

17. In this month fires should not be lighted (out of doors) in the southern regions (of the country).

1 The leniency would be seen in the lightening of their fetters for one thing,—in consequence of the exhaustion produced by the season.

* Decay begins to set in, while growth and vigour seek to maintain their hold.

* The Kh’ien-lung editors approve a reading here, which means, instead of ‘no punishments,’ ‘no rash or hurried action.’

* Decay begins to set in, while growth and vigour seek to maintain their hold.

* The Kh’ien-lung editors approve a reading here, which means, instead of ‘no punishments,’ ‘no rash or hurried action.’

‘ The ‘tree hibiscus’ is the ‘ hibiscus syriacus.’ The ‘ half-summer herb’ is medicinal. It is ‘white, with round seeds, and of a hot and pungent taste.’

T 2

276 THE Lf xt. BK. IY.

18. People may live in buildings high and bright. They may enjoy distant prospects. They may ascend hills and heights. They may occupy towers and lofty pavilions'.

19. If, in the second month of summer, the governmental proceedings of winter were observed, hail and cold would injure the grain; the roads would not be passable ; and violent assaults of war would come. If the proceedings proper to spring were observed, the grains would be late in ripening; all kinds of locusts would continually be appearing ; and there would be famine in the states. If those proper to autumn were observed, herbs and plants would drop their leaves ; fruits would ripen prematurely; and the people would be consumed by pestilence.

Part III.

1. In the third month of summer the sun is in Lid, the constellation culminating at dusk being Kwo, and that culminating at dawn Khwei?*

2. Its days are ping and ting. Its divine ruler is Yen Tt, and the (assisting) spirit is A/d-yung. Its musical note is Kih, and its pitch-tube is Lin Kung’.

? At the beginning of this paragraph there should be—‘ In this month,’

* Lift comprehends 4, ¢, ¢, 7, 6, p, o, and » Hydre; Hwo is the same as Hsin, the fifth of the Chinese zodiacal constellations comprehending Antares, , r, and two c. 2584, 2587, Scorpio; Khwei (as stated above, p. 257) comprehends 8 (Mirac), , «, ¢, », », s of Andromeda, and some stars of Pisces.

* The fourth of the tubes that give the six lower musical accords.

SECT. I. PT. III. THE YUEH LING. 277

3. Its number is seven. Its taste is acrid. Its smell is that of things burning. Its sacrifice is that at the furnace ; and of the parts of the victim the lungs have the foremost place.

4. Gentle winds begin to blow. The cricket takes its place in the walls. (Young) hawks learn to practise (the ways of their parents). Decaying grass becomes fire-flies.

5. The son of Heaven occupies the apartment on the right of the Ming Thang (Fane); rides in the vermilion carriage, drawn by the red horses with black tails, and bearing the red flag. He is dressed in the red robes, and wears the carnation gems. He eats beans and fowls. The vessels which he uses are tall, (to resemble) the large growth (of things).

6. Orders are given to the master of the Fishermen to attack the alligator, to take the gavial, to present the tortoise, and to take the great turtle*.

7. Orders are given to the superintendent of the Meres to collect and send in the rushes available for use.

8. In this month orders are given to the four

7. Orders are given to the superintendent of the Meres to collect and send in the rushes available for use.

8. In this month orders are given to the four

1 Compare what is said about hawks in paragraph 4, page 258. ‘Here,’ says Wang Thao, ‘we have the turtle-doves transformed back to hawks, showing that the former notice was metaphorical.’ What is said about the fire-flies is, of course, a mistaken fancy.

2 The first of these animals—the 4i40—is, probably, the alligator or crocodile; it was taken only after a struggle or fight. The second—the tho—had a skin used in making drums; and its flesh, as well as that of the fourth—the yfian—was used in making soup.

278 THE Lf xt. BE. IV.

inspectors! to make a great collection over all the districts of the different kinds of fodder to nourish the sacrificial victims; and to require all the people to do their utmost towards this end ;—to supply what is necessary for (the worship of) God (who dwells in) the great Heaven, and for the spirits of the famous hills, great streams, and four quarters, and for the sacrifices to the Intelligences of the ancestral temple, and at the altars to the spirits of the land and grain; that prayer may be made for blessing to the people.

g. In this month orders are given by the officers of women’s (work), on the subject of dyeing *. (They are to see) that the white and black, the black and green, the green and carnation, the carnation and white be all according to the ancient rules, without error or change; and that their black, yellow, azure, and carnation be all genuine and good, without any presumptuous attempts at imposition. These furnish the materials for the robes used at the sacrifices in the suburbs and the ancestral temple; for flags and their ornaments; and for marking the different degrees of rank as high or low.

10. In this month the trees are luxuriant; and orders are given to the foresters to go among the hills and examine the trees, and see that the people do not cut any down or lop their branches?.

1 Of hills, forests, rivers, and meres.

* We find full details of the number and duties of the superintendents of women’s work, with its tailoring, dyeing, and other things, in the X4u Li, Books I and: VII.

8 The Khien-lung editors say that this was to let the process of growth have its full course; and, besides, that wood cut down in spring and summer will be found full of insects.

SECT. I, PT. ITI. THE YUEH LING. 279

8 The Khien-lung editors say that this was to let the process of growth have its full course; and, besides, that wood cut down in spring and summer will be found full of insects.

SECT. I, PT. ITI. THE YUEH LING. 279

11. There should not be any work in earth! (now) undertaken; nor any assembling of the princes of the states ; nor any military movements, causing general excitement. There should be no undertaking of (such) great affairs, which will disturb the nourishing growth that is proceeding, nor any issuing of orders to be hereafter carried into effect. All these things will interfere with the business of husbandry, (which is specially dear to) the Spirits. The floods are now great and overflow the roads; husbandry (dear to) the Spirits has to take in hand its various tasks. The curse of Heaven will come on the undertaking of great affairs (at this time).

' Such as building walls and fortifications, or laying out the ground. * The text is—‘ will interfere with the business of Shin Nang

(4; wih BB <= HA). How is it that ‘husbandry’ has here the epithet of Sh&n, or ‘ spiritual,’ ‘mysterious,’ applied to it? The Khien-lung editors say:—‘ 3h4i Yung (our second century) makes Shan Nang to be Yen Ti (the divine ruler of the summer). Xiang made the name to be that of “the spirit of the ground.” K4o YQ (second century) took it as a name for the minister of Husbandry. To some extent each of these views might be admitted, but none of them is very certain. Looking carefully at the text it simply says that no great undertakings should be allowed to interfere with husbandry. That it does not plainly say husbandry, but calls it the Shin husbandry, is from a sense of its importance, and therefore making it out to be Spirit-sanctioned. Heaven produced the people, and the grain to nourish them; is not sowing and reaping the business of Heaven? When a ruler knows this, he feels that he is under the inspection of Heaven in his reverent regard of the people, and the importance which he attaches to husbandry. He will not dare lightly to use the people’s strength, so as to offend against Heaven.’ I ‘have tried to bring out their view in my version.

280 THE Lf xt. BK. Iv.

12. In this month the ground lies steaming and wet beneath the heats, for great rains are (also) continually coming. They burn the grass lying cut upon the ground? and bring the water over it. This is as effectual to kill the roots as hot water would be; and the grass thus serves to manure the fields of grain and hemp, and to fatten the ground which has been but just marked out for cultivation.

They burn the grass lying cut upon the ground? and bring the water over it. This is as effectual to kill the roots as hot water would be; and the grass thus serves to manure the fields of grain and hemp, and to fatten the ground which has been but just marked out for cultivation.

13. If, in the last month of summer, the governmental proceedings proper to spring were observed, the produce of grain would be scanty and fail; in the states there would be many colds and coughs; and the people would remove to other places. If the proceedings proper to autumn were observed, even the high grounds would be flooded; the grain that had been sown would not ripen; and there would be many miscarriages among women. If those proper to winter were observed, the winds and cold would come out of season; the hawks and falcons would prematurely attack their prey; and all along the four borders people would enter their places of shelter.

SUPPLEMENTARY SECTION.

1. Right in the middle(between Heaven and Earth, and the other elements) is earth.

2. Its days are wf and At.

3. Its divine ruler is Hwang T!; and the (attending) spirit is H4u-tha.

' Compare what is said on the duties of those who cut the grass, as is here assumed to be done, in the K4éu Lt, Book XXXVII, paragraphs 80, 81 (FE KR).

p. 281

4. Its creature is that without any natural covering but the skin.

5. Its musical note is Kung, and its pitchtube gives the £ung note from the tube Hwang Aung.

6. Its number is five. Its taste is sweet. Its smell is fragrant.

7. Its sacrifice is that of the middle court ; and of the parts of the victim the heart has the foremost place.

8. The son of Heaven occupies the Grand apartment of the Grand fane ; rides in the great carriage drawn by the yellow horses with black tails, and bearing the yellow flag; is clothed in the yellow robes, and wears the yellow gems. He eats panicled millet and beef. The vessels which he uses are round, (and made to resemble) the capacity (of the earth)!.

1 [have called this a supplementary section. It is dropt in, in all its brevity, without mention of any proceedings of government, between the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. It has all the appearance of an after-thought, suggested by the superstitious fancies of the compiler. Callery says on it :—

It is dropt in, in all its brevity, without mention of any proceedings of government, between the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. It has all the appearance of an after-thought, suggested by the superstitious fancies of the compiler. Callery says on it :—

‘This passage can only be comprehended by help of the intimate Affinities which Chinese philosophers have attributed to the different beings of nature. According to them, the four seasons are related to the four cardinal points: spring to the east, summer to the south, autumn to the west, and winter to the north. Each of the cardinal points is related to an element: the east to wood, the south to fire, the west to metal, and the north to water. But as there is a fifth element, that of earth, and the four cardinal points have no reason for being distinguished as they are, but that there is a point in the middle between them, which is still the earth, it follows from this that the earth ought to have its place in the midst of the four seasons, that is, at the point of separation

282 THE Lf xt. BK. Iv.

between summer and autumn. Here a difficulty presented itself. The bamboo flutes to which the Chinese months are referred being but twelve, where shall be found the musical affinities of the earth? But the Chinese philosopher did not find himself embarrassed. See how he reasoned. The sound of the first flute, that is, of the longest and largest, is the strongest and most grave, and, like a bass, harmonizes with all the other sounds more acute. So the earth, likewise, is the most important of all the elements; it extends towards all the cardinal points, and intervenes in the products of each season. Hence the earth ought to correspond to the sound of the first flute! These affinities extend to colours, tastes, and a crowd of other categories.’

The KXhien-lung editors say :—

‘Speaking from the standpoint of Heaven, then the earth is in the midst of Heaven; that is, (the element of) earth. Speaking from the standpoint of the Earth, then wood, fire, metal, and water are all supported on it. The manner in which the way of Earth is affected by that of Heaven cannot be described by reference to one point, or one month. Speaking from the standpoint of the heavenly stems, then wf and &i occupy the middle places, and are between the stems for fire and metal, to convey the system of mutual production. Speaking from the standpoint of the “ earthly branches,” the £44n, hsii, 444u, and wi occupy the corners of the four points; wood, fire, metal, and water, all turn to earth. This is what the idea of reciprocal ending, and that of elemental flourishing, arise from. This may be exhibited in the several points, and reckoned by the periods of days. The talk about the elements takes many directions, but the underlying principle comes to be the same!’

I shall be glad if my readers can understand this.

SECT. M1. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 283

Section III. Parr I.

This may be exhibited in the several points, and reckoned by the periods of days. The talk about the elements takes many directions, but the underlying principle comes to be the same!’

I shall be glad if my readers can understand this.

SECT. M1. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 283

Section III. Parr I.

1. In the first month of autumn, the sun is in Y1; the constellation culminating at dusk being Kienhsing, and that culminating at dawn Pt!.

2. Its days are kang and hsin.

3. Its divine ruler is Sh4o H4o, and the (attending) spirit is Z7Q-shau*®

4. Its creatures are the hairy.

5. Its musical note is Shang; its pitch-tube is {1 3eh’.

6. Its number is nine. Its taste is bitter. Its smell is rank.

7. Its sacrifice is that at the gate; and of the parts of the victim the liver has the foremost place.

8. Cool winds come; the white dew descends? ; the cicada of the cold chirps’. (Young) hawks at this

1 Y{ corresponds to Crater. ien-hsing comprehends stars in
Sagittarius (see page 257). Pi corresponds to the Hyades.

* Sho H4o follows Hwang Ti, whose eldest son he was, as the fourth in the list of the five Ti, or divine rulers (B.c. 2594). His capital was at KAii-fau, the city of Confucius; and I have seen, at a little distance from it, perhaps the only pyramid in China, which is in memory of him, and said to be on or near his grave. His personal appellation is Xin-thien (} Fi): or Thien-4in, the element to which he and his reign are assigned being 4in, or metal. Zf-sh4u was one of his sons.

* f 3eh, ‘the equalization of the Laws,’ is the tube giving the fifth of the upper musical accords.

* White dew is a name for hoar-frost.

5 This cicada (Williams thinks the cicada viridis) is called

284 THE Lf xf. BK. IV.

time sacrifice birds, as the first step they take to killing (and eating) them".

g. The son of Heaven occupies the apartment on the left of the 3ung-4ang (Fane) ; rides in the war chariot, drawn by the white horses with black manes, and bearing the white flag. He is clothed in the white robes, and wears the white jade. He eats hemp-seeds and dog’s flesh. The vessels which he uses are rectangular, and going on to be deep”.

10. In this month there takes place the inauguration of autumn. Three days before the ceremony, the Grand recorder informs the son of Heaven, saying, ‘On such-and-such a day is the inauguration of the autumn. The character of the season is fully seen in metal.’ On this the son of Heaven devotes himself to self-adjustment; and on the day he leads in person the three ducal ministers, the nine high ministers, the princes of states (at court), and his Great officers, to meet the autumn in the western suburb, and on their return he rewards the generalin-chief, and the military officers in the court.

11. The son of Heaven also orders the leaders and commanders to choose men and sharpen weapons, to select and exercise those of distinguished merit, and

‘the dumb.’ Now it begins to chirp. Its colour is ‘ green and red.’

11. The son of Heaven also orders the leaders and commanders to choose men and sharpen weapons, to select and exercise those of distinguished merit, and

‘the dumb.’ Now it begins to chirp. Its colour is ‘ green and red.’

1 Compare what is said about the otter, page 251.

* Zung-A4ang is made out to mean, ‘all bright,’ and the apartment was on the west; with mystical reference to the maturity and gathering of all things in the autumn, or season of the west. The vessels were rectangular, having sharp corners in harmony with the sharp weapons made of metal, to which element the season of autumn is referred; and they were deep, to resemble the deep bosom of the earth, to which things now begin to return.

SECT. III. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 285

to give their entire trust only to men whose services have been proved;—thereby to correct all unrighteousness. (He instructs them also) to make enquiries about and punish the oppressive and insolent;—thereby making it clear whom he loves and whom he hates, and giving effect to (the wishes of) the people, even the most distant from court.

12. Inthis month orders are given to the proper officers to revise the laws and ordinances, to put the prisons in good repair, to provide handcuffs and fetters, to repress and stop villainy, to maintain a watch against crime and wickedness, and to do their endeavour to capture criminals. Orders are (also) given to the managers (of prisons) to look at wounds, examine sores, inspect broken members, and judge particularly of dislocations. The determination of cases, both criminal and civil, must be correct and just. Heaven and earth now begin to be severe ;— there should be no excess in copying that severity, or in the opposite indulgence’.

13. In this month the husbandmen present their grain. The son of Heaven tastes it, while still new, first offering some in the apartment at the back of the ancestral temple.

14. Orders are given to all the officers to begin their collecting and storing the contributions (from

1 For this last sentence Callery has:—‘(Ce mois-ci) la nature commengant 4 devenir rigoureuse, on ne doit pas augmenter (ses rigeurs par l’application de chatiments trop sévéres).’ Wang Tho takes an opposite view. I think I have got the thought that was in the compiler’s mind. See the note of the X/ien-lung editors with reference to the advocacy of it by commentators of ‘the Brief Calendar of Hsia.’

286 THE Li xt. BK. Iv.

the husbandmen); to finish the embankments and dykes ; to look to the dams and fillings up in preparation for the floods, and also to refit all houses ; to strengthen walls and enclosures; and to repair city and suburban walls.

15. In this month there should be no investing of princes, and no appointment of great ministers. There should be no dismemberment of any territory, no sending out on any great commission, and no issuing of great presents.

15. In this month there should be no investing of princes, and no appointment of great ministers. There should be no dismemberment of any territory, no sending out on any great commission, and no issuing of great presents.

16. If, in this first month of autumn, the proceedings of government proper to winter were observed, then the dark and gloomy influence (of nature) would greatly prevail ; the shelly insects would destroy the grain; and warlike operations would be called for. If the proceedings proper to spring were observed, there would be droughts in the states ; the bright and growing influence would return; and the five kinds of grain would not yield their fruit. If the proceedings proper to summer were observed, there would be many calamities from fire in the states ; the cold and the heat would be subject to no rule; and there would be many fevers among the people.

Part II,

1. In the second month of autumn the sun is in Kio, the constellation culminating at dusk being Khien-ni, and that culminating at dawn 3ze-hst’.

2. Its days are Aang and hsin. Its divine ruler

1 Kio corresponds to a (Spica) and ¢ of Virgo; Khien-nif (see on page 262) to certain stars in the neck of Aquila; and 3ze-hsf is said to be A Orion.

SECT. Ill, PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 287 is ShAo HAo, and the (attending) spirit is Z0shAu. Its insects are the hairy. Its musical note is Shang, and its pitch-tube is Nan Lii'.

3. Its number is nine. Its taste is bitter. Its smell is rank. Its sacrifice is that of the gate; and of the parts of the victim the liver has the foremost place.

4 Sudden and violent winds come. The wild geese arrive’. The swallows return (whence they came)*. Tribes of birds store up provisions (for the future) ®.

5. The son of Heaven occupies the 3ung-#ang Grand Fane; rides in the war chariot, drawn by the white horses with black manes, and bearing the white flag. He is clothed in the white robes, and wears the white gems. He eats hemp-seed and dog’s flesh. The vessels which he uses are rectangular or cornered, and rather deep.

6. In this month they take especial care of the

1 Nan L4, ‘the southern spine,’ is the tube that gives the fifth of the lower musical accords.

* The wild geese are now returning to their winter quarters, from which they had come in the first month of spring; see page 251. So with the swallows, who had appeared in the second month of spring ; see page 259.

* This sentence is hardly translatable or intelligible. Some would read as in paragraph 95 of ‘the Brief Calendar of Hsia’

So with the swallows, who had appeared in the second month of spring ; see page 259.

* This sentence is hardly translatable or intelligible. Some would read as in paragraph 95 of ‘the Brief Calendar of Hsia’

(Ft B cA =| 8), translated by Professor Douglas: ‘The red birds (i.e. fire-flies) devour the white birds (i. e. mosquitoes),’ which he ingeniously supports by a reference to the habits of the fire-fly from Chambers’ Encyclopedia. But his translation of hsift by ‘devour’ is inadmissible. Wang Th4o says that this view is ‘chisseling.’ ‘Sparrows and other birds,’ he says, ‘now collect seeds of grapes and trees, and store them in their nests and holes against the time of rain and snow.’

288 THE Lf xt. BK, Iv.

decaying and old; give them stools and staves, and distribute supplies of congee for food.

7. Orders are given to the superintendent of robes to have ready the upper and lower dresses with their various ornaments. For the figures and embroidery on them there are fixed patterns. Their size, length, and dimensions must all be according to the old examples. For the caps and girdles (also) there are regular rules.

8. Orders are given to the proper officers to revise with strict accuracy (the laws about) the various punishments. Beheading*and (the other) capital executions must be according to (the crimes) without excess or defect. Excess or defect out of such proportion will bring on itself the judgment (of Heaven).

9. In this month orders are given to the officers of slaughter and prayer to go round among the victims for sacrifice, seeing that they are entire and complete, examining their fodder and grain, inspecting their condition as fat or thin, and judging of their looks. They must arrange them according to their classes. In measuring their size, and looking at the length (of their horns), they must have them according to the (assigned) measures. When all these points are as they ought to be, God will accept the sacrifices}.

10. The son of Heaven performs the ceremonies against pestilence, to secure development for the (healthy) airs of autumn.

11. He eats the hemp-seed (which is now pre-

' Kang says here: ‘And if God accept them, of course there is no other spirit that will not do so.’

SECT. Ill, PT. 11. THE YUEH LING. 289 sented) along with dog’s flesh, first offering some in the apartment at the back of the ancestral temple.

12, In this month it is allowable to rear city and suburban walls, to establish cities and towns, to dig underground passages and grain-pits, and to repair granaries, round and square.

13. Orders are given to the proper officers to be urgent with the people, and (to finish) receiving their contributions and storing them. They should do their best to accumulate (large) stores of vegetables and other things.

14. They should (also) stimulate the wheat-sowing. (The husbandmen) should not be allowed to miss the proper time for the operation. Any who do so shall be punished without fail.

They should do their best to accumulate (large) stores of vegetables and other things.

14. They should (also) stimulate the wheat-sowing. (The husbandmen) should not be allowed to miss the proper time for the operation. Any who do so shall be punished without fail.

15. In this month day and night are equal. The ‘thunder begins to restrain its voice. Insects stop up the entrances to their burrows. The influence to decay and death gradually increases. That of brightness and growth daily diminishes. The waters begin to dry up.

16. At the equinox, they make uniform the measures of length and capacity; equalise the steelyards and their weights; rectify the weights of 30 and 120 catties; and adjust the pecks and bushels.

17. In this month they regulate and reduce the charges at the frontier gates and in the markets, to encourage the resort of both regular and travelling traders, and the receipt of goods and money ; for the convenience of the business of the people. When merchants and others collect from all quarters, and come from the most distant parts, then the resources (of the government) do not fail. There is no want

(27] U

290 ' THE Lf xt. BK. IV.

of means for its use; and all things proceed prosperously.

18. In commencing great undertakings, there should be no opposition to the great periods (for them) as defined (by the motion of the sun). They must be conformed to the times (as thereby marked out), and particular attention paid to the nature of each},

19. If inthis second month of autumn the proceedings proper to spring were observed, the autumnal

1 Callery translates this paragraph by: ‘Toute personne ayant une chose importante 4 accomplir ne doit pas se mettre en opposition avec les grands principes (yin et yang); il doit se conformer au temps (propre & agir; mais il doit aussi) bien examiner la nature méme de I’entreprise.’ He appends to this the following note :—‘ Les deux principes yin et yang auxquels se rapportent tous les étres, ayant tour-d-tour la prédominance dans certaines époques de l’année, le temps convenable pour une chose quelconque est celui auquel prédomine le principe dont cette chose dépend par son affinité naturelle. Ainsi, par exemple, les travaux de terrassement et de construction conviennent en automne, parce que le principe yin dont ils dépendent est en progrés pendant Yautomne. Néanmoins, de ce que cette époque de l’année est favorable sous ce point de vue, il ne s’ensuit pas que toute entreprise de construction faite en automne soit avantageuse en elleméme; une foule de circonstances peuvent la rendre ruineuse, et c’est 4 l’entrepreneur de bien l’examiner, abstraction faite de la saison.’

The text rendered by Callery, ‘les deux principes (yin et yang), is simply t& shf, ‘the grand numbers,’ the meaning of which I have endeavoured to bring out by the supplements in my version. The yin and yang are not mentioned in the text of the paragraph. ‘They are simply a binomial phrase for the course of nature, with special reference to the weather and its conditions, as regulated by the action of the sun on the earth in the course of the seasons.

\ SECT. III. PT. III. THE YUEH LING. 291 rains would not fall ; plants and trees would blossom; and in the states there would be alarms. If those proper to summer were observed, there would be droughts in the states; insects would not retire to their burrows; and the five grains would begin to growagain. If those proper to winter were observed, calamities springing from (unseasonable) winds would be constantly arising ; the thunder now silent would be heard before its time; and plants and trees would die prematurely.

Part ITI.

1. In the last month of autumn the sun is in Fang, the constellation culminating at dusk being Hsti!, and that culminating at dawn Lid. .

2. Its days are kang and hsin. Its divine ruler
is Shao HAo, and the (attending) spirit is 30-shau.
Its creatures are the hairy. Its musical note is
Shang, and its pitch-tube is Wa Y1t*.

3. Its number is nine. Its taste is bitter. Its smell is rank. Its sacrifice is that at the gate; and of the parts of the victim the liver has the foremost place.

4. The wild geese come, (and abide) like guests®.

* Fang comprehends 8, 8, s, p Scorpio. Hsii corresponds to 8 Aquarius; and Lift comprehends 8, «, ¢, 7, 8, p, o, @ Hydra.

* Wa Yi, ‘the unwearied,’ is the tube giving the sixth upper musical accord.

5 The addition of guests here is a difficulty. It is said on the previous month that ‘the wild geese come;’ are these here the same as those, or are they others,—the younger birds, as some suppose, which had waited after the former, and still found it necessary to remain on their passage to recruit their strength?

U2

292 THE Li xt. BK. IV.

Small birds enter the great water and become mollusks’. Chrysanthemums show their yellow flowers. The 444i sacrifice larger animals, and kill (and devour) the smaller *.

5. The son of Heaven occupies the apartment on the right of the 3ung-4ang (Fane) ; rides in the war chariot, drawn by the white horses with black manes, and bearing the white flags; is dressed in the white robes, and wears the white jade. He eats hempseeds and dog’s flesh. The vessels which he uses are rectangular, cornered, and rather deep.

6. In this month the orders are renewed and

He eats hempseeds and dog’s flesh. The vessels which he uses are rectangular, cornered, and rather deep.

6. In this month the orders are renewed and

’ Professor Douglas has made it more than probable that the ‘small birds’ here are sand-pipers. What is said about them, however, will not admit of his version, that they ‘ go into the sea or lakes for crustaceae.’ His ‘ crustaceae’ should be ‘ mollusks.’ According to all rules of Chinese composition, what he renders ‘for’ must be taken verbally,=‘to become.’ It is not merely the Chinese ‘commentators,’ who consider the sentence to mean, ‘ Sparrows go into the sea and become crustaceae (? mollusks) ;’ it is what the text says. It is indeed an absurd statement, but a translator is not responsible for that. The X/ien-lung editors observe that there is no mention here of the little birds being ‘ transformed,’ as in the paragraph about the ‘hawks’ on page 258, and hence they argue that we cannot understand the notice here metaphorically. They accept the fact (?). The marine Ko, which is mentioned here, as figured in the plates of the Pan 3hao Kang-m4, is the Calyptroida Trochita.

? Compare what is said about the otter, page 251. Professor Douglas argues that the 444i is the polecat. But this identification cannot yet be received as certain. The &24i is ‘dogfooted,’ ‘hunts in troops,’ and has ‘a voice like that of the dog.’ In Japanese plates it is not at all like ‘the polecat.’ An English naturalist, to whom I submitted a Japanese work illustrative of the Shih King, many years ago, has written over the 444i, ‘a wild dog or wolf.’

SECT. III, PT. II. THE YUEH LING. 293

strictly enjoined, charging the various officers (to see) that noble and mean all exert themselves in the work of ingathering, in harmony with the storing of heaven and earth. They must not allow anything to remain out in the fields.

7. Orders are also given to the chief minister, after the fruits of husbandry have all been gathered in, to take in hand the registers of the produce of the different grains (from all the country), and to store up the produce that has been gathered from the acres of God in the granary of the spirits; doing this with the utmost reverence and correctness. ,

8. In this month the hoar-frost begins to fall; and all labours cease (for a season).

g. Orders are given to the proper officers, saying, ‘The cold airs are all coming, and the people will not be able to endure them. Let all enter within their houses (for a time).’

to. On the first ting day orders are given to the chief Director of music to enter the college, and to practise (with his pupils) on the wind instruments.

11. In this month an announcement is made to the son of Heaven that the victims for the great sacrifice to God, and the autumnal sacrifice in the ancestral temple? are fit and ready.

11. In this month an announcement is made to the son of Heaven that the victims for the great sacrifice to God, and the autumnal sacrifice in the ancestral temple? are fit and ready.

1 «This, says Hsii Sze-jing (Ming dynasty), ‘is the great rule of making provision for the sustenance of men and for serving spiritual beings,—two things demanding the utmost inward reverence and outward reverential vigour.’ I suppose that the ‘spiritgranary’ contained the grain for all governmental sacrifices, as well as that gathered from ‘the acres of God,’ and to be used specially in sacrifices to Him.

* This paragraph gives great trouble to the KAien-lung editors ; but we need not enter on their discussions.

294 THE Li xt. BK. IV.

12. The princes of the states are assembled, and orders given to the officers of the various districts (in the royal domain). They receive the first days of the months for the coming year?, and the laws for the taxation of the people by the princes, both light and heavy, and the amount of the regular contribution to the government, which is determined by the distance of the territories and the nature of their several productions. The object of this is to provide what is necessary for the suburban sacrifices and those in the ancestral temple. No private considerations are allowed to have place in this.

‘13. In this month the son of Heaven, by means of hunting, teaches how to use the five weapons of war, and the rules for the management of horses.

14- Orders are given to the charioteers and the seven (classes of) grooms? to see to the yoking of the several teams, to set up in the carriages the flags and various banners’, to assign the carriages according to the rank (of those who were to occupy them), and to arrange and set up the screens outside (the royal tent). The minister of Instruction, with his baton

1 This last month of autumn, the ninth from the first month of spring, was the last month of the year with the dynasty of 3hin, when it was high time to give out the calendar for the months of the next year.

* The sovereign’s horses were divided into six classes, and every class had its own grooms, with one among them who had the superintendence of the rest. See a narrative in the 80 Awan, under the eighteenth year of duke KAing.

* Two of these insignia are mentioned in the text ;—the 3ing, which was only a pennant, and the X4o, a large banner with a tortoise and serpent intertwined. No doubt the meaning is, ‘the various banners,’

SECT. Il. PT. HII. THE YUEH LING. 295 stuck in his girdle, addresses all before him with his face to the north.

15. Then the son of Heaven, in his martial ornaments, with his bow in one hand, and the arrows under the armpit of the other, proceeds to hunt. (Finally), he gives orders to the superintendent of Sacrifices, to offer some of the captured game to (the spirits of) the four quarters.

15. Then the son of Heaven, in his martial ornaments, with his bow in one hand, and the arrows under the armpit of the other, proceeds to hunt. (Finally), he gives orders to the superintendent of Sacrifices, to offer some of the captured game to (the spirits of) the four quarters.

16. In this month the plants and trees become yellow and their leaves fall, on which the branches are cut down to make charcoal.

17. Insects in their burrows all try to push deeper, and from within plaster up the entrances. In accordance with (the season), they hurry on the decision and punishment of criminal cases, wishing not to leave them any longer undealt with. They call in emoluments that have been assigned incorrectly, and minister to those whose means are insufficient for their wants.

18, In this month the son of Heaven eats dog’s flesh and rice, first presenting some in the apartment at the back of the ancestral temple.

1g. If, in this last month of autumn, the proceedings proper to summer were observed, there would be great floods in the states; the winter stores would be injured and damaged ; there would be many colds and catarrhs among the people. If those proper to winter were observed, there would be many thieves and robbers in the states ; the borders would be unquiet ; and portions of territory would be torn from the rest. If those proper to spring were observed, the warm airs would come; the energies of the people would be relaxed and languid; and the troops would be kept moving about.

2096 THE Li ai. BK. Iv.

Section IV. Part I.

1. In the first month of winter the sun is in Wei, the constellation culminating at dusk being Wei, and the constellation culminating at dawn A4ihhsing?.

2. Its days are the zin and kwei.,

3. Its divine ruler is Kwan-hsi, and the (attending) spirit is Hstian-ming*.

4. Its creatures are the shell-covered.

5. Its musical note is Yii, and its pitch-tube is
Ying Kung’.

6. Its number is six. Its taste is salt. Its smell is that of things that are rotten.

7. Its sacrifice is that at (the altar of) the path, and

1 Wei (FR) comprehends ¢, » Scorpio; Wei (f& as on page 272) corresponds to stars in Aquarius and Pegasus. A‘ih Hsing (as on p. 262) corresponds to stars in Hydra.

2? Kwan-hstt is the dynastic designation of the grandson of Hwang Ti, the commencement of whose reign is assigned in B.C. 2510. He is known also by the personal designation of K 4oyang, from the name of his second capital. Among the elements his reign is assigned to water, and thence to the north; and hence the designation of his minister as Hstian-ming, ‘the dark and mysterious,’ who was called Hsit (fff) and Hst (8%), and is said to have been a son of Sh4o H4o.

® Yu is the fifth of the notes of the scale; and Ying Aung, ‘the responsive tube,’ the name of the last of the tubes giving the six lower musica] accords.

SECT. IV. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 297

among the parts of the victim the kidneys have the foremost place ?.

® Yu is the fifth of the notes of the scale; and Ying Aung, ‘the responsive tube,’ the name of the last of the tubes giving the six lower musica] accords.

SECT. IV. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 297

among the parts of the victim the kidneys have the foremost place ?.

8. Water begins to congeal. The earth begins to be penetrated by the cold. Pheasants enter the great water and become large mollusks*. Rainbows are hidden and do not appear.

9. The son of Heaven occupies the apartment on the left of the Hsiian Thang (Fane); rides in the dark-coloured carriage, drawn by the iron black horses, and bearing the dark-coloured flag ; is dressed in the black robes, and wears the dark-coloured jade. He eats millet and sucking-pig. The vessels which he uses are large and rather deep.

10. In this month there takes place the inauguration of winter. Three days before this ceremony, the Grand recorder informs the son of Heaven, saying, ‘On such-and-such a day is the inauguration of winter. The character of the season is fully seen in

1 This altar was outside the gate leading to the ancestral temple, on the west of it. Many say that here was the ‘ well’ supplying the water used for the temple, and would read zang (Ff) for hsing ( 47).

* The ‘great water’ here is said in the ‘ Narratives of the States’ (Book XV) to be the Hw4i. The £44n is said to be a large species of the £o, into which small birds are transformed (p. 292). Ofcourse the transmutation of the pheasants into these is absurd. Professor Douglas has found in a Chinese Enclyclopedia a statement that khin is sometimes an equivalent of phi 10 (635 jx) ‘sweet flags and rushes.’ The 1, however, is sometimes read 16, and said to have the same sound and meaning as i, ‘a spiral univalve ;’ but the great objection to Professor Douglas’ view is the meaning he puts on the By as pointed out on p. 292. The text cannot be construed as he proposes,

298 THE Lf xt. BK. IV. - water.’ On this the son of Heaven devotes himself to self-adjustment ; and on the day of the inauguration he leads in person the three ducal ministers, the nine high ministers, and his Great officers to meet the winter in the northern suburbs. On his return he rewards (the descendants of) those who died in the service (of the kingdom), and shows his compassion to orphans and widows.

11. In this month orders are given to the Grand recorder to smear with blood the tortoise-shells and divining stalks’, and by interpreting the indications of the former and examining the figures formed by the latter, to determine the good and evil of their intimations. (In this way) all flattery and partizanship in the interpretation of them (will become clear), and the crime of the operators be brought home. No concealment or deceit will be allowed.

12. In this month the son of Heaven sets the example of wearing furs.

(In this way) all flattery and partizanship in the interpretation of them (will become clear), and the crime of the operators be brought home. No concealment or deceit will be allowed.

12. In this month the son of Heaven sets the example of wearing furs.

13. Orders are issued to the proper officers in the words :—‘ The airs of heaven are ascended on high, and those of earth have descended beneath. There is no intercommunion of heaven and earth. All is shut up and winter is completely formed.’

14. Orders are given to all the officers to cover up carefully the stores (of their departments). The minister of Instruction is also ordered to go round (among the people and see) that they have formed their stores, and that nothing is left ungathered.

15. The city and suburban walls are put in good

' See in Mencius, I, 7, 4, on the consecration of a bell by smearing parts of it with blood.

SECT. IV. PT. I. THE YUEH LING. 299

repair; the gates of towns and villages are looked after ; bolts and nuts are put to rights ; locks and keys are carefully attended to; the field-boundaries are strengthened ; the frontiers are well secured ; important defiles are thoroughly defended; passes and bridges are carefully seen after; and narrow ways and cross-paths are shut up.

16. The rules for mourning are revised ; the distinctions of the upper and lower garments are defined; the thickness of the inner.and outer coffins is decided on; with the size, height and other dimensions of graves. The measures for all these things are assigned, with the degrees and differences in them according to rank.

17. In this month orders are given to the chief Director of works to prepare a memorial on the work of the artificers; setting forth especially the sacrificial vessels with the measures and capacity (of them and all others), and seeing that there be no licentious ingenuity in the workmanship which might introduce an element of dissipation into the minds of superiors ; and making the suitability of the article the first consideration. Every article should have its maker's name engraved on it, for the determination of its genuineness. When the production is not what it ought to be, the artificer should be held guilty and an end be thus put to deception.

18, In this month there is the great festivity when they drink together, and each of the stands bears half its animal roasted’.

1 Wang Tho understands this paragraph as meaning that at this season all, both high and low, feast in expression and augmentation of their joy. The characters will bear this inter-

300 THE Lf xi. BK. IV.

1 Wang Tho understands this paragraph as meaning that at this season all, both high and low, feast in expression and augmentation of their joy. The characters will bear this inter-

300 THE Lf xi. BK. IV.

19. The son of Heaven prays for (a blessing on) the coming year to the Honoured ones of heaven ; sacrifices with an ox, a ram, and a boar at the public altar to the spirits of the land, and at the gates of towns and villages; offers the sacrifice three days after the winter solstice with the spoils of the chase to all ancestors, and at the five (household) sacrifices ; —thus cheering the husbandmen and helping them to rest from their toils’.

20. The son of Heaven orders his leaders and commanders to give instruction on military operapretation. The 44ng, of the text however, has also the meaning which appears in the translation; though on that view the statement is not so general. See the ‘Narratives of the States,’ I,

1 The most common view seems to be that we have here the various parts of one sacrificial service, three days after the winter solstice, called Aa (iff), in the time of K4u, and 14 (fg), in that of Khin. While the son of Heaven performed these services, it must have been at different places in the capital I suppose, analogous and modified services were celebrated generally throughout the kingdom.

There is no agreement as to who are intended by ‘ the Honoured ones of heaven.’ Many hold that they are ‘the six Honoured ones,’ to whom Shun is said to have sacrificed in the second part of the Shi King. But the Khien-lung editors contend that the want of ‘six’ is a fatal objection to this view. K4&o YQ, supposing the six Honoured ones to be meant, argued that ‘heaven, earth, and the four seasons’ were intended by them,—those seasons co-operating with heaven and earth in the production of all things; but the same editors show, from the passages in the Shf, that heaven can in no sense be included among the six Honoured ones. They do not say, however, who or what is intended by the designation in the text. The 14 in the paragraph is taken in a pregnant sense, as if it were lieh (7g, and not AS). meaning ‘to sacrifice with the spoils of the chase.’

SECT. IV. PT. Il. THE YUEH LING. 301 tions, and to exercise (the soldiers) in archery and chariot-driving, and in trials of strength.

21. In this month orders are given to the superintendent of waters and the master of fishermen to collect the revenues from rivers, springs, ponds, and meres, taking care not to encroach in any way on any among the myriads of the people, so as to awaken a feeling of dissatisfaction in them against the son of Heaven. If they do this, they shall be punished for their guilt without forgiveness.

If they do this, they shall be punished for their guilt without forgiveness.

22. If, in the first month of winter, the proceedings of government’ proper to spring were observed, the cold that shuts up all beneath it would not do so tightly ; the vapours of the earth would rise up and go abroad; many of the people would wander away and disappear. If those proper to summer were observed, there would be many violent winds in the states ; winter itself would not be cold; and insects would come forth again from their burrows. If those proper to autumn were observed, the snow and hoarfrost would come unseasonably ; small military affairs would constantly be arising; and incursions and loss of territory would occur.

Part II,

1. In the second month of winter the sun is in Tu, the constellation culminating at dusk being the eastern Pi, and that culminating at dawn Aan}.

1 Téu comprehends {¢, A, », o, 7, > of Sagittarius; the eastern Pi, the fourteenth of the Chinese constellations, consists of Algenib or y Pegasus, and a of Andromeda; Xan is the last of the constellations, and contains §, y, 8, and e of Corvus.

302 THE Lf xf. BK, IV.

2. Its days are zin and kwei. Its divine ruler is
Awan-hsii, and the (attending) spirit is Hstian-ming.
Its creatures are the shell-covered. Its musical note
is Yii, and its pitch-tube is Hwang AKung!.

3. Its number is six. Its taste is salt. Its smell is that of things that are rotten. Its sacrifice is that at (the altar of) the path, and of the parts of the victim the kidneys have the foremost place.

4. The ice becomes more strong. The earth begins to crack or split. The night bird ceases to sing. Tigers begin to pair’.

5. The son of Heaven occupies the Grand Fane Hsiian Thang; rides in the dark-coloured carriage, drawn by the iron black horses, and bearing the darkcoloured flag. He is dressed in the black robes, and wears the dark-coloured gems of jade. He eats millet and sucking-pig. The vessels which he uses are large and rather deep.

6. All things relating to the dead are revised and regulated’,

7. Orders are given to the proper officer to the following effect*:—‘ There should nothing be done itt

1 See page 281, paragraph 5.

3 «The earth begins to crack;’ some say from the increasing intensity of the cold; others from the warmth which has begun to return, The returning warmth is indicated by the undivided line with which Fi, the hexagram of the eleventh month, commences—

‘The night bird’ sings during the night till the dawn;
‘a hill bird, like a fowl.’

® See paragraph 16, page 299. The paragraph may be inadvertently introduced here.

‘ «The proper officer’ here is said to be ‘the minister of Instruction,’ or ‘ the officer of the People.’

SECT. IV. PT. II. THE YUEH LING. 303

The paragraph may be inadvertently introduced here.

‘ «The proper officer’ here is said to be ‘the minister of Instruction,’ or ‘ the officer of the People.’

SECT. IV. PT. II. THE YUEH LING. 303

works of earth; care should be taken not to expose anything that is covered, nor to throw open apartments and houses, and rouse the masses to action; —that all may be kept securely shut up. (Otherwise) the genial influences of earth will find vent, which might be called a throwing open of the house of heaven and earth. In this case all insects would die ; and the people be sure to fall ill from pestilence, and various losses would ensue.’ This charge is said to be giving full development to the (idea of the) month.

8. In this month orders are given to the Director of the eunuchs to issue afresh the orders for the palace, to examine all the doors, inner and outer, and look carefully after all the apartments. They must be kept strictly shut. All woman’s-work must be diminished, and none of an extravagant nature permitted. Though noble and nearly related friends should come to visit the inmates, they must all be excluded.

9. Orders are given to the Grand superintendent of the preparation of liquors to see that the rice and other glutinous grains are all complete; that the leaven-cakes are in season; that the soaking and heating are cleanly conducted; that the water be fragrant; that the vessels of pottery be good; and ’ that the regulation of the fire be right. These six things have all to be attended to, and the Grand superintendent has the inspection of them, to secure that there be no error or mistake.

10. The son of Heaven issues orders to the proper officers to pray and sacrifice to (the spirits presiding over) the four seas, the great rivers (with

304 THE Lf xt. BK. IV.

their) famous sources, the deep tarns, and the meres, (all) wells and springs’.

11. In this month, if the husbandmen have any productions in the fields, which they have not stored or collected, or if there be any horses, oxen or other animals, which have been left at large, any one may take them without its being inquired into.

12. If there be those who are able to take from the hills and forests, marshes and meres, edible fruits?, or to capture game by hunting, the wardens and foresters should give them the necessary information and guidance. If there be among them those who encroach on or rob the others, they should be punished without fail.

13. In this month the shortest day arrives. The principle of darkness and decay (in nature) struggles with that of brightness and growth®. The elements of life begin to move. Superior men give themselves to self-adjustment and fasting. They keep retired in their houses. They wish to be at rest in their

The principle of darkness and decay (in nature) struggles with that of brightness and growth®. The elements of life begin to move. Superior men give themselves to self-adjustment and fasting. They keep retired in their houses. They wish to be at rest in their

1 Winter is the season in which the element of water predominates, and it was in virtue of this that the dynasty of 3hin professed to rule. The Khw&n-lun mountains (Koulkun), between the desert of Gobi and Thibet, are the source of the Hwang Ho; Yiian-min, the source of the Xiang; Thung-po, that of the Hw4i; the Ai grew out of the Yen, rising from the hill of Wang-wd. See Chinese Classics, vol. iii, pp. 127-140.

? Hazel-nuts and chestnuts are given as examples of the former ; and the water-caltrops and Euryale ferox, or ‘cock’s head,’ of the latter.

’ This description of the month is well illustrated by the lines of

Fj, the hexagram of it referred to above, — == =; the lowest line representing the principle of light and growth, which just found readmission in the year, and is seeking to develop itself.

SECT. IV. PT. II. THE YUEH LING. 305

persons; put away all indulgence in music and beautiful sights ; repress their various desires ; give repose to their bodies and all mental excitements, They wish all affairs to be quiet, while they wait for the settlement of those principles of darkness and decay, and brightness and growth.

14. Rice begins to grow. The broom-sedge rises up vigorously. Worms curl? The moose-deer shed their horns*, The springs of water are (all) in movement.

15. When the shortest day has arrived, they fell trees, and carry away bamboos, (especially) the small species suitable for arrows.

16. In this month offices in which there is no business may be closed, and vessels for which there is no use may be removed.

17. They plaster (and repair) the pillars and gateways (of the palace), and the courtyard (within), and also doors and other gateways ; rebuilding (also all) prisons, to co-operate with the tendency of nature to shut up and secure (the genial influences at this season),

18. If in this second month of winter the proceedings of government proper to summer were observed,

1 This is called by Dr. Williams ‘a species of iris.’ The roots are made into brooms. ;

2 This is a fancy. The commentators say that the worms curl and twist, with their heads turned downwards, as if seeking to return to the warmth beneath the surface.

* The shedding of the horns in winter shows that the mf here,

, is a species of the elk or moose-deer, and different from the lf (EB), which sheds its horns in the sixth month. The mf is described as being fond of the water, and as Jarge as a small ox.

(27) x

306 THE Lf xi. BK. Iv.