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Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, And end them like your ancestors ! ‘Your territory is great and glorious, And per- ODE 8. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 405 fectly secure. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, As the host of all the Spirits?! ‘You have received the appointment long acknowledged, With peace around your happiness and dignity. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, With pure happiness your constant possession ! ‘You have helpers and supporters, Men of filial piety and of virtue, To lead you on, and act as wings to you, (So that), O happy and courteous sovereign, You are a pattern to the four quarters (of the kingdom). ‘Full of dignity and majesty (are they), Like a 1 «Host of the hundred—i.e., of all—the spirits’ is one of the titles of the sovereign of China. It was and is his prerogative to offer the great ‘border sacrifices’ to Heaven and Earth, or, as Confucius explains them, to God, and to the spirits of his ancestors in his ancestral temple; and in his progresses (now neglected), among the states, to the spirits of the hills and rivers throughout the kingdom. Every feudal prince could only sacrifice to the hills and streams within his own territory. Under the changed conditions of the government of China, the sacrificial ritual of the emperor still retains the substance of whatever belonged to the sovereigns in this respect from the earliest dynasties. On the text here, Khung Ying-t4 of the Thang dynasty said, ‘ He who possesses all under the sky, sacrifices to all the spirits, and thus he is the host of them all.’ Ka Hsf said on it, ‘And always be the host of (the spirits of) Heaven and Earth, of the hills and rivers, and of the departed.’ The term ‘host’ does not imply any superiority of rank on the part of the entertainer. In the greatest sacrifices the emperor acknowledges himself as ‘the servant or subject of Heaven.’ See the prayer of the first of the present Manchau line of emperors, in announcing that he had ascended the throne, at the altar of Heaven and Earth, in 1644, as translated by the Rev. Dr. Edkins in the chapter on Imperial Worship, in the recent edition of his ‘ Religion in China,’ 406 THE SHIH KING. DECADE IL. jade-mace (in its purity), The subject of praise, the contemplation of hope. O happy and courteous sovereign, (Through them) the four quarters (of the kingdom) are guided by you. ‘The male and female phcenix fly about!, Their wings rustling, While they settle in their proper resting-place. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Ready to be employed by you, Loving you, the Son of Heaven. ‘The male and female phcenix fly about, Their wings rustling, As they soar up to heaven. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Waiting for your commands, And loving the multitudes of the people.
2‘The male and female phcenix fly about, Their wings rustling, As they soar up to heaven. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Waiting for your commands, And loving the multitudes of the people. ‘The male and female phcenix give out their notes, On that lofty ridge. The dryandras grow, On those eastern slopes. They grow luxuriantly ; And harmoniously the notes resound. 1 The phoenix (so the creature has been named) is a fabulous bird, ‘the chief of the 360 classes of the winged tribes.’ It is mentioned in the fourth Book of the second Part of the Sha, as appearing in the courtyard of Shun; and the appearance of a pair of them has always been understood to denote a sage on the throne and prosperity in the country. Even Confucius (Analects, IX, viii) could not express his hopelessness about his own times more strongly than by saying that ‘the phoenix did not make its appearance.’ He was himself also called ‘a phoenix,’ in derision, by one of the recluses of his time (Analects, XVIII, v). The type of the bird was, perhaps, the Argus pheasant, but the: descriptions of it are of a monstrous creature, having ‘a fowl’s head, a swallow’s chin, a serpent’s neck, a fish’s tail,’ &c. It only lights on the dryandra cordifolia, of which tree also many marvellous stories are related. The poet is not to be understood as saying that the phoenix actually appeared; but that the king was sage and his government prosperous, as if it had appeared. ODE9. |THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM.’ 407 ‘Your chariots, O sovereign, Are numerous, many. Your horses, O sovereign, Are well trained and fleet. I have made my few verses, In prolongation of your song.’ Ope 9, Stanza 1. Tue Min LAo. IN A TIME OF DISORDER AND SUFFERING, SOME OFFICER OF DISTINC- TION CALLS ON HIS FELLOWS TO JOIN WITH HIM TO EFFECT A REFORMATION IN THE CAPITAL, AND PUT AWAY THE PARTIES WHO WERE THE CAUSE OF THE PREVAILING MISERY. With the Khitan A, what are called the ‘correct’ odes of Part III, or those belonging to a period of good government, and the composition of which is ascribed mainly to the duke of X4u, come to an end; and those that follow are the ‘changed’ Major Odes of the Kingdom, or those belonging to a degenerate period, commencing with this. Some among them, however, are equal to any of the former class. The Min Lo has been assigned to duke MQ of Shao, a descendant of duke Khang, the Shih of the Sh, the reputed author of the KAttan A, and was directed against king Lf, B.c. 878 to 828. The people indeed are heavily burdened, But perhaps a little relief may be got for them. Let us cherish this centre of the kingdom, To secure the repose of the four quarters of it. Let us give no indulgence to the wily and obsequious, In order to make the unconscientious careful, And to repress robbers and oppressors, Who have no fear of the clear will (of Heaven)!. Then let us show kindness to those who are distant, And help those who are near,—Thus establishing (the throne of) our king.
3Then let us show kindness to those who are distant, And help those who are near,—Thus establishing (the throne of) our king. 1¢The clear will,’ according to XQ Hsi, is ‘the clear appointment of Heaven;’ according to Af Kung-éhien, ‘correct principle.’ They both mean the law of human duty, as gathered from the nature of man’s moral constitution conferred by Heaven. 408 THE SHIH KING. DECADE Il. Ove 10. THe Pan. AN OFFICER OF EXPERIENCE MOURNS OVER THE PREVAILING MISERY; COMPLAINS OF THE WANT OF SYMPATHY WITH HIM SHOWN BY OTHER OFFICERS ; ADMONISHES THEM, AND SETS FORTH THE DUTY RE- QUIRED OF THEM, ESPECIALLY IN THE ANGRY MOOD IN WHICH IT MIGHT SEEM THAT HEAVEN WAS. This piece, like the last, is assigned to the time of king Lf. God has reversed (his usual course of procedure)’, And the lower people are full of distress. The words which you utter are not right; The plans which you form are not far-reaching. As there are not sages, you think you have no guidance ;—You have no real sincerity. (Thus) your plans do not reach far, And I therefore strongly admonish you. Heaven is now sending down calamities;—Do not be so complacent. Heaven is now producing such movements ;—Do not be so indifferent. If your words were harmonious, The people would become united. If your words were gentle and kind, The people would be settled. Though my duties are different from yours, I am your fellow-servant. I come to advise with you, And you hear me with contemptuous indifference. My words are about the (present urgent) affairs ;— Do not think them matter for laughter. The ancients had a saying:—‘Consult the gatherers of grass and firewood *.’ 1 The proof of God’s having reversed his usual course of procedure was to be found in the universal misery of the people, whose good He was understood to desire, and for the securing of which government by righteous kings was maintained by him. * If ancient worthies thought that persons in such mean employments were to be consulted, surely the advice of the writer deserved to be taken into account by his comrades. ODE 10. THE MAJOR. ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 409 Heaven is now exercising oppression ;—Do not in such a way make a mock of things. An old man, (I speak) with entire sincerity; But you, my juniors, are full of pride. It is not that my words are those ‘ of age, But you make a joke of what is sad. But the troubles will multiply like flames, Till they are beyond help or remedy. Heaven is now displaying its anger ;—Do not be either boastful or flattering, Utterly departing from all propriety of demeanour, Till good men are reduced to personators of the dead. The people now sigh and groan, And we dare not examine (into the causes of their trouble). The ruin and disorder are exhausting all their’ means of living, And we show no kindness to our multitudes.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, And end them like your ancestors ! ‘Your territory is great and glorious, And per- ODE 8. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 405 fectly secure. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, As the host of all the Spirits?! ‘You have received the appointment long acknowledged, With peace around your happiness and dignity. O happy and courteous sovereign, May you fulfil your years, With pure happiness your constant possession ! ‘You have helpers and supporters, Men of filial piety and of virtue, To lead you on, and act as wings to you, (So that), O happy and courteous sovereign, You are a pattern to the four quarters (of the kingdom). ‘Full of dignity and majesty (are they), Like a 1 «Host of the hundred—i.e., of all—the spirits’ is one of the titles of the sovereign of China. It was and is his prerogative to offer the great ‘border sacrifices’ to Heaven and Earth, or, as Confucius explains them, to God, and to the spirits of his ancestors in his ancestral temple; and in his progresses (now neglected), among the states, to the spirits of the hills and rivers throughout the kingdom. Every feudal prince could only sacrifice to the hills and streams within his own territory. Under the changed conditions of the government of China, the sacrificial ritual of the emperor still retains the substance of whatever belonged to the sovereigns in this respect from the earliest dynasties. On the text here, Khung Ying-t4 of the Thang dynasty said, ‘ He who possesses all under the sky, sacrifices to all the spirits, and thus he is the host of them all.’ Ka Hsf said on it, ‘And always be the host of (the spirits of) Heaven and Earth, of the hills and rivers, and of the departed.’ The term ‘host’ does not imply any superiority of rank on the part of the entertainer. In the greatest sacrifices the emperor acknowledges himself as ‘the servant or subject of Heaven.’ See the prayer of the first of the present Manchau line of emperors, in announcing that he had ascended the throne, at the altar of Heaven and Earth, in 1644, as translated by the Rev. Dr. Edkins in the chapter on Imperial Worship, in the recent edition of his ‘ Religion in China,’ 406 THE SHIH KING. DECADE IL. jade-mace (in its purity), The subject of praise, the contemplation of hope. O happy and courteous sovereign, (Through them) the four quarters (of the kingdom) are guided by you. ‘The male and female phcenix fly about!, Their wings rustling, While they settle in their proper resting-place. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Ready to be employed by you, Loving you, the Son of Heaven. ‘The male and female phcenix fly about, Their wings rustling, As they soar up to heaven. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Waiting for your commands, And loving the multitudes of the people.
2‘The male and female phcenix fly about, Their wings rustling, As they soar up to heaven. Many are your admirable officers, O king, Waiting for your commands, And loving the multitudes of the people. ‘The male and female phcenix give out their notes, On that lofty ridge. The dryandras grow, On those eastern slopes. They grow luxuriantly ; And harmoniously the notes resound. 1 The phoenix (so the creature has been named) is a fabulous bird, ‘the chief of the 360 classes of the winged tribes.’ It is mentioned in the fourth Book of the second Part of the Sha, as appearing in the courtyard of Shun; and the appearance of a pair of them has always been understood to denote a sage on the throne and prosperity in the country. Even Confucius (Analects, IX, viii) could not express his hopelessness about his own times more strongly than by saying that ‘the phoenix did not make its appearance.’ He was himself also called ‘a phoenix,’ in derision, by one of the recluses of his time (Analects, XVIII, v). The type of the bird was, perhaps, the Argus pheasant, but the: descriptions of it are of a monstrous creature, having ‘a fowl’s head, a swallow’s chin, a serpent’s neck, a fish’s tail,’ &c. It only lights on the dryandra cordifolia, of which tree also many marvellous stories are related. The poet is not to be understood as saying that the phoenix actually appeared; but that the king was sage and his government prosperous, as if it had appeared. ODE9. |THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM.’ 407 ‘Your chariots, O sovereign, Are numerous, many. Your horses, O sovereign, Are well trained and fleet. I have made my few verses, In prolongation of your song.’ Ope 9, Stanza 1. Tue Min LAo. IN A TIME OF DISORDER AND SUFFERING, SOME OFFICER OF DISTINC- TION CALLS ON HIS FELLOWS TO JOIN WITH HIM TO EFFECT A REFORMATION IN THE CAPITAL, AND PUT AWAY THE PARTIES WHO WERE THE CAUSE OF THE PREVAILING MISERY. With the Khitan A, what are called the ‘correct’ odes of Part III, or those belonging to a period of good government, and the composition of which is ascribed mainly to the duke of X4u, come to an end; and those that follow are the ‘changed’ Major Odes of the Kingdom, or those belonging to a degenerate period, commencing with this. Some among them, however, are equal to any of the former class. The Min Lo has been assigned to duke MQ of Shao, a descendant of duke Khang, the Shih of the Sh, the reputed author of the KAttan A, and was directed against king Lf, B.c. 878 to 828. The people indeed are heavily burdened, But perhaps a little relief may be got for them. Let us cherish this centre of the kingdom, To secure the repose of the four quarters of it. Let us give no indulgence to the wily and obsequious, In order to make the unconscientious careful, And to repress robbers and oppressors, Who have no fear of the clear will (of Heaven)!. Then let us show kindness to those who are distant, And help those who are near,—Thus establishing (the throne of) our king.
3Then let us show kindness to those who are distant, And help those who are near,—Thus establishing (the throne of) our king. 1¢The clear will,’ according to XQ Hsi, is ‘the clear appointment of Heaven;’ according to Af Kung-éhien, ‘correct principle.’ They both mean the law of human duty, as gathered from the nature of man’s moral constitution conferred by Heaven. 408 THE SHIH KING. DECADE Il. Ove 10. THe Pan. AN OFFICER OF EXPERIENCE MOURNS OVER THE PREVAILING MISERY; COMPLAINS OF THE WANT OF SYMPATHY WITH HIM SHOWN BY OTHER OFFICERS ; ADMONISHES THEM, AND SETS FORTH THE DUTY RE- QUIRED OF THEM, ESPECIALLY IN THE ANGRY MOOD IN WHICH IT MIGHT SEEM THAT HEAVEN WAS. This piece, like the last, is assigned to the time of king Lf. God has reversed (his usual course of procedure)’, And the lower people are full of distress. The words which you utter are not right; The plans which you form are not far-reaching. As there are not sages, you think you have no guidance ;—You have no real sincerity. (Thus) your plans do not reach far, And I therefore strongly admonish you. Heaven is now sending down calamities;—Do not be so complacent. Heaven is now producing such movements ;—Do not be so indifferent. If your words were harmonious, The people would become united. If your words were gentle and kind, The people would be settled. Though my duties are different from yours, I am your fellow-servant. I come to advise with you, And you hear me with contemptuous indifference. My words are about the (present urgent) affairs ;— Do not think them matter for laughter. The ancients had a saying:—‘Consult the gatherers of grass and firewood *.’ 1 The proof of God’s having reversed his usual course of procedure was to be found in the universal misery of the people, whose good He was understood to desire, and for the securing of which government by righteous kings was maintained by him. * If ancient worthies thought that persons in such mean employments were to be consulted, surely the advice of the writer deserved to be taken into account by his comrades. ODE 10. THE MAJOR. ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 409 Heaven is now exercising oppression ;—Do not in such a way make a mock of things. An old man, (I speak) with entire sincerity; But you, my juniors, are full of pride. It is not that my words are those ‘ of age, But you make a joke of what is sad. But the troubles will multiply like flames, Till they are beyond help or remedy. Heaven is now displaying its anger ;—Do not be either boastful or flattering, Utterly departing from all propriety of demeanour, Till good men are reduced to personators of the dead. The people now sigh and groan, And we dare not examine (into the causes of their trouble). The ruin and disorder are exhausting all their’ means of living, And we show no kindness to our multitudes.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
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