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Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1The people now sigh and groan, And we dare not examine (into the causes of their trouble). The ruin and disorder are exhausting all their’ means of living, And we show no kindness to our multitudes. Heaven enlightens the people?, As the bamboo flute responds to the earthen whistle; As two halfmaces form a whole one; As you take a thing, and bring it away in your hand, Bringing it away, without any more ado. The enlightenment of the people is very easy. They have (now) many perversities;—Do not you set up your perversity before them. Good men are a fence; The multitudes of the people are awall; Great states are screens; Great families are buttresses; The cherishing of virtue 1 During all the time of the sacrifice, the personators of the dead said not a word, but only ate and drank. To the semblance of them good men were now reduced. 2 The meaning is, that Heaven has so attuned the mind to virtue, that, if good example were set before the people, they would certainly and readily follow it. This is illustrated by various instances of things, in which the one succeeded the other freely and as if necessarily ; so that government by virtue was really very easy. 410 THE SHIH KING. DECADE III. secures repose; The circle of (the king’s) relatives is a fortified wall. We must not let the fortified wall get destroyed; We must not let (the king) be solitary and consumed with terrors. Revere the anger of Heaven, And presume not to make sport or be idle. Revere the changing moods of Heaven, And presume not to drive about (at your pleasure). Great Heaven is intelligent, And is with you in all your goings. Great Heaven is clear-seeing, And is with you in your wanderings and indulgences. The Third Decade, or that of Tang. Ove 1. Tue Tana. WARNINGS, SUPPOSED TO BE ADDRESSED TO KING uf, ON THE ISSUES OF THE COURSE WHICH HE WAS PURSUING, SHOWING THAT THE MISERIES OF THE TIME AND THE IMMINENT DANGER OF RUIN WERE TO BE ATTRIBUTED, NOT TO HEAVEN, BUT TO HIMSELF AND HIS MINISTERS, This ode, like the ninth of the second decade, is attributed to duke M€ of Shao. The structure of the piece is peculiar, for, after the first stanza, we have king Wn introduced delivering a series of warnings to A4au-hsin, the last king of the Shang dynasty. They are put into WAn’s mouth, in the hope that Lf, if, indeed, he was the monarch whom the writer had in view, would transfer the figure of XAu-hsin to himself, and alter his course so as to avoid a similar ruin. How vast is God, Theruler of men below! How arrayed in terrors is God, With many things irregular in his ordinations. Heaven gave birth to the multitudes of the people, But the nature it confers is not to be depended on. All are (good) ODE I. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 411 at first, But few prove themselves to be so at the last}.
2How arrayed in terrors is God, With many things irregular in his ordinations. Heaven gave birth to the multitudes of the people, But the nature it confers is not to be depended on. All are (good) ODE I. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 411 at first, But few prove themselves to be so at the last}. King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you sovereign of Shang, That you should have such violently oppressive ministers, That you should have such extortionate exactors, That you should have them in offices, That you should have them in the conduct of affairs! “Heaven made them with their insolent dispositions ;” But it is you who employ them, and give them strength.’ King WaAn said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, You ought to employ such as are good, But (you employ instead) violent oppressors, who cause many dissatisfactions. They respond to you with baseless stories, And (thus) robbers and thieves are in your court. Hence come oaths and curses, Without limit, without end.’ King Wan said,‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, You show a strong fierce will in the centre of the kingdom, And consider the contracting of enmities a proof of virtue. All-unintelligent are you of your (proper) virtue, And so you have no (good) men behind you, nor by your side. Without any intelligence of your (proper) virtue, You have no (good) intimate adviser or minister.’ King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, It is not Heaven that flushes your face with spirits, So that you follow what is evil and imitate it. You go wrong in all your conduct; You make no distinction between the light and the 1 The meaning seems to be that, whatever miseries might prevail, and be ignorantly ascribed to God, they were in reality owing to men’s neglect of the law of Heaven inscribed on their hearts. 412 THE SHIH KING. DECADE III. darkness; But amid clamour and shouting, You turn the day into night?.’ King Wn said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, (All round you) is like the noise of cicadas, Or. like the bubbling of boiling soup. Affairs, great and small, are approaching to ruin, And still you (and your creatures) go on in this course. Indignation is rife against you here in the Middle Kingdom, And extends to the demon regions 2,’ King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, It is not God that has caused this evil time, But it arises from Yin’s not using the old (ways). Although you have not old experienced men, There are still the ancient statutes and laws. But you will not listen to them, And so your great appointment is being overthrown.’ King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Shang, People have a saying, “When a tree falls utterly, While its branches and leaves are yet uninjured, It must first have been uprooted.” The beacon of Yin is not far distant ;—It is in the age of the (last) sovereign of Hsia.’
3Alas! you (sovereign of) Shang, People have a saying, “When a tree falls utterly, While its branches and leaves are yet uninjured, It must first have been uprooted.” The beacon of Yin is not far distant ;—It is in the age of the (last) sovereign of Hsia.’ 1 We speak of ‘turning night into day.’ The tyrant of Shang turned day into night. Excesses, generally committed in darkness, were by him done openly. 8 These ‘demon regions’ are understood to mean the seat of the Turkic tribes to the north of China, known from the earliest times by various names—‘ The hill Zung,’ ‘the northern Lf,’ ‘ the Hsien-yun,’ &c. Towards the beginning of our era, they were called Hsiung-nf, from which, perhaps, came the name Huns; and some centuries later, Tha-4teh (Thuh-Aieh), from which came Turk. We are told in the Yi, under the diagram A?-ét, that Kao Bung (B.c. 1324-1266) conducted an expedition against the demon regions, and in three years subdued them, ODE 2. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 413 Ope 2, Tue Yi. CONTAINING VARIOUS COUNSELS WHICH DUKE wi) OF WEI MADE TO ADMONISH HIMSELF, WHEN HE WAS OVER HIS NINETIETH YEAR; ESPECIALLY ON THE DUTY OF A RULER TO BE CAREFUL OF HIS OUTWARD DEMEANOUR, FEELING THAT HE IS EVER UNDER THE IN- SPECTION OF SPIRITUAL BEINGS, AND TO RECEIVE WITH DOCILITY INSTRUCTIONS DELIVERED TO HIM. The sixth ode in the seventh decade of the Minor Odes of the Kingdom is attributed to the same duke of Wei as this; and the two bear traces of having proceeded from the same writer. The external authorities for assigning this piece to duke Wf are the statement of the preface and an article in the ‘Narratives of the States,’ a work already referred to as belonging to the period of the Kau dynasty. That article relates how Wf, at the age of ninety-five, insisted on all his ministers and officers being instant, in season and out of season, to admonish him on his conduct, and that ‘he made the warnings in the f to admonish himself.’ The f is understood to be only another name for this Yi. Thus the speaker throughout the piece is Wd, and ‘the young son,’ whom he sometimes addresses, is himself also. The conception of the writer in taking such a method to admonish himself, and give forth the lessons of his long life, is very remarkable ; and the execution of it is successful, Outward demeanour, cautious and grave, Is an indication of the (inward) virtue. People have the saying, ‘There is no wise man who is not (also) stupid.” The stupidity of the ordinary man Is determined by his (natural) defects, The stupidity of the wise man Is from his doing violence (to his proper character). What is most powerful is the being the man!;— 1 WA writes as the marquis of Wei, the ruler of a state; but what he says is susceptible of universal application. In every smaller sphere, and in the largest, ‘being the man,’ displaying, that is, the proper qualities of humanity, will be appreciated and felt. 414 THE SHIH KING. DECADE Ill.
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.
1The people now sigh and groan, And we dare not examine (into the causes of their trouble). The ruin and disorder are exhausting all their’ means of living, And we show no kindness to our multitudes. Heaven enlightens the people?, As the bamboo flute responds to the earthen whistle; As two halfmaces form a whole one; As you take a thing, and bring it away in your hand, Bringing it away, without any more ado. The enlightenment of the people is very easy. They have (now) many perversities;—Do not you set up your perversity before them. Good men are a fence; The multitudes of the people are awall; Great states are screens; Great families are buttresses; The cherishing of virtue 1 During all the time of the sacrifice, the personators of the dead said not a word, but only ate and drank. To the semblance of them good men were now reduced. 2 The meaning is, that Heaven has so attuned the mind to virtue, that, if good example were set before the people, they would certainly and readily follow it. This is illustrated by various instances of things, in which the one succeeded the other freely and as if necessarily ; so that government by virtue was really very easy. 410 THE SHIH KING. DECADE III. secures repose; The circle of (the king’s) relatives is a fortified wall. We must not let the fortified wall get destroyed; We must not let (the king) be solitary and consumed with terrors. Revere the anger of Heaven, And presume not to make sport or be idle. Revere the changing moods of Heaven, And presume not to drive about (at your pleasure). Great Heaven is intelligent, And is with you in all your goings. Great Heaven is clear-seeing, And is with you in your wanderings and indulgences. The Third Decade, or that of Tang. Ove 1. Tue Tana. WARNINGS, SUPPOSED TO BE ADDRESSED TO KING uf, ON THE ISSUES OF THE COURSE WHICH HE WAS PURSUING, SHOWING THAT THE MISERIES OF THE TIME AND THE IMMINENT DANGER OF RUIN WERE TO BE ATTRIBUTED, NOT TO HEAVEN, BUT TO HIMSELF AND HIS MINISTERS, This ode, like the ninth of the second decade, is attributed to duke M€ of Shao. The structure of the piece is peculiar, for, after the first stanza, we have king Wn introduced delivering a series of warnings to A4au-hsin, the last king of the Shang dynasty. They are put into WAn’s mouth, in the hope that Lf, if, indeed, he was the monarch whom the writer had in view, would transfer the figure of XAu-hsin to himself, and alter his course so as to avoid a similar ruin. How vast is God, Theruler of men below! How arrayed in terrors is God, With many things irregular in his ordinations. Heaven gave birth to the multitudes of the people, But the nature it confers is not to be depended on. All are (good) ODE I. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 411 at first, But few prove themselves to be so at the last}.
2How arrayed in terrors is God, With many things irregular in his ordinations. Heaven gave birth to the multitudes of the people, But the nature it confers is not to be depended on. All are (good) ODE I. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 411 at first, But few prove themselves to be so at the last}. King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you sovereign of Shang, That you should have such violently oppressive ministers, That you should have such extortionate exactors, That you should have them in offices, That you should have them in the conduct of affairs! “Heaven made them with their insolent dispositions ;” But it is you who employ them, and give them strength.’ King WaAn said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, You ought to employ such as are good, But (you employ instead) violent oppressors, who cause many dissatisfactions. They respond to you with baseless stories, And (thus) robbers and thieves are in your court. Hence come oaths and curses, Without limit, without end.’ King Wan said,‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, You show a strong fierce will in the centre of the kingdom, And consider the contracting of enmities a proof of virtue. All-unintelligent are you of your (proper) virtue, And so you have no (good) men behind you, nor by your side. Without any intelligence of your (proper) virtue, You have no (good) intimate adviser or minister.’ King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, It is not Heaven that flushes your face with spirits, So that you follow what is evil and imitate it. You go wrong in all your conduct; You make no distinction between the light and the 1 The meaning seems to be that, whatever miseries might prevail, and be ignorantly ascribed to God, they were in reality owing to men’s neglect of the law of Heaven inscribed on their hearts. 412 THE SHIH KING. DECADE III. darkness; But amid clamour and shouting, You turn the day into night?.’ King Wn said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, (All round you) is like the noise of cicadas, Or. like the bubbling of boiling soup. Affairs, great and small, are approaching to ruin, And still you (and your creatures) go on in this course. Indignation is rife against you here in the Middle Kingdom, And extends to the demon regions 2,’ King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Yin-shang, It is not God that has caused this evil time, But it arises from Yin’s not using the old (ways). Although you have not old experienced men, There are still the ancient statutes and laws. But you will not listen to them, And so your great appointment is being overthrown.’ King Wan said, ‘Alas! Alas! you (sovereign of) Shang, People have a saying, “When a tree falls utterly, While its branches and leaves are yet uninjured, It must first have been uprooted.” The beacon of Yin is not far distant ;—It is in the age of the (last) sovereign of Hsia.’
3Alas! you (sovereign of) Shang, People have a saying, “When a tree falls utterly, While its branches and leaves are yet uninjured, It must first have been uprooted.” The beacon of Yin is not far distant ;—It is in the age of the (last) sovereign of Hsia.’ 1 We speak of ‘turning night into day.’ The tyrant of Shang turned day into night. Excesses, generally committed in darkness, were by him done openly. 8 These ‘demon regions’ are understood to mean the seat of the Turkic tribes to the north of China, known from the earliest times by various names—‘ The hill Zung,’ ‘the northern Lf,’ ‘ the Hsien-yun,’ &c. Towards the beginning of our era, they were called Hsiung-nf, from which, perhaps, came the name Huns; and some centuries later, Tha-4teh (Thuh-Aieh), from which came Turk. We are told in the Yi, under the diagram A?-ét, that Kao Bung (B.c. 1324-1266) conducted an expedition against the demon regions, and in three years subdued them, ODE 2. THE MAJOR ODES OF THE KINGDOM. 413 Ope 2, Tue Yi. CONTAINING VARIOUS COUNSELS WHICH DUKE wi) OF WEI MADE TO ADMONISH HIMSELF, WHEN HE WAS OVER HIS NINETIETH YEAR; ESPECIALLY ON THE DUTY OF A RULER TO BE CAREFUL OF HIS OUTWARD DEMEANOUR, FEELING THAT HE IS EVER UNDER THE IN- SPECTION OF SPIRITUAL BEINGS, AND TO RECEIVE WITH DOCILITY INSTRUCTIONS DELIVERED TO HIM. The sixth ode in the seventh decade of the Minor Odes of the Kingdom is attributed to the same duke of Wei as this; and the two bear traces of having proceeded from the same writer. The external authorities for assigning this piece to duke Wf are the statement of the preface and an article in the ‘Narratives of the States,’ a work already referred to as belonging to the period of the Kau dynasty. That article relates how Wf, at the age of ninety-five, insisted on all his ministers and officers being instant, in season and out of season, to admonish him on his conduct, and that ‘he made the warnings in the f to admonish himself.’ The f is understood to be only another name for this Yi. Thus the speaker throughout the piece is Wd, and ‘the young son,’ whom he sometimes addresses, is himself also. The conception of the writer in taking such a method to admonish himself, and give forth the lessons of his long life, is very remarkable ; and the execution of it is successful, Outward demeanour, cautious and grave, Is an indication of the (inward) virtue. People have the saying, ‘There is no wise man who is not (also) stupid.” The stupidity of the ordinary man Is determined by his (natural) defects, The stupidity of the wise man Is from his doing violence (to his proper character). What is most powerful is the being the man!;— 1 WA writes as the marquis of Wei, the ruler of a state; but what he says is susceptible of universal application. In every smaller sphere, and in the largest, ‘being the man,’ displaying, that is, the proper qualities of humanity, will be appreciated and felt. 414 THE SHIH KING. DECADE Ill.
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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