Fetching
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Fetching
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Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1There were my new counsellors, and I would for the time give my confidence to them’. So indeed it was with me; but hereafter I will 1 The prince of KAin was only a marquis; but the historiographers or recorders of a state always gave their ruler the higher title. This shows that this speech is taken from the chronicles of Khin. ® Pai-lt Hst and KAien-shd. * Khi-3ze and others. 272 THE SHO KING. PART V. take advice from the men of yellow hair, and then I shall be free from error. That good old officer! —his strength is exhausted, but I would rather have him (as my counsellor). That dashing brave officer !—his shooting and charioteering are faultless, but I would rather not wish to have him. As to men of quibbles, skilful at cunning words, and able to make the good man change his purposes, what have I to do to make much use of them? ‘I have deeply thought and concluded.—Let me have but one resolute minister, plain and sincere, without other ability, but having a straightforward mind, and possessed of generosity, regarding the talents of others as if he himself possessed them ; and when he finds accomplished and sage men, loving them in his heart more than his mouth expresses, really showing himself able to bear them: —such a minister would be able to preserve my descendants and people, and would indeed be a | giver of benefits. ‘But if (the minister), when he finds men of ability, be jealous and hates them; if, when he finds accomplished and sage men, he oppose them and does not allow their advancement, showing himself really not able to bear them :—such a man will not be able to protect my descendants and people; and will he not be a dangerous man ? ‘The decline and fall of a state may arise from one man. The glory and tranquillity of a state may also arise from the goodness of one man.’ THE SHIH KING OR BOOK OF POETRY: ALL THE PIECES AND STANZAS IN IT ILLUSTRATING THE RELIGIOUS VIEWS AND PRACTICES OF THE WRITERS AND THEIR TIMES, (1] T Cc THE SHIH KING OR BOOK OF POETRY. INTRODUCTION. CHAPTER I. THE NAME AND CONTENTS OF THE CLASSIC. 1. Among the Chinese classical books next after the Sha in point of antiquity comes the Shih or Book of Poetry. The character Shd}, as formed by the combination of The meaning two others, one of which signified ‘a pencil,’ ete and the other ‘to speak,’ supplied, we saw, Shih. in its structure, an indication of its primary
2The character Shd}, as formed by the combination of The meaning two others, one of which signified ‘a pencil,’ ete and the other ‘to speak,’ supplied, we saw, Shih. in its structure, an indication of its primary significance, and furnished a clue to its different applications. The character Shih? was made on a different principle,— that of phonetical formation, in the peculiar sense of these words when applied to a large class of Chinese terms. The significative portion of it is the character for ‘speech,’ but the other half is merely phonetical, enabling us to approximate to its pronunciation or name. The meaning of the compound has to be learned from its usage. Its most common significations are ‘ poetry,’ ‘a poem, or poems,’ and ‘a collection of poems.’ This last is its meaning when we speak of the Shih or the Shih King. The earliest Chinese utterance that we have on the subject of poetry is that in the Sh by the ancient Shun, when he said to his Minister of Music, ‘ Poetry is the expression of earnest thought, and singing is the prolonged 276 THE SHIH KING. utterance of that expression.’ To the same effect is the language of a Preface to the Shih, sometimes ascribed to Confucius, and certainly older than our Christian era :— ‘Poetry is the product of earnest thought. Thought cherished in the mind becomes earnest ; then expressed in words, it becomes poetry. The feelings move inwardly, and are embodied in words. When words are insufficient for them, recourse is had to sighs and exclamations, When sighs and exclamations are insufficient for them, recourse is had to the prolonged utterance of song. When this again is insufficient, unconsciously the hands begin to move and the feet to dance. .... To set forth correctly the successes and failures (of government), to affect Heaven and Earth, and to move spiritual beings, there is no readier instrument than poetry.’ Rhyme, it may be added here, is a necessary accompaniment of poetry in the estimation of the Chinese. Only in a very few pieces of the Shih is it neglected. 2. The Shih King contains 305 pieces and the titles of ‘The contents six others, The most recent of them are ofthe Shih. assigned to the reign of king Ting of the Kau dynasty, B.C. 606 to 586, and the oldest, forming a group of only five, to the period of the Shang dynasty which preceded that of Kau, B.c. 1766 to 1123. Of those five, the latest piece should be referred to the twelfth century B.C., and the most ancient may have been composed five centuries earlier. All the other pieces in the Shih have to be distributed over the time between Ting and king Wan, the founder of the line of XAu. The distribution, however, is not equal nor continuous. There were some reigns of which we do not have a single poetical fragment. The whole collection is divided into four parts, called the Kwo FAng, the Hsiao YA, the Ta Y4, and the Sung.
3The distribution, however, is not equal nor continuous. There were some reigns of which we do not have a single poetical fragment. The whole collection is divided into four parts, called the Kwo FAng, the Hsiao YA, the Ta Y4, and the Sung. The Kwo Fang, in fifteen Books, contains 160 pieces, nearly all of them short, and descriptive of manners and events in several of the feudal states of Kau. The title has been translated by The Manners of the Different States, ‘Les Moeurs des Royaumes,’ and, which I prefer, by Lessons from the States, INTRODUCTION. 277 The Hsiao Y4, or Lesser Y4, in eight Books, contains seventy-four pieces and the titles of six others, sung at gatherings of the feudal princes, and their appearances at the royal court. They were produced in the royal territory, and are descriptive of the manners and ways of the government in successive reigns. It is difficult to find an English word that shall fitly represent the Chinese Y4 as here used. In his Latin translation of the Shih, P. Lacharme translated Hsido YA by ‘Quod rectum est, sed inferiore ordine,’ adding in a note :—‘ Sido Y4, latine Parvum Rectum, quia in hac Parte mores describuntur, recti illi quidem, qui tamen nonnihil a recto deflectunt.’ But the manners described are not less correct or incorrect, as the case may be, than those of the states in the former Part or of the kingdom in the next. I prefer to call this Part ‘Minor Odes of the Kingdom,’ without attempting to translate the term YA. The T& Ya or Greater YA, in three Books, contains thirty-one pieces, sung on great occasions at the royal court and in the presence of the king. P. Lacharme called it ‘Magnum Rectum (Quod rectum est superiore ordine).’ But there is the same objection here to the use of the word ‘correct’ as in the case of the pieces of the previous Part. I use the name ‘Major Odes of the Kingdom.’ The greater length and dignity of most of the pieces justify the distinction of the two Parts into Minor and Major. The Sung, also in three Books, contains forty pieces, thirty-one of which belong to the sacrificial services at the royal court of Kau; four, to those of the marquises of La; and five to the corresponding sacrifices of the kings of Shang. P. Lacharme denominated them correctly ‘ Parentales Cantus.’ In the Preface to the Shih, to which I have made reference above, it is said, ‘The Sung are pieces in admiration of the embodied manifestation of complete virtue, announcing to the spiritual Intelligences their achievement thereof.’ A Hsi’s account of the Sung was— ‘Songs for the Music of the Ancestral Temple ;’ and that of Kiang Yung of the present dynasty—‘ Songs for the Music at Sacrifices.’ I have united these two definitions, and call the Part—‘ Odes of the Temple and the Altar.’ There is 278 THE SHIH KING. a difference between the pieces of La and the other two collections in this Part, to which I will call attention in giving the translation of them.
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.
1There were my new counsellors, and I would for the time give my confidence to them’. So indeed it was with me; but hereafter I will 1 The prince of KAin was only a marquis; but the historiographers or recorders of a state always gave their ruler the higher title. This shows that this speech is taken from the chronicles of Khin. ® Pai-lt Hst and KAien-shd. * Khi-3ze and others. 272 THE SHO KING. PART V. take advice from the men of yellow hair, and then I shall be free from error. That good old officer! —his strength is exhausted, but I would rather have him (as my counsellor). That dashing brave officer !—his shooting and charioteering are faultless, but I would rather not wish to have him. As to men of quibbles, skilful at cunning words, and able to make the good man change his purposes, what have I to do to make much use of them? ‘I have deeply thought and concluded.—Let me have but one resolute minister, plain and sincere, without other ability, but having a straightforward mind, and possessed of generosity, regarding the talents of others as if he himself possessed them ; and when he finds accomplished and sage men, loving them in his heart more than his mouth expresses, really showing himself able to bear them: —such a minister would be able to preserve my descendants and people, and would indeed be a | giver of benefits. ‘But if (the minister), when he finds men of ability, be jealous and hates them; if, when he finds accomplished and sage men, he oppose them and does not allow their advancement, showing himself really not able to bear them :—such a man will not be able to protect my descendants and people; and will he not be a dangerous man ? ‘The decline and fall of a state may arise from one man. The glory and tranquillity of a state may also arise from the goodness of one man.’ THE SHIH KING OR BOOK OF POETRY: ALL THE PIECES AND STANZAS IN IT ILLUSTRATING THE RELIGIOUS VIEWS AND PRACTICES OF THE WRITERS AND THEIR TIMES, (1] T Cc THE SHIH KING OR BOOK OF POETRY. INTRODUCTION. CHAPTER I. THE NAME AND CONTENTS OF THE CLASSIC. 1. Among the Chinese classical books next after the Sha in point of antiquity comes the Shih or Book of Poetry. The character Shd}, as formed by the combination of The meaning two others, one of which signified ‘a pencil,’ ete and the other ‘to speak,’ supplied, we saw, Shih. in its structure, an indication of its primary
2The character Shd}, as formed by the combination of The meaning two others, one of which signified ‘a pencil,’ ete and the other ‘to speak,’ supplied, we saw, Shih. in its structure, an indication of its primary significance, and furnished a clue to its different applications. The character Shih? was made on a different principle,— that of phonetical formation, in the peculiar sense of these words when applied to a large class of Chinese terms. The significative portion of it is the character for ‘speech,’ but the other half is merely phonetical, enabling us to approximate to its pronunciation or name. The meaning of the compound has to be learned from its usage. Its most common significations are ‘ poetry,’ ‘a poem, or poems,’ and ‘a collection of poems.’ This last is its meaning when we speak of the Shih or the Shih King. The earliest Chinese utterance that we have on the subject of poetry is that in the Sh by the ancient Shun, when he said to his Minister of Music, ‘ Poetry is the expression of earnest thought, and singing is the prolonged 276 THE SHIH KING. utterance of that expression.’ To the same effect is the language of a Preface to the Shih, sometimes ascribed to Confucius, and certainly older than our Christian era :— ‘Poetry is the product of earnest thought. Thought cherished in the mind becomes earnest ; then expressed in words, it becomes poetry. The feelings move inwardly, and are embodied in words. When words are insufficient for them, recourse is had to sighs and exclamations, When sighs and exclamations are insufficient for them, recourse is had to the prolonged utterance of song. When this again is insufficient, unconsciously the hands begin to move and the feet to dance. .... To set forth correctly the successes and failures (of government), to affect Heaven and Earth, and to move spiritual beings, there is no readier instrument than poetry.’ Rhyme, it may be added here, is a necessary accompaniment of poetry in the estimation of the Chinese. Only in a very few pieces of the Shih is it neglected. 2. The Shih King contains 305 pieces and the titles of ‘The contents six others, The most recent of them are ofthe Shih. assigned to the reign of king Ting of the Kau dynasty, B.C. 606 to 586, and the oldest, forming a group of only five, to the period of the Shang dynasty which preceded that of Kau, B.c. 1766 to 1123. Of those five, the latest piece should be referred to the twelfth century B.C., and the most ancient may have been composed five centuries earlier. All the other pieces in the Shih have to be distributed over the time between Ting and king Wan, the founder of the line of XAu. The distribution, however, is not equal nor continuous. There were some reigns of which we do not have a single poetical fragment. The whole collection is divided into four parts, called the Kwo FAng, the Hsiao YA, the Ta Y4, and the Sung.
3The distribution, however, is not equal nor continuous. There were some reigns of which we do not have a single poetical fragment. The whole collection is divided into four parts, called the Kwo FAng, the Hsiao YA, the Ta Y4, and the Sung. The Kwo Fang, in fifteen Books, contains 160 pieces, nearly all of them short, and descriptive of manners and events in several of the feudal states of Kau. The title has been translated by The Manners of the Different States, ‘Les Moeurs des Royaumes,’ and, which I prefer, by Lessons from the States, INTRODUCTION. 277 The Hsiao Y4, or Lesser Y4, in eight Books, contains seventy-four pieces and the titles of six others, sung at gatherings of the feudal princes, and their appearances at the royal court. They were produced in the royal territory, and are descriptive of the manners and ways of the government in successive reigns. It is difficult to find an English word that shall fitly represent the Chinese Y4 as here used. In his Latin translation of the Shih, P. Lacharme translated Hsido YA by ‘Quod rectum est, sed inferiore ordine,’ adding in a note :—‘ Sido Y4, latine Parvum Rectum, quia in hac Parte mores describuntur, recti illi quidem, qui tamen nonnihil a recto deflectunt.’ But the manners described are not less correct or incorrect, as the case may be, than those of the states in the former Part or of the kingdom in the next. I prefer to call this Part ‘Minor Odes of the Kingdom,’ without attempting to translate the term YA. The T& Ya or Greater YA, in three Books, contains thirty-one pieces, sung on great occasions at the royal court and in the presence of the king. P. Lacharme called it ‘Magnum Rectum (Quod rectum est superiore ordine).’ But there is the same objection here to the use of the word ‘correct’ as in the case of the pieces of the previous Part. I use the name ‘Major Odes of the Kingdom.’ The greater length and dignity of most of the pieces justify the distinction of the two Parts into Minor and Major. The Sung, also in three Books, contains forty pieces, thirty-one of which belong to the sacrificial services at the royal court of Kau; four, to those of the marquises of La; and five to the corresponding sacrifices of the kings of Shang. P. Lacharme denominated them correctly ‘ Parentales Cantus.’ In the Preface to the Shih, to which I have made reference above, it is said, ‘The Sung are pieces in admiration of the embodied manifestation of complete virtue, announcing to the spiritual Intelligences their achievement thereof.’ A Hsi’s account of the Sung was— ‘Songs for the Music of the Ancestral Temple ;’ and that of Kiang Yung of the present dynasty—‘ Songs for the Music at Sacrifices.’ I have united these two definitions, and call the Part—‘ Odes of the Temple and the Altar.’ There is 278 THE SHIH KING. a difference between the pieces of La and the other two collections in this Part, to which I will call attention in giving the translation of them.
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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