h ST.

o Tf

m ji Js Bji ^ & a # ^

to restore tranquillity and to perpetuate the plans of my father. The great business I am engaging in will have a successful issue, for I have divined and always got a favourable intimation. 'There

6 fore I tell you, the princes of my friendly States, and you, the directors of departments, my officers, and the managers of my affairs,—I have obtained a favourable reply to my divinations. I ■will now go forward with you from all the States, and punish those vagabond and transported ministers of Yin.

7 III. 'And now, you the princes of the various States, and you the various officers and managers of my affairs, all retort on me, saying,

signification given to it in the text is derived, llow the same character conies to have significations so different is one of the mysteries which a Lexicographer may solve by tracing its history, and showing how forms driginally distinct

m

This construction of the clause is given by Ts'ae, and Keang Shing concurs in it. Other views may he seen in the iyfo an(l >n Woo Ch'ing's commentary.

ifcM'TZ 5" ~A 'Grwlt !,ffllir'' referring to the warlike expedition about to be

proceeded with. It is said in the "j^ -^jjf "ult

'the "great affairs " of a State are sacrifice and

L,—'an togetlier are lucky.' The king

had divined; and the 'three men' who bad operated with the three shells, or interpreted the threefold intimation of the one shell, all foretold a happy result;—sec the 'Great Plan,' p. 2i. Ts'ae gives the connection of the two

parts of the clause thus:—-^(J Jjfj

-jh^. We are not to suppose that this divining was the same as that mentioned in par. >. That was earlier, before the rebellion had revealed itself; this was with reference to

the expedition which was iu progress. 6.

^* J^' 'tne Sovernors or directors,'— fif E1 |[-, 'the heads of the various magisterial departments.' Gan-kwO says they were the AaJ • nobles and great officers.

Compare the "Q* of Bk. XXII., p. 3. We

might bring out the meaning of the by saying—'the directors, of the several surnames.'

T*# pf h > ^ Tzi-'-T'as in

the last par.,=^. jgi |g£ S--'the nD"

8Conded scattered ministers.' Woo-kiing and
the old adherents of bis House, who continued
with him, are intended by this contemptuous
language. There was enough in the circum-
stances of their condition to afford a ground for
so describing them.
Ch. III. Pp.7—0. The King Complains Op

TUB RELUCTANCE OF THK PRINCES AND OFFICERS
TO GO FORWARD WITH HIM TO THK EXPEDITION,
AND REPLIES TO THEIR PROPOSAL TO Go CONTRARY
TO THE DIVINATIONS. 7. The proposal of

the princes and officers to go contrary to the om-
cles, and abandon the ejciiedition. J^J J)^i
—' there is not one w ho does not retort.' K'ang-
shing says-$£ ^ ^ ^ £ 'all

oppose my views.' Keang Shing would take

as simply 'to reply.' The two ideas are

here combined in the term. All the rest of the par. is to be taken as the language of the malcontents. Gun-kwo, indeed, takes only Mj£

"The hardships will be great, and that the people are not still has its source really in the king's palace, and in the mansions of those princes of the troubled State. We, little ones, and the old reverent men as well, think the expedition ill-advised. Why does your majesty not go contrary to the divination?

'I, in my youth, think also continually of the hardships, and say, Alas! these senseless movements will deplorably afflict widowers and widows! But I am the servant of Heaven, which has assigned

me this great task, and laid this hard duty on my person. I therefore, the young one, do not pity myself, and it would be right in you, the princes of the States, and in you, the many officers, the directors of departments, and the managers of my affairs, to soothe me, saying, "Do not be distressed with sorrow. We shall surely complete the plans of your Tranquillizing father."

'Yes, I, the little one, dare not disregard the charge of God. Heaven, favourable to the Tranquillizing king, gave such prosperity to our small State of Chow. The Tranquillizing king divined and acted accordingly, and so he calmly received his great appointment. Now Heaven is helping the people ;—how much more must I follow the divinations! Oh! the clearly-intimated will of Heaven is to be feared:—it is to help my great inheritance.'"

£[J lit ft>-£p=!£ °r 'v 'm>'9elf-'

The meaning 19 that the king would do his duty, without considering the risks and troubles to which it would expose him. ^

~$l~^kr}& I W 'si,eakinsof

the case with reference to what is right,' t= 1 to labour,' * to distress one's-self.'

'Let not your Majesty distress yourself about this matter of sorrow.' The princes and officers are then supposed to say that they would dispose of the revolt for him — a ^ IE

9. Eurasia; ^#C#Jl

make of

large of God' is that implied in p. 5, when the divinations were all favourable, and the king was thus instructed to go forward with the expedition against Woo-kang

and his associates. j^s -j^,

—the divinations of king Woo referred to are those mentioned in 1 The Great Speech,' Pt. ii.,

^ itt f —How was Heaven now helping the people? Gan-kwO replies— 1 By the coming forward of the ten men of worth to support the king.' Possibly the king, or the duke rather, may have had this in mind.

2c 9J. ^r-t,,e transla

tinn here follows Ts'ae. The TA, 'intelligence of Heaven,' is that mentioned in p. 8, us conveyed by the 'great tortoise.' Thus clearly intimated, it was to be reverenced. Opposition to it could only entail disaster. How much

IV. "The king says, 'You, who are the old ministers, are fully able to examine the long-distant affairs;—you know how great was the toil of the Tranquillizing king. Now where Heaven shuts up and distresses us is the place where I must accomplish my work;—I dare not but do my utmost to complete the plans of the Tranquillizing king. It is on this account that I use such efforts to remove the doubts and carry forward the inclinations of the princes of my friendly States. Heaven also assists me with sincere expressions of attachment, which I have ascertained among the people;—how dare I but aim at the completion of the work formerly begun by the

'i^ft mcans difficult and not easy.' These are the definitions given by Ts'ae, who adds—

more should they be forward to obey it, when it was to establish the dynasty! Keang Shing takes =Jg£, and the whole =' The brilliant majesty of Heaven is aiding me to enlarge this great inheritance.'

Ch. IV. Pp. 10—12. The king Addresses

HIMSELF MORE PARTICULARLY TO THE OLD
MINISTERS OK HIS HOUSE ; SETS FORTH HIS OWN
WISH TO DO HIS DUTY AS A SON AND A SOVEREIGN,
AND COMPLAINS OF TIIKUt WANT OK SYMPATHY

With Him. 10. 0,—see on y^

^J, p. 1. It is one of the peculiarities of the A nnouncements in the Books of Chow, that they are broken up into many parts by the recurrence of these phrases. 'M

by we are to understand the old minis

ters of king Woo, (j£ ^ £ ^ gf),

the jp^ of p. 7, who are there quoted as

opposed to the expedition. -j§|\—' to ex

amine the remote,' i.e., the affairs of past days.

5^ I^Ji ¥ Bil —this is an instance of what Clioo He calls the 'long sentences' of the ' Great Announcement.' ^

jjjf) "llf",' means shut up, without thoroughfare.' j$ % Jfg ht T % £

The above definition of is not given in the dictionary, tho' it may be very reasonably derived from the explanation of the term iu the

j)£ as = . Thc dict. makes it =

after Gan-kwo, and with reference to this passage. Keang Shing defines it by which

makes it simply a synonym of ^\Jr*. Ts'ae took

his definition from Lin Che-k'e. 'The place where king Cliing had to accomplish his work,' was the east, where the revolt was going on;

but the JS/^ does not indicate the locality simply, but all the circumstances of the case.

'by is meant dissolving their obstinate
obstructions;' fjjft M 'by

=0^: is meant inducing them to follow him with
accordance.' These again are the defmitionsrof
Ts'ae,—very good. ^ ^
— i^P: is taken by Gan-kwo and most other

Tranquillizer? Heaven moreover is thus toiling and distressing my people, so that it is as if they were suffering from disease;—how dare I allow the appointment which the Tranquillizer, my predecessor, received, to be without its happy fulfilment?'"

■ "The king says, 'Formerly, at the initiation of this expedition, I spoke of its difficulties, and revolved them daily. But when a deceased father,ivishin(j to build a house, had laid out the plan, if his son be unwilling to raise up the hall, how much less will he be willing to complete the roof! Or if the father had broken up the ground, and his son is unwilling to sow the seed, how much less