A Hundred and Seventy Chinese Poems/Oaths of Friendship

OATHS OF FRIENDSHIP

In the country of Yüeh when a man made friends with another they set up an altar of earth and sacrificed upon it a dog and a cock, reciting this oath as they did so:

[1]

If you were riding in a coach
And I were wearing a "li,"^[1]
And one day we met in the road,
You would get down and bow.
If you were carrying a "tēng,"^[2]
And I were riding on a horse,
And one day we met in the road
I would get down for you.

[2]

Shang Ya!
I want to be your friend
For ever and ever without break or decay.
When the hills are all flat
And the rivers are all dry,
When it lightens and thunders in winter,
When it rains and snows in summer.
When Heaven and Earth mingle —
Not till then will I part from you.

 

1. A peasant's coat made of straw.
2. An umbrella under which a cheap-jack sells his wares.