Sacred Books of the East/Volume 27/The Lî Kî/Book V

 

BOOK V. THE QUESTIONS OF 𝖅ĂNG-𝖅ZE^[1].

 

Section I.

1. 𝖅ăng-𝖟ze asked, "If a ruler dies and a son and heir is born (immediately after), what course should be adopted?"

Confucius said, 'The high nobles^[2], Great officers and (other) officers, following the chief (minister), who takes charge of the government for the time, (should collect) at the south of the western steps, with their faces towards the north^[3]. (Then) the Grand officer of prayer, in his court robes and cap, bearing in his hands a bundle of rolls of silk, will go up to the topmost step, and (there), without ascending the hall, will order the wailing to cease. Mournfully clearing his voice three times^[4], he will make announcement (to the spirit of the deceased ruler), saying, "The son of such and such a lady has been born. I venture to announce the fact." He will then go up, and place the silks on a stool on the east of the body in the coffin^[5], wail, and descend. All the relatives of the deceased who are there (at the mourning), the high nobles, the Great and other officers, (with the women) In the apartments, all will wail, but without the leaping. When this burst of sorrow is over, they will return to their (proper) places, and proceed forthwith to set forth the mourning offerings to the dead. The minor minister will ascend, and take away the bundle of silks^[6].

2. On the third day, all the relatives, high nobles, Great and other officers, should take their places as before, with their faces to the north. The Grand minister, the Grand master of the ancestral temple, and the Grand officer of prayer, should all be in their court-robes and caps. The master for the child^[7] will carry the child in his arms on a mat of sackcloth. The officer of prayer will precede, followed by the child, and the minister and master of the temple will come after. Thus they will enter the door (of the apartment where the coffin is), when the wailers will cease. The child has been brought up by the western steps^[8], and is held in front of the coffin with his face to the north, while the officer of prayer stands at the south-east corner of it. Mournfully clearing his voice three times, he will say, "So and So, the son of such and such a lady, and we, his servants, who follow him, presume to appear before you." The boy is (then made) to do obeisance, with his forehead on the ground, and to wail. The officer of prayer, the minister, the officer of the temple, all the relatives, the high nobles, with the Great and other officers, will wail and leap^[9], leaping three times with each burst of grief. (Those who had gone up to the hall then) descend, and go back to their proper places on the east; where all bare the left arm and shoulder. The son (in the arms of his bearer is made) to leap, and (the women) in the apartments also leap. Thrice they will do so, leaping three times each time. (The bearer for the son) will cover up his sackcloth^[10], walk with a staff, (ascend and) set forth the offerings by the dead, and then quit the scene. The Grand minister will charge the officer of prayer and the recorder to announce the name all round, at the five altars of the house, and at those (to the spirits) of the hills and streams^[11].'

3. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If the son and heir have been born after the burial (of the) ruler, what course should be followed?"

Confucius said, "The Grand minister and the Grand master of the ancestral temple will follow the Grand officer of prayer, and announce the fact before the spirit tablet (of the deceased ruler)^[12]. Three months after they will give the name in the same place, and announce it all round^[13], and also at the altars to (the spirits of) the land and grain, in the ancestral temple, and (at the altars of) the hills and streams."

4. Confucius said, "When princes of states are about to go to the (court of the) son of Heaven, they must announce (their departure) before (the shrine of) their grandfather, and lay their offerings in that of their father^[14]. They then put on the court cap, and go forth to hold their own court. (At this) they charge the officer of prayer and the recorder to announce (their departure) to the (spirits of the) land and grain, in the ancestral temple, and at the (altars of the) hills and rivers. They then give (the business of) the state in charge to the five (subordinate) officers^[15], and take their journey, presenting the offerings to the spirits of the road^[16] as they set forth. All the announcements should be completed in five days. To go beyond this in making them is contrary to rule. In every one of them they use a victim and silks. On the return (of the princes) there are the same observances."

5. "When princes of states are about to visit one another, they must announce (their departure) before the shrine of their father^[17]. They will then put on their court robes, and go forth to hold their own court. (At this) they charge the officer of prayer and the recorder to announce (their departure) at the five shrines in the ancestral temple, and at the altars of the hills and rivers which they will pass. They then give (the business of) the state in charge to the five officers, and take their journey, presenting the offerings to the spirits of the road as they set forth. When they return, they will announce (the fact) in person to their grandfather and father and will charge the officer of prayer and the recorder to make announcement of it at the altars where they announced (their departure). (When this has been done), they enter and give audience in the court."

6. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If the funerals of both parents^[18] take place together, what course is adopted? Which is first and which last?"

Confucius said, "The rule is that the burying of the less important (mother) should have the precedence, and that of the more important (father) follow, while the offerings to them are set down in the opposite order. From the opening of the apartment and conveying out the coffin (of the mother) till its interment no offerings are put down; when the coffin is on the route to the grave, there is no wailing at the regular place for that ceremony. When they return from this interment, they set down the offerings (to the father), and afterwards announce (to his spirit) when the removal of his coffin will take place, and proceed to arrange for the interment It is the rule that the sacrifice of repose should first be offered to the more important (father), and afterwards to the less important (mother)."

7. Confucius said^[19], "The eldest son, even though seventy, should never be without a wife to take her part in presiding at the funeral rites. If there be no such eldest son, the rites may be performed without a presiding wife."

8. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "It has been proposed to invest a son with the cap, and the investors have arrived, and after exchanging bows and courtesies (with the master of the house), have entered. If then news should come that the death of some relative has occurred, for whom a year s mourning or that of nine months must be worn, what should be done?"

Confucius said, "If the death has taken place within (the circle of the same surname), the ceremony should be given up^[20]; but if without (that circle), it will go on, but the sweet wine will not be presented to the youth. The viands will be removed and the place swept, after which he will go to his proper position and wail. If the investors have not yet arrived, the capping will be given up (for the time)^[21].

9. If the arrangements for the capping have been made, but before the day arrives, an occasion for the one year s mourning, or for that of nine months, or five months, have arrived, the youth shall be capped in his mourning dress."

10. "When all mourning is over, may a son continue to wear the cap which he has hitherto worn^[22]?"

Confucius said, "When the son of Heaven gives to the (young) prince of a state or a Great officer his robes and the cap proper to each in the grand ancestral temple, the youth on his return home will set forth his offering (in his own ancestral temple), wearing the robes that have been given to him, and here he will drink the cup of capping (as if) offered by his father^[23], without the cup of wine at the ceremony.

11. When a son is (thus) capped after his father's death, he is considered to be properly capped; he will sweep the ground, and sacrifice at his father's shrine. This being done, he will present himself before his uncles, and then offer the proper courtesies to the investors."

12. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "Under what circumstances is it that at sacrifice they do not carry out the practice of all drinking to one another?"

Confucius said, "I have heard that at the close of the one year's mourning, the principal concerned in it sacrifices in his inner garment of soft silk, and there is not that drinking all round. The cup is set down beside the guests, but they do not take it up. This is the rule. Formerly duke Kâo of Lû^[24], while in that silken garment, took the cup and sent it all round, but it was against the rule; and duke Hâo^[25], at the end of the second year s mourning, put down the cup presented to him, and did not send it all round, but this also was against the rule."

13. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "In a case (of the) mourning for nine months, can (the principal) take part in contributing to the offerings (to the dead of others)?"

Confucius said, "Why speak only of (the mourning for) nine months ? In all cases from (the mourning for) three years downwards, it may be done. This is the rule."

𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze said, "Would not this be making the mourning of little importance, and attaching (undue) importance to mutual helpfulness?"

Confucius said, "This is not what I mean. When there is mourning for the son of Heaven or the prince of a state, (all) who wear the sackcloth with the jagged edges (will contribute to) the offerings. At the mourning of a Great officer, (all) who wear the sackcloth with the even edges will do so. At the mourning of an ordinary officer, his associates and friends will do so. If all these be not sufficient, they may receive contributions from all who should mourn for nine months downwards; and if these be still insufficient, they will repeat the process^[26]." 14. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "In a case of the mourning for five months, may (the principal) take part in the other sacrifices (of mourning)^[27]?"

Confucius said, "Why speak only of the mourning for five months? In all cases from the mourning for three years downwards, (the principals) take part in those sacrifices."

𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze said, "Would not this be making the mourning of little importance, and giving (undue) importance to the sacrifices?"

Confucius said, "In the mourning sacrifices for the son of Heaven and the prince of a state, none but those who wear the sackcloth with the jagged edges take part in them. In those for a Great officer, they who wear the sackcloth with the even edges do so. In those for another officer, if the participants be insufficient, they add to them from their brethren who should wear mourning for nine months downwards."

15. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "When acquaintances are in mourning, may they participate in one another's sacrifices?"

Confucius said, "When wearing the three months' mourning, one has no occasion to sacrifice (in his own ancestral temple), and how should he assist another man (out of his own line)?" 16. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "When one has put off his mourning, may he take part in contributing to the offerings (for the dead of another)?"

Confucius said, "To take part in the offerings (to another's dead), on putting off one's own sackcloth, is contrary to the rule. Possibly, he may perform the part of assisting him in receiving visitors."

17. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "According to the rules for marriages, the presents have been received and a fortunate day has been fixed;—if then the father or mother of the young lady die, what course should be adopted?"

Confucius said, "The son-in-law will send some one to condole; and if it be his father or mother that has died, the family of the lady will in the same way send some to present their condolences. If the father have died, (the messenger) will name the (other) father (as having sent him); if the mother, he will name the (other) mother. If both parents be dead (on both sides), he will name the oldest uncle and his wife. When the son-in-law has buried (his dead), his oldest uncle will offer a release from the engagement to the lady, saying, 'My son, being occupied with the mourning for his father or mother, and not having obtained the right to be reckoned among your brethren, has employed me to offer a release from the engagement.' (In this case) it is the rule for the lady to agree to the message and not presume to (insist on) the marriage (taking place immediately). When the son-in-law has concluded his mourning, the parents of the lady will send and request (the fulfilment of the engagement). The son-in-law will not (immediately come to) carry her (to his house), but afterwards she will be married to him; this is the rule. If it be the father or mother of the lady who died, the son-in-law will follow a similar course^[28]."

18. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "The son-in-law has met the lady in person, and she is on the way with him:—if (then) his father or mother die, what course should be adopted?"

Confucius said, "The lady will change her dress^[29]; and in the long linen robe^[30], with the cincture of white silk round her hair, will hasten to be present at the mourning rites. If, while she is on the way, it be her own father or mother who dies, she will return^[31]."

19. "If the son-in-law have met the lady in person, and before she has arrived at his house, there occur a death requiring the years or the nine months' mourning, what course should be adopted?"

Confucius said, "Before the gentleman enters, he will change his dress in a place outside. The lady will enter and change her dress in a place inside. They will then go to the proper positions and wail."

𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "When the mourning is ended, will they not resume the marriage ceremonies?" Confucius said, "It is the rule, that when the time of sacrifice has been allowed to pass by, it is not then offered. Why in this case should they go back to what must have taken place previously?"

20. Confucius said, "The family that has married a daughter away, does not extinguish its candles for three nights, thinking of the separation that has taken place. The family that has received the (new) wife for three days has no music; thinking her bridegroom is now in the place of his parents^[32]. After three months she presents herself in the ancestral temple, and is styled 'The new wife that has come.' A day is chosen for her to sacrifice at the shrine of her father-in-law; expressing the idea of her being (now) the established wife."

21. 𝖅āng-𝖟ze asked, "If the lady die before she has presented herself in the ancestral temple, what course should be adopted?"

Confucius said, "(Her coffin) should not be removed to the ancestral temple, nor should (her tablet) be placed next to that of her mother-in-law. The husband should not carry the staff; nor wear the shoes of straw; nor have a (special) place (for wailing). She should be taken back, and buried among her kindred of her own family;—showing that she had not become the established wife."

22. 𝖅āng-𝖟ze asked, "The fortunate day has been fixed for taking the lady (to her new home), and she dies (in the meantime):—what should be done?"

Confucius said, "The son-in-law will come to condole, wearing the one year's mourning, which he will lay aside when the interment has taken place. If it be the husband who dies, a similar course will be followed on the other side."

23. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "Is it according to rule that at the mourning rites there should be two (performing the part of) the orphan son (and heir, receiving visitors)^[33], or that at a temple-shrine there should be two spirit-tablets?"

Confucius said, "In heaven there are not two suns; in a country there are not two kings^[34]; in the seasonal sacrifices, and those to Heaven and Earth^[35], there are not two who occupy the highest place of honour. I do not know that what you ask about is according to rule. Formerly duke Hwan of Khî^[36], going frequently to war, made fictitious tablets and took them with him on his expeditions, depositing them on his return in the ancestral temple^[37]. The practice of having two tablets in a temple-shrine originated from duke Hwan. As to two (playing the part of the) orphan son, it may be thus explained:—Formerly, on occasion of a visit to Lû by duke Ling of Wei, the mourning rites of Kî Hwan-𝖟ze were in progress. The ruler of Wei requested leave to offer his condolences. Duke Âî (of Lû)^[38] declined (the ceremony), but could not enforce his refusal. He therefore acted as the principal (mourner), and the visitor came in to condole with him. Khang-𝖟ze stood on the right of the gate with his face to the north. The duke, after the usual bows and courtesies, ascended by the steps on the east with his face towards the west. The visitor ascended by those on the west, and paid his condolences. The duke bowed ceremoniously to him, and then rose up and wailed, while Khang-𝖟ze bowed with his forehead to the ground, in the position where he was. The superintending officers made no attempt to put the thing to rights. The having two now acting as the orphan son arose from the error of Kî Khang-𝖟ze."

24. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "Anciently when an army went on an expedition, was it not first necessary to carry with it the spirit-tablets that had been removed from their shrines^[39]?"

Confucius said, "When the son of Heaven went on his tours of Inspection, he took (one of) those tablets along with him, conveying it in the carriage of Reverence, thus intimating how it was felt necessary to have with him that object of honour^[40]. The practice now-a-days of taking the tablets of the seven temple-shrines along with them on an expedition is an error. No shrine in all the seven (of the king), or in the five of the prince of a state, ought to be (left) empty. A shrine can only be so left without its tablet, when the son of Heaven has died, or the prince of a state deceased, or left his state, or when all the tablets are brought together at the united sacrifice, in the shrine-temple of the highest ancestor. I heard the following statement from Lâo Tan^[41]:—'On the death of the son of Heaven, or of the prince of a state, it is the rule that the officer of prayer should take the tablets from all the other shrines and deposit them in that of the high ancestor^[42]. When the wailing was over, and the business (of placing the tablet of the deceased in its shrine) was completed, then every other tablet was restored to its shrine. When a ruler abandoned his state, it was the rule that the Grand minister should take the tablets from all the shrines and follow him. When there was the united sacrifice in the shrine of the high ancestor, the officer of prayer met (and received) the tablets from the four shrines. When they were taken from their shrines or carried back to them all were required to keep out of the way.' So said Lâo Tan." 25. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "Anciendy, when they marched on an expedition, and carried no displaced tablets with them, what did they make their chief consideration?"

Confucius said, "They made the instructions from the tablet their chief consideration^[43]."

"What does that mean?" asked the other.

Confucius said, "When the son of Heaven or the prince of a state was about to go forth, he would, with gifts of silk, skins, and jade-tokens, announce his purpose at the shrines of his grandfather and father. He then took those gifts with him, conveying them on the march in the carriage of Reverence. At every stage (of the march), he would place offerings of food by them, and afterwards occupy the station. On returning, they would make announcement (at the same shrines), and when they had set forth (again) their offerings, they would collect the silk and jade, and bury them between the steps (leading) up to the fane of the high ancestor; after which they left the temple. This was how they made the instructions they received their chief consideration."

26. 𝖅ze-yû asked, "Is it the rule to mourn for a foster-mother^[44] as for a mother?" Confucius said, "It is not the rule. Anciently, outside the palace, a boy had his master, and at home his foster-mother; they were those whom the ruler employed to teach his son;—what ground should these be for wearing mourning for them? Formerly duke Kâo of Lû having lost his mother when he was little, had a foster-mother, who was good; and when she died, he could not bear (not) to mourn for her, and wished to do so. The proper officer on hearing of it, said, 'According to the ancient rule, there is no mourning for a foster-mother. If you wear this mourning, you will act contrary to that ancient rule, and introduce confusion into the laws of the state. If you will after all do it, then we will put it on record, and transmit the act to the future;—will not that be undesirable?' The duke said, 'Anciently the son of Heaven, when unoccupied and at ease, wore the soft inner garment, assumed after the year's mourning, and the cap.' The duke could not bear not to wear mourning, and on this he mourned for his foster-mother in this garb.

The mourning for a foster-mother originated with duke Kâo of Lû^[45]."

 

Section II.

1. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "The princes are assembled in a body to appear before the son of Heaven; they have entered the gate, but are not able to go through with the rites (of audience);—how many occurrences will make these be discontinued?"

Confucius said, "Four." "May I ask what they are?" said the other. The reply was:—"The grand ancestral temple taking fire; an eclipse of the sun; funeral rites of the queen; their robes all unsightly through soaking rain. If, when the princes are all there, an eclipse of the sun take place, they follow the son of Heaven to save it^[46]; each one dressed in the colour of his quarter, and with the weapon proper to it^[47]. If there be a fire in the grand ancestral temple, they follow him to extinguish it without those robes and weapons."

2. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze said, "Princes are visiting one another. (The strangers) have entered the gate after the customary bowings and courtesies, but they are not able to go through with the rites (of audience);—how many occurrences will make these be discontinued?"

Confucius said, "Six;" and, in answer to the question as to what they were, replied:—"The death of the son of Heaven; the grand ancestral temple taking fire; an eclipse of the sun; the funeral rites of the queen or of the princess of the state; and their robes all unsightly through soaking rain."

3. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze said, "At the seasonal sacrifices of the son of Heaven, at those to Heaven and Earth, and at (any of) the five sacrifices of the house, after the vessels, round and square, with their contents have been set forth, if there occur the death of the son of Heaven or mourning rites for the queen, what should be done?"

Confucius said, "The sacrifice should be stopped." The other asked, "If, during the sacrifice, there occur an eclipse of the sun, or the grand ancestral temple take fire, what should be done?" The reply was, "The steps of the sacrifice should be hurried on. If the victim have arrived, but has not yet been slain, the sacrifice should be discontinued."

4. "When the son of Heaven has died and is not yet coffined, the sacrifices of the house are not offered. When he is coffined, they are resumed; but at any one of them the representative of the dead takes (only) three mouthfuls (of the food), and is not urged (to take more). He is then presented with a cup, but does not respond by presenting another, and there is an end (of the ceremony). From the removal of the coffin to the return (from the burial) and the subsequent wailing, those sacrifices (again) cease. After the burial they are offered, but when the officer of prayer has finished the cup presented to him, they stop."

5. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "At the sacrifices to the spirits of the land and grain proper to the feudal princes, if, after the stands and vessels, with their contents, have been arranged, news arrive of the death of the son of Heaven or of the mourning rites for his queen, or if the ruler die or there be mourning rites for his con- sort, what should be done?"

Confucius said, "The sacrifice should be discontinued. From the ruler s death to the coffining, and from the removal of the coffin to the return (from the burial) and the (subsequent) wailing, they will follow the example set by the son of Heaven^[48]."

6. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "At the sacrifices of a Great officer^[49], when the tripods and stands have been arranged, and the dishes of bamboo and wood, with their contents, have been set forth, but they are not able to go through with the rites, how many occurrences will cause them to be discontinued?"

Confucius said, "Nine;" and when asked what they were, he added:—"The death of the son of Heaven; funeral rites for his queen; the death of the ruler (of the state); funeral rites for his consort; the ruler's grand ancestral temple taking fire; an eclipse of the sun; (a call to) the three years mourning; to that of one year; or to that of nine months. In all these cases the sacrifice should be given up. If the mourning be merely for relatives by affinity, from all degrees of it up to the twelve months, the sacrifice will go on. At one where the mourning is worn for twelve months, the representative of the dead, after entering, will take (only) three mouthfuls (of the food), and not be urged to take (any more). He will be presented with a cup, but will not respond by presenting one in return, and there will be an end (of the ceremony). Where the mourning is for nine months, after he has presented the responsive cup, the thing will end. Where it is for five or for three months, it will not end till all the observances in the apartment are gone through. What distinguishes the proceedings of an ordinary officer is, that he does not sacrifice when wearing the three months' mourning. He sacrifices, however, if the dead to whom he does so had no relationship with him requiring him to wear mourning."

7. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "May one, wearing the three years' mourning for a parent, go to condole with others?"

Confucius said, "On the completion of the first of the three years, one should not be seen standing with others, or going along in a crowd. With a superior man the use of ceremonies is to give proper and elegant expression to the feelings. Would it not be an empty form^[50] to go and condole and wail with others, while wearing the three years' mourning?"

8. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If a Great officer or ordinary officer be in mourning for a parent^[51] he may put it off^[52]; and if he be in mourning for his ruler, under what conditions will he put that off?"

Confucius said, "If he have the mourning for his ruler on his person, he will not venture to wear any private mourning;—what putting off can there be? In this case, even if the time be passed (for any observances which the private mourning would require), he will not put it off. When the mourning for the ruler is put off, he will then perform the great sacrifices (of his private mourning)^[53]. This is the rule."

9. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "But is it allowable thus to give up all the mourning rites for a parent through this keeping on of the mourning (for a ruler)?"

Confucius said, "According to the ceremonies as determined by the ancient kings, it is the rule that when the time has passed (for the observance of any ceremony), there should be no attempt to perform it. It is not that one could not keep from not putting off the mourning; but the evil would be in his going beyond the definite statute. Therefore it is that a superior man does not offer a sacrifice, when the proper time for doing so has passed."

10. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze said, "If, when the ruler has died, and is now lying in his coffin, the minister be called to the funeral rites for his father or mother, what course will he pursue?"

Confucius said, "He should go home and remain there; going indeed to the ruler's for the great services (to the departed), but not for those of every morning and evening^[54]."

11. (𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked), "If, when they have begun to remove the coffin, the minister be called to the funeral rites for his father or mother, how should he do?"

Confucius said, "He should go home and wail, and then return and accompany the funeral of the ruler."

12. "If," said (𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze), 'before the ruler has been coffined, a minister be called to the funeral rites for his father or mother, what should be his course?"

Confucius said, "He should go home, and have the deceased put into the coffin, returning (then) to the ruler's. On occasion of the great services, he will go home, but not for those of every morning and evening. In the case of a Great officer, the chief servant of the household will attend to matters; in the case of an ordinary officer, a son or grandson. When there are the great services at the ruler s, the wife of the Great officer will also go there, but not for those of every morning and evening."

13. One in a low position should not pronounce the eulogy of another in a high, nor a younger man that of one older than himself. In the case of the son of Heaven, they refer to Heaven as giving his eulogy. It is not the rule for princes of states to deliver the eulogy of one another^[55].

14. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "When a ruler goes across the boundary of his own state, he takes with him his inner coffin as a precaution for the preparations against the three years' (mourning rites) for him^[56]. If he die (abroad), what are the proceedings on his being brought back?"

Confucius said, "The clothes to be put on him after the coffining having been provided, the son in the linen cap, with the sackcloth band round it, wearing coarse sackcloth and the shoes of straw, and carrying a staff, will enter by the opening made in the wall of the apartment for the coffin, having ascended by the western steps. If the slighter dressing (preparatory to the coffining) have still (to be made), the son will follow the bier without a cap, enter by the gate, and ascend by the steps on the east There is one and the same rule for a ruler, a Great officer, and an ordinary officer."

15. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If one is occupied in drawing (the carriage with the bier on it) at the funeral rites of his ruler, and is then called to the funeral rites of his father or mother, what should he do?" Confucius said, "He should complete what he is engaged in; and when the coffin has been let down into the grave, return home, without waiting for the departure of the (ruler's) son."

16. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If one, occupied with the funeral rites of a parent, has (assisted in) drawing the bier to the path (to the grave), and there hear of the death of his ruler, what should he do?"

Confucius said, "He should complete the burial; and, when the coffin has been let down, he should change his dress, and go to (the ruler's)."

17. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If the eldest son by the proper wife be (only) an officer, and a son by a secondary wife be a Great officer, how will the latter proceed in his sacrificing?"

Confucius said, "He will sacrifice, with the victims belonging to his higher rank, in the house of the eldest son. The officer of prayer will say, 'So and So, the filial son, in behalf of So and So, the attendant son, presents his regular offering^[57].' "

18. "If the eldest son, now the head of the family, be residing, in consequence of some charge of guilt, in another state, and a son by a secondary wife be a Great officer, when (the latter) is offering a sacrifice (for the other), the officer of prayer will say, 'So and So, the filial son, employs the attendant son. So and So, to perform for him the regular service,' (In this case, however), the principal in this vicarious service will not conduct the sacrifice so as to see that the spirit of the deceased is satisfied to the full; nor send the cup round among all who are present, nor receive the blessing (at the close); nor lay on the ground the portions of the sacrifice as thank-offerings; nor have with him (the wife of the elder brother) who should appear before the spirit-tablet of her mother-in-law, the wife of the deceased. He will put down the cup before the (principal) guests, but they will put it down (in another place), and not send it round. He will not send to them portions of the flesh. In his address to the guests (at the beginning of the service), he will say, 'My honoured brother, the honoured son (of our father), being in another state, has employed me, So and So, to make announcement to you^[58].' "

19. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "If the eldest son have gone and is in another state, while a son by a secondary wife, and without rank, remains at home, may the latter offer the sacrifice?"

Confucius said, "Yes, certainly." "And how will he sacrifice?" "He will rear an altar in front of the (family-)grave, and there he will sacrifice at the different seasons. If the oldest son die, he will announce the event at the grave, and afterwards sacrifice in the house, calling himself, however, only by his name, and abstaining from the epithet 'filial.' This abstinence will cease after his death." The disciples of 𝖅ze-yû, in the case of sons by inferior wives sacrificing, held that this practice was in accordance with what was right. Those of them who sacrifice now-a-days do not ground their practice on this principle of right;—they have no truthful ground for their sacrifices^[59].

20. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "Is it necessary that there should be a representative of the dead in sacrifice? or may he be dispensed with as when the satisfying offerings are made to the dead?"

Confucius said, "In sacrificing to a full-grown man for whom there have been the funeral rites, there must be such a representative, who should be a grandson; and if the grandson be too young, some one must be employed to carry him in his arms. If there be no grandson, some one of the same surname should be selected for the occasion. In sacrificing to one who has died prematurely, there are (only) the satisfying offerings, for he was not full-grown. To sacrifice to a full-grown man, for whom there have been the funeral rites without a representative, would be to treat him as if he had died prematurely."

21. Confucius said, "There is the offering of satisfaction made in the dark chamber, and that made in the brighter place."

𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze answered with a question, "But to one who has died prematurely there is not made a complete sacrifice; what do you mean by speaking of two satisfying offerings, the dark and the bright?"

Confucius said, "When the oldest son, who would take the father's place, dies prematurely, no brother by an inferior wife can be his successor. At the auspicious sacrifice to him^[60], there is a single bullock; but the service being to one who died prematurely, there is no presentation (of the lungs), no stand with the heart and tongue, no dark-coloured spirits^[61], no announcement of the nourishment being completed. This is what is called the dark satisfying offering. In regard to all others who have died prematurely and have left no offspring, the sacrifice is offered to them in the house of the oldest son, where the apartment is most light, with the vases in the chamber on the east. This is what is called the bright satisfying offering."

22. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "At a burial, when the bier has been drawn to the path (leading to the place), if there happen an eclipse of the sun, is any change made or not?" Confucius said, "Formerly, along with Lâo Tan^[62], I was assisting at a burial in the village of Hsiang, and when we had got to the path, the sun was eclipsed. Lâo Tan said to me, 'Khiû, let the bier be stopped on the left of the road^[63]; and then let us wail and wait till the eclipse pass away. When it is light again, we will proceed.' He said that this was the rule. When we had returned and completed the burial, I said to him, 'In the progress of a bier there should be no returning. When there is an eclipse of the sun, we do not know whether it will pass away quickly or not, would it not have been better to go on?' Lâo Tan said, 'When the prince of a state is going to the court of the son of Heaven, he travels while he can see the sun. At sun-down he halts, and presents his offerings (to the spirit of the way). When a Great officer is on a mission, he travels while he can see the sun, and at sun-down he halts. Now a bier does not set forth in the early morning, nor does it rest anywhere at night; but those who travel by star-light are only criminals and those who are hastening to the funeral rites of a parent. When there is an eclipse of the sun, how do we know that we shall not see the stars? And moreover, a superior man, in his performance of rites, will not expose his relatives to the risk of distress or evil.' This is what I heard from Lâo Tan."

23. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "In the case of one dying where he is stopping, when discharging a mission for his ruler, the rules say^[64] that, (if he die) in a government hotel his spirit shall be recalled; but not, (if he die) in a private one^[65]. But to whatever state a commissioner may be sent, the lodging which may be assigned to him by the proper officer becomes a public hotel;—what is the meaning of his spirit not being recalled, (if he die) in a private one?"

Confucius said, "You have asked well. The houses of a high minister, a Great officer, or an ordinary officer, may be called private hotels. The government hotel, and any other which the government may appoint, may be called a public hotel. In this you have the meaning of that saying that the spirit is recalled at a public hotel."

24. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "Children dying prematurely, between eight and eleven, should be buried in the garden in a brick grave, and carried thither on a contrivance serving the purpose of a carriage, the place being near; but now if the grave is chosen at a distance, what do you say about their being buried there?"

Confucius said, "I have heard this account from Lâo Tan:—'Formerly,' he said, 'the recorder Yî had a son who died thus prematurely, and the grave was distant. The duke of Shâo said to him, "Why not shroud and coffin him in your palace?" The recorder said, "Dare I do so?" The duke of Shâo spoke about it to the duke of Kâu, who said, "Why may it not be done?" and the recorder did it. The practice of coffins for boys who have died so prematurely, and shrouding them, began with the recorder Yî.' "

25. 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked, "A minister or a Great officer is about to act the part of a personator of the dead for his ruler. If, when he has received (orders) to pass the night in solemn vigil, there occur in his own family an occasion for him to wear the robe of hemmed sackcloth, what should he do?"

Confucius said, "The rule is for him to leave (his house) and lodge in a state hotel, and wait till (the ruler's) business is accomplished."

26. Confucius said, "When one who has represented the dead comes forth in the (officer's) leathern cap, or the (Great officer's) tasseled cap (which he has worn), ministers. Great officers, and other officers, all will descend from their carriages (when his passes). He will bow forward to them, and he will also have a forerunner (to notify his approach)."

27. 𝖅ze-hsiâ asked, "There is such a thing as no longer declining military service, after the wailing in the three years' mourning has come to an end. Is this the rule? or was it at first required by the officers (of the state)?"

Confucius said, "Under the sovereigns of Hsiâ, as soon as the coffining in the three years' mourning was completed, they resigned all their public duties. Under Yin they did so as soon as the interment was over. Is not this the meaning of what we find in the record, that 'the ruler does not take from men their affection to their parents, nor do men take from their parents their filial duty?' " 28. 𝖅ze-hsiâ asked, "Is then not declining military service (during mourning) to be condemned?"

Confucius said, "I heard from Lâo Tan that duke Po-khin engaged once in such service, when there was occasion for it; but I do not know if I should allow it in those who seek (by it) their own advantage during the period of the three years' mourning^[66]."

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1. See the introduction, pp. 21, 22.
2. These were also ministers; see paragraph 4, page 213.
3. The usual place was at the eastern steps.
4. To call the attention of the spirit of the deceased.
5. The rolls of silk were, I suppose, the introductory present proper on an interview with a superior.
6. And bury it in the court between the two flights of stairs.
7. Thus early is it made to appear that the child is put under a master; P. Zottoli translates the name by "secundus magister."
8. The child had been brought by the master from the women's apartments, and carried to the court, that he might thus go up again to the hall by these steps.
9. A most expressive indication of the sorrow proper to the occasion.
10. The breast and shoulder of the child had also been bared.
11. The "five household altars" are those at which the sacrifices were offered in the palace or house, often mentioned in the last Book.
12. The characters of the text, "in the shrine temple of the father," denote the special shrine or smaller temple assigned to the father in the great ancestral temple; but that was not assigned till after all the rites of mourning were over. The characters here denote the spirit tablet which had been before the burial set up over the coffin, and which was now removed to a rear apartment. P. Zottoli simply has "coram tabellâ."
13. At the courts of the sovereign and of the other princes.
14. The characters here are the same as in the preceding paragraph, but here they have their usual force. Announcement and offerings were made at both shrines.
15. The most likely opinion is that these five officers were—two belonging to the department of the minister of Instruction, two to that of the minister of Works, and one to that of the minister of War. On them, for reasons which we may not be able to give, devolved on such occasions the superintendence of the state.
16. There seems to be no doubt of the meaning here, but this significance of 道 is not given in the Khang-hsî dictionary. The more common term is 祖.
17. There would seem to be an omission in the former of these sentences of the announcement to the grandfathers.
18. Or grandparents.
19. The words of Confucius are here, as in some other paragraphs, not preceded by the formula, "𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked." Some say this is an omission, intentional or unintentional, of the compiler. Some commentators deride the judgment (see especially Ho Kung-yü), holding it unworthy of Confucius.
20. Because then a festal and a mourning service would come together in the ancestral temple.
21. The investors may have previously heard of the death, and not kept their appointment.
22. Till he was capped, a youth wore nothing on his head. But in the case supposed the youth's time for capping had arrived; and he had assumed a cap without the ceremony.
23. When a father gave orders to his son about his capping or marriage, he gave him a cup of ordinary wine. The sweet wine was given to the youth by a friend or friends who had invested him with the cap. The real answer to 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze's question is in paragraph 11.
24. B.C. 541-510.
25. B.C. 795-769. This is going a long way back.
26. On this paragraph P. Zottoli says:—"𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze petit an aliquis in novem mensium luctu constitutus possit adjuvare alterius funestae familiae oblationem. Confucius intelligit de adjuvanda proprii funeris oblatione." There appears to be a similar misunderstanding between the two in the next paragraph.
27. Khung Ying-tâ makes this out to be the sacrifices of repose, and at the end of the wailing. I think the reference is more general.
28. Is the final marriage of the lady to the original betrothed "son-in-law," or bridegroom as we should say; or to another, that she may not pass the proper time for her marrying? Khung Ying-tâ, and other old commentators, advocate the latter view. Others, and especially the Khien-lung editors, maintain the former; and I have indicated in the version my agreement with them. There are difficulties with the text; but Confucius would hardly have sanctioned the other course.
29. At the house of him who was now her husband.
30. This, called "the deep garment," had the body and skirt sown together. See Book XXXIV.
31. This would be done, it is said, by Hsü Sze-𝖟hǎng (Ming dynasty), to allow play to her filial piety, but she would live at the house of "the son-in-law."
32. This and the statements that follow suppose that the bridegroom's parents are dead.
33. The Chinese characters mean simply "two orphans." Neither Khang-hsî nor any English-Chinese dictionary explains the peculiar use of the term here; nor is Confucius' explanation satisfactory, or to the point.
34. Compare paragraphs 5, 8, III, iii, pages 224-226.
35. See the "Doctrine of the Mean," 19, 6, Chinese Classics, vol. i.
36. B.C. 685-643.
37. Literally "the temple-shrine of his grandfather;" but I think the name must have the general meaning I have given.
38. It has been shown that the ruler of Wei here could not be duke Ling. He must have been duke Khû. But this error discredits the view of the statement having come from Confucius.
39. See note 2 and plan of the royal ancestral temple of Kâu on pages 223–225.
40. This, it is said, was the tablet of the royal ancestor which had been last removed from its shrine, and placed in the shrine-house for all such removed tablets. The carriage of Reverence was the "metal-guilt" carriage of the king, second to that adorned with jade, in which he rode to sacrifice. Zottoli renders:—"Imperator perlustrans custodita, cum translatitii delubri tabella peragrabat, imposita super casti curru, significatum necessariam praesentiam superioris."
41. This was, most probably, Lâo-𝖟ze, though some of the commentators deny it. Kǎng says: "Lâo Tan, the title of old for men of longevity, was a contemporary of Confucius;" and Khǎn Hâo quotes a note on this from Wang of Shih-liang, that "This was not the author of the 'Five thousand words,' " i. e. of the Tâo Teh King.
42. While the special sacrifices and other funeral rites were going on, the other sacrifices, which belonged to a different category of rites, were suspended.
43. Zottoli gives for this phrase simply "adhaerebant numini," subjoining no note on it. The parties spoken of put down their offerings before the shrines, announcing that they were about to undertake such an expedition; and taking it for granted that their progenitors approved of their object, proceeded to carry it out, as if they had received a charge from them to do so, carrying the offerings with them in token of that charge from the spirits in the tablets of the shrines. This view is distinctly set forth by Hwang Khan (end of early Sung dynasty) and others.
44. This foster-mother was not what we call "a nurse;" but a lady of the harem to whom the care of an orphan boy was entrusted;—it may have been after he ceased to be suckled. The reasoning of Confucius goes on the assumption that mourning should be worn only in cases of consanguinity or affinity; and it may be inferred from this that concubinage was not the most ancient rule in China.
45. See the eleventh article in the forty-third chapter of the "Narratives of the School," where a similar, probably the same, conversation, with some variations, is found The duke of Lû in it, however, is not Kâo, but Hâo; see paragraph 12, page 315.
46. The phenomenon of an eclipse suggested the idea of some enemy or adverse influence devouring the sun's disk.
47. The colour appropriate to the east was green, and the weapon the spear with two hooks; the colour of the south was red, and the weapon the spear with one hook and two points; the colour of the west was white, and the weapon the bow; the colour of the north was black, and the weapon the shield; the colour of the centre was yellow, and the weapon the drum.
48. As given in the preceding paragraphs.
49. In his ancestral temple.
50. How could he, occupied with his own sorrow, offer anything but an empty form of condolence to others?
51. Literally "private mourning," as below; but evidently the master and disciple both had the mourning for a parent in mind.
52. On his having to go into mourning for his ruler.
53. That is, the rightful son and heir may then perform the sacrifice marking the close of the first year's mourning for a parent, and that marking the close of the second year's mourning in the month after. But Khǎn Hâo argues that it was only the rightful son who could thus go back and offer the sacrifices proper to the mourning rites for parents, and that the other sons could not do so. This is the case underlying the next paragraph.
54. It has been seen that morning and evening offerings to the dead were placed near the coffin. On the first and fifteenth of the month these were on a great scale, and with special observances,—at the new and full moon. They were "the great services." The practice still continues.
55. The eulogy has in China for more than a thousand years taken the form of inscriptions on tombs and sacrificial compositions; of which there are many elegant and eloquent specimens. It should be summed up in the honorary title. Truth, however, might require that that should be the reverse of eulogistic; and perhaps this led to its being conferred, as a rule, by one superior in rank and position. The honorary title of a deceased sovereign was first proclaimed at the great sacrifice to Heaven at the winter solstice; and hence it is referred to in the text as coming from Heaven!
56. That is, I think, simply, "as a precaution against his dying while abroad." Zottoli renders:—"Regulus excedens confinia, ut in tres annos praecaveatur, habit sandapilam sequacem."
57. Here two things were in collision. The oldest son by the proper wife was the representative of the father, and only he could preside at the service in the ancestral temple of the family. But here an inferior son has been advanced to a higher rank than his older brother. As a Great officer he is entitled to have three shrine temples; but it would be contrary to the solidarity of the family for him to erect an ancestral temple for himself. The difficulty is met in the way described, the sacrifice being ascribed to the elder brother, as head of the family.
58. This paragraph continues the case in the preceding, with the additional circumstances that the head of the family is a fugitive from it, and that the sacrifice referred to in it is performed by the inferior brother remaining in the state, in lieu of him. It is difficult to translate without amplification so as to be intelligible, because of what may be called the technical terms in it The five points in which the service was deficient, different from what it would have been, if performed by the proper brother, are given in the reverse order of their regular occurrence; whether designedly or not, we cannot tell. For that portion of the paragraph P. Zottoli gives:—"Sed vicarius dominus vacabit satisfactionis sacrificio; vacabit universali propinatione; vacabit benedictione; vacabit consternationis sacrificio; vacabit copulatione;" appending a note to explain the terms.
59. These last two sentences evidently should not be ascribed to Confucius. It was only after his death that 3ze-yii would have a school of his own. They must have been written moreover after the death of 𝖅ze-yû.
60. The first auspicious sacrifice took place when the ceremony of wailing was over.
61. A name for water.
62. This was Lâo-𝖟ze, "the old master." It seems better to keep Lâo as if it had been the surname. See paragraph 24, p. 325.
63. The east of the road. Graves were north of the towns.
64. Where these rules are to be found I do not know.
65. I use "hotel" here in the French meaning of the term. We must suppose that "the private hotel" about which 𝖅ǎng-𝖟ze asked was one to which the commissioner had gone without the instructions of the state; and, as the Khien-lung editors say, "the rites were therefore so far diminished."
66. Po-khin was the son of the duke of Kâu, and the first marquis of Lû. The time of his entering on the rale of that state was a very critical one in the kingdom; and though it was then, it would appear, the period of his mourning for his mother's death, he discharged his public duty in the time of his own grief.