|
|
|
|
|
| <Previous Section> |  |
<Next Section> |
I. At the mourning rites for Kung-î Kung-dze, Than Kung (was there), wearing the mourning cincture for the head, Kung-dze had passed over his grandson, and appointed one of his (younger) sons as his successor (and head of the family). Than Kung said (to himself), 'How is this? I never heard of such a thing;' and he hurried to Dze-fû Po-dze at the right of the door, and said, 'How is it that Kung-dze passed over his grandson, and made a (younger) son his successor?' Po-dze replied, 'Kung-dze perhaps has done in this, like others, according to the way of antiquity. Anciently, king Wan passed over his eldest son Yî-khâo, and appointed king Wû; and the count of Wei passed over his grandson Tun, and made Yen, his (own) younger brother, his successor. Kung-dze perhaps did also in this according to the way of antiquity.' Dze-yû asked Confucius (about the matter), and he said, 'Nay, (the rule is to) appoint the grandson 1.'
In serving his father, (a son) should conceal (his faults), and not openly or strongly remonstrate with him about them; should in every possible way wait on and nourish him, without being tied to definite rules; should serve him laboriously till his death, and then complete the mourning for him for three years. In serving his ruler, (a minister) should remonstrate with him openly and strongly (about his faults), and make no concealment (of them); should in every possible way wait on and nourish him, but according to definite rules; should serve him laboriously till his death, and should then wear mourning for him according to rule for three years. In serving his master, (a learner) should have nothing to do with openly reproving him or with concealing (his faults); should in every possible way wait upon and serve him, without being tied to definite rules; should serve him laboriously till his death, and mourn for him in heart for three years 2.
Kî Wû-dze had built a house, at the bottom of the western steps of which was the grave of the Tû family. (The head of that) asked leave to bury (some member of his house) in it, and leave was granted to him to do so. (Accordingly) he entered the house (with the coffin), but did not dare to wail (in the usual fashion). Wû-dze said to him, 'To bury in the same grave was not the way of antiquity. It was begun by the duke of Kâu, and has not been changed since. I have granted you the great thing, and why should I not grant the less?' (With this) he ordered him to wail 3.
When Dze-shang's mother died, and he did not perform any mourning rites for her, the disciples of (his father) Dze-sze asked him, saying, 'Did your predecessor, the superior man, observe mourning for his divorced mother?' 'Yes,' was the reply. (And the disciples went on), 'Why do you not make Pâi also observe the mourning rites (for his mother)?' Dze-sze said, 'My progenitor, a superior man, never failed in pursuing the right path. When a generous course was possible, he took it and behaved generously; and when it was proper to restrain his generosity, he restrained it. But how can I attain to that? While she was my wife, she was Pâi's mother; but when she ceased to be my wife, she was no longer his mother.' It was in this way that the Khung family came not to observe mourning for a divorced mother; the practice began from Dze-Sze 4.
Confucius said, 'When (the mourner) bows to (the visitor), and then lays his forehead to the ground, this shows the predominance of courtesy. When he lays his forehead to the ground, and then bows (to his visitor), this shows the extreme degree of his sorrow. In the three years' mourning, I follow the extreme (demonstration) 5.'
When Confucius had succeeded in burying (his mother) in the same grave (with his father) at Fang, he said, 'I have heard that the ancients made graves (only), and raised no mound over them. But I am a man, who will be (travelling) east, west, south, and north. I cannot do without something by which I can remember (the place).' On this, he (resolved to) raise a mound (over the grave) four feet high. He then first returned, leaving the disciples behind. A great rain came on; and when they rejoined him, he asked them what had made them so late. 'The earth slipped,' they said, 'from the grave at Fang.' They told him this thrice without his giving them any answer. He then wept freely, and said, 'I have heard that the ancients did not need to repair their graves.'
Confucius was wailing for Dze-lû in his courtyard. When any came to condole with him, he bowed to them. When the wailing was over, he made the messenger come in, and asked him all about (Dze-lû's death). 'They have made him into pickle,' said the messenger; and forthwith Confucius ordered the pickle (in the house) to be thrown away 6.
Zang-dze said, 'When the grass is old 7 on the grave of a friend, we no (longer) wail for him.'
Dze-sze said, 'On the third day of mourning, when the body is put into the coffin, (a son) should exercise sincerity and good faith in regard to everything that is placed with it, so that there shall be no occasion for repentance 8. In the third month when the body is interred, he should do the same in regard to everything that is placed with the coffin in the grave, and for the same reason. Three years are considered as the extreme limit of mourning; but though (his parents) are out of sight, a son does not forget them. Hence a superior man will have a lifelong grief, but not one morning's trouble (from without); and thus on the anniversary of a parent's death, he does not listen to music.'
Confucius, being quite young when he was left fatherless, did not know (his father's) grave. (Afterwards) he had (his mother's) body coffined in the street of Wû-fû. Those who saw it all thought that it was to be interred there, so carefully was (everything done), but it was (only) the coffining. By inquiring of the mother of Man-fû of Zâu, he succeeded in burying it in the same grave (with his father) at Fang 9.
When there are mourning rites in the neighbourhood, one should not accompany his pestle with his voice 10. When there is a body shrouded and coffined in his village, one should not sing in the lanes 11. For a mourning cap the ends of the ties should not hang down.
(In the time of Shun) of Yü they used earthenware coffins 12; under the sovereigns of Hsiâ, they surrounded these with an enclosure of bricks. The people of Yin used wooden coffins, the outer and inner. They of Kâu added the surrounding curtains and the feathery ornaments. The people of Kâu buried those who died between 16 and 19 in the coffins of Yin; those who died between 12 and 15 or between 8 and 11 in the brick enclosures of Hsiâ; and those who died (still younger), for whom no mourning is worn, in the earthenware enclosures of the time of the lord of Yü.
Under the sovereigns of Hsiâ they preferred what was black. On great occasions (of mourning), for preparing the body and putting it into the coffin, they used the dusk; for the business of war, they used black horses in their chariots; and the victims which they used were black. Under the Yin dynasty they preferred what was white. On occasions of mourning, for coffining the body, they used the midday; for the business of war they used white horses; and their victims were white. Under the Kâu dynasty they preferred what was red. On occasions of mourning, they coffined the body at sunrise; for the business of war they used red horses, with black manes and tails; and their victims were red.
When the mother of duke Mû of Lû 13 died, he sent to ask Zang-dze 14 what (ceremonies) he should observe. Zang-dze said, 'I have heard from my father that the sorrow declared in the weeping and wailing, the feelings expressed in the robe of sackcloth with even or with frayed edges, and the food of rice made thick or in congee, extend from the son of Heaven to all. But the tent-like covering (for the coffin) is of (linen) cloth in Wei, and of silk in Lû.'
Duke Hsien of Sin, intending to put to death his heir-son Shan-shang, another son, Khung-r, said to the latter, 'Why should you not tell what is in your mind to the duke?' The heir-son said, 'I cannot do so. The ruler is happy with the lady Kî of Lî. I should (only) wound his heart.' 'Then,' continued the other, 'Why not go away?' The heir-son replied, 'I cannot do so. The ruler says that I wish to murder him. Is there any state where the (sacredness) of a father is not recognised? Where should I go to obviate this charge?' (At the same time) he sent a man to take leave (for him) of Hû Tû, with the message, 'I was wrong in not thinking (more) of your words, my old friend, and that neglect is occasioning my death. Though I do not presume to grudge dying, yet our ruler is old, and his (favourite) son is (quite) young. Many difficulties are threatening the state, and you, old Sir, do not come forth (from your retirement), and consult for (the good of) our ruler. If you will come forth and do this, I will die (with the feeling that I) have received a (great) favour from you.' He (then) bowed twice, laying his head to the ground, after which he died (by his own hand). On this account he became (known in history as)'the Reverential Heir-son 15.'
There was a man of Lu, who, after performing in the morning the ceremony which introduced the 25th month of his mourning, began to sing in the evening. Dze-lû laughed at him, (but) the Master said, 'Yû, will you never have done with your finding fault with people? The mourning for three years is indeed long.' When Dze-lû went out, the Master said, 'Would he still have had to wait long? In another month (he might have sung, and) it would have been well.'
Duke Kwang of Lû fought a battle with the men of Sung at Shang-khiû. Hsien Pan-fû was driving, and Pû Kwo was spearman on the right. The horses got frightened, and the carriage was broken, so that the duke fell down 16. They handed the strap of a relief chariot (that drove up) to him, when he said, 'I did not consult the tortoise-shell (about the movement).' Hsien Pân-fû said, 'On no other occasion did such a disaster occur; that it has occurred to-day is owing to my want of courage. Forthwith he died (in the fight). When the groom was bathing the horses, a random arrow was found (in one of them), sticking in the flesh under the flank; and (on learning this), the duke said, 'It was not his fault;' and he conferred on him an honorary name. The practice of giving such names to (ordinary) officers began from this.
Zang-dze was lying in his chamber very ill. Yo-kang Dze-khun was sitting by the side of the couch; Zang Yüan and Zang Shan were sitting at (their father's) feet; and there was a lad sitting in a corner holding a torch, who said, 'How beautifully coloured and bright! Is it not the mat of a Great officer?' Dze-khun (tried to) stop him, but Zang-dze had heard him, and in a tone of alarm called him, when he repeated what he had said. 'Yes,' said Zang-dze, 'it was the gift of Kî-sun, and I have not been able to change it. Get up, Yüan, and change the mat.' Zang Yüan said, 'Your illness is extreme. It cannot now be changed. If you happily survive till the morning, I will ask your leave and reverently change it!' Zang-dze said, 'Your love of me is not equal to his. A superior man loves another on grounds of virtue; a little man's love of another is seen in his indulgence of him. What do I seek for? I want for nothing but to die in the correct way.' They then raised him up, and changed the mat. When he was replaced on the new one, before he could compose himself, he expired.
When (a father) has just died, (the son) should appear quite overcome, and as if he were at his wits' end; when the corpse has been put into the coffin, he should cast quick and sorrowful glances around, as if he were seeking for something and could not find it; when the interment has taken place, he should look alarmed and restless, as if he were looking for some one who does not arrive; at the end of the first year's mourning, he should look sad and disappointed; and at the end of the second year's, he should have a vague and unreliant look.
The practice in Kû-lü of calling the (spirits of the dead 17) back with arrows took its rise from the battle of Shang-hsing 18. That in Lû of the women making their visits of condolence (simply) with a band of sackcloth round their hair took its rise from the defeat at Hu-thâi 19.
At the mourning for her mother-in-law, the Master instructed (his niece), the wife of Nan-kung Thâo 20, about the way in which she should tie up her hair with sackcloth, saying, 'Do not make it very high, nor very broad. Have the hair-pin of hazel-wood, and the hair-knots (hanging down) eight inches.'
Mang Hsien-dze, after the service which ended the mourning rites, had his instruments of music hung on their stands, but did not use them; and when he might have approached the inmates of his harem, he did not enter it. The Master said, 'Hsien-dze is a degree above other men 21.'
Confucius, after the service at the close of the one year's mourning, in five days more (began to) handle his lute, but brought no perfect sounds from it; in ten days he played on the organ and sang to it 22.
Yû-dze, it appears, after the service of the same period of mourning, wore shoes of (white) silk, and had ribbons of (white) silk for his cap-strings 23.
There are three deaths on which no condolence should be offered:--from cowardice; from being crushed (through heedlessness); and from drowning 24.
When Dze-lû might have ended his mourning for his eldest sister, he still did not do so. Confucius said to him, 'Why do you not leave off your mourning?' He replied, 'I have but few brothers, and I cannot bear to do so.' Confucius said, 'When the ancient kings framed their rules, (they might have said that) they could not bear (to cease mourning) even for (ordinary) men on the roads.' When Dze-lû heard this, he forthwith left off his mourning.
Thâi-kung was invested with his state, (and had his capital) in Ying-khiû; but for five generations (his descendants, the marquises of Khî) were all taken back and buried in Kâu. A superior man has said, 'For music, we use that of him from whom we sprang; in ceremonies, we do not forget him to whom we trace our root.' The ancients had a saying, that a fox, when dying, adjusts its head in the direction of the mound (where it was whelped); manifesting thereby (how it shares in the feeling of) humanity.
When the mother of Po-yü died, he kept on wailing for her after the year. Confucius heard him, and said, 'Who is it that is thus wailing?' The disciples said, 'It is Lî.' The Master said, 'Ah! (such a demonstration) is excessive.' When Po-yü heard it, he forthwith gave up wailing 25.
Shun was buried in the wilderness of Zhang-wû, and it would thus appear that the three ladies of his harem were not buried in the same grave with him 26. Ki Wû-dze said, 'Burying (husband and wife) in the same grave appears to have originated with the duke of Kâu.'
At the mourning rites for Zang-dze, his body was washed in the cook-room 27.
During the mourning for nine months 28 one should suspend his (musical) studies. Some one has said, 'It is permissible during that time to croon over the words (of the pieces).'
When Dze-kang was ill, he called (his son), Shan-hsiang, and addressed him, saying, 'We speak of the end of a superior man, and of the death of a small man. I am to-day, perhaps, drawing near to my end (as a superior man).'
Zang-dze said, 'May not what remains in the cupboard suffice to set down (as the offerings) by (the corpse of) one who has just died?'
Zang-dze said, 'Not to have places (for wailing) in cases of the five months' mourning 29 is a rule which sprang from the ways in small lanes.' When Dze-sze wailed for his sister-in-law, he made such places, and his wife took the lead in the stamping. When Shan-hsiang wailed for Yen-sze, he also did the same.
Anciently, (all) caps were (made) with the seams going up and down them; now the (mourning cap) is made with the seams going round. Hence to have the mourning cap different from that worn on felicitous occasions is not the way of antiquity 30.
Zang-dze said to Dze-sze, 'Khî, when I was engaged in the mourning for my parents, no water or other liquid entered my mouth for seven days.' Sze-sze said, 'With regard to the rules of ceremony framed by the ancient kings, those who would go beyond them should stoop down to them, and those who do not reach them should stand on tip-toe to do so. Hence, when a superior man is engaged in mourning for his parents, no water or other liquid enters his mouth for three days, and with the aid of his staff he is still able to rise.'
Zang-dze said, 'If, in cases coming under the five months' mourning, none be worn when the death is not heard of till after the lapse of that time, then when brethren are far apart there would be no wearing of mourning for them at all; and would this be right?'
On the mourning rites for Po-kâo, before the messenger from Confucius could arrive, Zan-dze had taken it on him, as his substitute, to present a parcel of silks and a team of four horses. Confucius said, 'Strange! He has only made me fail in showing my sincerity in the case of Po-kâo 31.'
Po-kâo died in Wei, and news of the event was sent to Confucius. He said, 'Where shall I wail for him? For brethren, I wail in the ancestral temple; for a friend of my father, outside the gate of the temple; for a teacher, in my chamber; for a friend, outside the door of the chamber; for an acquaintance, in the open country, (some distance off). (To wail) in the open country would in this case be too slight (an expression of grief), and to do so in the bed-chamber would be too great a one. But it was by Zhze that he was introduced to me. I will wail for him in Zhze's.' Accordingly he ordered Dze-kung to act as presiding mourner on the occasion, saying to him, 'Bow to those who come because you have a wailing in your house, but do not bow to those who come (simply) because they knew Po-kâo.'
Zang-dze said, 'When one during his mourning rites falls ill, and has to eat meat and drink spirits, there must be added the strengthening flavours from vegetables and trees;' meaning thereby ginger and cinnamon.
When Dze-hsiâ was mourning for his son, he lost his eyesight. Zang-dze went to condole with him, and said, 'I have heard that when a friend loses his eyesight, we should wail for him.' Thereupon he wailed, and Dze-hsiâ also wailed, and said, 'O Heaven, and I have no guilt!' Zan-dze was angry, and said, 'Shang, how can you say that you have no guilt?''I and you served the Master between the Kû and the Sze 32; and (after his death) you retired, and grew old in the neighbourhood of the Western Ho, where you made the people compare you with the Master. This was one offence.'When you mourned for your parents, you did so in such a way that the people heard nothing of it. This was a second offence.'When you mourned for your son, you did it in such a way that you have lost your eyesight. This is a third offence. And how do you say that you have no guilt?' Dze-hsiâ threw down his staff, and bowed, saying, 'I was wrong, I was wrong. It is a long time since I left the herd, and lived apart here.'
When a man stops during the daytime in his inner (chamber), it is allowable to come and ask about his illness. When he stops outside during the night, it is allowable to come and condole with him. Hence a superior man, except for some great cause 33, does not pass the night outside (his chamber); and unless he is carrying out a fast or is ill, he does not day and night stop inside.
When Kâo Dze-kâo was engaged with the mourning for his parents, his tears flowed (silently) like blood for three years, and he never (laughed) so as to show his teeth. Superior men considered that he did a difficult thing.
It is better not to wear mourning at all than not to have it of the proper materials and fashion. When wearing the sackcloth with the edges even (for a mother), one should not sit unevenly or to one side, nor should he do any toilsome labour, (even) in the nine months' mourning 34.
When Confucius went to Wei, he found the mourning rites going on for a man with whom he had formerly lodged. Entering the house, he wailed for him bitterly; and when he came out, he told Dze-kung to take out the outside horses of his carriage, and present them as his gift. Dze-kung said, 'At the mourning for any of your disciples, you have never taken out those horses (for such a purpose); is it not excessive to do so for a man with whom you (merely) lodged?' The Master said, 'I entered a little ago, and wailed for him; and I found (the mourner) so dissolved in grief that my tears flowed (with his). I should hate it, if those tears were not (properly) followed. Do it, my child 35.'
When Confucius was in Wei, there was (a son) following his (father's) coffin to the grave. After Confucius had looked at him, he said, 'How admirably did he manage this mourning rite! He is fit to be a pattern. Remember it, my little children.' Dze-kung said, 'What did you, Master, see in him so admirable?' 'He went,' was the reply, 'as if he were full of eager affection. He came back (looking) as if he were in doubt.' 'Would it not have been better, if he had come back hastily, to present the offering of repose?' The Master said, 'Remember it, my children. I have not been able to attain to it.'
At the mourning rites for Yen Yüan, some of the flesh of the sacrifice at the end of (? two) years was sent to Confucius, who went out and received it. On re-entering he played on his lute, and afterwards ate it 36.
Confucius was standing (once) with his disciples, having his hands joined across his breast, and the right hand uppermost. They also all placed their right hands uppermost. He said to them, 'You do so from your wish to imitate me, but I place my hands so, because I am mourning for an elder sister.' On this they all placed their left hands uppermost (according to the usual fashion).
Confucius rose early (one day), and with his hands behind him, and trailing his staff, moved slowly about near the door, singing--
| 'The great mountain must crumble; | |
| The strong beam must break; | |
| The wise man must wither away like a plant.' |
At the mourning rites for Confucius, the disciples were in perplexity as to what dress they should wear. Dze-kung said, 'Formerly, when the Master was mourning for Yen Yüan, he acted in other respects as if he were mourning for a son, but wore no mourning dress. He did the same in the case of Dze-lû. Let us mourn for the Master, as if we were mourning for a father, but wear no mourning dress 39.'
At the mourning for Confucius, Kung-hsî Khih made the ornaments of commemoration. As the adornments of the coffin, there were the wall-like curtains, the fan-like screens, and the cords at its sides, after the manner of Kâu. There were the flags with their toothed edges, after the manner of Yin; and there were the flag-staffs bound with white silk, and long streamers pendent from them, after the manner of Hsiâ 40.
At the mourning for Dze-kang, Kung-ming I made the ornaments of commemoration. There was a tent-like pall, made of plain silk of a carnation colour, with clusters of ants at the four corners, (as if he had been) an officer of Yin 41.
Dze-hsiâ asked Confucius, saying, 'How should (a son) conduct himself with reference to the man who has killed his father or mother?' The Master said, 'He should sleep on straw, with his shield for a pillow; he should not take office; he must be determined not to live with the slayer under the same heaven. If he meet with him in the market-place or the court, he should not have to go back for his weapon, but (instantly) fight with him.''Allow me to ask,' said (the other), 'how one should do with reference to the man who has slain his brother?' 'He may take office,' was the reply, 'but not in the same state with the slayer; if he be sent on a mission by his ruler's orders, though he may then meet with the man, he should not fight with him.''And how should one do,' continued Dze-hsiâ, 'in the case of a man who has slain one of his paternal cousins?' Confucius said, 'He should not take the lead (in the avenging). If he whom it chiefly concerns is able to do that, he should support him from behind, with his weapon in his hand.'
At the mourning rites for Confucius, his disciples all wore their head-bands of sackcloth, when they went out. For one of their own number, they wore them in the house (when condoling), but not when they went out.
Keeping (the ground about) their graves clear of grass was not a practice of antiquity 42.
Dze-lû said, 'I heard the Master say that in the rites of mourning, exceeding grief with deficient rites is better than little demonstration of grief with superabounding rites; and that in those of sacrifice, exceeding reverence with deficient rites is better than an excess of rites with but little reverence.'
Zang-dze having gone on a visit of condolence to Fû-hsiâ, the chief mourner had already presented the sacrifice of departure, and removed the offerings. He caused the bier, however, to be pushed back to its former place, and made the women come down (again), after which (the visitor) went through his ceremony. The disciples who accompanied Zang-dze asked him if this proceeding were according to rule, and he said, 'The sacrifice at starting is an unimportant matter, And why might he not bring (the bier) back, and 'let it rest (for a while)?'The disciples further asked the same question of Dze-yû, who said, 'The rice and precious shell are put into the mouth of the corpse under the window (of the western chamber); the slighter dressing is done inside the door, and the more complete one at (the top of) the eastern steps; the coffining takes place at the guests' place; the sacrifice at starting in the courtyard; and the interment at the grave. The proceedings go on in this way to what is more remote, and hence in the details of mourning there is a constant advance and no receding.' When Zang-dze heard of this reply, he said, 'This is a much better account than I gave of the going forth to offer the sacrifice of departure.'
Zang-dze went on a visit of condolence, wearing his fur robe over the silk one, while Dze-yû went, wearing the silk one over his fur. Zang-dze, pointing to him, and calling the attention of others, said, 'That man has the reputation of being well versed in ceremonies, how is it that he comes to condole with his silk robe displayed over his fur one?' (By-and-by), when the chief mourner had finished the slighter dressing of the corpse, he bared his breast and tied up his hair with sackcloth, on which Dze-yû hastened out, and (soon) came back, wearing his fur robe over the silk, and with a girdle of sackcloth. Zang-dze on this said, 'I was wrong, I was wrong. That man was right.'
When Dze-hsiâ was introduced (to the Master) after he had put off the mourning (for his parents), a lute was given to him. He tried to tune it, but could hardly do so; he touched it, but brought no melody from it. He rose up and said, 'I have not yet forgotten my grief. The ancient kings framed the rules of ceremony, and I dare not go beyond them?' When a lute was given to Dze-kang in the same circumstances, he tried to tune it, and easily did so; he touched it, and brought melody from it. He rose up and said, 'The ancient kings framed the rules of ceremony, and I do not dare not to come up to them.'
At the mourning rites for Hui-dze, who had been minister of Crime, Dze-yû (went to condole), wearing for him a robe of sackcloth, and a headband made of the product of the male plant. Wan-dze (the brother of Hui-dze), wishing to decline the honour, said, 'You condescended to be the associate of my younger brother, and now further condescend to wear this mourning; I venture to decline the honour.' Dze-yû said, 'It is in rule;' on which Wan-dze returned and continued his wailing. Dze-yû then hastened and took his place among the officers (of the family); but Wan-dze also declined this honour, and said, 'You condescended to be the associate of my younger brother, and now further condescend to wear for him this mourning, and to come and take part in the mourning rites; I venture to decline the honour.' Dze-yû said, 'I beg firmly to request you to allow me (to remain here).'Wan-dze then returned, and supporting the rightful son to take his position with his face to the south, said, 'You condescended to be the associate of my younger brother, and now you further condescend to wear this mourning for him, and to come and take part in the rites; dare Hû but return to his (proper) place?' Dze-yû on this hastened to take his position among the guests 43.
At the mourning rites for the general Wan-dze, when the first year's mourning was at an end, there came a man from Yüeh 44 on a visit of condolence. The chief mourner, wearing the long robe (assumed on the completion of the first year's mourning), and the cap worn before that, wailed for him in the ancestral temple, with the tears running from his eyes and the rheum from his nose. Dze-yû saw it, and said, 'The son of the general Wan is not far from being (a master of ceremonies). In his observances at this time, for which there is no special rule, his proceeding is correct.'
The giving of the name in childhood 45, of the designation at the capping, of the title of elder uncle or younger uncle at fifty, and of the honorary title after death, was the practice of the Kâu dynasty.The wearing of the sackcloth head-bands and girdles, to express the real (feeling of the heart); the digging a hole in the middle of the apartment (over which) to wash (the corpse); taking down the (tiles of the) furnace, and placing them at the feet (of it) 46; and at the interment pulling down (part of the wall on the west of the door of) the ancestral temple, so as to pass by the upper side (of the altar to the spirit) of the way, and issue by the great gate;--these were the practices of the Yin dynasty, and the learners (in the school of Confucius) followed them.
When the mother of Dze-liû died, (his younger brother) Dze-shih asked for the means (to provide what was necessary for the mourning rites). Dze-liû said, 'How shall we get them?' 'Let us sell (the concubines), the mothers of our half-brothers,' said the other. 'How can we sell the mothers of other men to bury our mother?' was the reply; 'that cannot be done.'After the burial, Dze-shih wished to take what remained of the money and other things contributed towards their expenses, to provide sacrificial vessels; but Dze-liû said, 'Neither can that be done. I have heard that a superior man will not enrich his family by means of his mourning. Let us distribute it among the poor of our brethren.'
A superior man said, 'He who has given counsel to another about his army should die with it when it is defeated. He who has given counsel about the country or its capital should perish with it when it comes into peril.'
Kung-shû Wan-dze ascended the mound of Hsiâ, with, Kü Po-yü following him. Wan-dze said, 'How pleasant is this mound! I should like to be buried here when I die.' Kü Po-yü said, 'You may find pleasure in such a thought, but allow me (to go home) before (you say any more about it) 47.
There was a man of Pien who wept like a child on the death of his mother. Confucius said, 'This is grief indeed, but it would be difficult to continue it. Now the rules of ceremony require to be handed down, and to be perpetuated. Hence the wailing and leaping are subject to fixed regulations.'
When the mother of Shu-sun Wû-shû died, and the slighter dressing had been completed, the bearers went out at the door (of the apartment) with the corpse. When he had himself gone out at the door, he bared his arms, throwing down also his cap, and binding his hair with sackcloth. Dze-yû said (in derision), 'He knows the rules 48!'
(When a ruler was ill), the high chamberlain supported him on the right, and the assigner of positions at audiences did so on the left. When he died these two officers lifted (the corpse) 49.
There are the husband of a maternal cousin and the wife of a maternal uncle;--that these two should wear mourning for each other has not been said by any superior man. Some one says, 'If they have eaten together from the same fireplace, the three months' mourning 50 should be worn.'
It is desirable that affairs of mourning should be gone about with urgency, and festive affairs in a leisurely way. Hence, though affairs of mourning require urgency, they should not go beyond the prescribed rules; and though festive affairs may be delayed, they should not be transacted negligently. Hurry therefore (in the former) becomes rudeness, and too much ease (in the latter) shows a small man. The superior man will conduct himself in them as they severally require.
A superior man is ashamed 51 to prepare (beforehand) all that he may require in discharging his mourning rites. What can be made in one or two days, he does not prepare (beforehand).
The mourning worn for the son of a brother should be the same as for one's own son: the object being to bring him still nearer to one's self. An elder brother's wife and his younger brother do not wear mourning for each other: the object being to maintain the distance between them. Slight mourning is worn for an aunt, and an elder or younger sister, (when they have been married); the reason being that there are those who received them from us, and will render to them the full measure of observance.
When (the Master) was eating by the side of one who had mourning rites in hand, he never ate to the full.
Zang-dze was standing with (another) visitor by the side of the door (of their house of entertainment), when a companion (of the other) came hurrying out. 'Where are you going?' said Zang-dze; and the man replied, 'My father is dead, and I am going to wail for him in the lane.' 'Return to your apartment,' was the reply, 'and wail for him there.' (The man did so), and Zang-dze made him a visit of condolence, standing with his face to the north.
Confucius said, 'In dealing with the dead, if we treat them as if they were entirely dead, that would show a want of affection, and should not be done; or, if we treat them as if they were entirely alive, that would show a want of wisdom, and should not be done. On this account the vessels of bamboo (used in connexion with the burial of the dead) are not fit for actual use; those of earthenware cannot be used to wash in; those of wood are incapable of being carved; the lutes are strung, but not evenly; the pandean pipes are complete, but not in tune; the bells and musical stones are there, but they have no stands. They are called vessels to the eye of fancy; that is, (the dead) are thus treated as if they were spiritual intelligences 52.'
Yû-dze asked Zang-dze if he had ever questioned the Master about (an officer's) losing his place. 'I heard from him,' was the reply, 'that the officer in such a case should wish to become poor quickly, Just as) we should wish to decay away quickly when we have died.' Yû-dze said, 'These are not the words of a superior man.' 'I heard them from the Master,' returned Zang-dze. Yû-dze repeated that they were not the words of a superior man, and the other affirmed that both he and Dze-yû had heard them. 'Yes, yes,' said Yû-dze, 'but the Master must have spoken them with a special reference.' Zang-dze reported Yû-dze's words to Dze-yû, who said, 'How very like his words are to those of the Master! Formerly, when the Master was staying in Sung, he saw that Hwan, the minister of War, had been for three years having a stone coffin made for himself without its being finished, and said, "What extravagance! It would be better that when dead he should quickly decay away." It was with reference to Hwan, the minister of War, that he said, "We should wish to decay away quickly when we die." When Nan-kung King-shû returned (to the state), he made it a point to carry his treasures with him in his carriage when he went to court, on which the Master said, "Such an amount of property! It would have been better for him, when he lost his office, to make haste to become poor." It was with reference to Nan-kung King-shû that he said that "We should work to become poor quickly, when we have lost office."'Zang-dze reported these words of Dze-yû to Yû-dze, who said, 'Yes, I did say that these were not the words of the Master.' When the other asked him how he knew it, he said, 'The Master made an ordinance in Kung-tû that the inner coffin should be four inches thick, and the outer five. By this I knew that he did not wish that the dead should decay away quickly. And formerly, when he had lost the office of minister of Crime in Lû, and was about to go to King, he first sent Dze-hsiâ there, and afterwards Zan Yû. By this, I knew that he did not wish to become poor quickly 53.'
When Kwang-dze of Khin died, announcement of the event was sent to Lû. They did not want to wail for him there, but duke Mû 54 called Hsien-dze, and consulted him. He said, 'In old times, no messages from Great officers, not even such as were accompanied by a bundle of pieces of dried meat, went out beyond the boundaries of their states. Though it had been wished to wail for them, how could it have been done? Nowadays the Great officers share in the measures of government throughout the middle states. Though it may be wished not to wail for one, how can it be avoided? I have heard, moreover, that there are two grounds for the wailing; one from love, and one from fear.' The duke said, 'Very well; but how is the thing to be managed in this case?' Hsien-dze said, 'I would ask you to wail for him in the temple of (a family of) a different surname;' and hereon the duke and he wailed for Kwang-dze in (the temple of) the Hsien family.
Kung Hsien said to Zang-dze, 'Under the sovereigns of the Hsiâ dynasty, they used (at burials) the vessels which were such only to the eye of fancy, intimating to the people that (the dead) had no knowledge. Under the Yin they used the (ordinary) sacrificial vessels, intimating to the people that (the dead) had knowledge. Under the Kâu we use both, intimating to the people that the thing is doubtful.' Zang-dze replied, 'It is not so! What are vessels (only) to the eye of fancy are for the shades (of the departed); the vessels of sacrifice are those of men; how should those ancients have treated their parents as if they were dead?'
An elder brother of Kung-shû Mû, by the same mother but a different father, having died, he asked Dze-yû (whether he should go into mourning for him), and was answered, 'Perhaps you should do so for the period of nine months.'A brother, similarly related to Tî Î, having died, he consulted Dze-hsiâ in the same way, and was answered, 'I have not heard anything about it before, but the people of Lû wear the one year's mourning in such a case.' Tî Î did so, and the present practice of wearing that mourning arose from his question 55.
When Dze-sze's mother died in Wei, Liû Zo said to him, 'You, Sir, are the descendant of a sage. From all quarters they look to you for an example in ceremonies; let me advise you to be careful in the matter.' Dze-sze said, 'Of what have I to be careful? I have heard that when there are certain ceremonies to be observed, and he has not the necessary means for them, a superior man does not observe them, and that neither does he do so, when there are the ceremonies, and he has the means, but the time is not suitable; of what have I to be careful 56?'
Hsien-dze So said, 'I have heard that the ancients made no diminution (in the degrees of mourning on any other ground); but mourned for every one above and below them according to his relationship. Thus Wan, the earl of Thang, wore the year's mourning for Mang-hû, who was his uncle, and the same for Mang Phî, whose uncle he was.'
Hâu Mû said, 'I heard Hsien-dze say about the rites of mourning, that (a son) should certainly think deeply and long about them all, and that (for instance) in buying the coffin he should see that, inside and outside, it be (equally) well completed. When I die, let it be so also with me 57.'
Zang-dze said, 'Until the corpse has its ornaments put on it, they curtain off the hall; and after the slighter dressing the curtain is removed.' Kung-liang-dze said, 'Husband and wife are at first all in confusion 58, and therefore the hall is curtained off. After the slighter dressing, the curtain is removed.'
With regard to the offerings to the dead at the time of the slighter dressing, Dze-yû said that they should be placed on the east (of the corpse). Zang-dze said, 'They should be placed on the west, on the mat there at the time of the dressing.' The placing the offerings on the west at the time of the slighter dressing was an error of the later times of Lû.
Hsien-dze said, 'To have the mourning robe of coarse dolichos cloth, and the lower garment of fine linen with a wide texture, was not (the way of) antiquity.'
When Dze-phû died, the wailers called out his name Mieh 59. Dze-kâo said, 'So rude and uncultivated are they!' On this they changed their style.
At the mourning rites for the mother of Tû Khiâo no one was employed in the house to assist (the son in the ceremonies), which was accounted a careless omission.
The Master said, 'As soon as a death occurs, (the members of the family) should change their lambskin furs and dark-coloured caps, though they may do nothing more.' The Master did not pay a visit of condolence in these articles of dress.
Dze-yû asked about the articles to be provided for the mourning rites, and the Master said, 'They should be according to the means of the family.' Dze-yû urged, 'How can a family that has means and one that has not have things done in the same way?' 'Where there are means,' was the reply, 'let there be no exceeding the prescribed rites. If there be a want of means, let the body be lightly covered from head to foot, and forthwith buried, the coffin being simply let down by means of ropes. Who in such a case will blame the procedure?'
Pan, superintendent of officers' registries, informed Dze-yû of his wish to dress his dead on the couch. 'You may,' said Dze-yû. When Hsien-dze heard of this, he said, 'How arrogant is the old gentleman! He takes it on himself to allow men in what is the proper rule 60.'
At the burial of his wife, duke Hsiang of Sung 61 placed (in the grave) a hundred jars of vinegar and pickles. Zang-dze said, 'They are called "vessels only to the eye of fancy," and yet he filled them!'
After the mourning rites for Mang Hsien-dze, the chief minister of his family made his subordinates return their money-offerings to all the donors. The Master said that such a thing was allowable.
About the reading of the list of the material contributions (towards the service of a funeral), Zang-dze said, 'It is not an ancient practice; it is a second announcement (to the departed) 62!'
When Khang-dze Kâo was lying ill, Khing I went in to see him, and asked his (parting) commands, saying, 'Your disease, Sir, is severe. If it should go on to be the great illness, what are we to do?' Dze-kâo said, 'I have heard that in life we should be of use to others, and in death should do them no harm. Although I may have been of no use to others during my life, shall I do them any harm by my death? When I am dead, choose a piece of barren ground, and bury me there.'
Dze-hsiâ asked the Master (how one should deport himself) during the mourning for the ruler's mother or wife, (and the reply was), 'In sitting and stopping with others, in his conversation, and when eating and drinking, he should appear to be at ease 63.'
When a stranger-visitor arrived, and had nowhere to lodge, the Master would say, 'While he is alive, let him lodge with me. Should he die, I will see to his coffining 64.'
Kwo-dze Kâo 65 said, 'Burying means hiding away; and that hiding (of the body) is from a wish that men should not see it. Hence there are the clothes sufficient for an elegant covering; the coffin all round about the clothes; the shell all round about the coffin; and the earth all round about the shell. And shall we farther raise a mound over the grave and plant it with trees?'
At the mourning for Confucius, there came a man from Yen to see (what was done), and lodged at Dze-hsiâ's. Dze-hsiâ said to him, 'If it had been for the sage's conducting a burial, (there would have been something worthy to see); but what is there to see in our burying of the sage? Formerly the Master made some remarks to me, saying, "I have seen some mounds made like a raised hall; others like a dyke on a river's bank; others like the roof of a large house; and others in the shape of an axe-head." We have followed the axe-shape, making what is called the horse-mane mound. In one day we thrice shifted the frame-boards, and completed the mound. I hope we have carried out the wish of the Master.'
Women (in mourning) do not (change) the girdle made of dolichos fibre.
When new offerings (of grain or fruits) are presented (beside the body in the coffin), they should be (abundant), like the offerings on the first day of the moon.
When the interment has taken place, everyone should make a change in his mourning dress.
The gutters of the tent-like frame over the coffin should be like the double gutters of a house.
When a ruler succeeds to his state, he makes his coffin, and thereafter varnishes it once a year, keeping it deposited away.
Calling the departed back; plugging the teeth open; keeping the feet straight; filling the mouth; dressing the corpse; and curtaining the hall: these things are set about together. The uncles and elder cousins give their charges to those who are to communicate the death (to friends).
The (soul of a deceased) ruler is called back in his smaller chambers, and the large chamber; in the smaller ancestral temples and in the great one; and at the gate leading to the court of the external audience, and in the suburbs all round.
Why do they leave the offerings of the mourning rites uncovered? May they do so with the flesh of sacrifice 66?
When the coffining has taken place, in ten days after, provision should be made for the materials (for the shell), and for the vessels to the eye of fancy.
The morning offerings should be set forth (beside the body) at sunrise; the evening when the sun is about to set.
In mourning for a parent, there is no restriction to (set) times for wailing. If one be sent on a mission, he must announce his return (to the spirits of his departed).
After the twelfth month of mourning, the (inner) garment should be of white silk, with a yellow lining, and having the collar and the edges of the cuffs of a light purple. The waist-band should be of dolichos cloth; the shoes of hempen string, without the usual ornaments at the points; and the ear-plugs of horn. The lining of the deer's-fur (for winter) should be made broader and with longer cuffs, and a robe of thin silk may be worn over it 67.
When (a parent's) corpse has been coffined, if the son hear of mourning going on for a cousin at a distance, he must go (to condole), though the relationship would only require the three months' mourning. If the mourning be for a neighbour, who is not a relative, he does not go.At (the mourning) for an acquaintance, he must pay visits of condolence to all his brethren, though they might not have lived with him.
The coffin of the son of Heaven is fourfold. The hides of a water-buffalo and a rhinoceros, overlapping each other, (form the first), three inches in thickness. Then there is a coffin of Î wood 68, and there are two of the Rottlera. The four are all complete enclosures. The bands for the (composite) coffin are (five); two straight, and three cross; with a double wedge under each band (where it is on the edge). The shell is of cypress wood, in pieces six cubits long, from the trunk near the root.
When the son of Heaven is wailing for a feudal prince, he wears the bird's-(head) cap 69, a headband of sackcloth, and black robes. Some one says, 'He employs an officer to wail for him.' While so engaged, he has no music at his meals.
When the son of Heaven is put into his coffin it is surrounded with boards plastered over, and (rests on the hearse), on whose shafts are painted dragons, so as to form a (kind of) shell. Then over the coffin is placed a pall with the axe-heads figured on it. This being done, it forms a plastered house. Such is the rule for (the coffining of) the son of Heaven 70.
It is only at the mourning rites for the son of Heaven that the feudal princes are arranged for the wailing according to their different surnames.
Duke Âi of Lû eulogised Khung Khiû in the words, 'Heaven has not left the old man, and there is no one to assist me in my place. Oh! Alas! Nî-fû 71!'
When a state had lost a large tract of territory with its cities, the highest and other ministers, and the Great and other officers, all wailed in the grand ancestral temple, in mourning caps, for three days; and the ruler (for the same time) had no full meal with music. Some one says, 'The ruler has his full meals and music, but wails at the altar to the spirit of the land.'
Confucius disliked those who wailed in the open fields 72.
(A son) who has not been in office should not presume to give away anything belonging to the family. If he should have to do so 73, he ought to have the order of his father or elder brother for the act.
When the (ordinary) officers 74 are all entered, then (the chief mourner and all the others) fall to their leaping, morning and evening.
After the service on the conclusion of the twenty-fourth month of mourning, the plain white cap is assumed. In that month the service on leaving off mourning is performed, and after another month (the mourners) may take to their music 75.
The ruler may confer on any officer the small curtain (as a pall for his father's coffin).
1. Important as showing the rule of succession to position and property. We must suppose that the younger son, who had been made the head of the family, was by a different mother, and one whose position was inferior to that of the son, the proper heir who was dead. Of course the succession should have descended in the line of the rightful heir. Po-dze evaded the point of Than Kung's question; but Confucius did not hesitate to speak out the truth. On other matters which the paragraph might suggest we need not enter.
2. On differences in the services rendered to a parent, a ruler, and a master or instructor.
3. This Wû-dze was a great-grandson of Kî Yû, the third son (by an inferior wife) of duke Kwang of Lû (B.C. 693-662), and the ancestor of the Ki-sun, one of the three famous families of Lu. It would appear that he had appropriated to himself the burying ground of the Tû family.
4. Dze-shang, by name, Pâi, was the son of Dze-sze, and great-grandson of Confucius. What is related here is important as bearing on the question whether Confucius divorced his wife or not. If I am correct in translating the original text by 'your predecessor, the superior man,' in the singular and not in the plural, and supposing that it refers to Confucius, the paragraph has been erroneously supposed to favour the view that he did divorce his wife.
5. In the former case the mourner first thought of his visitor; in the latter, of his dead and his own loss. The bow was made with the hands clasped, and held very low, the head being bowed down to them. They were then opened, and placed forward on the ground, on each side of the body, while the head was stretched forward between them, and the forehead made to touch the ground. In the second case the process was reversed.
6. Dze-lû had died in peculiar circumstances in the state of Wei, through his hasty boldness, in B.C. 480. It was according to rule that the Master should wail for him. The order about the pickled meat was natural in the circumstances.
7. The characters in the text imply that a year had passed since the friend's death.
8. The graveclothes and coverlet. The things placed in the grave with the coffin were many, and will by-and-by come before the reader at length.
9. This paragraph is generally discredited. The Khien-lung editors say it is not to be relied on.
10. These two rules are in Book I, i. Pt. iv, 43, page 89.
11. These two rules are in Book I, i. Pt. iv, 43, page 89.
12. In a still earlier time, according to the third Appendix of the Yî (vol. xvi, p. 385), they merely covered the body on the ground with faggots.
13. Duke Mû was marquis of Lû from B.C. 409 to 376.
14. This was not the disciple of Confucius, but his son, also named Shan like him; but the characters for the names are different.
15. The marquis of Zin, who is known to us as duke Hsien, ruled from B.C. 676 to 651. Infatuated by his love for a barbarian captive from among the Lî, he behaved recklessly and unnaturally to his children already grown up. One very tragical event is the subject of this paragraph.
16. The text would seem to say here that the army of the duke was defeated; but the victory was with the duke. See the Zo Kwan, under B.C. 684, and there was a different reading, to which Lû Teh-ming refers on the passage, that leaves us free to translate as I have done.
17. See p. 108, par. 32; p. 112, par. 15; and often, farther on.
18. In B.C. 638. See the Zo Kwan of that year.
19. See in the Zo Kwan, under B.C. 569.
20. This must have been the Nan Yung of the Analects, V, 1, 2.
21. The sacrificial service on the final putting off of the mourning dress and to which reference is here made, was called than (譚). It will come several times before us hereafter. It is celebrated at the end of the 'three years' mourning' for a parent; that is, at the end of twenty-seven months from the death: see the Introduction, p. 49. Wang Sû of the Wei dynasty contended that the mourning was put off at the end of twenty-five months, and the editors of the Khang-hsî dictionary rather approve of his decision: see their note under the character than. I do not think the controversy as to the exact time when the mourning ceased can be entirely cleared up. Confucius praised Hsien-dze, because he could not forget his grief, when the outward sign of it was put off.
22. The sacrificial service here is called by a different name from than; it is hsiang ( 祥 ); and in mourning for parents there was 'the small hsiang,' at the end of the first year, and 'the great hsiang,' at the end of the second. The character here probably denotes the mourning for one year, which is not continued beyond that time. Music was not used during any of the period of mourning; and it is doing violence to the text to take hsiang here as equivalent to than.
23. In condemnation of Yû-dze (see Analects, I, 2), as quick to forget his grief.
24. The third death here must be supplemented, as I have done the second.
25. Compare paragraph 4, and the note on it. Lî, designated Po-yü, was the son of Confucius, and it has been supposed that his mother had been divorced, so that his protracted wailing for her gave occasion to the rebuke of his father. But while his father was alive, a son did not wail for his mother beyond the year. The passage does not prove that Confucius had divorced his wife, but the contrary; though he might have shown more sympathy with his son's sorrow.
26. From the first part of the Shû King we know that Shun married the two daughters of Yao. The mention of 'three' wives here has greatly perplexed the commentators. Where Zhang-wû was is also much disputed.
27. The proper place for the operation was the principal chamber. There is only conjecture to account for the different place in the case of Zang-dze.
28. In relationships of the third degree: as by a man for a married aunt or sister, a brother's wife, a first cousin, &c.; by a wife, for her husband's grand-parents, uncles, &c.; by a married woman, for her uncle and uncle's wife, a spinster aunt, brothers, sisters, &c. See Appendix at the end of this Book.
29. In relationships of the fourth degree: as by a man for his grand-uncle and his wife, a spinster grand-aunt, a second cousin, &c.; by a wife for her husband's aunt, brother or sister, &c.; by a married woman, for her spinster aunt, married sister, &c. See Appendix.
30. This paragraph does not seem to contain any lessons of censure or approval, but simply to relate a fact.
31. We know almost nothing of the Po-kâo (the eldest son, Kâo) here. From the next paragraph it does not appear that his intimacy with Confucius had been great. Zan-dze had taken too much on himself. Perhaps the gift was too great, and sympathy cannot well be expressed by proxy. The parcel of silks contained five pieces.
32. These were two streams of Lû, near which was the home of Confucius. I thought of this passage when I crossed at least one of them on my way to Khü-fû, 'the city of Confucius,' about twelve years ago.
33. 'A great cause:'--such as danger from enemies, or death and the consequent mourning, which, especially in the case of a father's death, required the son thus to 'afflict himself.'
34. The whole of this paragraph seems overstrained and trivial.
35. We are willing to believe this paragraph, because it shows how the depths of Confucius' sympathy could be stirred in him. He was not in general easily moved.
36. This paragraph has occasioned a good deal of discussion. The text does not make it clear whether the sacrifice was that at the end of one, or that at the end of two years. Why did Confucius play on his lute? and was he right in doing so?
37. The original of this supplement has dropt out of the text. It is found in the 'Narratives of the School;' and in a Corean edition of the Lî Kî.
38. It is well known that the Khung family was a branch of the ducal house of Sung, the lords of which were the representatives of the royal house of Shang. The Khungs were obliged to flee from Sung, and take refuge in Lû in the time of the great-grandfather of Confucius.
39. It is doubtful whether this advice was entirely followed as regards the matter of the dress.
40. See the full description of a coffin and hearse with all its ornaments in Book XIX.
41. In honour of the Master, though Dze-kang himself could not claim to be descended from the kings of Yin.
42. Some would interpret this sentence as if it were--'changing the grave' ( 易 and not 易 ); but the Khien-lung editors say that this practice, originating in geomancy, arose in the time of Sin, and was unknown during the Han dynasty.
43. The object of Dze-yû in all the movements detailed here is supposed to have been to correct some irregularity in the proceedings on the occasion. Kang Hsüan thinks that Wan-dze was supporting a grandson, instead of Hû, his deceased brother's rightful son, to be the principal mourner, and consequently to succeed Hui-dze as his representative and successor. Hui-dze and Wan-dze (called Mei-mâu) were of the state of Wei.
44. A distant state, south of Wû, on the seaboard.
45. Three months after birth.
46. To show the deceased had no more occasion for food, and to keep the feet straight, so that the shoes might be put on at the dressing of the corpse.
47. Was there anything more than a joke in this reply of Po-yü? The commentators make it out to be a reproof of Wan-dze for wishing to appropriate for his grave the pleasant ground of another.
48. He should have made his preparations before, and not have had to throw down his cap on the ground.
49. The text of this paragraph would make the assisting parties to be the chief diviner and the chief archer. The translation is according to an emendation of it from the Kâu Li.
50. Worn in relationships of the fifth degree: as by a man for his great-grand-uncle and his wife, a spinster great-grand-aunt, the son of a mother's brother or sister, &c.; by a wife for her husband's great-great-grand-parents, &c. See Appendix.
51. Lest he should seem not to be wishing individuals to live long.
52. The Khien-lung editors say on this:--'To serve the dead as he served the living is the highest reach of a son's feeling. But there is a difference, it is to be presumed, between the ways of spirits and those of men. In the offerings put down immediately after death, there is an approach to treating the deceased as if he were still a (living) man. But at the burial the treatment of him approaches to that due to a (disembodied) spirit. Therefore the dealing with the dead may be spoken of generally as something between that due to a man and that due to a spirit,--a manifestation of the utmost respect without any familiar liberty.' We should like to have something still more definite. Evidently the subject was difficult to those editors, versed in all Chinese lore, and not distracted by views from foreign habits and ways of thinking. How much more difficult must it be for a foreigner to place himself 'en rapport' with the thoughts and ways of men, so far removed from him in time and in mental training! The subject of these vessels, which yet were no vessels, will come up again.
53. Confucius sent those two disciples, that he might get their report of King (or Khû), and know whether he might himself go and take office there as be wished to do.
54. B.C. 409-377.
55. Confucius gives a decision against mourning at all in such a case, excepting it were exceptional,--in the 'Narratives of the School,' chapter 10, article I.
56. Dze-sze's mother, after his father's death, had married again into the Shû family of Wei. What mourning was Dze-sze now to wear for her? Liû Zo seems to have apprehended that he would be carried away by his feelings and would do more than was according to rule in such a case. Dze-sze's reply to him is not at all explicit.
57. This record is supposed to be intended to ridicule Hâu Mû for troubling himself as he did.
58. Settling places for the wailers, &c. But this explanation is deemed unsatisfactory.
59. The name was used only in calling the spirit back immediately after death; the wailing was a subsequent thing.
60. On death, the body was lifted from the couch, and laid on the ground. When there was no response to the recalling of the spirit, it was returned to the couch and dressed. A practice seems to have arisen of slightly dressing it on the ground, which Pan did not wish to follow. Dze-yu ought to have told him that his proposal was according to rule; whereas he expressed his permission of it,--a piece of arrogance, which Hsien-dze condemned.
61. Hsiang died in B.C. 637.
62. The contributions had been announced by the bier, as if to the departed, and a record of them made. To read the list, as is here supposed, as the procession was about to set forth, was a vain-glorious proceeding, which Zang-dze thus derided.
63. The supplements in this paragraph are from the 'Narratives of the School.' Some contend that the whole should be read as what Dze-hsiâ said, and that the Master gave him no reply, disapproving of his sentiments.
64. This paragraph, like the preceding, appears in rather a different form in the 'Narratives of the School.'
65. Kwo-dze Kâo was the same as the Khang-dze Kâo of par. 22. Kwo was the surname, and Khang the posthumous title. It is difficult to decide between Kwo-dze Kâo and Kwo Dze-kâo.
66. This short paragraph is difficult to construe. The Khien-lung editors seem to approve of another interpretation of it; but even that is not without its difficulties. The flesh of sacrifice, it is said, left uncovered, would become unfit for use or to be sold.
67. The outer sackcloth remained unchanged; but inside it was now worn this robe of white silk, a good deal ornamented. Inside this and over the deer's-fur in winter might be worn another robe of thin silk, through which the fur was seen. Inside the fur was what we should call the shirt, always worn.
68. Tracing the Î tree, through the dictionaries from synonym to synonym, we come at last to identify it with the 'white aspen;' whether correctly or not I do not know.
69. This cap, it is said, was of leather, of the dark colour of a male sparrow's head. Hence its name.
70. See Book XIX.
71. Confucius' death took place on the 18th of the fourth month of duke Âi's 16th year, B.C. 479. The eulogy is given somewhat differently in the Zo Kwan under that year: 'Compassionate Heaven vouchsafes me no comfort, and has not left me the aged man, to support me, the One man, on my seat. Dispirited I am, and full of distress. Woe is me! Alas! O Nî-fû. There is no one now to be a rule to me!' Khiû was Confucius' name, and Kung-nî his designation.' After this eulogy, Nî-fû was for a time his posthumous title.
72. It was the rule to mourn in the open country for an acquaintance. See p. 134. There must have been some irregularity in the practice adverted to.
73. That is, supposing him to have been in office; though some suppose that the necessity might arise, even in the case of a son who had not been in office.
74. Of course the higher officers must also be there. This refers to the mourning rites for a ruler.
75. See the note on page 130. It is difficult, notwithstanding all the references to it, to say definitely in what month the than sacrifice was performed.
| <Previous Section> | |
<Next Section> |
|
|
|
 Published
by The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, © Copyright 2003
by Anne Kinney and the University of Virginia |
|