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《紀妖篇》

衛靈公將之晉,至濮水之上,夜聞鼓新聲者,說之,使人問之,左右皆報弗聞,〔乃〕召師涓而告之,曰: 「有鼓新聲者,使人問左右,盡報弗聞,其狀似鬼〔神〕,子為我聽而寫之。」師涓曰:「諾。」因靜坐撫琴而寫之。 明日報曰:「臣得之矣!然而未習〔也〕,請更宿而習之。」靈公曰:「諾。」因復宿。明日已習,遂去之晉。

晉平公觴之〔於〕施夷之臺。酒酣,靈公起曰:「有新聲,願請奏以示公。」〔平〕公曰:「善。」乃召師涓,令坐師曠之旁,援琴鼓之。未終,〔師〕曠撫而止之,曰:「此亡國之聲,不可遂也。」平公曰:「此何道出?」師曠曰:「此師延所作淫聲,與紂為靡靡之樂也。武王誅紂,懸之白旄,師延東走,至濮水而自投,故聞此聲者,必於濮水之上。先聞此聲者,其國削,不可遂也。」平公曰:「寡人〔所〕好者音也,子其使遂之。」師涓鼓究之。

平公曰:「此所謂何聲也?」師曠曰:「此所謂清商。」公曰:「清商固最悲乎?」師曠曰:「不如清徵。」公曰: 「清徵可得聞乎?」師曠曰:「不可。古之得聽清徵者,皆有德義之君也。今吾君德薄,不足以聽之。」〔平〕公曰:「寡人所好者音也,願試聽之。」 師曠不得已,援琴〔而〕鼓之。一奏〔之〕,有玄鶴二八從南方來,集於(郭)〔廊〕門之上危;再奏〔之〕而列;三奏〔之〕,延頸而鳴。舒翼而舞。 音中宮商之聲,聲徹于天。平公大悅,坐者皆喜。平公提觴而起,為師曠壽,反坐而問曰:「樂莫悲于清徵乎?」師曠曰:「不如清角。」平公曰: 「清角可得聞乎?」

師曠曰:「不可。昔者黃帝合鬼神於西大山之上,駕象輿,六(玄)〔蛟〕龍,畢方並轄,蚩尤居前,風伯進掃, 雨師灑道,虎狼在前,鬼神在後,蟲伏地,白雲覆上,大合鬼神,乃作為清角。今主君德薄,不足以聽之。聽之,將恐有敗。」

平公曰: 「寡人老矣,所好者音也,願遂聽之。」師曠不得已而鼓之。一奏之,有雲從西北起;再奏之,〔大〕風至,大雨隨之,裂帷幕,破俎豆,( 墮)〔隳〕廊瓦。坐者散走。平公恐懼,伏于廊室〔之間〕。晉國大旱,赤地三年。平公之身遂癃病。

〔是〕何謂也? 曰:是非衛靈公國且削,則晉平公且病,若國且旱(亡)〔之〕妖也。師曠曰:「先聞此聲者國削。」二國先聞之矣。

何〔以〕知新聲非師延所鼓也?曰:師延自投濮水,形體腐於水中,精氣消於泥塗,安能復鼓琴?屈原自沉於江, 屈原善著文,師延善鼓琴,如師延能鼓琴,則屈原能復書矣。楊子雲弔屈原,屈原何不報?屈原生時,文無不作,不能報子雲者,死為泥塗, 手既朽,無用書也。屈原手朽無用書,則師延指敗無用鼓琴矣。

孔子當泗水而葬,泗水卻流,世謂孔子神而能卻泗水。孔子好教授,猶師延之好鼓琴也,師延能鼓琴於濮水之中,孔子何為不能教授於泗水之側乎?

趙簡子病,五日不知人。大夫皆懼,於是召進扁鵲。扁鵲入,視病,出,董安于問扁鵲。扁鵲曰:「血脈治也,而怪。昔秦繆公嘗如此矣,七日〔而〕悟。悟之日,告公孫支與子輿曰:『我之帝所甚樂。吾所以久者,適有學也。帝告我:「晉國且大亂,五世不安。其(復)〔後〕將霸,未老而死。霸者之子且令而國男女無別。」』公孫支書而藏之,(于篋)〔秦策〕於是〔出〕。晉獻公之亂,文公之霸,〔而〕襄公〔之〕敗秦師於崤而歸縱淫,此之所謂。今主君之病與之同,不出三日病必間,間必有言也。」

居二日半,簡子悟,告大夫曰:「我之帝所甚樂,與百神游于鈞天,(靡)〔廣〕樂九奏萬舞,不類三代之樂,其聲動人心。 有一熊欲(授)〔援〕我,帝命我射之,中熊,熊死。有羆來,我又射之,中羆,羆死。帝甚喜,賜我(一)〔二〕笥,皆有副。吾見兒在帝側。 帝屬我一翟犬,曰:『及而子之長也以賜之。』帝告我:『晉國且(襄)〔衰〕,(十)〔七〕世而亡。嬴姓將大敗周人於范魁之西,而亦不能有也。 今余將思虞舜之勳,適余將以其冑女孟姚配而(十)〔七〕世之孫。』」

董安于受言,(而書)〔書而〕藏之。以扁鵲言告簡子。簡子賜扁鵲田四萬畝。

他日,簡子出,有人當道,辟之不去。從者將拘之。當道者曰:「吾欲有謁於主君。」從者以聞。簡子召之,曰: 「嘻,吾有所見子(遊)〔〕也。」 當道者曰:「屏左右,願有謁。」簡子屏人。當道者曰:「日者主君之病,臣在帝側。」簡子曰:「然,有之。子見我何為?」當道者曰: 「帝令主君射熊與羆,皆死。」簡子曰:「是,〔且〕何也?」當道者曰:「晉國且有大難,主君首之。帝令主君滅二卿,夫(罷) 〔熊〕羆、皆其祖也。」簡子曰:「帝賜我二笥皆有副,何也?」當道者曰:「主君之子將剋二國於翟,皆子姓也。」簡子曰: 「吾見兒在帝側,帝屬我一翟犬,曰『及而子之長以賜之』。夫兒何說以賜翟犬?」當道者曰:「兒、主君之子也,翟犬、代之先也。 主君之子且必有代。及主君之後嗣,且有革政而胡服,并二國〔於〕翟。」

簡子問其姓而延之以官。當道者曰:「臣、野人, 致帝命〔耳〕。」遂不見。

是何謂也? 曰:是皆妖也。其占皆如當道者言所見於帝前之事。所見當道之人、妖人也。

其後晉二卿范氏、中行氏作亂,簡子攻之,中行昭子、范文子敗,出齊。

始,簡子使姑布子卿相諸子,莫吉。至翟婦之子無恤,以為貴。簡子與語,賢之。簡子募諸子曰:「吾藏寶符於常山之上, 先得者賞。」諸子皆上山,無所得。無恤還,曰:「已得符矣!」簡子問之。無恤曰:「從常山上臨代,代可取也。」簡子以為賢,乃廢太子而立之。 簡子死,無恤代,是為襄子。

襄子既立,誘殺代王而并其地。又并知氏之地。後取空同戎。自簡子後,(十)〔七〕世至武靈王,吳(慶)〔廣〕入其(母) 〔女〕(姓羸)〔娃嬴〕(子)孟姚。其後,武靈王遂取中山,并胡地。武靈王之十九年,更為胡服,國人化之。

皆如其言,無不然者。蓋妖祥見於兆, 審矣,皆非實事。吉凶之漸,若天告之。 何以知天不實告之也?以當道之人在帝側也。夫在天帝之側,皆貴神也,致帝之命,是天使者也。人君之使,車騎備具,天帝之使, 單身當道,非其狀也。天官百二十,與地之王者無以異也。地之王者,官屬備具,法象天官,稟取制度。天地之官同,則其使者亦宜鈞。官同人異者, 未可然也。

何以知簡子所見帝非實帝也?以夢占知之。樓臺山陵、官位之象也,人夢上樓臺,升山陵,輒得官位。實樓臺山陵非官位也,則知簡子所夢 見帝者非天帝也。人臣夢見人君,人君必不見,又必不賜。以人臣夢占之,知帝賜二笥、翟犬者,非天帝也。非天帝,則其言與百鬼游于鈞天,非天也。

魯叔孫穆子夢天壓己者,審然,是天下至地也。不至地,則有樓臺之抗,不得及己。及己,則樓臺宜壞。樓臺不壞,是天不至地。不至地,則不得壓己。不得壓己,則壓己者,非天也,則天之象也。叔孫穆子所夢壓己之天非天,則知趙簡子所游之天非天也。

或曰:「人亦有直夢。〔夢〕見甲,明日則見甲矣;夢見君,明日則見君矣。」曰:然。人有直夢,直夢皆象也,其象直耳。 何以明之?直夢者,夢見甲,夢見君,明日見甲與君,此直也。如問甲與君,甲與君則不見也。甲與君不見,所夢見甲與君者,象類之也。 乃甲與君象類之,則知簡子所見帝者,象類帝也。

且人之夢也,占者謂之魂行。夢見帝,是魂之上天也。上天猶上山也。夢上山,足登山,手引木,然後能升。升天無所緣, 何能得上?天之去人,以萬里數。人之行,日百里,魂與體形俱,尚不能疾,況魂獨行,安能速乎?使魂行與形體等,則簡子之上下天,宜數歲乃悟。 七日輒覺,期何疾也?

夫魂者、精氣也,精氣之行與雲煙等,案雲煙之行不能疾。使魂行若蜚鳥乎?行不能疾。人或夢蜚者,用魂蜚也,其 蜚不能疾於鳥。天地之氣,尤疾速者、風也。風之發,不能終一日。使魂行若風乎?則其速不過一日之行,亦不能至天。

人夢上天,一臥之頃也,其覺,或尚在天上,未終下也。若人夢行至雒陽,覺,因從雒陽悟矣。魂神蜚馳何疾也!疾則必非其狀,必非其狀則其上天非實事也,非實事則為妖祥矣。夫當道之人,簡子病,見於帝側,後見當道象人而言,與相見帝側之時無以異也。由此言之,臥夢為陰候,覺為陽占,審矣。

趙襄子既立,知伯益驕,請地韓、魏,韓、魏予之;請地於趙,趙不予。知伯益怒,遂率韓、魏攻趙襄子。襄子懼,乃保晉陽。 原過從,後,至於(託)(平驛)〔王澤〕,見三人,自帶以上可見,自帶以下不可見。予原過竹二節,莫通。曰:「為我以是遺趙無恤。」既至, 以告襄子。襄子齊三日,親自(割)〔剖〕竹,有赤書曰:「趙無恤、余霍大山〔山〕陽侯天(子)〔使〕〔也〕。三月丙(戍)〔戌〕,余將使汝〔 反〕滅知氏,汝亦祀我百邑,余將賜汝林胡之地。」襄子再拜,受〔三〕神之(命)〔令〕。

是何謂也? 曰:是蓋襄子且勝之祥也。三國攻晉陽歲餘,引汾水灌其城,城不浸者三板。襄子懼,使相張孟談私於韓、魏,韓、魏與合謀,竟以三月丙(戍)〔戌〕之日,(大)〔反〕滅知氏,共分其地。蓋妖祥之氣象人之形,稱霍大山之神,猶夏庭之妖象龍,稱褒之二君;趙簡子之祥象人,稱帝之使也。

何以知非霍大山之神也?曰:大山、地之體,猶人有骨節,骨節安得神?如大山有神,宜象大山之形。何則?人謂鬼者、死人之精,其象如生人之形。今大山廣長不與人同,而其精神不異於人。不異於人,則鬼之類人。鬼之類人,則妖祥之氣也。

秦始皇帝三十六年,熒惑守心,有星墜下,至地為石。〔民或〕刻其石,曰:「始皇死而地分。」

始皇聞之,令御史逐問,莫服,盡取石旁家人誅之,因燔其石。

(妖)〔秋〕,使者從關東夜過華陰平(野)〔舒〕, 或有人持璧遮使者曰:「為我遺鎬池君。」因言曰:「今年祖龍死。」使者問之,因忽不見,置其璧去。

使者奉璧具以言聞。始皇帝默然良久,曰:「山鬼不過知一歲事。」乃言曰:「『祖龍』者、人之先也。」使御府視璧 ,乃二十八年行渡江所沉璧也。明三十七年,夢與海神戰,如人狀。

是何謂也? 曰:皆始皇且死之妖也。始皇夢與海神戰,恚怒入海,候神射大魚,自琅邪至勞、成山不見。至之罘山,還見巨魚,射殺一魚,遂旁 海西至平原津而病,到沙丘而崩。

當星墜之時,熒惑為妖,故石旁家人刻書其石,若或為之,文曰「始皇死」,或教之也。猶世間童謠,非童所為,氣導之也。 凡妖之發,或象人為鬼,或為人象鬼而使,其實一也。

晉公子重耳失國,乏食於道,從耕者乞飯。耕者奉塊土以賜公子,公子怒。咎犯曰:「此吉祥,天賜土地也。」其後公子得國復土, 如咎犯之言。

齊田單保即墨之城,欲詐燕軍,云:「天神下助我。」有一人前曰:「我可以為神乎?」田單卻走再拜事之, 竟以神下之言聞於燕軍。燕軍信其有神,又見牛若五采之文,遂信畏懼,軍破兵北。田單卒勝,復獲侵地。此人象鬼之妖也。

使者過華陰,人持璧遮道,委璧而去,妖鬼象人之形也。夫沉璧於江,欲求福也。今還璧,示不受物,福不可得也。

璧者象前所沉之璧,其實非也。何以明之?以鬼象人而見,非實人也。人見鬼象生存之人,定問生存之人,不與己相見, 妖氣象類人也。妖氣象人之形,則其所齎持之物,非真物矣。

「祖龍死」、謂始皇也。祖、人之本,龍、人君之象也。人、物類,則其言禍亦放矣。

漢高皇帝以秦始皇崩之歲,為泗上亭長,送徒至驪山。徒多道亡,因縱所將徒,遂行不還。被酒,夜經澤中,令一人居前。 前者還報曰:「前有大當道,願還。」

高祖醉,曰:「壯士行,何畏!」乃前,拔劍擊斬,遂分兩,徑開。行數里,醉,因臥。

高祖後人至所,有一老嫗夜哭之。人曰:「嫗何為哭?」嫗曰:「人殺吾子。」人曰:「嫗子為何見殺?」嫗曰: 「吾子、白帝子〔也〕,化為,當徑。今者,赤帝子斬之,故哭。」人以嫗為妖言,因欲笞之。嫗因忽不見。

〔是〕何謂也? 曰:是高祖初起威勝之祥也。何以明之?以嫗忽然不見也。不見,非人,非人則鬼妖矣。夫以嫗非人,則知所斬之非也。云白帝子,何故為 夜而當道?謂、白帝子,高祖、赤帝子,白帝子為,赤帝子為人。五帝皆天之神也,子或為,或為人。人與異物,而其為帝同神,非天道也。

且為白帝子,則嫗為白帝后乎?帝者之后,前後宜備;帝者之子,官屬宜盛。今一死於徑,一嫗哭於道, 云白帝子,非實,明矣。夫非實則象,象則妖也,妖則所見之物皆非物也,非物則氣也。高祖所殺之非也,

則夫鄭厲公將入鄭之時, 邑中之與邑外之者非也,厲公將入鄭,妖氣象而也。鄭國非,則知夏庭二龍為龍象,為龍象,則知鄭子產之時龍戰非龍也。

天道難知,使非,妖也;使是,亦妖也。

留侯張良椎秦始皇,誤中副車。始皇大怒,索求張良。張良變姓名,亡匿下邳。(常)〔嘗〕閑從容步游下邳(泗) 〔圯〕上,有一老父,衣褐,至良所,直墮其履(泗)〔圯〕下,顧謂張良〔曰〕:「孺子下取履!」良愕然,欲敺之,以其老,為彊忍, 下取履,因跪進履。父以足受履,笑去。良大驚。

父去里所,復還,曰:「孺子可教矣。後五日平明,與我期此。」良怪之,因跪 曰:「諾。」五日平明,良往。父已先在,怒曰:「與老人期,後,何也?」去。「後五日早會。」五日,鳴復往。父又已先在,復 怒曰:「後,何也?」去。「後五日復早來。」五日,良夜未半往。有頃,父來,喜曰:「當如是矣!」

出一篇書,曰:「讀是 則為帝者師。後十〔年興〕。〔十〕三年,〔孺〕子見我,濟北穀成山下黃石即我也。」遂去,無他言,弗復見。旦日視其書 ,乃《太公兵法》也。良因異之,〔常〕習讀之。

是何謂也? 曰:是高祖將起,張良為輔之祥也。良居下邳,任俠。〔後〕十年陳涉等起,沛公略地下邳,良從,遂為師將,封為留侯。後十 三年(後)〔從〕高祖過濟北,(界)〔果〕得穀成山下黃石,取而葆祠之。及留侯死,并葬黃石。

蓋吉凶之象,神矣;天地之化,巧矣。使老父象黃石,黃石象老父,何其神邪!

問曰:「黃石審老父,老父審黃石耶?」曰:〔黃〕石不能為老父,老父不能為黃石。妖祥之氣,見故驗也。何以明之?

晉平公之時,石言魏榆。平公問於師曠曰:「石何故言?」對曰:「石不能言,或憑依也。不然,民聽(偏)〔濫〕也。」

夫石不能人言,則亦不 能人形矣。石言,與始皇時石墜(車)〔東〕郡,民刻之,無異也。刻為文,言為辭,辭之與文,一實也。民刻文,氣發言,民之與氣 ,一性也。夫石不能自刻,則亦不能言;不能言,則亦不能為人矣。 《太公兵法》、氣象之也。何以知非實也?以老父非人,知書亦非太公之書也。氣象生人之形,則亦能象太公之書。

問曰 :「氣無刀筆,何以為文?」曰:魯惠公夫人仲子,生而有文在其掌,曰「為魯夫人」。晉唐叔 虞文在其手,曰「虞」。魯成季友文在其手,曰「友」。三文之書,性自然;老父之書,氣自成也。性自然,氣 自成,與夫童謠口自言,無以異也。當童之謠也,不知所受,口自言之。口自言,文自成,或為之也。

推此以省太公釣得巨魚,刳魚得書,云「呂尚封齊」,及武王得白魚,喉下文曰「以予發」,蓋不虛矣。因此復原《河圖》、《洛書》言興衰存亡、帝王際會,審有其文矣。皆妖祥之氣、吉凶之端也。

Chapter XVII. Spook Stories (Chi-yao).

Duke Ling of Wei1 was proceeding to Chin. When he had arrived on the banks of the river Pu,2 he heard at night-time a new tune played on the guitar, which pleased him so well, that he ordered somebody to ask his attendants about it. They all reported that they had heard nothing. Then he called for the music-master Chüan, and told him saying, "There was some one playing a new melody, I gave orders to ask my followers about it, but they all stated that they had not heard anything. It is, as if a ghost made the music for me. Pray, listen to it and write it down for me." The music-master Chüan acquiesced, sat quietly down, played the guitar, and wrote down the tune. On the following morning he reported that he had got it, but still required some practice. He therefore asked for one night more to practise. Duke Ling granted this request. Chüan practised one more night, and on the next morning he had mastered it. They then went on to Chin.

Duke P`ing of Chin3 feasted him on the Shi Yi terrace. 4 When they were flushed with wine, Duke Ling rose and said, "I have a new tune, which I would like to have played for Your Highness to hear." The duke consented, and he called upon the music-master Chüan to sit down next to the music-master K`uang, to take the lute, and strike it, but, ere Chüan had finished, K`uang grasped the instrument, and stopped him saying, "This is a song of a doomed State. You must not proceed." Duke P`ing inquired, "Where does it come from?"---The music-master K`uang replied, "It is a licentious melody composed by the music-master Yen, who made this voluptuous music for Chou. Wu Wang executed Chou, hanging his head on a white banner. 5Yen fled to the east, and, when he had reached the river Pu, he drowned himself. Therefore to hear this tune one must be on the banks of the Pu. If formerly any one heard it, his State was wiped out. It must not be continued."---Duke P`ing said, "I am very partial to music. Let him go on." Chüan then finished his tune.

Duke P`ing said, "What do they call this air?"---The music-master replied, "It is what they call G major." 6 "Is not G major most plaintive?", asked the duke.---"It does not come up to C major," replied K`uang.---"Could I not hear C major?", inquired the duke.---The music-master rejoined, "You cannot. Of old, only princes possessed of virtue and justice were allowed to hear C major. Now the virtue of Your Highness is small. You could not stand the hearing of it."---The duke retorted, "I am very partial to music, and I would like to hear it." K`uang could not help taking up the lute and thrumming it. When he played the first part, two times eight black cranes came from the south, and alighted on the top of the exterior gate. When he played again, they formed themselves into rows, and, when he played the third part, they began crowing, stretching their necks and dancing, flapping their wings. The notes F and G were struck with the greatest precision, and their sound rose to heaven. Duke P`ing was enraptured, and all the guests were enchanted. The duke lifted the goblet, and rose to drink the health of the music-master K`uang. Then he sat down again, and asked, "Is there no more plaintive music than that in C major?"

K`uang replied, "It falls short of A major."---"Could I not hear it?", said the duke.---The music-master replied, "You cannot. Of yore, Huang Ti assembled the ghosts and spirits on the Western Mount T`ai.7 He rode in an ivory carriage, to which were yoked six black dragons. The Pi-fang bird 8 came along with it, and Ch`ih Yu9 was in front. The Spirit of the Wind came forward sweeping the ground, and the Spirit of Rain moistened the road. Tigers and wolves were in front, and ghosts and spirits in the rear, reptiles and suakes crawling on the ground, and white clouds covering the empyrean. A great assembly of ghosts and spirits! And then he began to play in A major. 10 Your virtue, Sire, is small and would not suffice to hear it. If you did, I am afraid, it would be your ruin."

Duke P`ing rejoined, "I am an old man and very fond of music. I would like to hear it."---The music-master K`uang could not but play it. When he had struck the first notes, clouds rose from the north-west, and when he played again, a storm broke loose, followed by torrents of rain. The tents were rent to pieces, the plates and dishes smashed, and the tiles of the verandah hurled down. The guests fled in all directions, and Duke P`ing was so frightened, that he fell down under the porches. The Chin State was then visited with a drought. For three years the soil was scorched up. The duke's body began to suffer pain and to languish thereafter. 11

What does that mean? Since the State of Duke Ling of Wei was not going to ruin, whereas Duke P`ing of Chin fell sick, and his State suffered from a drought, it was not spook. The music-master K`uang had said that the States of those who had heard this tune before, were destroyed. Now the two States had both heard it before.

How do we know that the new tune was not played by the music-master Yen?---When Yen had jumped into the Pu, his body decomposed in the water, and his vital essence dissolved in the mud. How could he still touch the lute? Ch`ü Yuan flung himself into the river. He was as able a writer as Yen was a player of the guitar. If Yen could strike the lute again, then Ch`ü Yuan would have been able to write again. When Yang Tse Yün lamented Ch`ü Yuan's death, wherefore did he not show his gratitude? While alive, Ch`ü Yuan was a very active writer, but he could not thank Yang Tse Yün, because, when dead, he became mud and earth. His hand being rotten, he could not use it again to write. Since Ch`ü Yuan could not use his rotten hand to write, Yen could not thrum the guitar with his tainted thumb either.

When Confucius was buried opposite to the Sse river, the Sse flowed backwards. They say that it was the spirit of Confucius which caused the Sse to flow backwards. Confucius was very fond of teaching, just as Yen liked to play the lute. Provided that the music-master Yen could strike the lute on the banks of the Pu, why could not Confucius teach in the vicinity of the Sse?

Viscount Chien of Chao12 was sick, and for five days did not know anybody. His high officers were alarmed, and then called Pien Ch`io.13 He entered, inquired into the nature of the malady, and then went out again. Tung An Yü14 asked him, and Pien Ch`io replied, "His blood circulation is all right, but it is strange. Formerly Duke Mu of Ch`in15 has been in such a state. After seven days he awoke, and, when he had recovered consciousness, he spoke to Kung Sun Chih and Tse Yü16 saying, `I have been in God's abode. I was very happy, and I stayed away so long, because I was lucky enough to acquire some knowledge. God told me that the Chin State would be in convulsions for five generations and have no repose, and that the next powerful prince would die, before he was old. Owing to the son of this monarch no distinction between men and women would be made in my country.' Kung Sun Chih wrote it all down, and kept the paper in a trunk. Then ensued the revolution under Duke Hsien of Chin,17 the domination of Duke Wên,18 the victory of Duke Hsiang19 over the army of Ch`in at Yao20 , and his weakness towards his woman-folk on his march home. 21 The sickness of your prince is identical with this. Within three days it will cease, and then the patient will have something to say."

When two days and a half had elapsed, Viscount Chien became conscious again, and said to his high officers, "I have been with God, and was very happy. With the spirits I roamed about heaven, and enjoyed the highest bliss. The music and the dances there were different from the music of the three dynasties, and the sound went to heart. There was a brown bear preparing to seize me. God bade me shoot it; I hit the animal, and it died. Then a spotted bear attacked me; I hit it also, and it died. God was very much pleased, and presented me with two caskets of the same contents. I then beheld a lad by God's side. God entrusted to me a Ti22 dog and said, `When your son has grown up, give it to him.' God told me further. `The Chin State is going to be destroyed; after ten generations 23 it will have disappeared. Some one of the family name of Ying24 will inflict a crushing defeat on the people of Chou25 west of Fan-kuei, but he will not keep the country all the same. Now I think of the merits of Shun, therefore I will marry his descendant Mêng Yao to your grandson of the tenth generation.' " 26

Tung An Yü committed all these words to writing and kept the document. He informed Viscount Chien of what Pien Ch`io had said. Chien Tse then made Pien Ch`io a grant of forty thousand mou of land.

When, one day, Viscount Chien went out, a man stood in his way. Though warned off, he did not go. The retinue were going to arrest him, when the man on the road said, "I wish to have an audience with His Lordship." The attendants informed Chien Tse, who called the man crying, "How delightful! I saw you in my rambles."---"Send your attendants away," said the man on the road, "I would like to speak to you." When Chien Tse had dismissed his men, the man on the road continued, "Some time ago, when Your Lordship was sick, I was standing by God."--- "That is true," said Viscount Chien, "What did I do, when you saw me?"---"God bade Your Lordship," replied the man on the road, "to shoot the brown and the spotted bears, which both were killed."---"What does that mean," asked Chien Tse.---"The Chin State," replied the man, "will be in extremities, and Your Lordship will take the lead. God ordered you to destroy the two ministers, for the brown and the spotted bears were their forefathers."---"What does it mean," inquired the Viscount, "that God gave me two caskets both having the same contents?"---The man on the road said, "Your Lordship's son will conquer two kingdoms in the Ti country, which will be named after him." 27 ---"I perceived a lad near God, said Chien Tse, and God entrusted to me a Ti dog saying, `When your son has grown up, give it to him.' Would my son be pleased to have such a dog?"---"That lad, rejoined the man, "is your son, and the Ti dog is the ancestor of Tai. Your Lordship's son will get possession of Tai. Among your descendants there will be a change of government, they will wear Mongolian dress, and two States will be added to that of-the Ti."

Chien Tse asked the man's name and proposed to employ him in an official capacity, but the man on the road declined saying, "I am but a rustic and have delivered God's message." Then he disappeared. 28

What does this mean? It was all spook, they say. The explanation of the things seen in God's presence, as given by the man on the road was the correct interpretation, and the man on the road himself an apparition.

Later on, the two ministers of Chin, Fan Wên Tse and Chung Hang Chao Tse mutinied. Viscount Chien attacked and routed them, and both fled to Ch`i.

At that time Chien Tse had his sons examined physiognomically by Ku Pu Tse Ch`ing.29 None of them had any auspicious signs, but, when the physiognomist arrived at Wu Hsü, his son by his Ti wife, he declared him to be noble. Chien Tse conversed with him, and discovered that he was very intelligent. Chien Tse then called all his sons and said to them, "I have hidden a precious charm on Mount Ch`ang.30 He who first finds it, will be rewarded." All the sons ascended the mountain, but did not find anything. When Wu Hsü returned, he said that he had found the charm. Viscount Chien asked, how. "On Mount Ch`ang," replied Wu Hsü, "one is near Tai,31 which might be acquired."---Chien Tse thought him to be very clever, therefore he deposed the heir-apparent, and put Wu Hsü in his place. When Chien Tse died, Wu Hsü became his successor under the name of Viscount Hsiang.32

After Viscount Hsiang had come to power, he instigated somebody to assassinate the king of Tai, and annexed his territory, and likewise he seized the territory of the Chih family. 33 Later on, he married a Jung from K`ung-t`ung.34 Ten generations after Chien Tse35 came King Wu Ling.36Wu Ching37 introduced to him his mother of the name of Ying and his daughter Mêng Yao.38 Subsequently King Wu Ling seized Chung shan39 and annexed the Hu territory. 40 In his nineteenth year King Wu Ling assumed the Hu dress, and his subjects adopted the Hu customs. Everything happened as predicted, and nothing was wrong. The supernatural lucky signs manifested by portents all proved true; so they say.

All these things are not true. The lucky and unlucky omens happening one after the other were like manifestations of Heaven, but how do we know that, as a matter of fact, Heaven did not send any message? Because the man on the road was by God's side, for only spirits of the highest degree can keep near the Ruler of Heaven. Those who forward God's commands are the heavenly envoys. The envoys of human princes are provided with horses and carriages, and it would not be dignified for an envoy of the Ruler of Heaven to stand alone on the road. Of heavenly officials there are one hundred and twenty, 41 who do not differ from those of the kings of the earth. The kings of the earth have plenty of officials and attendants, who have received their power after the model of the heavenly officials. Since the officials of Heaven and Earth are alike, their envoys must resemble each other also, and, there being such a similarity, it is impossible that one man should have been so dissimilar.

How do we know that God, whom Chien Tse saw, was not the real God? We know it from the interpretation of dreams. Towers, belvederes, hills, and mountains are images for an official post. When a man dreams of ascending a tower or a belvedere, or of mounting a hill or a mountain, he will get an office. In reality a tower, a belvedere, a hill, or a mountain are not an official post. Hence we know that God, whom Viscount Chien saw in his dream, was not the Ruler of Heaven. When an official dreams of a prince, this prince does not appear at all, nor does he give presents to the official. Therefore the interpretation of dreams teaches us that God who gave Chien Tse two caskets and a Ti dog, was not the Supreme Ruler. Since it was not the Ruler of Heaven, the heaven over which Chien Tse roamed with the other ghosts, as he says, was not heaven.

Shu Sun Mu Tse of Lu42 dreamed that heaven fell down upon him. 43 If this had really been the case, heaven would have dropped upon the earth, and approaching the earth, it would not have reached Shu Sun Mu Tse owing to the resistance offered by towers and terraces. Had it reached him, then towers and terraces ought to have been demolished first. Towers and terraces were not demolished, therefore heaven did not descend upon the earth. Since it did not descend upon the earth, it could not reach him, and, since it did not reach him, that which fell down upon him was not heaven, but an effigy of heaven. As the heaven which fell down upon Shu Sun Mu Tse in his dream was not the real heaven, so the heaven through which Chien Tse had been roving was not heaven.

Some one might object that we also have direct dreams, insomuch as we dream of so-and-so, and on the next day see him or, as we dream of a gentleman, whom we see on the following day. I admit that we can have direct dreams, but these direct dreams are semblances, and only these semblances are direct, which will become evident from the following fact. Having a direct dream, we dream of so-and-so, or of any gentleman, and, on the following day, see Mr. So-and-so, or the gentleman in question. That is direct. But, when we ask so-and-so or that gentleman, they will reply that they have not appeared to us in our dreams. Since they did not appear, the persons we saw in our dreams were merely their likenesses. Since so-and-so and the said gentleman were likenesses, we know that God, as perceived by Chien Tse, was solely a semblance of God.

The oneirocritics say that, when a man dreams, his soul goes out. Accordingly, when he sees God in a dream, the soul ascends to heaven. Ascending to heaven is like going up a mountain. When we dream of ascending a mountain, our feet climb up the mountain, and our hand uses a stick; then we rise. To mount up to heaven there are no steps, how should we rise then? The distance from heaven to us amounts to upwards of ten thousand li. A man on a journey uses to travel one hundred li daily. As long as the soul is united to the body, it cannot move very rapidly, how much less, when it walks alone! Had the soul moved with the same speed as the body, Chien Tse would have required several years for his ascension to heaven and his return. Now, he awoke after seven days, and became conscious again. How could the time be so short?

The soul is the vital fluid; the movement of the vital fluid is like that of clouds and fog, and cannot be very quick. Even if the soul moved like a flying bird, it would not be very rapid. Sometimes people dream that they are flying; the flying is done by the soul, but it could not be quicker than the flight of a bird. That fluid of heaven and earth which possesses the greatest speed is the storm, yet a storm does not blow a whole day. Provided that the soul were flying like the storm, its speed would not last longer than one day, and it would be unable to reach heaven.

When a man dreams that he ascends to heaven, it is during the short span, while he lies down. At his awakening, he is perhaps still in heaven, and not yet descended, as a person, dreaming of having arrived at Loyang, still finds himself in Loyang, when roused. How can the flight of the soul be deemed quick? Rapidity is not in its nature, consequently the ascension to heaven was not real. Not being real, it must have been a supernatural omen. The man on the road, perceived by Viscount Chien in his sickness by God's side and subsequently met on the road, speaking like a man, was the same with the one whom he had seen near God. Therefore the explanation that a dream during the sleep is a state of obscuration, which can be interpreted, when the sleeper awakes to light again, is quite correct.

When Viscount Hsiang of Chao had been appointed, 44 the Earl of Chih became more and more arrogant. He asked land of Han and Wei,45 which Han and Wei gave him. Then he made the same demand to Chao, but Chao refused. This roused his anger to such a degree, that with troops of Han and Wei he assaulted Hsiang Tse of Chao. Viscount Hsiang alarmed fled to Chin-yang,46 and sought shelter there. Yuan Kuo followed him. When he had arrived at the post-town of T`o-p`ing,47 he beheld three men, who from the belt upwards were visible, but invisible from the belt downwards. They handed two joints of bamboo, still unopened, to Yuan Kuo saying, "Forward this for us to Wu Hsü of Chao." 48 Upon this he told Hsiang Tse. Hsiang Tse first having fasted three days, personally cut open the bamboo, which contained a red letter reading as follows:---"Wu Hsü of Chao! We are the Huo-t`ai Mountain, 49 the Marquis of Yang, and the Son of Heaven. 50 On the ping-hsü day of the third moon, we will cause you to destroy Chih, and, provided that you sacrifice to us in a hundred cities, we will also give the territory of the Lin Hu51 to you."---Hsiang Tse made obeisance again, and accepted the commands of the spirits.

What does that mean? This was an augury of Hsiang Tse's future victory. The three States were beleaguering Chin-yang for over a year. They diverted the Fên52 and flooded the town, so that only three blocks 53 of the city wall were not submerged. Viscount Hsiang frightened sent his minister Chang Mêng T`an to open secret negotiations with Han and Wei. They made an agreement with him, and on the ping-hsü day of the third month they completely annihilated Chih, and divided his country among them. 54 ---Therefore the fluid of the supernatural portent was shaped like a man, and called itself the spirit of the Huo-t`ai Mountain, as the apparitions in the Hsia palace had the form of dragons, and called themselves Princes of Pao.55Chien Tse's omen had human shape, and pretended to be an envoy of God.

How do we know that it was not the spirit of the Huo-t`ai Mountain? Because a high mountain is a formation of the earth just as bones and joints are of the human body. How can bones and joints be spiritual? If the high mountain had a spirit, it should be shaped like a high mountain. What people call ghosts is the essence of the departed, in appearance they are formed like living men. Now the high mountain was broad and long, and not at all like a man, but its spirit did not differ from a man. Such being the case, the ghost resembled a man, and since it was like a man, it must have been the fluid of a supernatural portent.

In the 36th year of the reign of Ch`in Shih Huang Ti56 Mars offuscated the constellation of the Heart, and a star fell down. When it reached the earth, it became a stone, on which were engraved the following words:---"Ch`in Shih Huang Ti will die, and his land will be divided."

When Ch`in Shih Huang Ti heard of it, he ordered a censor to interrogate the people one by one, but nobody would confess. Whereupon the emperor had all the people living near the stone arrested and put to death. The weird stone he then caused to be destroyed by fire.

When his ambassador, coming from Tung-kuan,57 had passed Hua-yin58 at night-time, and come into the open country, a man with a jade badge in his hands happened to block his passage. "Transmit this to the prince of the Hao Lake59 for me," said the man, and went on saying, "This year the dragon ancestor will die."

The ambassador was just going to ask him for particulars, when the man disappeared, leaving his badge. This the ambassador took, and apprized the emperor of everything. Ch`in Shih Huang Ti kept silent for a long while, then he exclaimed, "The spirit of the mountain knows only the affairs of one year. The dragon ancestor, of whom he speaks, must be a forefather, however." He then gave orders to the imperial household to examine the badge. They ascertained that it was a badge which had been thrown into the Yangtse, while it was crossed in the 28th year of the emperor's reign. 60 The next year, the 37th of his reign, he had a dream that he was fighting with the spirit of the ocean, which was shaped like a man. 61

What does this mean? All these were auguries of Ch`in Shih Huang Ti's impending death. Having dreamt that he was trying conclusions with the spirit of the ocean, he entered into the sea in high dudgeon, waiting for the spirit, and shot at a huge fish. From Lang-yeh62 to the Lao and Ch`êng Mountains 63 he did not perceive any, but having arrived at the Chefoo Mountain, 64 he again came in view of enormous fishes, of which he killed one by a shot with his arrow. 65 Hence he proceeded along the sea-shore as far as P`ingyuan66 ford, where he was taken ill. When he had reached Shach`iu,67 he collapsed and breathed his last.

At the time of the falling star, Mars provoked the unlucky augury, therefore the people dwelling near the stone cut characters into it, as though they had done so purposely. The inscription was to the effect that Ch`in Shih Huang Ti was going to die or to be killed. The queer sayings of children, of which we hear sometimes, are likewise not of their own invention, but they have been inspired by some force. All such supernatural apparitions are either ghosts shaped like men, or men behaving like ghosts. 68 The principle is the same in both cases.

Ch`ung Erh, prince of Chin,69 having lost his country, had nothing to eat on his journey. 70 He asked some labourers on the field for food, but they gave him a clod of earth. 71 The prince became angry, but Chiu Fan said to him, "This is very auspicious. Heaven grants you earth and land." 72 Subsequently the prince reconquered his country, and was re-instated upon his soil, as Chiu Fan73 had predicted.

T`ien Tan of Ch`i,74 defending the city of Chi-mo,75 wished to deceive the army of Yen, therefore he said that the Spirit of Heaven had come down to help him. A man stepped forward and declared that he could act as the Spirit. T`ien Tan then went and still made obeisance before him. And, in fact, the rumour that a spirit had come down, spread among the soldiers of Yen. They believed in the spirit, and, when still further they had viewed the oxen shining in five colours, they became so alarmed by this belief, that the-army was discomfited, and the soldiers routed. 76T`ien Tan gained the victory, and could recover the lost territory. In these apparitions there were men resembling ghosts.

When the ambassador passed Hua-yin, an individual, with a jade badge in his hands, blocked his passage, and went away, leaving him the badge. This was a ghost in human shape. The jade badge had been thrown into the Yangtse for the purpose of praying for happiness. Now, the badge was returned, which showed that the offer was not accepted, and that happiness could not be obtained.

The badge was like that which formerly had been submerged, but it was not really the same for the following reason. When a ghost appears in human shape, it is not a genuine man. If people, after having seen a ghost looking like a living man, thoroughly question other living men, they will find out that none of them have come to see them Consequently a supernatural force has appeared to them in human form. Since this force has merely taken human shape, the things carried by the apparition cannot be real things either.

By the dragon ancestor, which was to die, Ch`in Shih Huang Ti was designated. Ancestors are the root of mankind, and a dragon is an image of a sovereign. If there be a resemblance between man and other creatures, a disaster concerning one part likewise affects the other. 77

In the year of Ch`in Shih Huang Ti's death the Emperor Han Kao Tsu was a village-elder in Sse-shang.78 As such he had to escort convicts to the Li79 Mountain, but most of them escaped on the road. Kao Tsu then allowed those he had still in his power to run away, which they did never to return. Kao Tsu, who was under the influence of liquor, was continuing his journey through a marsh at night, and had ordered a man to keep in front. This man came back and reported that there was a big snake in front, obstructing the way, and besought him to go back.

"What does a valiant warrior fear?," asked Kao Tsu inebriated, and he went forward, drew his sword, and with one stroke cut the snake in two. The path was free then. After he had proceeded still several miles, his intoxication caused him to fall asleep.

When Kao Tsu's companions arrived at the place, where the snake was lying, they found there an old woman crying over it in the silence of night. They asked her, wherefore she cried. "A man has killed my son," replied the old woman.---"How was your son killed?," asked the men.---"My son," said the woman, "the son of the White Emperor, was transformed into a snake to keep watch on the path. Now the son of the Red Emperor has slain him, therefore I cry."---The men thought that the old woman was telling spook stories, and were going to give her a flogging, when the old woman suddenly disappeared. 80

What does this signify? It was a felicitous omen of Kao Tsu's rising to power. The old woman suddenly vanished. Since she became invisible, she cannot have been a human being, and not being human, she must have been a spectre. Since the old dame was not human, it is plain that the slain serpent was not a snake. The old woman spoke of it as the son of the White Emperor, but why did he become a snake, and block the road at night? She asserted that the serpent was the son of the White Emperor and Kao Tsu that of the Red Emperor. Thus the son of the White Emperor would have become a snake, and the son of the Red Emperor, a man, whereas the Five Planetary Emperors 81 are all heavenly spirits. In one case the son would have grown a serpent, in the other, a man. Men and snakes are different creatures, whereas the Emperors all belong to the same class of beings. The human state of those sons would not be conformable to the laws of heaven.

And further, if the snake was the son of the White Emperor, was the old woman the White Empress perhaps? An empress must have her suite in front and behind, and an imperial prince, a large retinue of officials. Now, the snake died on the pathway, and an old woman cried on the road! This makes it evident that her statement about the son of the White Emperor was not true. Not being a real prince, it was a semblance, and being a semblance, it was an apparition. Consequently, everything seen was not genuine, and not being genuine, it was a fluid. The serpent slain by Kao Tsu was not a serpent.

When Duke Li of Ch`êng82 was on the point of entering into his dukedom, 83 a snake in the city was fighting with one outside the city, 84 but they were not genuine snakes. It was a supernatural force marking Duke Li's entrance into Ch`êng under the form of contending snakes. The fighting serpents of the Ch`êng State were not snakes, hence we infer that the two dragons in the Hsia palace 85 were merely images of dragons likewise. Such being the case, we are convinced that the dragons, which were fighting during Tse Ch`an of Chêng's time, 86 have not been dragons.

The ways of Heaven are hard to understand. There are apparitions, when things are all right, and there are also some, when things go wrong.

Chang Liang, Marquis of Liu, dealt a blow at Ch`in Shih Huang Ti with a club, but by mistake hit one of the chariots of his retinue. 87Ch`in Shih Huang Ti, infuriated, gave orders to search for Chang Liang everywhere, but he changed his name and concealed himself in Hsia-pei,88 where he had always leisure to stroll about at pleasure. Up the river Sse,89 there was an old man in coarse clothes, who came to Chang Liang's place. He had just lost one shoe down the river, therefore he said to Chang Liang, "Go down, and fetch me my shoe, my boy."---Chang Liang grew angry, and was going to give him a beating, but noticing, how strong the old man looked, he repressed his feelings, and went down to fetch the shoe, which he offered him on his knees. The old man slipped it on his foot, and went away laughing. Chang Liang felt greatly excited.

When the old man had gone to about a Li's distance, he returned. "You can be taught, my boy," he said, "Five days hence, at sunrise, meet me here." Chang Liang bewildered, knelt down and assented. After five days, at sunrise Chang Liang went, but the old gentleman had already arrived before him. "Why must you come later, when you have an appointment with an old man?," asked he angrily. "Five days after my departure, very early, we will meet again."---After five days Chang Liang went again at cockcrow, but again the old man had arrived before, and repeated his angry question, wherefore he had arrived later. "Five days after I have left," said he, "come again very early."---On the fifth day Chang Liang went before midnight, and after a short while the old gentleman arrived. "So you are right," said he, very pleased.

He then produced a pamphlet, which he gave him saying, "Read it, and you will become preceptor to an emperor. After thirteen years you will see me. A yellow stone at the foot of Mount Kuch`êng in Ch`i-pei90 that is I." Whereupon he went away, saying nothing further, and was not seen again. At dawn Chang Liang looked at the book. It was "T`ai Kung's91 Strategy." Chang Liang amazed, studied it very thoroughly. 92

What was this? An augury of Kao Tsu's elevation by Chang Liang's assistance. Chang Liang lived ten years at Hsia-pei as a knight and a hero. When Ch`ên Shê93 and his confederates rose in revolt, and the Governor of P`ei94 visited Hsia-pei, Chang Liang joined them. Subsequently, he was made a general and ennobled with the title Marquis of Liu. Thirteen years later, when with Kao Tsu he crossed the Ch`i-pei territory, he found a yellow stone at the foot of Mount Ku-ch`êng. He took it, stored it away, and worshipped it, and, when he died, it was buried with him.

This yellow stone was a supernatural transformation conveying an omen. The metamorphoses of heaven and earth are most ingenious, for is it not wonderful to make an old man take the form of a yellow stone, and a yellow stone the form of an old man?

Some one might ask, whether the yellow stone was really an old man, and the old man really a yellow stone. A yellow stone cannot become an old man, nor an old man a yellow stone. The appearance of a supernatural portent made it look so.

During the time of Duke P`ing of Chin95 a stone spoke in Wei-yü. 96 The duke asked the music-master K`uang, why the stone had spoken. "A stone cannot speak," was the reply. "Perhaps it was possessed by a spirit, otherwise the people have heard wrong." 97

A stone cannot utter human speech, and so it cannot take human shape. The speaking of the stone is not different from the falling down of the stone in Tung-chün98 in Ch`in Shih Huang Ti's time, which was engraved by the people. 99 Engraving gives an inscription, and talking, speech. Script and speech fall under the same law. The people engraved the inscription, and a force made the speech. The nature of the people and the force is the same. A stone cannot engrave itself, nor can it talk, and not being able to talk, it cannot become a man either. "T`ai Kung's Strategy" was formed by the force. How do we know that it was not real? Because the old man was not a man, whence we infer that the book was not T`ai Kung's Strategy either. Since the force could take the likeness of a living man, it could liken itself to T`ai Kung's Strategy too.

The question may be raised, how a force could write characters, having neither knife nor pencil.---When Chung Tse, wife to Duke Hui of Lu, was born, she had on her palm the words:---"Future princess of Lu." T`ang Shu Yü of Chin bore on his hand the character Yü, and Ch`êng Chi Yo of Lu the character Yo.100 These three inscriptions have been written by a spontaneous nature, and thus the force had composed the old man's book of itself. The spontaneous nature and the self-producing force must be classed together with the self-speaking queer sayings of children. When children utter such strange things, they do not know, where they got them from, their mouths speak of themselves. The self-speaking mouths and the self-produced writing are the active agents so to say. This argument may serve as a cue for the better understanding of other events.

T`ai Kung angling caught a big fish, and, when he cut it open, there was a letter in it reading, "Lü Shang101 will be invested with Ch`i." At Wu Wang's time, one caught a white fish, marked under its throat with the words, "Give it to Fa." 102 There was truth in all this. In fine, the "Plan of the Yellow River" and the "Scroll of the Lo" 103 indicated the rise and fall, the progress and the decline, and the opportunities of emperors and kings. There certainly have been such writings. They were apparitions caused by a supernatural force and lucky or unlucky omens.

Notes

1. 533-499 b.c.

2. On the border of the provinces Chili and Shantung.

3. 556-530 b.c.

4. The Shi-chi chap. 24, p. 39v. calls it the "Shi-hui terrace," . which was situated on the Fên river in Shansi.

5. Cf. Shi-chi chap. 4, p. 11 and Chap. XXXVIII.

6. I am not quite certain, whether G, C, and A major are a correct rendering of Chinese ch`ing (clear) shang, chih and chio . In the Mémoires concernant les Chinois Vol. VI, p. 115 these notes are identified with sol, ut, and la. At any rate ch`ing (clear) and its correlate cho (obscure) would be appropriate terms to designate sharp and flat notes.---The parallel passage of the Shi-chi omits to specify the airs, as is done here.

7. The sacred Mount T`ai is in the East, in Shantung, not in the West.

8. Some say that it is the spirit of wood. It is described as a bird with one wing, always carrying fire in its mouth, and portending fire in the house where it appears. According to the Shan-hai-king it would be a bird like a crane, but with one leg, a green plumage adorned with red, and a white beak.

9. A legendary person said by some to have been a minister of Huang Ti. Cf. Chap. XXXV.

10. All the details about the assembly of ghosts are omitted in the Shi-chi.

11. The same story, illustrative of the magical force of music, is told in a parallel passage of the Shi-chi, chap. 24, on music, p. 39 seq. Since the text of the Lun-héng is fuller, I presume that Wang Ch`ung did not quote the Shi-chi, but had an older source, probably the same, from which the Shi-chi has copied.

12. 516-457 b.c.

13. Pien Ch`io is the honorary appellative of Ch`in Yüeh Jen, a celebrated physician who travelled from State to State.

14. A minister of Viscount Chien.

15. 658-620 b.c.

16. Officers of Ch`in.

17. 675-651 b.c.

18. 634-627 b.c.

19. 626-620 b.c.

20. A defile in Honan.

21. On the battle of Yao which took place in 626 b.c. cf. Tso-chuan Duke Hsi, 33d year. The weakness of Duke Hsiang consisted in releasing his prisoners at the request of his mother, a princess of Ch`in, which was deeply resented by his officers. Vid. Chap. XL.

22. Northern barbarians. A Ti dog was probably a huge Mongolian dog, resembling a St. Bernard, much bigger than the common Chinese dog.

23. We ought to read "seven generations" as the Shi-chi does. The characters for seven and ten can be easily confounded. Chien's sickness took place in 500 b.c. under the reign of Duke Ting of Chin. From Duke Ting to the end of the Chin State, which in 375 broke up into the three marquisates of Wei, Chao, and Han, there are only seven rulers, Ting included. Viscount Chien was a vassal of Duke Ting and ancestor of the later marquises and kings of Chao.

24. Ying was the family name of the viscounts of Chao.

25. This does not mean the people of the royal domain of Chou, but the people of Wei (Honan), whose princes were descended from a side branch of the royal house, their ancestor being K`ang Shu, a younger brother of.the Emperor Wu Wang. After the extinction of Chin, the Marquis Chêng of Chao conquered seventy-three towns from Wei.

26. It should be "of the seventh generation," for King Wu Ling, who was married to Mêng Yuo, was a descendant of Viscount Chien in the seventh degree.

27. Tai and Chih.

28. So far the story has been quoted from the Shi-chi, chap. 43, p. 7 seq.

29. Comp. p. 307.

30. Another name for Mount Hêng in Ta-tung-fu in North Shansi.

31. A Ti State occupying the confines of North Shansi and Mongolia.

32. Cf. Shi-chi, chap. 43, p. 11v.

33. An earldom in the south of the Chin State.

34. Name of a mountain in Kansu and of an aboriginal tribe (Jung) settled there.

35. It must be "seven generations."

36. Wu Ling's reign lasted from 325-299 b.c.

37. In the Shi-chi, chap. 43, p. 19. Wu Ching is called Wu Kuang. He was a descendant of Shun.

38. The passage seems to be corrupt. The Shi-chi says "Wu Kuang through his wife introduced (to the king) his beautiful daughter Ying Mêng Yao." First a palace girl, Mêng Yao, some years later, was raised to the rank of a queen. See on this passage Chavannes, Mém. Hist. Vol. V, p. 68 Note 7.

39. Originally a part of Chin, in the modern Ting-chou of Chili province.

40. These Hu tribes were settled in the northern provinces:---Chili, Shansi, Shensi, and Kansu.

41. The stars, considered as the officials of God, the Ruler of Heaven, and as divinities.

42. A nobleman of the Lu State of the 6th cent. b.c.

43. This dream is narrated in the Tso-chuan, Duke Ch`ao 4th year (537 b.c.).

44. In 456 b.c. (cf. above p. 226).

45. I. e. the viscounts of Han and Wei, who together with those of Chao had usurped the power in Chin.

46. Near T`ai-yuan-fu in Shansi.

47. The Shi-chi calls this place Wang-tsê, which was situated in Chiang-chou (Shansi).

48. The personal name of Viscount Hsiang (cf. p. 226).

49. A mountain in Yung-an-hsien (Shansi) Ho-tung circuit.

50. The reading of the Shi-chi:---"Marquis of Shan-yang (name of city) and Envoy of Heaven" seems preferable.

51. A subdivision of the Hu tribes, probably Mongols.

52. A tributary of the Huang-ho.

53. One "pan" , block is said to measure 8 feet. The Shi-chi, chap. 43, p. 13, writes: .

54. So far the narration has been culled with some omissions and alterations from the Shi-chi, chap. 43, p. 12 v. seq.

55. When the Hsia dynasty had begun to decline, two divine dragons made their appearance in the imperial palace, and said that they were two princes of Pao. Cf. Shi-chi, chap. 4, p. 25 (Chavannes, Mêm. Vol. I, p. 281) which quotes the Kuo-yü.

56. 211 b.c.

57. A place at the bend of the Yellow River in Shensi.

58. A town half-way between Tung-kuan and Hsi-an-fu.

59. The Hao Lake was near Hsi-an-fu, the capital of Ch`in Shih Huang Ti, who is meant by the prince of the lake.

60. 219 b.c.

61. The foregoing are extracts from the Shi-chi, chap. 6, p. 24 v. seq.

62. On the south coast of Shantung.

63. . The Shi-chi writes Yung-ch`êng (loc. cit. p. 28). The Lao shan and the Ch`êng shan are two high mountain ranges in Chi-mo (Kiao-chou) reaching to the sea. The Tu-shih fang yü chi yao, chap. 36 rejects the reading Yung-ch`êng. The mountains must have been on the sea-shore, north of Lang-yeh and south of Chefoo, for this was the way taken by the emperor, as results from Lun-hêng Bk. IV, 9 (Shu-hsü) and Bk. XXVI, 1 (Shih-chih).

64. The Chefoo Promontory, forming the harbour of the treaty-port Chefoo.

65. According to the Shi-chi the emperor shot those big fishes with a repeating cross-bow (lien-nu) , (on which cf. my article on the Chinese Cross-bow in Verhandlungen der Berliner Gesellschaft für Anthropologie 1896, p. 272).

66. In the Chi-nan-fu prefecture, Shantung.

67. In Shun-tê-fu (Chili).

68. As though under a spell or a charm, which is the supernatural.

69. Later Duke Wên of Chin, 634-627 b.c.

70. Banished from Chin, he lived for many years in other States.

71. This happened in Wei, whose prince had treated him discourteously.

72. Cf. Tso-chuan, Duke Hsi 23d year, where the incident is told, though with other words.

73. Called Tse Fan in the Tso-chuan.

74. An official of Ch`i, who delivered his country from the invading army of Yen, in the 3rd cent. b.c.

75. City in Shantung, near Kiao-chou.

76. T`ien Tan used a similar stratagem as Hannibal. During the night he fantastically dressed 1000 oxen, tied sharp blades to the horns and greased rushes to their tails, and lighting these rushes let them loose against the enemy, who were taken by surprise and completely beaten by the men of Yen following in the rear. Vid. the biography of T`ien Tan in the Shi-chi, chap. 82, p. 3.

77. Therefore the death of the dragon implies the end of the emperor.

78. . The Shi-chi chap. 8, p. 2v. writes Sse-shui , which was a district in the present Yen-chou-fu (Shantung).

79. A mountain near Ch`in Shih Huang Ti's mausoleum in Shansi, which was built by convicts.

80. The story is quoted from the Shi-chi, chap. 8, p. 5. It is meant as a prophecy of the overthrow of the Ch`in dynasty by that of Han. The Ch`in used metal, to which the white colour corresponded, as the symbol of their power, whereas the Han relied on fire, which has a red colour. According to Chinese symbolism fire overcomes metal, ergo the Ch`in were doomed to be overpowered by the Han.

81. The Five Planets which from ancient times were worshipped as deities. The Red Emperor is Mars, the White Emperor Venus.

82. 699-694 b.c.

83. Duke Li had been forced to quit his country.

84. Cf. Tso-chuan, Duke Chuang 14th year. The snake inside the city was killed.

85. Vid. above p. 230.

86. The Tso-chuan, Duke Ch`ao 19th year (522 b.c.) relates:---"There were great floods in Ch`êng; and some dragons fought in the pool of Wei, outside the Shi gate. The people asked leave to sacrifice to them; but Tse Ch`an refused it, saying, `If we are fighting, the dragons do not look at us; when dragons are fighting, why should we look at them?' " (Legge Vol. V, P. II, p. 675).

87. Chang Liang had engaged a bravo to deal the blow with an iron club or mallet weighing 120 pounds.

88. In the modern P`ei-chou of Kiangsu province.

89. Instead of Sse the Shi-chi writes:---"i" , the "bridge."

90. In Tung-o district (Shantung).

91. The helpmate of Wên Wang, who had been invested with the marquisate of Ch`i in Shantung (cf. p. 172).

92. The story is quoted from Chang Liang's Biography in the Shi-chi, chap. 55, p. 1 v., but somewhat abridged.

93. A simple soldier who in 209 b.c. brought about an insurrection against Erh Shih Huang Ti, and assumed the title of a king of Ch`u.

94. Liu Pang = Kao Tsu, at that time still governor of P`ei in Kiangsu.

95. 556-531 b.c.

96. A city in modern T`ai-yuan-fu (Shansi).

97. Tso-chuan, Duke Ch`ao 8th year (Legge Vol. V, Pt. II, p. 622).

98. Circuit comprising the northern part of Honan, north of K`ai-fêng-fu.

99. See above p. 230.

100. Cf. p. 95.

101. The surname of T`ai Kung, Wên Wang's associate, who later on became prince of Ch`i.

102. The personal name of Wu Wang.

103. Cf. p. 295.

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