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Grandly lofty are the mountains, |
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With their large masses reaching to the heavens. |
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From these mountains was sent down a Spirit, |
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Who gave birth to [the princes of] Fu and shen. |
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Fu and Shen, |
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Are the support of Zhou, |
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Screens to all the States, |
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Diffusing [their influence] over the four quarters of the kingdom. |
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Full of activity is the chief of Shen, |
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And the king would employ him to continue the services [of his fathers], |
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With his capital in Xie, |
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Where he should be a pattern to the States of the south. |
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The king gave charge to the earl of Zhou, |
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To arrange all about the residence of the chief of Shen, |
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Where he should do what was neccessary for the regions of the south, |
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And where his posterity might maintain his merit. |
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The king gave charge to the chief of Shen, |
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'Be a pattern to the regions of the south, |
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And by means of those people of Xie, |
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Proceed to display your merit. ' |
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The king gave charge to the earl of Zhou, |
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To make the statutory definition of the territory and fields of the chief of Shen. |
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The king gave charge to the chief 's steward, |
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To remove the members of his family to the spot. |
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Of the services of the chief of Shen, |
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The foundation was laid by the earl of Zhou, |
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Who built first the walls [of this city], |
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And then completed his ancestral temple. |
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When the temple was completed, wide and grand, |
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The king conferred on the chief of Shen, |
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Four noble steeds, |
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With their hooks for the trappings of the breast-bands, glittering bright. |
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The king sent away the chief of Shen, |
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With its carriage of state and its team of horses. |
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'I have consulted about your residence, |
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That it had best be fixed in the South. |
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I confer on you a great sceptre, |
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As the symbol of your dignity. |
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Go, my uncle, |
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And protect the country of the South.' |
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The chief of Shen took his departure, |
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And the king gave him a parting feast in Mei. |
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Then the chief of Shen returned, [and proceeded] to the south, |
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And found himself at last in Xie. |
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The king had given charge to the earl of Zhou, |
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To make the statutory division of the lands, |
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And to lay up stores of provisions, |
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That the progress of the chief might be accelerated. |
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Martial-like, the chief of Shen, |
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Entered into Xie. |
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His footmen and charioteers were numerous, |
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And throughout the regions of Zhou all rejoiced. |
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'You have got a good support: -- |
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Very distinguished is the chief of Shen, |
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The great uncle of the king, |
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The pattern of the officers, both civil and military. ' |
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The virtue of the chief of Shen, |
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Is mild, and regulated, and upright. |
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He will keep all these countries in order, |
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And be famed throughout the kingdom. |
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[I], Ji-fu, made this song, |
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An ode of great excellence, |
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Of influence good, |
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To present to the chief of Shen. |
Published
by The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, © Copyright 2003
by Anne Kinney and the University of Virginia