Notes
1. THE king to whom this charge is ascribed was Phing
(B.C. 770-719). Between him and Mû there was thus a period of fully two
centuries, of which no documents are, or ever were, in the collection of the
Shû. The time was occupied by seven reigns, the last of which was that of Nieh,
known as king Yû, a worthless ruler, and besotted in his attachment to a female
favourite, called Pâo-sze. For her sake he degraded his queen, and sent their
son, Î-khiû, to the court of the lord of Shan, her father, 'to learn good
manners.' The lord of Shan called in the assistance of some barbarian tribes,
by which the capital was sacked, and the king slain; and with him ended the
sway of 'the Western Kâu.' Several of the feudal princes went to the assistance
of the royal House, drove away the barbarians, brought back Î-khiû from Shan,
and hailed him as king. He is known as king Phing, 'the Tranquillizer,' His
first measure was to transfer the capital from the ruins of Hâo to Lo, thus
fulfilling at length, but under disastrous circumstances, the wishes of the
duke of Kâu; and from this time (B.C. 770) dates the history of 'the Eastern
Kâu.' Among king Phing's early measures was the rewarding
the feudal lords to whom he owed his throne. The marquis of Kin was one of
them. His name was Khiû, and that of Î-ho, by which he is called in the text,
is taken as his 'style,' or designation assumed by him on his marriage. Wan,
'the Accomplished,' was his sacrificial title. The lords of Kin were descended
from king Wû's son, Yü, who was appointed marquis of Thang, corresponding to
the present department of Thâi-yüan, in Shan-hsî. The name of Thang was
afterwards changed into Kin. The state became in course of time one of the
largest and most powerful in the kingdom. The charge in this Book is understood to be in
connexion with Wan's appointment to be president or chief of several of the
other princes. The king begins by celebrating the virtues and happy times of
kings Wan and Wû, and the services rendered by the worthy ministers of
subsequent reigns. He contrasts with this the misery and distraction of his own
times, deploring his want of wise counsellors and helpers, and praising the
marquis for the services which he had rendered. He then concludes with the
special charge by which be would reward the prince's merit in the past, and
stimulate him to greater exertions in the future.
2.
Compare king Khang's gift to the duke of Kâu, in the Announcement concerning
Lo, ch. 6.
3.
The conferring on a prince of a bow and arrows, invested him with the power of
punishing throughout the states within his jurisdiction all who were
disobedient to the royal commands, but not of taking life without first
reporting to the court. The gift was also a tribute to the merit of the
receiver. See the Book of Poetry, II, iii, ode I.