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The Wenxuan 文選 "Selected literature" is a literary anthology compiled by the Liang period 梁 (502-557) writer Xiao Tong 蕭統 (501-531), Prince Zhaoming 昭明. The book is therefore also called Zhao Ming Wenxuan 昭明文選.
The Liang period was a time when literature flourished. This apogee was already prepared a few centuries earlier, during the Jian'an reign 建安 (196-219) of the late Han period 漢 (206 BCE-220 CE). For the coming two centuries writers refined literary styles and developed new genres. The amount of literature produced between the 3rd and the 6th centuries was tremendeous. During the Sui period 隋 (581-618) the imperial library (see the bibliography Jingjizhi 經籍志) included 249 compendia with a size of 5,224 juan "scrolls". There were also first attempts to think about literary theory during the Liu-Song period 劉宋 (420-479) when scholars of the state-sponosored faculties of Confucianism, Daoism, literature, historiography and mantics tried standardizing the writings of their field. During the Jin period 晉 (265-420) there were the books Wenzhang liubie ji 文章流别集 by Zhi Yu 挚虞 and Hanlinlun 翰林論 by Li Chong 李充, the Liu-Song period scholar Liu Yiqing 劉義慶 wrote the literary anthology Jilin 集林. All three books are unfortunately lost. Only Xiao Tong's Wenxuan has survived.
Xiao Tong assembled a lot of excellent literati and writers in his household with which he regularly conferred about literary theory and the ideal form of writing. He disposed of a large library of almost 30,000 juan. The Prince himself was also an ardent writer, and his collected writings have a size of 20 juan, not including his commentaries and prefaces to other books, with a volume of 10 juan. His anthology of five-syllable poems is a 20 (or 19) juan long book called Wenzhang yinghua 文章英華 (also called Gujin shiyuan yinghua 古今詩苑英華). The Wenxuan is 30 juan long. It might be that Wenzhang yinghua or Gujin shiyuan yinghua are alternative titles of the Wenxuan because there is otherwise no testimony of these books, allegedly lost before the Sui period. Xiao Tong was certainly not the only compiler of the Wenxuan but it must be assumed that he selected the texts together with his retainers, among which persons are found that have also written other commenting works on literature, like Liu Xiaochuo 劉孝綽, Wang Yun 王筠, Yin Yun 殷芸, Lu Chui 陸倕, Dao Qia 到洽 or Liu Xie 劉勰, author of the literary critique Wenxin diaolong 文心雕龙.
In 30 juan the Wenxuan includes 514 writings of 130 authors from earliest times down to the very early Liang period. The writings are arranged in 38 genres, beginning with rhapsodies (fu 賦) and the highly estimated genres of regular poems (shi 詩) and and then going on to many categories of "miscellaneous writings" (zawen 雜文; a more common term would be sanwen 散文 "prose"). Below the level of genres the writings are arranged chronologically. Poems and rhapsodies cover the largest part of the book. Because of their great amount the rhapsodies are therefore divided into 15 sub-categories, referring to places (the capital, palaces) or imperial activities, like offering, hunting, ploughing. The regular poems are divided into 23 groups. The literary categories are very detailed, and the development of these presents a thorough new picture of how belles-lettres could be arranged in various types of writings, which was never done before. Xiao Tong and his team only selected literary works and did not include any parts from the Confucian Classics, historiographic texts, or texts from the famous Warring States period 戰國 (5th cent.-221 BCE) philosophers. Literary comments to such books (zanlun 贊論), nevertheless, were included in the Wenxuan. The criterion thus was literary beauty, well-tasted wording, composition of regular sentences, and an overall harmony. Later scholars often criticized him for including obscure (Tao Yuanming 陶淵明) or less important (Gushi shijiu shou 古詩十九首) poems while omitting other, more important works. Some of the pieces included have later been found out to be forgeries, like Li Ling's 李陵 Da Su Wu shu 答蘇武書 or Kong Anguo's 孔安國 Shangshu xu 尚書序. Some paragraphs entitled as "preface" (xu 序) are not really prefaces, like Emperor Han Wudi's 漢武帝 Qiufeng ci 秋風辭, and some titles have nothing to to with the content, like Liu Jun's 劉峻 Chong da Liu Moling zhao shu 重答劉秣陵詔書. There are also many coying errors in the text of the Wenxuan.
The Wenxuan was, inspite of these shortcomings, a path-breaking book for the study of literary genres in the field of belles-lettres. The study of the Wenxuan even developed into an own discipline (wenxuanxue 文選學). The vast development of the regular poem during the Tang period 唐 (618-907) can not be understood without the important study of Xiao Tong in this field. The ability to write poems became part of the state examinations, and this must be led back to the importance Xiao Tong posed on this type of literature. A profoundly educated literatus had to study the Wenxuan. Scholars also commented the Wenxuan. Of the circa 90 commentaries from the Sui and Tang periods only very few have survived. The oldest commentary was written by Xiao Gai 蕭該 during the Sui period, called Wenxuan yinyi 文選音義. A phonetic commentary with the same title was written during the early Tang by Cao Xian 曹憲. Both are lost. The oldest surviving – and most famous – commentary is Li Shan's 李善 Wenxuan zhu 文選注. In a lot of modern editions it is included into the main text of the Wenxuan. Li Shan’s commentary is of an extraordinary quality. He used more then 1,700 books to revise and explain the difficult texts of the writings included in the Wenxuan. The Wenxuan zhu was submitted to the throne in 658. In general, it is a more text-critical commentary than an explanation of the literary works. Li Shan's commentary includes a lot of older commentaries to the particular writings, for instance, Xue Zong's 薛綜 commentary to the rhapsody Erjing fu 二京賦, or Wang Yi's 王逸 commentary to Qu Yuan's 屈原 elegies. Another book of Li Shan on the Wenxuan, the Wenxuan bianhuo 文選辨惑, is lost.
Another important Tang period commentary to the Wenxuan is the Wuchen zhu Wenxuan 五臣注文選 "Commentaries of the Five Masters" from the mid-8th century, a compound edition of commentaries by five persons, namely Lü Yanji 呂延濟, Liu Liang 劉良, Zhang Xi 張銑, Lü Xiang 呂向 and Li Zhouhan 李周翰. This commentary is rated as of a minor quality compared to Li Shan's commentary. During the Song period 宋 (960-1279) the five commentaries and Li Shan's commentary were put together as Liuchen zhu 六臣注. Later scholars again distilled out Li Shan's book. Most modern publications containing Li Shan's commentary are based on these extractions. There is another Tang period commentary by an unknown master, the Wenxuan jizhu 文選集注 surviving in a fragment of 23 juan. It quotes from the other commentaries, but also by notes of Lu Shanjing 陸善經 and the books Wenxuan chao 文選鈔 and Wenxuan yinjue 文選音決, which are both lost.
During the Song period the study of the Wenxuan became less important. There were, nonetheless, a few specialized research tools written, like Wenxuan shuangzi leiyao 文選雙字類要 or Wenxuan leilin 文選類林. Some few studies can also be found scattered in various Song period essays.
The Song period encyclopedia Wenyuan yinghua 文苑英華 is often called a continuation of the Wenxuan. It is arranged in a similar style and largely copies the literary categories of the Wenxuan.
There is the Yuan period 元 (1279-1368) commentary Xuanshi buzhu 選詩補注 by Liu Lü 劉履 and the Ming period 明 (1368-1644) book Wenxuan zuanzhu 文選纂注 by Zhang Fengyi 張鳳翼. The wave of textual critique developing during the Qing period 清 (1644-1911) also caught the Wenxuan studies, and a few books from that time have to be mentioned: Wang Shihan's 汪師韓 Wenxuan lixue quanyu 文選理學權輿, Sun Zhizu's 孫志祖 Wenxuan lixue quanyu bu 文選理學權輿補, Hu Kejia's 胡克家 Wenxuan kaoyi 文選考異, Zhang Yun'ao's 張雲璈 Xuanxue jiaoyan 選學胶言, Liang Zhangju's 梁章鉅 Wenxuan pangzheng 文選旁證, Zhu Jian's 朱珔 Wenxuan jishi 文選集釋, Hu Shaoying's 胡紹瑛 Wenxuan jianzheng 文選箋證, Xu Xuanxing's 許巽行 Wenxuan biji 文選筆記, He Chao's 何焯 Yimen du shuji 義門讀書記, Yu Guanghua's 于光華 Wenxuan jiping 文選集評, Gao Buying's 高步瀛 Wenxuan Li zhu yishu 文選李注義疏 and Lu Hongkai's 駱鸿凱 Wenxuanxue 文選學.
The oldest surviving texts of the Wenxuan are the above-mentioned Wenxuan jizhu from the Tang period, a plain text (without commentaries) from the Tang period, a version including Li Shan's commentary, and a phonetic commentary Wenxuan yin 文選音. All have survived as fragments discovered in Dunhuang 敦煌. Part of these fragments is included in the collections Mingshashishi guji congcan 鳴沙石室古籍叢殘 and Dunhuang miji liuzhen xinbian 敦煌秘籍留真新編. The oldest print of the Wenxuan was made during the Northern Song period 北宋 (960-1126). It is surviving as a facsimile in the collectaneum Sibu congkan 四部叢刊, including the six commentaries. The Zhonghua shuju press 中華書局 has published a reprint of an edition from 1181 made by You Mao 尤袤, including Li Shan's commentary. The most common version is the Qing period print by Hu Kejia 胡克家, based on You Mao's print. It has been republished in 1977 by the Zhonghua shuju press, enriched by a short text-critical study at the end.
Source: Sheng Yucheng 沈玉成 (1986). "Wenxuan 文選", in: Zhongguo da baike quanshu 中國大百科全書, Zhongguo wenxue 中國文學, vol. 2, pp. 936-938. Beijing/Shanghai: Zhongguo da baike quanshu chubanshe.
| Contents |
scroll
(卷 juan) |
type |
division |
| 1 |
賦甲 fu rhapsodies I |
京都上 jingdu A |
| 2 |
| 3 |
賦乙 fu rhapsodies II |
京都中 jingdu B |
| 4 |
| 5 |
賦丙 fu rhapsodies III |
京都下 jingdu C |
| 6 |
| 7 |
賦丁 fu rhapsodies IV |
郊祀 jiaosi;
耕藉 gengjie;
畋獵上 mulie A |
| 8 |
畋獵中 mulie B |
| 9 |
賦戊 fu rhapsodies V |
畋獵下 mulie C;
紀行上 jixing B |
| 10 |
紀行下 jixing B |
| 11 |
賦己 fu rhapsodies VI |
遊覽 youlan;
宮殿 gongdian |
| 12 |
江海 jianghai |
| 13 |
賦庚 fu rhapsodies VII |
物色 wuse;
鳥獸上 niaoshou A |
| 14 |
鳥獸下 niaoshou B;
志上 zhi A |
| 15 |
賦辛 fu rhapsodies VIII |
志中 zhi B |
| 16 |
志下 zhi B;
哀傷 aishang |
| 17 |
賦壬 fu rhapsodies IX |
論文 lunwen;
音樂上 yinyue A |
| 18 |
音樂下 yinyue B |
| 19 |
賦癸 fu rhapsodies X |
情 qing |
| 詩甲 shi lyric poetry I |
補亡 buwang;
述德 shude;
勸勵 quanli |
| 20 |
獻詩 xianshi;
公讌 gongyan;
祖餞 zujian |
| 21 |
詩乙 shi lyric poetry II |
詠史 yongshi;
百一 baiyi;
遊仙 youxian |
| 22 |
招隱 zhaoyin;
反招隱 fan zhaoyin;
遊覽 youlan |
| 23 |
詩丙 shi lyric poetry III |
詠懷 yonghuai;
哀傷 aishang;
贈答一 zengda A |
| 24 |
贈答二 zengda B |
| 25 |
詩丁 shi lyric poetry IV |
贈答三 zengda C |
| 26 |
贈答四 zengda D;
行旅上 xingyou A |
| 27 |
詩戊 shi lyric poetry V |
行旅下 xingyou B;
軍戎 junrong;
郊廟 jiaomiao;
樂府上 yuefu A |
| 28 |
樂府下 yuefu B;
挽歌 wange;
雜歌 zage |
| 29 |
詩己 shi lyric poetry VI |
雜詩上 zashi A |
| 30 |
雜詩下 zashi B |
| 30b |
詩庚 shi lyric poetry VII |
雜擬上 zani |
| 31 |
雜擬下 zani |
| 32 |
騷上 sao elegic poems I |
| 33 |
騷下 sao elegic poems II |
| 34 |
七上 qi sevens I |
| 35 |
七下 qi sevens II;
詔 zhao edicts;
冊 ce patents of enfeoffment |
| 36 |
令 ling commands;
教 jiao instructions;
文 wen [examination] texts |
| 37 |
表上 biao memorials I |
| 38 |
表下 biao memorials II |
| 39 |
上書 shangshu letters of submission;
啟 qi communications |
| 40 |
彈事 tanshi accusations;
牋 jian memoranda;
奏記 zouji notes of presentation |
| 41 |
書上 shu letters I |
| 42 |
書中 shu letters II |
| 43 |
書下 shu letters III |
| 44 |
檄 xi proclamations |
| 45 |
對問 duiwen response texts ;
設論 shelun hypothetical discourses;
辭 ci southern style poems;
序上 xu prefaces I |
| 46 |
序下 xu prefaces II |
| 47 |
頌 song eulogies;
贊 zan encomia |
| 48 |
符命 fuming mandates through prophetic signs |
| 49 |
史論上 shilun treatises from the histories I |
| 50 |
史論下 shilun treatises from the histories II;
史述贊 shishuzan evaluations from the histories |
| 51 |
論一 lun treatises I |
| 52 |
論二 lun treatises II |
| 53 |
論三 lun treatises III |
| 54 |
論四 lun treatises IV |
| 55 |
論五 lun treatises V;
連珠 lianzhu linked pearls |
| 56 |
箴 zhen admonitions;
銘 ming inscriptions;
誄上 lei dirges I |
| 57 |
誄下 lei dirges II;
哀上 ai laments I |
| 58 |
哀下 ai laments II;
碑文上 beiwen epitaphs I |
| 59 |
碑文下 beiwen epitaphs II;
墓誌 muzhi grave memoirs |
| 60 |
行狀 xingzhuang conduct descriptions;
弔文 diaowen condolences;
祭文 jiwen offerings |
|
|
|
Exemplarious translation:
13.＜賦庚＞＜獸鳥上＞＜賈宜鵩鳥賦一首＞
單閼之歲兮 四月孟夏，庚子日斜兮 鵩集予舍
止于坐隅 貌甚閒暇。異物來集兮 私怪其故。
發書占之兮 筴讖言其度。曰：「野鳥入處兮 主人將去。」
請問于服兮 「予去何之，吉乎告我，凶言其菑。
淹速之度兮 語予其期。」
服乃歎息，舉首奮翼。口不能言，請對以意。
萬物變化兮 固無休息。斡流而遷兮 或推而還。
形氣轉續兮 變化而嬗。沕穆無窮兮 胡可勝言。
禍兮 福所倚福兮 禍所伏，憂喜聚門兮 吉凶同域。
彼吳彊大兮 夫差以敗。越棲會稽兮 句踐霸世。
斯游遂成兮 卒被五刑，傅說胥靡兮 乃相武丁。
夫禍之與福兮 何異糾纆。命不可說兮 孰知其極。
13. Rhapsodies VII, Animals A: 1. The Rhapsody of
the Owl by Jia Yi (d. 168 BC)
In the year of dan'e, fourth month, first month of summer (June 174
BC), on the day guizi, when the sun was low in the west, an owl came to
my lodge
and perched on the corner of my mat, phlegmatic and fearless. Secretly
wondering the reason the strange thing had come to roost,
I sought a book to divine it, and the oracle told me its secret: "Wild
bird enters the hall; the master will soon depart."
I asked and importuned the owl, "Where must I go? Do you bring me luck?
Then tell me! Misfortune? Relate what desaster!
Must I depart so swiftly? Then speak to me of the hour!"
The owl breathed a sigh, and beat its wings. Its beak coult utter no
word, but let me tell you that it sought to say:
All things alter and change; never a moment of ceasing. Revolving,
whirling, and rolling away; driven far off and returning again;
form and breath passing onward, like the mutations of a cicada.
Profound, subtle, and illimitable, who can finish describing it?
Good luck must be followed by bad; bad in turn bow to good. Sorrow and
joy throng the gate; weal and woe in the same land.
The state of Wu was powerful and great; under king Fucha (r. 496-473)
it sank in defeat. The state of Yue was crushed at Guaiji, but king
Goujian (r. 496-465) made it an overlord.
Li Si, the chancellor of Qin, who went forth to greatness, at last
suffered the five mutilations. Fu Yue was sent into bondage, yet king
Wuding of Shang made him his aide.
Thus fortune and disaster entwine like the strands of a rope. Fate
cannot be told of, for who shall know its ending? [...]
且夫天地為鑪兮 造化為工。陰陽為炭兮 萬物為銅。
至人遺物兮 獨與道俱。眾人或或兮 好惡積意。
真人淡漠兮 獨與道息。寥廓忽荒兮 與道翱翔。
乘流則逝兮 得坻則止。縱軀委命兮 不私與己。
其生若浮兮 其死若休。澹乎若深淵之靜，氾乎若不繫之舟。
不以生故自寶兮 養空而浮。德人無累兮 知命不憂。
細故蒂芥兮 何足以疑。
Heaven and Earth are the furnace, the workman, the Creator; his coal is
the yin and yang, his copper, all things of creation [...]
The Perfect Man abandons things and joins himself to the Dao alone,
while the multitudes in delusion with desire and hate load their hearts.
Limpid and still, the True Man finds his peace in the Dao alone.
Transcendent, destroying self, vast and empty, swift and wild, he soars
on wings of the Dao.
Borne on the flood he sails forth; he rests on the river islets.
Frecing his body to Fate, unpartaking of self,
his life is floating, his death is a rest. In stillness like the
stillness of deep springs, like an unmoored boat drifting aimlessly,
valuing not the breath of life, he embraces and drifts with Nothing.
Comprehending Fate and free of sorrow, the Man of Virtue heeds no
bonds.
Petty matters, weeds and thorns - what are they to me?
39.＜上書＞＜李斯上書秦始皇＞
臣聞吏議逐客，竊以為過矣．
昭王得范雎，廢穰侯，逐華陽，彊公室，杜私門，蠶食諸侯，使秦成帝業．此四君者，皆以客之功．由此觀之，客何負於秦哉！向使四君卻客而弗納，疏士而弗用，
是使國無富利之實，而秦無彊大之名也．
臣聞地廣者粟多，國大者人眾，兵彊者則士勇．是以太山不讓土壤，故能成其大；河海不澤細流，故能就其深；王者不卻眾庶，故能明其德．是以地無四方，民無異
國，四時充美，鬼神降福，此五帝三王之所以無敵也．今乃棄黔首以資敵國，卻賓客以業諸侯，使天下之士退而不敢西向，裹足不入秦．此所謂藉寇兵而齎盜糧者
也．
Letters of submission: 1. Letter of Submission to
the First Emperor of Qin by Li Si (d. 208 BC)
I have heard that many officials dismiss their clients, but I dare to
esteem this to be a bad practise [...]
King Zhao(xiang; r. 305-251 BC) the Prominent Accomplisher employed Fan
Sui as his chancellor, discharged his corrupt uncles Ranghou and
Huayang, only to eleminate unauthorized behaviour and to invigorate the
strengh of the ruling family's position. He devoured the territories of
the feudal lords and made the house of Qin able to become emperors.
These four rulers (including duke Mu the Respectful, r. 660-621; duke
Xiao the Filial, r. 362-338; and king Huiwen the Benevolent Culturer,
r. 338-310) were successful because of their advisors. From this
aspect, how could the advising clients let the rulers of Qin down? If
these four rulers would not have employed and incorporated consultants
in their politics, the state of Qin would not be as rich and prosperous
as it is now, and Qin would not be a strong and powerful country [...]
I have heard that in a country with ample fields, grain is abundant,
that a state with a vast territory has many inhabitants, and that
soldiers are very brave if the army is strong. Equally, the Taishan
"Great Mountain" does not push away the soil, and thus has acheived its
greatness. The rivers and oceans are that deep because they do not
refuse the water from the small creeks. And a king can clarify his
virtue only by not driving out the inhabitants of his country.
Therfore, it is important not to stretch a country all over the world,
and not to make people become estranged to their country; and only
then, the four seasons will be completed and beautiful, the spirits and
gods will grant good luck, and all will be like during the age of the
Five mythical Emperors and the Three holy Kings (of Xia, Shang and
Zhou), who all had no enemies on earth. If your majesty now would
dismiss your advising clients, they would be a fortune for your
enemies' countries. If you would allow people of ability under Heaven
to draw back from your court and not to come here to the west, they
would not put one step on the ground of your state of Qin. That would
be the same like lending weapons to robbers and to give grain to the
bandits.
48.＜符命＞＜司馬長卿封禪文一首＞
大漢之德，逢涌原泉，沕潏曼羨，旁魄四塞，雲布霧散，上暢九垓，下泝八埏．懷生之類，沾濡浸潤，協氣橫流，武節猋逝，邇狹遊原，遐闊泳末，首惡鬱沒，晻昧
昭晰，昆蟲闓澤，迴首面內．然後囿騶虞之珍群，徼麋鹿之怪獸，導一莖六穗於庖，犧雙觡共柢之獸，獲周餘珍放龜于岐，招翠黃乘龍於沼．
於是大司馬進曰：「陛下仁育群生，義征不譓，諸夏樂貢，百蠻執贄，德侔往初，功無與二，休烈浹
洽，符瑞眾變，期應紹至，不特創見．意泰山梁甫設壇場望幸，蓋號以況榮，陛下謙讓而弗發，挈三神 之歡．
自我天覆，雲之油油．甘露時雨，厥壤可遊．滋液滲漉，何生不育！嘉穀六穗，我穡曷蓄﹖
宛宛黃龍，興德而升．采色炫燿，煥炳煇煌．正陽顯見，覺悟黎蒸．
於傳載之，云受命所乘．厥之有章，不必諄諄．依類託寓，喻以封巒．
Mandates through prophetic signs: 1. Offerings to
Heaven and Earth by Sima Xiangru (Sima Changqing, d. 118 BC)
[...] The virtuous deeds of the great Han Dynasty (208 BC-8 AD) are
like water bubbling from its well and never ceasing flows all around,
filling everything between the nine heaven's borders and the eight
shores of the earth, like a cloud veil and scattered fog. All living
beings are wettened and moistened by her virtue, peacefully and richly;
the martial virtue of Han spreads to the far borders; everything near
drifts to its sources, everything far is floating upon its flood. Bad
people vanish, and the dark ones experience Han's cultivation. The
dragons joyfully face the emperor of Han. Later on, miraculous animals
like the Zouyu tiger and the David's deer "unicorn" were kept in the
imperial gardens; a grain plant with six ears was offered, and a
miraculous beast was sacrified, having two corns sprouting from one
single base. A wonderful turtle was caught, once risen by the kings of
Zhou in the ponds at Qishan mountains. In the swamps, an emerald yellow
dragon horse was found, (once ridden by the Yellow Emperor). [...]
Therefore the Great Marshal Sima Xiangru proposes: Your Majesty had
educated people with humaneness, and with righteousness you lead back
the unfaithful. The lords offer their gifts with greatest joy, and the
barbarians likely present their tributes. The virtue of Han is well
comparable with the virtue of the ancient kings, and her merits find no
counterpart. Their noble deeds flow ceaselessly, and omina of good
fortune succeed one to another, not solitary and separated, but
unbroken until their time has come. Therefore, one could suppose that
your Majesty is given a clue to climb Mount Taishan and Liangfu Peak
personally to make sacrifices on the altars of Heaven and Earth by
yourself, to pray for glory and honor. Otherwise, the three deities of
Heaven would lose their interest in the Han dynasty, if you would be
too modest and not accept the challenge to climb these mountains. [...]
Since Heaven has given its mandate to Han, clouds are drifting white in
blue,
sweet rain comes down, makes blooming the vast land over all,
sprinkles, wettens, pours, refreshes; all life sprouts around.
Grain, one stalk, six ears, we shall harvest eternally [...]
Yellow dragon squirms along, rising like the perfect virtue,
shining colored, dazzling, glaring, splendid, powerful.
He resembles the shining sun, wakening up all people,
and the books report to us: "Heaven gives mandate once more!"
If Heaven wants to speak, it does not use many words,
but omina are Heaven's expression, if it further accepts offering. [...]
51.＜論一＞＜賈誼過秦論一首＞
秦孝公據殽函之固，擁雍州之地，君臣固守，以窺周室，有席卷天下，包舉宇內，囊括四海之意，并吞八荒之心．當是時也，商君佐之，內立法度，務耕織，修守戰
之具，外連衡而斗諸侯．於是秦人拱手而取西河之外．
及至始皇，奮六世之餘烈，振長策而御宇內，吞二周而亡諸候，履至尊而制六合，執敲扑以鞭笞天下，威振四海．南取百越之地，以為桂林、象郡．百越之君，俛首
係頸，委命下吏．乃使蒙恬北築長城而守蕃籬，卻匈奴七百餘里，胡人不敢南下而牧馬，士不敢彎弓而報怨．於是廢先王之道，燔百家之言，以愚黔首．墮名城，殺
豪俊，收天下之兵聚之咸陽，銷鋒鍉鑄以為金人十二，以弱天下之民．良將勁弩，守要害之處，信臣精卒，陳利兵而誰何？天下已定，始皇之心，自以為關中之固，
金城千里，子孫帝王，萬世之業．
Treatises I: 1. The Faults of Qin by Jia Yi (d.
168 BC; from the book 新書 Xinshu "New Treatises")
Duke Xiao the Filial (r. 361-318 BC) was able to control the region of
Yongzhou thanks to the safety of the Hangu Pass in the Yao mountain
ridge. His ministers followed him in loyalty and assisted him making
conspirations against the weak house of Eastern Zhou (770-256 BC). The
duke wanted to wrap the world into his mat, to envelop the universe
with his power and to seize the Four Seas into his bag, devouring the
eight cardinal points. During that time, Lord Shang was his counsellor,
advising the duke to issue laws and measures, to let people engage in
agriculture and weaving, to renew the army and its strategies, and to
make coalitions with Qi and Chu to defeat the other feudal lords.
Thereupon, the state of Qin almost effortless could occupy the
territory west of the Yellow River bend [...]
When the time came to the First Emperor (246/221-210 BC), he made even
more effort to realize the plans then the six rulers of Qin before him.
He brandished the great whip to command the universe, devoured the two
houses of Zhou and extinguished the feudal lords. Holding cane and
cudgel, he scourged all under heaven and spread horror among the Four
Seas. In the south, he conquered the territory of the Hundred Yue
barbarians and installed the commanderies of Guilin and Xiangjun. The
rulers of the Hundred Yue put a rope around their necks to express
their submission even to the lowest of Qin's officials. The First
Emperor sent Meng Tian to erect the Great Wall in the north in order to
protect the border regions. He drove back the Xiongnu nomads more than
seven hundred miles away. The Non-Chinese peoples did not even dare to
come to the south to pasture their horses, and their soldiers did not
even risk to span their bows to take revenge.
The First Emperor left the virtuous way of the former kings and burned
the writings of the Hundred Schools of Thought only to make the black
headed people stupid. He devastated the great cities and killed the
heroes; he had collected all weapons in the empire and brought them to
the capital Xianyang. He had melted all arrow-heads to cast twelve
bronze statues from the metal, all to weaken the people [...] Good
generals had to use crossbows to protect strategic points; loyal
ministers had to command skilled armies to hinder everyone to question
the power of Qin. When the empire was appeased, the First Emperor
thought that the territory west of the Hangu Pass would be safe, and
inside his metal wall of a thousand miles, he wanted to establish an
eternal rule of his sons and grandsons of the house of Qin.
52.＜論二＞＜魏文帝典論論文一首＞
文人相輕，自古而然．傅毅之於班固，伯仲之間耳，而固小之，與弟超書曰：「武仲以能屬文為蘭臺令史，下筆不能自休．」夫人善於自見，而文非一體，鮮能備
善．是以各以所長，相輕所短．里語曰：「家有弊帚，享之千金．」斯不自見之患也．
常人貴遠賤近，向聲背實，又患闇於自見，謂己為賢．
夫文，本同而末異．蓋奏議宜雅，書論宜理，銘誄尚實，詩賦欲麗．此四科不同，故能之者偏也；唯通才能備其體 ．
Treatises II: 2. Discussing Literature from "Rules
for Literature" by Cao Pei (emperor Wen-di of Wei, r. 220-226)
Since oldest times, men of letters disdain each other, like Ban Gu (d.
92 AD) who usually was on good terms with Fu Yi, but scorned the latter
concerning his literary works. In a letter to his brother Ban Zhao, Ban
Gu wrote: "Fu Yi (Wuzhong) is just able to compose some small essays,
and that was enough to become director of the imperial Lantai 'Orchid
Terrace' library, but he does not know when to lay down his writing
brush." Often people only look at their own strengths without
considering that a writer's ability is not exhausted in one literary
style. Very few writers are able to master all different literary
styles, and that is the reason why most people measure other writers'
weaknesses with their own strengths. A proverb says, "In your own
house, even a broken broom is worth a thousand golden coins." This is
just the fault of not looking at oneself from another standpoint [...]
Usually, people esteem things from far away, not the things accustomed
to them, and they trust what is said without asking if it is really
true. Further, most people make worries about something invisible to
themselves and think themselves to be better then others.
The frame for a writing has a common character, while the content of a
text is unique. Memorials and petitions (zou yi) should be elegant,
letters and treatises (shu lun) should be logical and ordered,
inscriptions and elegies (ming lei) should report the truth, and poems
and rhapsodies (shi fu) require beauty. These four types are different
to each other, and people that are expert in one of them cannot be
expert in another. Only persons with universal abilites are able to
master all of them.
60.＜祭文＞＜顏延年祭屈原文一首＞
惟有宋五年月日，湘州刺史吳郡張邵，恭承帝命，建旟舊楚．訪懷沙之淵，得捐珮之浦．弭節羅潭，艤舟汨渚．乃遣戶曹掾某，敬祭故楚三閭大夫屈君之靈：
蘭薰而摧，玉縝則折．物忌堅芳，人諱明潔．曰若先生，逢辰之缺．
溫風怠時，飛霜急節．嬴芊遘紛，昭懷不端；謀折儀尚，貞蔑椒蘭．
身絕郢闕，跡遍湘干．比物荃蓀，連類龍鸞．聲溢金石，志華日月．
如彼樹芳，實穎實發．望汨心欷，瞻羅思越．藉用可塵，昭忠難闕．
Offerings: 2. Offering to Qu Yuan by Yan Yannian
(d. 456)
One month and one day in the fifth year of the Liu-Song dynasty (424),
Zhang Shao from Wu commandery, respectfully received the imperial
mandate as inspector of Xiangzhou, and went to take his office in the
territory of Old Chu. He visited the well of Huaisha "Misery Sands" and
reached the water margin at Juanpei "Abandoned Jade". His coach passed
by River Tan, and he shipped along the Rivers Mi and Luo. Then, Zhang
Shao asked some official to organize an offering to the soul of Qu
Yuan, one of the three Directors of the Lanes, (the highest ministers
of the antique state of Chu.)
Orchids are plucked because of their fragrance, fine jade is broken on
account of its ornaments.
Things fear to be stable and odorous, people dislike clearness and
loyalty.
Oh, Sir (Qu Yuan), you met a time full of lacks.
The warm wind missed the right season, and the flying frost rushed in
too early.
The Ying clan of the state of Qin disturbed the order of Chu's ruling
clan of Miu, because king Zhaoxiang of Qin did not treat correctly king
Huai the Mindful (r. 329-299) of Chu.
King Huai was betrayed by Zhang Yi (the chancellor of Qin) and Jin
Shang (his own chancellor), the upright minister (Qu Yuan) was
disregarded in favour to Zishu and Zilan.
After Qu Yuan had left the palace at the capital Ying, his footsteps
went along the River Xiang.
He was like fragrant grass, and joined the dragons and phoenixes.
His voice poured over metal bells and sounding stones, his mind bloomed
over sun and moon.
Like these blossoms on the trees was he, ripe ears with long grown awns.
Looking at River Mi, his heart was full of sorrow, the eyes at river
Luo, he thought of times far away.
One single instant can endure forever, and upright trustful loyalty
will never fade.
Translated by Burton Watson
(1st piece); Ulrich Theobald (rest).
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Chinese literature according to the four-category system
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