The Book of Songs (Alternative translations: "Classic of Poetry", "Canon of Odes")

Fav

楚茨

《小雅·谷风之什》

楚楚者茨，言抽其棘，自昔何为？我蓺黍稷。我黍与与，我稷翼翼。

我仓既盈，我庾维亿。以为酒食，以享以祀，以妥以侑，以介景福。

济济跄跄，絜尔牛羊，以往烝尝。或剥或亨，或四或将。祝祭于祊，

祀事孔明。先祖是皇，神保是飨。孝孙有庆，报以介福，万寿无疆！

执爨踖踖，为俎孔硕，或燔或炙。君妇莫莫，为豆孔庶。为宾为客，

献酬交错。礼仪卒度，笑语卒获。神保是格，报以介福，万寿攸酢！

我孔戁矣，式礼莫愆。工祝致告，徂赉孝孙。苾芬孝祀，神嗜饮食。

卜尔百福，如几如式。既齐既稷，既匡既敕。永锡尔极，时万时亿！

礼仪既备，钟鼓既戒，孝孙徂位，工祝致告，神具醉止，皇尸载起。

鼓钟送尸，神保聿归。诸宰君妇，废彻不迟。诸父兄弟，备言燕私。

乐具入奏，以绥后禄。尔肴既将，莫怨具庆。既醉既饱，小大稽首。

神嗜饮食，使君寿考。孔惠孔时，维其尽之。子子孙孙，勿替引之！

Introduction to the *Book of Songs*:

1. The Book of Songs marks the beginning of ancient Chinese poetry and is the earliest anthology of poetry. It collects poems from the early Western Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period (11th century BCE to 6th century BCE), totaling 311 poems. Among these, six are "title-only poems"—that is, they have titles but no content—known as the Six Title-Only Poems (Nan Gai, Bai Hua "Hua Shu," "You Geng," "Chong Qiu," and "You Yi"), reflecting the social landscape over approximately five centuries from the early to late Zhou period.

2. The authors of the *Book of Songs* are anonymous; the vast majority cannot be verified. It is traditionally attributed to Yin Jifu for collection and Confucius for compilation. In terms of content, the *Book of Songs* is divided into three sections: *Feng*, *Ya*, and *Song*. The *Feng* consists of folk songs from various regions of the Zhou dynasty; the *Ya* comprises the formal and elegant music of the Zhou people, further divided into *Xiao Ya* (Minor Elegance) and *Da Ya* (Major Elegance); the *Song* consists of ritual songs performed at the Zhou royal court and in the ancestral temples of the nobility, further divided into *Zhou Song*, *Lu Song*, and *Shang Song*.

3. Confucius summarized the purpose of the Book of Songs as “without deceit” and taught his disciples to read it as a standard for both speech and conduct. Among the pre-Qin philosophers, many quoted the Book of Songs; for instance, Mencius, Xunzi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, and Han Feizi frequently cited passages from the Book of Songs to enhance the persuasiveness of their arguments.

4. Artistic Characteristics of the *Book of Songs*:

(1) The use of the three poetic techniques—direct narration (fu), analogy (bi), and evocation (xing)—is a hallmark of the *Book of Songs*’s artistic style and established the fundamental methods of ancient Chinese poetry composition.

(2) The verse structure is primarily based on four-character lines, though mixed-length lines are also used. Structurally, the work frequently employs repeated stanzas and parallel lines, enhancing the poetry’s rhythmic sense and musical beauty.

(3) The language is rich and varied, making extensive use of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, rhyme, and word repetition, which render the poetry vivid and visually striking, with harmonious sound and rhythm.