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

Fav

生民

《大雅·生民之什》

厥初生民，时维姜嫄。生民如何？克禋克祀，以弗无子。

履帝武敏歆，攸介攸止，载震载夙。载生载育，时维后稷。

诞弥厥月，先生如达。不拆不副，无菑无害。以赫厥灵。

上帝不宁，不康禋祀，居然生子。

诞寘之隘巷，牛羊腓字之。诞寘之平林，会伐平林。

诞寘之寒冰，鸟覆翼之。鸟乃去矣，后稷呱矣。

实覃实訏，厥声载路。诞实匍匐，克岐克嶷。以就口食。

蓺之荏菽，荏菽旆旆。禾役穟穟，麻麦幪幪，瓜瓞唪唪。

诞后稷之穑，有相之道。茀厥丰草，种之黄茂。实方实苞，实种实褎。

实发实秀，实坚实好。实颖实栗，即有邰家室。

诞降嘉种，维秬维秠，维穈维芑。恒之秬秠，是获是亩。

恒之穈芑，是任是负。以归肇祀。

诞我祀如何？或舂或揄，或簸或蹂。释之叟叟，烝之浮浮。

载谋载惟。取萧祭脂，取羝以軷，载燔载烈，以兴嗣岁。

卬盛于豆，于豆于登。其香始升，上帝居歆。胡臭亶时。

后稷肇祀。庶无罪悔，以迄于今。

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.