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

Fav

绵

《大雅·文王之什》

绵绵瓜瓞。民之初生，自土沮漆。古公亶父，陶复陶冗，未有家室。

古公亶父，来朝走马。率西水浒，至于岐下。爰及姜女，聿来胥宇。

周原膴膴，堇荼如饴。爰始爰谋，爰契我龟，曰止曰时，筑室于兹。

乃慰乃止，乃左乃右，乃疆乃理，乃宣乃亩。自西徂东，周爰执事。

乃召司空，乃召司徒，俾立室家。其绳则直，缩版以载，作庙翼翼。

捄之陾陾，度之薨薨，筑之登登，削屡冯冯。百堵皆兴，鼛鼓弗胜。

乃立皋门，皋门有伉。乃立应门，应门将将。乃立冢土，戎丑攸行。

四不殄厥愠，亦不陨厥问。柞棫拔矣，行道兑矣。混夷駾矣，维其喙矣！

虞芮质厥成，文王蹶厥生。予曰有疏附，予曰有先后。予曰有奔奏，予曰有御侮！

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.