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Bright are those extensive fields ,
A tenth of whose produce is annually levied .
I take the old stores ,
And with them feed the husbandmen ,
From of old we have had good years ,
And now I go to the south-lying acres ,
Where some are weeding , and some gather the earth about the roots .
The millets look luxuriant ;
And in a spacious resting place ,
I collect and encourage the men of greater promise .
With my vessels full of bright millet ,
And my pure victim-rams ,
We sacrificed to [the Spirits of] the land , and to [those of] the four quarters .
That my fields are in such good condition ,
Is matter of joy to my husbandmen .
With lutes , and with drums beating ,
We will invoke the Father of husbandry ,
And pray for sweet rain ,
To increase the produce of our millets ,
And to bless my men and their wives .
The distant descendant comes ,
When their wives and children ,
Are bringing food to those [at work] in the south-lying acres .
The surveyor of the fields [also] comes , and is glad .
He takes [of the food] on the left and the right ,
And tastes whether it be good or not .
The grain is well cultivated , all the acres over ;
Good will it be and abundant .
The distant descendant has no displacency ;
The husbandmen are encouraged to diligence .
The crops of the distant descendant ,
Look [thick] as thatch , and [swelling] like a carriage cover .
The stacks of the distant descendant ,
Will stand like islands and mounds .
He will seek for thousands of granaries ;
He will seek for myriads of carts .
The millets , the paddy , and the maize ,
Will awake the joy of the husbandmen ;
[And they will say] , ' May he be rewarded with great happiness .
With myriads of years , life without end !