Shi Ji Zhuan :: :: University of Virginia Library

Ah ! solemn is the ancestral temple in its pure stillness .
Reverent and harmonious were the distinguished assistants ;
Great was the number of the officers :—
[All] assiduous followers of the virtue of [king] Wen .
In response to him in heaven ,
Grandly they hurried about in the temple .
Distinguished is he and honoured ,
And will never be wearied of among men .

267. 維天之命 WEI TIAN ZHI MING

維天之命、於穆不已。
於乎不顯、文王之德之純。
假以溢我、我其收之。
駿惠我文王、曾孫篤之。

The ordinances of Heaven ,—
How deep are they and unintermitting !
And oh ! how illustrious ,
Was the singleness of the virtue of king Wen !
How does he [now] show his kindness ?
We will receive [his favour] ,
Striving to be in accord with him , our king Wen ;
And may his remotest descendant be abundantly the same !

268. 維清 WEI QING

維清緝熙、文王之典。
肇禋、迄用有成、維周之禎。

Clear , and to be preserved bright ,
Are the statutes of king Wen .
From the first sacrifice [to him] ,
Till now when they have issued in our complete State ,
They have been the happy omen of [the fortunes of] Zhou .

269. 烈文 LIE WEN

烈文辟公、錫茲祉福。
惠我無疆、子孫保之。
無封靡于爾邦、維王其崇之。
念茲戎功、繼序其皇之。
無競維人、四方其訓之。
不顯維德、百辟其刑之。
於乎前王不忘。

Ye , brilliant and accomplished princes ,
Have conferred on me this happiness .
Your favours to me are without limit ,
And my descendants will preserve [the fruits of] them .
Be not mercenary nor extravagant in your States ,
And the king will honour you .
Thinking of this great service ,
He will enlarge the dignity of your successors .
What is most powerful is the being the man ;—
Its influence will be felt throughout your States .
What is most distinguished is being virtuous ;—
It will secure the imitation of all the princes .
Ah ! the former kings are not forgotten !

270. 天作 TIAN ZUO

天作高山、大王荒之。
彼作矣、文王康之。
彼徂矣岐、有夷之行、子孫保之。

Heaven made the lofty hill ,
And king Da brought [the country about] it under cultivation .
He made the commencement with it ,
And king Wen tranquilly [carried on the work] ,
[Till] that rugged [mount] Qi ,
Had level roads leading to it .
May their descendants ever preserve it !

271. 昊天有成命 HAO TIAN YOU CHENG MING

昊天有成命、二后受之。
成王不敢康、夙夜基命宥密。
於緝熙、單厥心。
肆其靖之。

Heaven made its determinate appointment ,
Which [our] two sovereigns received .
King Cheng did not dare to rest idly in it .
But night and day enlarged its foundations by his deep and silent virtue .
How did he continue and glorify [his heritage] ,
Exerting all his heart ,
And so securing its tranquillity !

272. 我將 WO JIANG

我將我享、維羊維牛、維天其右之。
儀式刑文王之典、日靖四方。
伊嘏文王、既右享之。
我其夙夜、畏天之威、于時保之。

I have brought my offerings ,
A ram and a bull .
May Heaven accept them !
I imitate and follow and observe the statutes of king Wen ,
Seeking daily to secure the tranquillity of hte kingdom .
King Wen , the Blesser ,
Has descended on the right and accepted [the offerings] .
Do not I , night and day ,
Revere the majesty of Heaven .
Thus to preserve [their favour] ?

273. 時邁 SHI MAI

時邁其邦、昊天其子之。
實右序有周。
薄言震之、莫不震疊。
懷柔百神、及河喬嶽。
允王維后。
明昭有周、式序在位。
載戢干戈、載櫜弓矢。
我求懿德、肆于時夏。
允王保之。

Now is he making a progress through the States ,
May Heaven accept him as its Son !
Truly are the honour and succession come from it to the House of Zhou .
To his movements ,
All respond with tremulous awe .
He has attracted and given rest to all spiritual Beings ,
Even to [the Spirits of] the He , and the highest hills .
Truly is the king the sovereign Lord .
Brilliant and illustrious is the House of Zhou .
He has regulated the positions of the princes ;
He has called in shields and spears ;
He has returned to their cases bows and arrows .
I will cultivate admirable virtue ,
And display it throughout these great regions :—
Truly will the king preserve the appointment .

274. 執競 ZHI JING

執競武王、無競維烈。
不顯成康、上帝是皇。
自彼成康、奄有四方、斤斤其明。
鐘鼓喤喤、磬筦將將、降福穰穰。
降福簡簡、威儀反反。
既醉既飽、福祿來反。

The arm of king Wu was full of strength ;
Irresistable was his ardour .
Greatly illustrious were Cheng and Kang ,
Kinged by God .
When we consider how Cheng and Kang ,
Grandly held all within the four quarters [of the kingdom] ,
How penetrating was their intelligence !
The bells and drums sound in harmony ;
The sounding stones and flutes blend their notes ;
Abundant blessing is sent down .
Blessing is sent down in large measure ;
Careful and exact is all our deportment ;
We have drunk , and we have eaten , to the full ;
Our happiness and dignity will be prolonged .

275. 思文 SI WEN

思文后稷、克配彼天、立我烝民、莫匪爾極。
貽我來牟、帝命率育。
無比疆爾界、陳常于時夏。

O accomplished Hou-ji ,
Thou didst prove thyself the correlate of Heaven ;
Thou didst give grain-food to our multitudes ;—
The immense gift of thy goodness .
Thou didst confer on us the wheat and the barley ,
Which God appointed for the nourishment of all ;
And without distinction of territory or boundary ,
The rules of social duty were diffused throughout these great regions .