Much has been written by Chinese authors on
scientific
sub-
jects, but the substance is remarkable for its extent rather than for
its value.
jects, but the substance is remarkable for its extent rather than for
its value.
Warner - World's Best Literature - v06 - Cal to Chr
So thought the Chinese legislators, who
designed their enactments with direct regard to the dispositions of
the people as displayed in their songs. At the time of Confucius
(B. C. 551-479) a large collection of these ballads existed in the
archives of the sovereign State of Chow; and as is generally believed,
the sage revised the collection, and omitting those he considered
## p. 3632 (#620) ###########################################
3632
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
unworthy of preservation, formed an edition containing three hun-
dred and five pieces. This work has come down to us under the
title of the 'Shih King' or Book of Odes. The ballads are just such
as we should expect to find under the circumstances. They are
plainly the utterances of the people in a primitive state of civiliza-
tion, who nevertheless enjoyed considerable freedom; and though
they occasionally had to lament the tyranny of individual princes,
they cannot be described as having been among the down-trodden
nations of the earth. The domesticity which is still a distinctive
feature of Chinese life figures largely in them, and the filial piety
which to the present day is so highly esteemed finds constant ex-
pression. The measure in which the odes have been handed down
to us makes it difficult to understand how any rhythm could be
found in them. With few exceptions they are all written in lines
of four characters each, and as read at the present day, consist
therefore of only four syllables. This seems to be so stunted and
unnatural a metre that one is inclined to accept Professor T. de la
Couperie's suggestion, for which he had much to say,- that at the
time at which they were sung, the characters which now represent
a syllable each were polysyllabic. It would seem probable that cer-
tainly in some cases compound characters were pronounced as com-
pounded of syllables in accordance with their component parts, as
certain of them are read by the Japanese at the present time.
Numerous translations of the odes into European languages have
been made, and the following extracts from Professor Legge's ren-
dering of the second ode, celebrating the industry and filial piety
of the reigning queen, give a good idea of the general tone of the
pieces.
"Sweet was the scene. The spreading dolichos
Extended far, down to the valley's depths,
With leaves luxuriant. The orioles
Fluttered around, and on the bushy trees
In throngs collected,- whence their pleasant notes
Resounded far in richest melody.
Now back to my old home, my parents dear
To see, I go. The matron I have told,
Who will announcement make. Meanwhile my clothes,
My private clothes, I wash, and rinse my robes.
Which of them need be rinsed? and which need not?
My parents dear to visit back I go. "
Such were the odes which Confucius found collected ready to
his hand; and faithful to his character of transmitter of the wisdom
of the ancients, he made them the common property of his country-
men. But these were not the only records at the court of Chow
which attracted his attention. He found there historical documents,
## p. 3633 (#621) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3633
containing the leading events in the history of the Chinese States
from the middle of the twenty-third century B. C. to 721. These curi-
ous records of a past time possessed an irresistible attraction for him.
By constant study he made them his own, and with loving care col-
lated and edited the texts. These fragments are, from a historical
point of view, of great value; and they incidentally furnish evidence
of the fact that China was not always the stage on which the Chinese
people have played their parts. There is no sign in these records of
the first steps in ethics and science which one would expect to find
in the primitive history of a race. The utterances of the sovereigns
and sages, with which they abound, are marked by a comparatively
matured knowledge and an advanced ethical condition. The knowl-
edge of astronomy displayed, though not profound, is considerable,
and the directions given by the Emperor Yao to his astronomers
royal are quite such as may have been given by any Emperor of
China until the advent of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth
century; and the moral utterances of the sovereigns and their minis-
ters are on a par with the sentiments expressed in the Peking
Gazette at the present time. "Virtue," said the minister Yi address-
ing his Emperor Yü, "is the basis of good government; and this
consists first in procuring for the people the things necessary for
their sustenance, such as water, fire, metals, wood, and grain. The
ruler must also think of rendering them virtuous, and of preserving
them from whatever can injure life and health. When you would
caution them, use gentle words; when you would correct, employ
authority. " "Do not be ashamed of mistakes, and thus make them
crimes," was another piece of advice uttered forty centuries ago,
which has a peculiarly modern ring about it.
According to the system in vogue at the Chinese courts, the duty
of recording historical events was confided to historians of the right
hand and of the left. To the latter was given the duty of recording
the speeches and edicts of the sovereigns and their ministers, and to
the first that of compiling chronicles of events. The historians who
had placed on record the documents which Confucius edited in the
'Shu King' or Book of History were historians of the left hand, and
in the only original work which we have by the Sage-'The Spring
and Autumn Annals'- he constituted himself a historian of the right.
In this work he traces the history of his native State of Lu from the
year B. C. 722 to B. C. 484, and in the baldest and most calendar-like
style enumerates, without any comment or expression of opinion, the
facts which he considers of sufficient importance to report. However
faulty we may consider his manner of treatment, any criticism should
be leveled against the system rather than against the author. But
in other respects Confucius cannot shelter himself under the plea of
VI-228
## p. 3634 (#622) ###########################################
3634
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
usage. As a historian, it was his bounden duty above all things to
tell the truth, and to distribute praise and blame without fear or
favor. In this elementary duty Confucius failed, and has left us a
record in which he has obviously made events to chime in with his
preconceived ideas and opinions. Considering the assumption of vir-
tue with which Confucius always clothed himself, this is the more
noticeable; and still more is it remarkable that his disciples should
be so overcome by the glamour which attached to his name, that his
obvious lapses from the truth are not only left unnoted, but the gen-
eral tone and influence of the work are described in the most eulo-
gistic terms. "The world," said Mencius, "had fallen into decay and
right principles had dwindled away. Perverse discourses and oppress-
ive deeds had again waxen rife. Cases had occurred of ministers
who had murdered their rulers, and of sons who had murdered their
fathers. Confucius was afraid and made the 'Ch'un ch'iu. '» So
great, we are told, was the effect of the appearance of this work
that "rebellious ministers quaked with fear, and undutiful sons were
overcome with terror. " Love of truth is not a characteristic of the
Chinese people; and unhappily their greatest men, Confucius among
them, have shown their countrymen a lamentable example in this
respect.
So great is the admiration of the people for this work of Confu-
cius that by universal consent the 'Ch'un ch'iu' has through all
ages been included among the Five Classics of the country. Three
others have already been spoken of, and there remains only one
more, the Book of Rites, to mention. This work is the embodiment
of, and authority for, the ceremonial which influences the national
policy of the country, and directs the individual destinies of the
people. We are informed on the highest authority that there are
three hundred rules of ceremony and three thousand rules of behavior.
Under a code so overwhelmingly oppressive, it is difficult to imagine
how the race can continue to exist; but five-and-twenty centuries of
close attention to the Book of Rites have so molded the nation
within the lines of the ceremonial which it prescribes, that acquies-
cence with its rules has become a second nature with the people, and
requires no more guiding effort on their part than does the automatic
action of the nerves and limbs at the bidding of the brain. Within
its voluminous pages every act which one man should perform to
another is carefully and fully provided for; and this applies not only
to the daily life of the people, but also to the official acts of the
whole hierarchy of power from the Emperor downward. No court
ceremony is undertaken without its guidance, and no official deed is
done throughout the length and breadth of the eighteen Provinces of
the Empire without its sanction. Its spirit penetrates every Yamên
## p. 3635 (#623) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3635
and permeates every household. It regulates the sacrifices which
should be offered to the gods, it prescribes the forms to be observed
by the Son of Heaven in his intercourse with his ministers, it lays
down the behavior proper to officials of all ranks, and it directs the
conduct of the people in every relation of life. It supplements in a
practical form the teachings of Confucius and others, and forms the
most important link in the chain which binds the people to the
chariot wheels of the "Sages. "
Of canonical authority equal to the Five Classics if not greater,
are the Four Books' in which are recorded the ipsissima verba of
Confucius. These are the 'Lunyü' or Sayings of Confucius, twenty
books, which contains a detailed description of the Sage's system
of philosophy; the Ta Hsio,' the Great Learning, ten chapters;
the Chung yung,' or the Doctrine of the Mean, thirty-three chap-
ters; and the development of Confucianism as enunciated by his great
follower Mencius in the 'Mêng tzŭ,' seven books. These works cover
the whole field of Confucianism; and as such, their contents claim
the allegiance and demand the obedience of ninety-nine out of every
hundred Chinamen. To the European student their contents are
somewhat disappointing. The system they enunciate wants complete-
ness and life, although the sentiments they express are unexception-
able; as for example when Confucius said: "Hold faithfulness and
sincerity as first principles. Have no friends not equal to yourself.
When you have faults, do not fear to abandon them. " Admirable
maxims such as these flowed from his lips in abundance, but he
could offer no reason why a man should rather obey the advice
thus presented than his own inclination. He had no reward to offer
for virtue, and no terrors with which to threaten the doers of evil.
In no sense do his teachings as they came from his lips constitute
a religion. He' inculcated no worship of the Deity, and he refrained
altogether from declaring his belief or disbelief in a future existence.
The author of the Great Learning,' commonly said to be the
disciple Tsêng, describes the object of his work to be "to illustrate
illustrious virtue; to renovate the people; and to rest in the highest
excellence. " And following on the lines indicated by his great mas-
ter, he lays down the ethical means by which these admirable ends
may in his opinion be attained. The 'Doctrine of the Mean' takes
for its text the injunction, "Let the states of equilibrium and har-
mony exist in perfection, and a happy order will prevail throughout.
heaven and earth, and all things will be nourished and flourish. "
The author of this work, Tzůssů, goes deeper into the motives of
human conduct than Confucius himself. "First he shows clearly how
the path of duty is to be traced to its origin in Heaven, and is
unchangeable, while the substance of it is provided in ourselves, and
## p. 3636 (#624) ###########################################
3636
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
may not be departed from. Next he speaks of the importance of
preserving and nourishing this, and of exercising a watchful self-
scrutiny with reference to it. Finally he speaks of the meritorious
achievements and transforming influence of sage and spiritual men
in their highest extent. "
In the teachings of Mencius (B. C. 372-289) we see a distinct
advance on the doctrines of Confucius. He was a man of a far more
practical frame of mind than his great predecessor, and possessed the
courage necessary to speak plainly in the presence of kings and
rulers. His knowledge of political economy was considerable, and he
brought to the test of experience many of the opinions and doctrines
which Confucius was willing to express only in the abstract. Filial
piety was his constant theme. "The richest fruit of benevolence is
this," he said,-"the service of one's parents. The richest fruit of
righteousness is this, the obeying of one's elder brothers. The
richest fruit of wisdom is this, the knowing of these two things,
and not departing from them. "
These Five Classics and Four Books may be said to be the
foundations on which all Chinese literature has been based. The
period when Confucius and Mencius taught and wrote was one of
great mental activity all over the world. While the wise men of
China were proclaiming their system of philosophy, the Seven Sages
of Greece were pouring out words of wisdom in the schools at Ath-
ens, and the sound of the voice of Buddha (died 480 B. C. ) had
hardly ceased to be heard under the bôdhi tree in Central India.
From such beginnings arose the literatures which have since added
fame and splendor to the three countries in Asia and Europe. In
China the impetus given by these pioneers of learning was at once
felt, and called into existence a succession of brilliant writers who
were as distinguished for the boldness of their views as for the free-
dom with which they gave them utterance.
The main subject discussed by these men was the principle under-
lying the Confucian system; namely, that man's nature is in its
origin perfectly good, and that so long as each one remains uncon-
taminated by the world and the things of the world, the path of
virtue is to him the path of least resistance. While therefore a man
is able to remain unenticed by the temptations which necessarily
surround him, he advances in spotless purity towards perfection,
until virtue becomes in him so confirmed a habit that neither the
stings of conscience nor the exertion of intellectual effort is re-
quired to maintain him in his position of perfect goodness and of
perfect peace.
These are still the opinions of orthodox Confucianists, but at dif-
ferent times scholars have arisen, who from their own experiences in
## p. 3637 (#625) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3637
the world, have come to conclusions diametrically opposed to those
taught by the Sage. In their opinion the Psalmist was right when
he said, "The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desper-
ately wicked. " Scarcely had Confucius been gathered to his fathers
when the Philosopher Hsün enunciated this view, and since then the
doctrine has formed the chief ground of contention among all schools
of philosophy down to the present day. By certain writers it has
been held that in man's nature there is a mixture of good and evil,
and by no one was this view more ably expounded than by the
philosopher Chu Hi (A. D. 1130-1200). In season and out of season
this great writer, who has done more than any one else to elucidate
the dark pages of the classics, "taught that good and evil were pres-
ent in the heart of every man, and that just as in nature a duality
of powers is necessary to the existence of nature itself, so good and
evil are inseparably present in the heart of every human being. "
But there were others who felt that the bald and conventional
system proclaimed by Confucius was insufficient to satisfy the desire
for the supernatural which is implanted in men of every race and of
every clime, and then at once a school arose, headed by Laotzŭ (sixth
century B. C. ), the Old Philosopher; which, adopting the spirit of
Brahminism, taught its sectaries to seek by self-abnegation freedom
from the entanglements of the world, and a final absorption into the
Deity. The minds of most Chinamen are not attuned to the appre-
hension of philosophical subtleties, and the wisdom imparted by
Laotzů to his countrymen in the pages of his Taotê King' (The
Book of Reason and Virtue), soon became debased into a supersti-
tious system by a succession of charlatans, who, adopting Laotzŭ's
doctrine that death was only another form of life, taught their fol-
lowers to seek to prolong the pleasures of the present state of exist-
ence by searching in the mazes of alchemy for the elixir of life
and the philosopher's stone. Before the faith reached this degraded
position, however, several writers supplemented and enlarged on the
doctrines advanced by Laotză. Foremost among these were Litză
and Chwangtzů, who were both men of great metaphysical ability,
and whose speculations, though not always in harmony with those of
their great master, help to some extent to elucidate his system and
certainly add considerable interest to it.
Around the systems of Confucius and Laotzů a considerable liter-
ature grew up, which was cherished, copied, and discussed by all
those scholars who had time to spare from the contemplation of the
records of the various States into which the country was divided.
These records had assumed a permanent place in the literature of
the land, and were bound up with the feudal system which then
existed. The time came, however, when this feudal system was
## p. 3638 (#626) ###########################################
3638
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
destined to come to an end. In the third century before Christ a
leader arose who proclaimed the States an Empire and himself as
Emperor. To so conservatively minded a people as the Chinese the
revolution was difficult of acceptance, and Shi Hwangti, seeking to
facilitate the transfer of their allegiance, ordered the destruction of
all books which might preserve the memory of a bygone constitution.
With ruthless severity the ukase was put into force, and all works,
with the exception of those on medicine and alchemy, were thrown
to the flames. Happily no tyrant, however powerful, can enforce the
complete fulfillment of such an edict; and in spite of threats and
persecutions, events showed that through all that fiery time manu-
scripts had been carefully preserved, and that men had been found
ready to risk their lives in the sacred cause of learning.
Fortunately the Dynasty founded by Shi Hwangti was short-
lived, and in 202 B. C. a revolution placed Kao ti, the founder of the
Han Dynasty, on the throne. With commendable wisdom Kao ti
placed himself at once in complete harmony with the national mind,
and had no sooner assumed the imperial yellow than he notified his
desire to restore the national literature to its former status. Under
his fostering care, manuscripts which had lain hidden were brought
out from their places of concealment; and to these works were
added others, which were dictated by scholars who had treasured
them in their memories. That the works thus again brought out
were numerous, is proved by the fact that in the catalogue of the
Imperial Library of the Han Dynasty (B. C. 202 to A. D. 25), mention
is made of 11,312 works, consisting of volumes on the classics, phi-
losophy, poetry, military tactics, mathematics and medicine.
It was during this dynasty that the national history and poetry
took their rise in the shapes with which we are now familiar. After
the night of turmoil and darkness which had just passed away,
men, as though invigorated by the time of sterility, devoted them-
selves to the production of cultured prose and original though
pedantic poetry. It was then that Ssuma Ch'ien, who has been
called the Herodotus of China, wrote his Shichi' (Historical Rec-
ords), which embraces a period of between two and three thousand
years; namely, from the reign of Hwang ti (B. C. 2697) to the reign
of Wu ti of the Han Dynasty (B. C. 140-86). Following the example
of this great chronicler, Pan ku compiled the records of the Han
Dynasty in a hundred and twenty books, and it is on the model thus
laid down that all succeeding dynastic histories of China have been
written. Almost without variation the materials of these vast deposi-
tories of information are arranged in the following order:—1. Impe-
rial records, consisting of the purely political events which occurred
in each reign. 2. Memoirs, including treatises on mathematical chro-
## p. 3639 (#627) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3639
nology, rites, music, jurisprudence, political economy, State sacrifices,
astronomy, elemental influences, geography, literature, biographies,
and records of the neighboring countries.
Tempora non animi mutant, and in the poetry of this period we
see a close resemblance to the spirit which breathes in the odes col-
lected by Confucius. The measure shows signs of some elasticity,
five characters to a line taking the place of the older four-syllabled
metre; but the ideas which permeate it are the same. Like all
Chinese poetry, it is rather quaint than powerful, and is rather
noticeable for romantic sweetness than for the expression of strong
passions. There is for the most part a somewhat melancholy ring
about it. The authors love to lament their absence from home or
the oppressed condition of the people, or to enlarge on the depress-
ing effect of rain or snow, and find sadness in the strange beauty of
the surrounding scenery or the loveliness of a flower. The diction is
smooth and the fancy wandering, but its lines do not much stir the
imagination or arouse the passions. These are criticisms which apply
to Chinese poetry of all ages. During the T'ang and Sung Dynasties
(A. D. 618–1127), periods which have been described as forming the
Augustan ages of Chinese literature, poets flourished abundantly, and
for the better expression of their ideas they adopted a metre of
seven characters or syllables, instead of the earlier and more re-
stricted measures. Tu Fu, Li T'aipai, and a host of others, enriched
the national poetry at the time, and varied the subjects which had
been the common themes of earlier poets by singing the praises of
wine. To be a poet it was considered necessary by them that a
man should be a wine-bibber, and their verses describe with enthu-
siasm the pleasures of the cup and the joys of intoxication. The
following is a specimen of such an ode, taken from the works of Li
T'aipai:
IF LIFE be nothing but an empty dream,
Why vex one's self about the things of time?
My part shall be to drain the flowing cup
And sleep away the fumes of drowsy wine.
When roused to life again, I straightway ask
The Bird which sings in yonder leafy trees,
What season of the year had come its round.
"The Spring," he says,
"When every breath of air suggests a song. »
Sad and disturbed, I heave a gentle sigh,
And turn again to brightening, cheering wine,
And sing until the moon shines, and until
Sleep and oblivion close my eyes again.
## p. 3640 (#628) ###########################################
3640
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
But before the time of the T'ang Dynasty a new element had
been introduced into the national literature. With the introduction
of Buddhism the Chinese became acquainted with religious doctrines
and philosophical ideas, of which until then they had only been
faintly conscious from their contact with the debased form of Brah-
minical teaching which under the name of Taoism had long existed
in the land. A complete knowledge of the teachings of Sakyamuni
was however imparted to them by the arrival, at the beginning of
the first century of our era, of two Shamans from India who settled
at Loyang in the province of Honan, and who translated the San-
skrit Sutra in forty-two sections into Chinese. From this time onward
a constant succession of Buddhist missionaries visited China and
labored with indefatigable industry, both by oral teaching and by the
translation of Sanskrit works into Chinese, to convert the people to
their faith.
The knowledge thus acquired was of great advantage to the litera-
ture of the country. It enriched it with new ideas, and added wider
knowledge to its pages. The history and geography of India, with
which scholars had previously been scarcely acquainted, became,
though indistinctly, matters of knowledge to them. Already Fahsien,
the great forerunner of Chinese Buddhist pilgrims (B. C. 399), had
visited India and had described in his 'Fuh kwo chi' (The Records
of Buddhist Countries) the wonders which he had seen in Hindustan.
With the spread of Buddhism in China, a desire to follow in his
footsteps prompted others to undertake the long and arduous journey
across the Mongolian steppes and over the passes of the Himalayas
into the plains of India. Sung yun in the sixth century and Hüan
Ts'ang in the seventh are conspicuous among those who undertook
this toilsome pilgrimage in the interest of the faith.
Notwithstanding the occasional influx of new sentiments, however,
the circumscribed circle of knowledge which was within the reach of
Chinese scholars, and the poverty of their vocabulary, have always
necessarily limited the wealth of their ideas; and at an early period
of the history of the country we see symptoms of sterility creeping
over the national mind. It is always easier to remember than to
think; and it cannot but be looked upon as a sign of decadence in a
literature when collections of ready-made knowledge take the place
of original compositions, and when scholars devote themselves to the
production of anthologies and encyclopædias instead of seeking out
new thoughts and fresh branches of learning. In the sixth century,
a period which coincides with the invention of printing, there was
first shown that disposition to collect extracts from works of merit
into anthologies, which have ever since been such a marked peculiar-
ity of Chinese literature.
## p. 3641 (#629) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3641
That the effect of these works, and of the encyclopædias which
are in a sense allied to them, has been detrimental to the national
mind, there cannot be a doubt. Scholars are no longer required to
search for themselves for the golden nuggets of knowledge in the
mines of learning. They have but to turn to the great depositories
of carefully extracted information, and they find ready to their hand
the opinions and thoughts of all those who are considered to be
authorities on the subject with which they desire to acquaint them-
selves. For the purposes of cram for students at the competitive
examinations, these treasuries of knowledge are of inestimable value:
and by their help, "scholars" who have neither depth of knowledge
nor power of thought are able to make a show of erudition which is
as hollow as it is valueless.
During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) this class of literature may
be said to have reached its highest development. In the reign
of the Emperor Yunglo (1403-1425) was compiled the largest encyclo-
pædia which has ever seen the light. This gigantic work, which was
entitled 'Yunglo ta tien,' consisted of no fewer than 22,877 books,
and covered every branch of knowledge possessed by the Chinese.
Possibly owing to its immense extent, it was never published; and
such volumes as still survive the destroying influences of neglect and
decay are yet to be found in manus
nuscript on the shelves of the Imperial
Library. Inspired perhaps by the example thus set, the Emperor
K'anghi of the present dynasty appointed a commission of scholars
to compile a similar work; and after forty years had been consumed
in extracting from the past literatures every passage bearing on the
6109 headings which it was the will of K'anghi should be illustrated,
the compilers were able to lay before their sovereign a work consist-
ing of 5020 volumes, which they entitled 'Kin L'ing ku kin t'u shu
chi ch'êng. Unlike Yunglo's great work, this one was printed; and
though only, as it is said, a hundred copies were issued, some still
remain of the original edition. One such copy, complete in every
particular, is to be seen at the British Museum. For completeness
from a Chinese point of view this work stands out pre-eminently
above all others; but owing to the very limited number of copies, it
has never superseded the 'Wên hsien t'ung k'ao' by Ma Twanlin,
which, though published four hundred years earlier, still holds its
own in popular estimation.
Much has been written by Chinese authors on scientific sub-
jects, but the substance is remarkable for its extent rather than for
its value. In each branch of knowledge they have advanced under
foreign influence up to a certain point, and beyond that they have
been unable to go. Their knowledge of astronomy, which is of Chal-
dean origin, is sufficient to enable them to calculate eclipses and to
## p. 3642 (#630) ###########################################
3642
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
recognize the precession of the equinoxes, but it has left them with
confused notions on subjects which are matters of common knowl-
edge among Western people. It is the same in the case of medi-
cine. They understand certain general principles of therapeutics
and the use of certain herbs; but their knowledge is purely empiri-
cal, and their acquaintance with surgery is of the most elementary
kind.
It is perhaps in their novels and plays, however, that the most
marked defects in the national mind become apparent. The systems
of education and the consequent mental habit in vogue are the
outcomes of that lack of imagination which distinguishes the people,
and which finds its reflection in all those branches of literature
which are more directly dependent on the flow of new and striking
ideas. There is little delineation of character either in their novels
or their plays. The personages portrayed are all either models of
virtue and learning, or shocking examples of ignorance and turpi-
tude. Their actions are mechanical, and the incidents described
have little or no connection with one another. The stories are in
fact arranged much as a clever child might be expected to arrange
them, and they are by no means free from the weary iterations in
which untutored minds are apt to indulge. Chinese scholars are
conscious of these defects, and attempt to explain them by describ
ing novel-writing as being beneath the serious attention of all those
who are interested in learning. This view is commonly accepted by
their learned world, who divide literature into four classes, viz. .
Classics, History, Philosophy, and Belles-lettres. The last of these
does not include either romances or plays; and with the exception
of two or three standard works of fiction and the Hundred Plays of
the Yuan Dynasty' (A. D. 1280-1368), no specimens of either of these
two classes of literature would ever be found in a library of stand-
ing. But this contempt for works of imagination is probably less
the cause of their inferiority than the result of it. The Providence
which has given Chinamen untiring diligence, inexhaustible memo-
ries, and a love of learning, has not vouchsafed to touch their
tongues with the live coal of imagination. They are plodding stu-
dents, and though quite capable of narrating events and of producing
endless dissertations on the interpretation of the classics and the
true meaning of the philosophy on which they are based, are en-
tirely unprovided with that power of fancy which is able to bring
before the eye, as in a living picture, the phantoms of the brain.
Новый кодира
K.
## p. 3643 (#631) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3643
SELECTED MAXIMS
ON MORALS, PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE, CHARACTER, CIRCUMSTANCES, ETC.
From the Chinese Moralists
F
ILIAL piety and fraternal submission, are they not the root
of all benevolent actions? -CONFUCIAN AN. , Heo Urh
(ch. ii. ).
The path of duty lies in what is near, and men seek fo in
what is remote. The work of duty lies in what is easy, and men
seek for it in what is difficult. If each man would love his
parents and show due respect to his elders, the whole empire
would enjoy tranquillity. —MENCIUS, Le Low (pt. i. , ch. xi. ).
Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles. - CONFUCIAN
AN. , Heo Urh (ch. viii. ).
If what we see is doubtful, how can we believe what is
spoken behind the back? -INSCRIPTION in "Celestial Influence
Temple. "
Words which are simple, while their meaning is far-reaching,
are good words. Principles which
Principles which are held as compendious,
while their application is extensive, are good principles. The
words of the superior man are not necessarily high-sounding,
but great principles are contained in them. - MENCIUS, Tsin Sin
(ch. xxxii. ).
The superior man is correctly firm, and not firm merely. —
CONFUCIAN AN. , Wei Ling Kung (ch. xxxvi. ).
For one word a man is often deemed to be wise; and for one
word he is often deemed to be foolish. We ought to be careful
indeed in what we say. - CONFUCIAN AN. , Observations of Tsze
Kung.
man.
In archery we have something like the way of the superior
When the archer misses the centre of the target, he turns
round and seeks for the cause of his failure in himself. - Doc-
TRINE OF THE MEAN (ch. xiv. ).
God leads men to tranquil security. -SHOO KING, ii. , Numer-
ous Officers (ch. ii. ).
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3644
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
The glory and tranquillity of a State may arise from the
excellence of one man. -SHOO KING, ii. , Speech of the Duke of
Tsin (ch. viii. ).
Mencius said, The superior man has two things in which he
delights, and to be ruler over the empire is not one of them.
That his father and mother are both alive, and that the con-
dition of his brothers affords no cause for anxiety; this is one
delight.
Then when looking up he has no occasion for shame before
heaven, and below he has no occasion to blush before men; this
is a second delight. — MENCIUS, Tsin Sin (pt. i. , ch. xx. ).
Fine words and an insinuating appearance are seldom asso-
ciated with virtue. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Yang Ho (ch. xvii. ).
I am pleased with your intelligent virtue, not loudly pro-
claimed nor portrayed, without extravagance or changeableness,
without consciousness of effort on your part, in accordance with
the pattern of God. SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes, Hwang I.
Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learn-
ing is perilous. CONFUCIAN AN. , Wei Ching (ch. xv. ).
――――――
Without recognizing the ordinances of Heaven it is impossible
to be a superior man. - CONFUCIAN AN. , Yaou Yue (ch. iii. ).
Be tremblingly fearful,
Be careful night and day;
――――――
Men trip not on mountains,
They trip on ant-hills.
YAOU'S WARNING, Poem from Hwae Nan.
The ways of God are not invariable; on the good doer he
sends down all blessings, and on the evil doer he sends down all
miseries. SHOO KING, Instructions of E (ch. iv. ).
In the way of superior man there are four things, not one of
which have I as yet attained:- To serve my father as I would
require my son to serve me; to serve my Prince as I would re-
quire my minister to serve me; to serve my elder brother as I
would require my younger brother to serve me; to set the
example in behaving to a friend as I would require him to
behave to me. DOCTRINE OF THE MEAN (ch. xiii. ).
Virtue has no invariable model. A supreme regard to what
is good gives the model of it. What is good has no invariable
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THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3645
characteristic to be supremely regarded; it is found where there.
is conformity to the uniform decision of the mind. - SHOO KING,
Both Possessed Pure Virtue (ch. iii. ).
This King Wan
Watchfully and reverently
With entire intelligence served God,
And so secured the great blessing. -
SHE KING, Decade of King Wan II.
Man's nature to good is like the tendency of water to flow
downwards. There are none but have this tendency to good, just
as all water flows downwards. - MENCIUS, Kaou Tsze (pt. i. , ch.
ii. ).
Virtue is the root; wealth the result. -THE GREAT LEARNING
(ch. x. ).
Its sovereigns on their part were humbly careful not to lose
the favor of God. -SHOO KING, ii. , Numerous Officers (ch. viii. ).
He who loves his parents will not dare to incur the risk of
being hated by any man, and he who reveres his parents will
not dare to incur the risk of being condemned by any man.
HSIAO KING, Filial Piety (ch. ii. ).
Do not speak lightly; your words are your own.
Do not say,
This is of little importance; no one can hold my tongue for me;
words are not to be cast away. Every word finds its answer;
every good deed has its recompense. -SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes,
the Yi.
Looked at in friendly intercourse with superior men, you
make your countenance harmonious and mild, anxious not to do
anything wrong. Looked at in your chamber, you ought to be
equally free from shame before the light which shines in. Do
not say, This place is not public; no one can see me here: the
approaches of spiritual beings cannot be calculated beforehand,
but the more should they not be slighted. —SHE KING, ii. , Major
Odes, the Yi.
Let me
not say that Heaven is high aloft above me. It
ascends and descends about our doings; it daily inspects us
wherever we are. -SHE KING, i. , Sacrificial Odes of Kau, Ode,
King Kih.
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3646
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
What future misery have they and ought they to endure who
talk of what is not good in others? -MENCIUS, Le Low (pt. ii. ,
ch. ix. ).
Above all, sternly keep yourself from drink. -SHOO KING,
Announcement about Drunkenness (ch. xiii. ).
Of ten thousand evils, lewdness is the head.
Of one hundred virtues, filial piety is the first.
CONFUCIAN PROVERB.
There are three thousand offenses against which the five
punishments are directed, and there is not one of them greater
than being unfilial. - THE HSIAO KING, The Five Punishments.
Benevolence is man's mind and righteousness is man's path.
How lamentable is it to neglect the path and not pursue it,
to lose the mind and not know to seek it again. — MENCIUs, Kaou
Tsze (pt. i. , ch. xi. ).
Tsze Kung asked, saying, "What do you say of a man who
is loved by all the people of his village? " The Master replied,
"We may not for that accord our approval of him. " "And what
do you say of him who is hated by all the people of his vil-
lage? " The Master said, "We may not for that conclude that
he is bad. It is better than either of these cases that the good
in the village love him and the bad hate him. "- CONFUCIAN
AN. , Tsze Loo (ch. xxiv. ).
Men must be decided on what they will not do, and then
they are able to act with vigor in which they ought. -Mencius,
Le Low (pt. ii. , ch. viii. ).
Learn as if you could not reach your object and were always
fearing also lest you should lose it. -CONFUCIAN AN. , T'ae Pih
(ch. xvii. ).
King Wan looked on the people as he would on a man who
was wounded, and he looked toward the right path as if he
could not see it. -MENCIUS, Le Low (pt.
designed their enactments with direct regard to the dispositions of
the people as displayed in their songs. At the time of Confucius
(B. C. 551-479) a large collection of these ballads existed in the
archives of the sovereign State of Chow; and as is generally believed,
the sage revised the collection, and omitting those he considered
## p. 3632 (#620) ###########################################
3632
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
unworthy of preservation, formed an edition containing three hun-
dred and five pieces. This work has come down to us under the
title of the 'Shih King' or Book of Odes. The ballads are just such
as we should expect to find under the circumstances. They are
plainly the utterances of the people in a primitive state of civiliza-
tion, who nevertheless enjoyed considerable freedom; and though
they occasionally had to lament the tyranny of individual princes,
they cannot be described as having been among the down-trodden
nations of the earth. The domesticity which is still a distinctive
feature of Chinese life figures largely in them, and the filial piety
which to the present day is so highly esteemed finds constant ex-
pression. The measure in which the odes have been handed down
to us makes it difficult to understand how any rhythm could be
found in them. With few exceptions they are all written in lines
of four characters each, and as read at the present day, consist
therefore of only four syllables. This seems to be so stunted and
unnatural a metre that one is inclined to accept Professor T. de la
Couperie's suggestion, for which he had much to say,- that at the
time at which they were sung, the characters which now represent
a syllable each were polysyllabic. It would seem probable that cer-
tainly in some cases compound characters were pronounced as com-
pounded of syllables in accordance with their component parts, as
certain of them are read by the Japanese at the present time.
Numerous translations of the odes into European languages have
been made, and the following extracts from Professor Legge's ren-
dering of the second ode, celebrating the industry and filial piety
of the reigning queen, give a good idea of the general tone of the
pieces.
"Sweet was the scene. The spreading dolichos
Extended far, down to the valley's depths,
With leaves luxuriant. The orioles
Fluttered around, and on the bushy trees
In throngs collected,- whence their pleasant notes
Resounded far in richest melody.
Now back to my old home, my parents dear
To see, I go. The matron I have told,
Who will announcement make. Meanwhile my clothes,
My private clothes, I wash, and rinse my robes.
Which of them need be rinsed? and which need not?
My parents dear to visit back I go. "
Such were the odes which Confucius found collected ready to
his hand; and faithful to his character of transmitter of the wisdom
of the ancients, he made them the common property of his country-
men. But these were not the only records at the court of Chow
which attracted his attention. He found there historical documents,
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THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3633
containing the leading events in the history of the Chinese States
from the middle of the twenty-third century B. C. to 721. These curi-
ous records of a past time possessed an irresistible attraction for him.
By constant study he made them his own, and with loving care col-
lated and edited the texts. These fragments are, from a historical
point of view, of great value; and they incidentally furnish evidence
of the fact that China was not always the stage on which the Chinese
people have played their parts. There is no sign in these records of
the first steps in ethics and science which one would expect to find
in the primitive history of a race. The utterances of the sovereigns
and sages, with which they abound, are marked by a comparatively
matured knowledge and an advanced ethical condition. The knowl-
edge of astronomy displayed, though not profound, is considerable,
and the directions given by the Emperor Yao to his astronomers
royal are quite such as may have been given by any Emperor of
China until the advent of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth
century; and the moral utterances of the sovereigns and their minis-
ters are on a par with the sentiments expressed in the Peking
Gazette at the present time. "Virtue," said the minister Yi address-
ing his Emperor Yü, "is the basis of good government; and this
consists first in procuring for the people the things necessary for
their sustenance, such as water, fire, metals, wood, and grain. The
ruler must also think of rendering them virtuous, and of preserving
them from whatever can injure life and health. When you would
caution them, use gentle words; when you would correct, employ
authority. " "Do not be ashamed of mistakes, and thus make them
crimes," was another piece of advice uttered forty centuries ago,
which has a peculiarly modern ring about it.
According to the system in vogue at the Chinese courts, the duty
of recording historical events was confided to historians of the right
hand and of the left. To the latter was given the duty of recording
the speeches and edicts of the sovereigns and their ministers, and to
the first that of compiling chronicles of events. The historians who
had placed on record the documents which Confucius edited in the
'Shu King' or Book of History were historians of the left hand, and
in the only original work which we have by the Sage-'The Spring
and Autumn Annals'- he constituted himself a historian of the right.
In this work he traces the history of his native State of Lu from the
year B. C. 722 to B. C. 484, and in the baldest and most calendar-like
style enumerates, without any comment or expression of opinion, the
facts which he considers of sufficient importance to report. However
faulty we may consider his manner of treatment, any criticism should
be leveled against the system rather than against the author. But
in other respects Confucius cannot shelter himself under the plea of
VI-228
## p. 3634 (#622) ###########################################
3634
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
usage. As a historian, it was his bounden duty above all things to
tell the truth, and to distribute praise and blame without fear or
favor. In this elementary duty Confucius failed, and has left us a
record in which he has obviously made events to chime in with his
preconceived ideas and opinions. Considering the assumption of vir-
tue with which Confucius always clothed himself, this is the more
noticeable; and still more is it remarkable that his disciples should
be so overcome by the glamour which attached to his name, that his
obvious lapses from the truth are not only left unnoted, but the gen-
eral tone and influence of the work are described in the most eulo-
gistic terms. "The world," said Mencius, "had fallen into decay and
right principles had dwindled away. Perverse discourses and oppress-
ive deeds had again waxen rife. Cases had occurred of ministers
who had murdered their rulers, and of sons who had murdered their
fathers. Confucius was afraid and made the 'Ch'un ch'iu. '» So
great, we are told, was the effect of the appearance of this work
that "rebellious ministers quaked with fear, and undutiful sons were
overcome with terror. " Love of truth is not a characteristic of the
Chinese people; and unhappily their greatest men, Confucius among
them, have shown their countrymen a lamentable example in this
respect.
So great is the admiration of the people for this work of Confu-
cius that by universal consent the 'Ch'un ch'iu' has through all
ages been included among the Five Classics of the country. Three
others have already been spoken of, and there remains only one
more, the Book of Rites, to mention. This work is the embodiment
of, and authority for, the ceremonial which influences the national
policy of the country, and directs the individual destinies of the
people. We are informed on the highest authority that there are
three hundred rules of ceremony and three thousand rules of behavior.
Under a code so overwhelmingly oppressive, it is difficult to imagine
how the race can continue to exist; but five-and-twenty centuries of
close attention to the Book of Rites have so molded the nation
within the lines of the ceremonial which it prescribes, that acquies-
cence with its rules has become a second nature with the people, and
requires no more guiding effort on their part than does the automatic
action of the nerves and limbs at the bidding of the brain. Within
its voluminous pages every act which one man should perform to
another is carefully and fully provided for; and this applies not only
to the daily life of the people, but also to the official acts of the
whole hierarchy of power from the Emperor downward. No court
ceremony is undertaken without its guidance, and no official deed is
done throughout the length and breadth of the eighteen Provinces of
the Empire without its sanction. Its spirit penetrates every Yamên
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THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3635
and permeates every household. It regulates the sacrifices which
should be offered to the gods, it prescribes the forms to be observed
by the Son of Heaven in his intercourse with his ministers, it lays
down the behavior proper to officials of all ranks, and it directs the
conduct of the people in every relation of life. It supplements in a
practical form the teachings of Confucius and others, and forms the
most important link in the chain which binds the people to the
chariot wheels of the "Sages. "
Of canonical authority equal to the Five Classics if not greater,
are the Four Books' in which are recorded the ipsissima verba of
Confucius. These are the 'Lunyü' or Sayings of Confucius, twenty
books, which contains a detailed description of the Sage's system
of philosophy; the Ta Hsio,' the Great Learning, ten chapters;
the Chung yung,' or the Doctrine of the Mean, thirty-three chap-
ters; and the development of Confucianism as enunciated by his great
follower Mencius in the 'Mêng tzŭ,' seven books. These works cover
the whole field of Confucianism; and as such, their contents claim
the allegiance and demand the obedience of ninety-nine out of every
hundred Chinamen. To the European student their contents are
somewhat disappointing. The system they enunciate wants complete-
ness and life, although the sentiments they express are unexception-
able; as for example when Confucius said: "Hold faithfulness and
sincerity as first principles. Have no friends not equal to yourself.
When you have faults, do not fear to abandon them. " Admirable
maxims such as these flowed from his lips in abundance, but he
could offer no reason why a man should rather obey the advice
thus presented than his own inclination. He had no reward to offer
for virtue, and no terrors with which to threaten the doers of evil.
In no sense do his teachings as they came from his lips constitute
a religion. He' inculcated no worship of the Deity, and he refrained
altogether from declaring his belief or disbelief in a future existence.
The author of the Great Learning,' commonly said to be the
disciple Tsêng, describes the object of his work to be "to illustrate
illustrious virtue; to renovate the people; and to rest in the highest
excellence. " And following on the lines indicated by his great mas-
ter, he lays down the ethical means by which these admirable ends
may in his opinion be attained. The 'Doctrine of the Mean' takes
for its text the injunction, "Let the states of equilibrium and har-
mony exist in perfection, and a happy order will prevail throughout.
heaven and earth, and all things will be nourished and flourish. "
The author of this work, Tzůssů, goes deeper into the motives of
human conduct than Confucius himself. "First he shows clearly how
the path of duty is to be traced to its origin in Heaven, and is
unchangeable, while the substance of it is provided in ourselves, and
## p. 3636 (#624) ###########################################
3636
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
may not be departed from. Next he speaks of the importance of
preserving and nourishing this, and of exercising a watchful self-
scrutiny with reference to it. Finally he speaks of the meritorious
achievements and transforming influence of sage and spiritual men
in their highest extent. "
In the teachings of Mencius (B. C. 372-289) we see a distinct
advance on the doctrines of Confucius. He was a man of a far more
practical frame of mind than his great predecessor, and possessed the
courage necessary to speak plainly in the presence of kings and
rulers. His knowledge of political economy was considerable, and he
brought to the test of experience many of the opinions and doctrines
which Confucius was willing to express only in the abstract. Filial
piety was his constant theme. "The richest fruit of benevolence is
this," he said,-"the service of one's parents. The richest fruit of
righteousness is this, the obeying of one's elder brothers. The
richest fruit of wisdom is this, the knowing of these two things,
and not departing from them. "
These Five Classics and Four Books may be said to be the
foundations on which all Chinese literature has been based. The
period when Confucius and Mencius taught and wrote was one of
great mental activity all over the world. While the wise men of
China were proclaiming their system of philosophy, the Seven Sages
of Greece were pouring out words of wisdom in the schools at Ath-
ens, and the sound of the voice of Buddha (died 480 B. C. ) had
hardly ceased to be heard under the bôdhi tree in Central India.
From such beginnings arose the literatures which have since added
fame and splendor to the three countries in Asia and Europe. In
China the impetus given by these pioneers of learning was at once
felt, and called into existence a succession of brilliant writers who
were as distinguished for the boldness of their views as for the free-
dom with which they gave them utterance.
The main subject discussed by these men was the principle under-
lying the Confucian system; namely, that man's nature is in its
origin perfectly good, and that so long as each one remains uncon-
taminated by the world and the things of the world, the path of
virtue is to him the path of least resistance. While therefore a man
is able to remain unenticed by the temptations which necessarily
surround him, he advances in spotless purity towards perfection,
until virtue becomes in him so confirmed a habit that neither the
stings of conscience nor the exertion of intellectual effort is re-
quired to maintain him in his position of perfect goodness and of
perfect peace.
These are still the opinions of orthodox Confucianists, but at dif-
ferent times scholars have arisen, who from their own experiences in
## p. 3637 (#625) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3637
the world, have come to conclusions diametrically opposed to those
taught by the Sage. In their opinion the Psalmist was right when
he said, "The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desper-
ately wicked. " Scarcely had Confucius been gathered to his fathers
when the Philosopher Hsün enunciated this view, and since then the
doctrine has formed the chief ground of contention among all schools
of philosophy down to the present day. By certain writers it has
been held that in man's nature there is a mixture of good and evil,
and by no one was this view more ably expounded than by the
philosopher Chu Hi (A. D. 1130-1200). In season and out of season
this great writer, who has done more than any one else to elucidate
the dark pages of the classics, "taught that good and evil were pres-
ent in the heart of every man, and that just as in nature a duality
of powers is necessary to the existence of nature itself, so good and
evil are inseparably present in the heart of every human being. "
But there were others who felt that the bald and conventional
system proclaimed by Confucius was insufficient to satisfy the desire
for the supernatural which is implanted in men of every race and of
every clime, and then at once a school arose, headed by Laotzŭ (sixth
century B. C. ), the Old Philosopher; which, adopting the spirit of
Brahminism, taught its sectaries to seek by self-abnegation freedom
from the entanglements of the world, and a final absorption into the
Deity. The minds of most Chinamen are not attuned to the appre-
hension of philosophical subtleties, and the wisdom imparted by
Laotzů to his countrymen in the pages of his Taotê King' (The
Book of Reason and Virtue), soon became debased into a supersti-
tious system by a succession of charlatans, who, adopting Laotzŭ's
doctrine that death was only another form of life, taught their fol-
lowers to seek to prolong the pleasures of the present state of exist-
ence by searching in the mazes of alchemy for the elixir of life
and the philosopher's stone. Before the faith reached this degraded
position, however, several writers supplemented and enlarged on the
doctrines advanced by Laotză. Foremost among these were Litză
and Chwangtzů, who were both men of great metaphysical ability,
and whose speculations, though not always in harmony with those of
their great master, help to some extent to elucidate his system and
certainly add considerable interest to it.
Around the systems of Confucius and Laotzů a considerable liter-
ature grew up, which was cherished, copied, and discussed by all
those scholars who had time to spare from the contemplation of the
records of the various States into which the country was divided.
These records had assumed a permanent place in the literature of
the land, and were bound up with the feudal system which then
existed. The time came, however, when this feudal system was
## p. 3638 (#626) ###########################################
3638
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
destined to come to an end. In the third century before Christ a
leader arose who proclaimed the States an Empire and himself as
Emperor. To so conservatively minded a people as the Chinese the
revolution was difficult of acceptance, and Shi Hwangti, seeking to
facilitate the transfer of their allegiance, ordered the destruction of
all books which might preserve the memory of a bygone constitution.
With ruthless severity the ukase was put into force, and all works,
with the exception of those on medicine and alchemy, were thrown
to the flames. Happily no tyrant, however powerful, can enforce the
complete fulfillment of such an edict; and in spite of threats and
persecutions, events showed that through all that fiery time manu-
scripts had been carefully preserved, and that men had been found
ready to risk their lives in the sacred cause of learning.
Fortunately the Dynasty founded by Shi Hwangti was short-
lived, and in 202 B. C. a revolution placed Kao ti, the founder of the
Han Dynasty, on the throne. With commendable wisdom Kao ti
placed himself at once in complete harmony with the national mind,
and had no sooner assumed the imperial yellow than he notified his
desire to restore the national literature to its former status. Under
his fostering care, manuscripts which had lain hidden were brought
out from their places of concealment; and to these works were
added others, which were dictated by scholars who had treasured
them in their memories. That the works thus again brought out
were numerous, is proved by the fact that in the catalogue of the
Imperial Library of the Han Dynasty (B. C. 202 to A. D. 25), mention
is made of 11,312 works, consisting of volumes on the classics, phi-
losophy, poetry, military tactics, mathematics and medicine.
It was during this dynasty that the national history and poetry
took their rise in the shapes with which we are now familiar. After
the night of turmoil and darkness which had just passed away,
men, as though invigorated by the time of sterility, devoted them-
selves to the production of cultured prose and original though
pedantic poetry. It was then that Ssuma Ch'ien, who has been
called the Herodotus of China, wrote his Shichi' (Historical Rec-
ords), which embraces a period of between two and three thousand
years; namely, from the reign of Hwang ti (B. C. 2697) to the reign
of Wu ti of the Han Dynasty (B. C. 140-86). Following the example
of this great chronicler, Pan ku compiled the records of the Han
Dynasty in a hundred and twenty books, and it is on the model thus
laid down that all succeeding dynastic histories of China have been
written. Almost without variation the materials of these vast deposi-
tories of information are arranged in the following order:—1. Impe-
rial records, consisting of the purely political events which occurred
in each reign. 2. Memoirs, including treatises on mathematical chro-
## p. 3639 (#627) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3639
nology, rites, music, jurisprudence, political economy, State sacrifices,
astronomy, elemental influences, geography, literature, biographies,
and records of the neighboring countries.
Tempora non animi mutant, and in the poetry of this period we
see a close resemblance to the spirit which breathes in the odes col-
lected by Confucius. The measure shows signs of some elasticity,
five characters to a line taking the place of the older four-syllabled
metre; but the ideas which permeate it are the same. Like all
Chinese poetry, it is rather quaint than powerful, and is rather
noticeable for romantic sweetness than for the expression of strong
passions. There is for the most part a somewhat melancholy ring
about it. The authors love to lament their absence from home or
the oppressed condition of the people, or to enlarge on the depress-
ing effect of rain or snow, and find sadness in the strange beauty of
the surrounding scenery or the loveliness of a flower. The diction is
smooth and the fancy wandering, but its lines do not much stir the
imagination or arouse the passions. These are criticisms which apply
to Chinese poetry of all ages. During the T'ang and Sung Dynasties
(A. D. 618–1127), periods which have been described as forming the
Augustan ages of Chinese literature, poets flourished abundantly, and
for the better expression of their ideas they adopted a metre of
seven characters or syllables, instead of the earlier and more re-
stricted measures. Tu Fu, Li T'aipai, and a host of others, enriched
the national poetry at the time, and varied the subjects which had
been the common themes of earlier poets by singing the praises of
wine. To be a poet it was considered necessary by them that a
man should be a wine-bibber, and their verses describe with enthu-
siasm the pleasures of the cup and the joys of intoxication. The
following is a specimen of such an ode, taken from the works of Li
T'aipai:
IF LIFE be nothing but an empty dream,
Why vex one's self about the things of time?
My part shall be to drain the flowing cup
And sleep away the fumes of drowsy wine.
When roused to life again, I straightway ask
The Bird which sings in yonder leafy trees,
What season of the year had come its round.
"The Spring," he says,
"When every breath of air suggests a song. »
Sad and disturbed, I heave a gentle sigh,
And turn again to brightening, cheering wine,
And sing until the moon shines, and until
Sleep and oblivion close my eyes again.
## p. 3640 (#628) ###########################################
3640
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
But before the time of the T'ang Dynasty a new element had
been introduced into the national literature. With the introduction
of Buddhism the Chinese became acquainted with religious doctrines
and philosophical ideas, of which until then they had only been
faintly conscious from their contact with the debased form of Brah-
minical teaching which under the name of Taoism had long existed
in the land. A complete knowledge of the teachings of Sakyamuni
was however imparted to them by the arrival, at the beginning of
the first century of our era, of two Shamans from India who settled
at Loyang in the province of Honan, and who translated the San-
skrit Sutra in forty-two sections into Chinese. From this time onward
a constant succession of Buddhist missionaries visited China and
labored with indefatigable industry, both by oral teaching and by the
translation of Sanskrit works into Chinese, to convert the people to
their faith.
The knowledge thus acquired was of great advantage to the litera-
ture of the country. It enriched it with new ideas, and added wider
knowledge to its pages. The history and geography of India, with
which scholars had previously been scarcely acquainted, became,
though indistinctly, matters of knowledge to them. Already Fahsien,
the great forerunner of Chinese Buddhist pilgrims (B. C. 399), had
visited India and had described in his 'Fuh kwo chi' (The Records
of Buddhist Countries) the wonders which he had seen in Hindustan.
With the spread of Buddhism in China, a desire to follow in his
footsteps prompted others to undertake the long and arduous journey
across the Mongolian steppes and over the passes of the Himalayas
into the plains of India. Sung yun in the sixth century and Hüan
Ts'ang in the seventh are conspicuous among those who undertook
this toilsome pilgrimage in the interest of the faith.
Notwithstanding the occasional influx of new sentiments, however,
the circumscribed circle of knowledge which was within the reach of
Chinese scholars, and the poverty of their vocabulary, have always
necessarily limited the wealth of their ideas; and at an early period
of the history of the country we see symptoms of sterility creeping
over the national mind. It is always easier to remember than to
think; and it cannot but be looked upon as a sign of decadence in a
literature when collections of ready-made knowledge take the place
of original compositions, and when scholars devote themselves to the
production of anthologies and encyclopædias instead of seeking out
new thoughts and fresh branches of learning. In the sixth century,
a period which coincides with the invention of printing, there was
first shown that disposition to collect extracts from works of merit
into anthologies, which have ever since been such a marked peculiar-
ity of Chinese literature.
## p. 3641 (#629) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3641
That the effect of these works, and of the encyclopædias which
are in a sense allied to them, has been detrimental to the national
mind, there cannot be a doubt. Scholars are no longer required to
search for themselves for the golden nuggets of knowledge in the
mines of learning. They have but to turn to the great depositories
of carefully extracted information, and they find ready to their hand
the opinions and thoughts of all those who are considered to be
authorities on the subject with which they desire to acquaint them-
selves. For the purposes of cram for students at the competitive
examinations, these treasuries of knowledge are of inestimable value:
and by their help, "scholars" who have neither depth of knowledge
nor power of thought are able to make a show of erudition which is
as hollow as it is valueless.
During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) this class of literature may
be said to have reached its highest development. In the reign
of the Emperor Yunglo (1403-1425) was compiled the largest encyclo-
pædia which has ever seen the light. This gigantic work, which was
entitled 'Yunglo ta tien,' consisted of no fewer than 22,877 books,
and covered every branch of knowledge possessed by the Chinese.
Possibly owing to its immense extent, it was never published; and
such volumes as still survive the destroying influences of neglect and
decay are yet to be found in manus
nuscript on the shelves of the Imperial
Library. Inspired perhaps by the example thus set, the Emperor
K'anghi of the present dynasty appointed a commission of scholars
to compile a similar work; and after forty years had been consumed
in extracting from the past literatures every passage bearing on the
6109 headings which it was the will of K'anghi should be illustrated,
the compilers were able to lay before their sovereign a work consist-
ing of 5020 volumes, which they entitled 'Kin L'ing ku kin t'u shu
chi ch'êng. Unlike Yunglo's great work, this one was printed; and
though only, as it is said, a hundred copies were issued, some still
remain of the original edition. One such copy, complete in every
particular, is to be seen at the British Museum. For completeness
from a Chinese point of view this work stands out pre-eminently
above all others; but owing to the very limited number of copies, it
has never superseded the 'Wên hsien t'ung k'ao' by Ma Twanlin,
which, though published four hundred years earlier, still holds its
own in popular estimation.
Much has been written by Chinese authors on scientific sub-
jects, but the substance is remarkable for its extent rather than for
its value. In each branch of knowledge they have advanced under
foreign influence up to a certain point, and beyond that they have
been unable to go. Their knowledge of astronomy, which is of Chal-
dean origin, is sufficient to enable them to calculate eclipses and to
## p. 3642 (#630) ###########################################
3642
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
recognize the precession of the equinoxes, but it has left them with
confused notions on subjects which are matters of common knowl-
edge among Western people. It is the same in the case of medi-
cine. They understand certain general principles of therapeutics
and the use of certain herbs; but their knowledge is purely empiri-
cal, and their acquaintance with surgery is of the most elementary
kind.
It is perhaps in their novels and plays, however, that the most
marked defects in the national mind become apparent. The systems
of education and the consequent mental habit in vogue are the
outcomes of that lack of imagination which distinguishes the people,
and which finds its reflection in all those branches of literature
which are more directly dependent on the flow of new and striking
ideas. There is little delineation of character either in their novels
or their plays. The personages portrayed are all either models of
virtue and learning, or shocking examples of ignorance and turpi-
tude. Their actions are mechanical, and the incidents described
have little or no connection with one another. The stories are in
fact arranged much as a clever child might be expected to arrange
them, and they are by no means free from the weary iterations in
which untutored minds are apt to indulge. Chinese scholars are
conscious of these defects, and attempt to explain them by describ
ing novel-writing as being beneath the serious attention of all those
who are interested in learning. This view is commonly accepted by
their learned world, who divide literature into four classes, viz. .
Classics, History, Philosophy, and Belles-lettres. The last of these
does not include either romances or plays; and with the exception
of two or three standard works of fiction and the Hundred Plays of
the Yuan Dynasty' (A. D. 1280-1368), no specimens of either of these
two classes of literature would ever be found in a library of stand-
ing. But this contempt for works of imagination is probably less
the cause of their inferiority than the result of it. The Providence
which has given Chinamen untiring diligence, inexhaustible memo-
ries, and a love of learning, has not vouchsafed to touch their
tongues with the live coal of imagination. They are plodding stu-
dents, and though quite capable of narrating events and of producing
endless dissertations on the interpretation of the classics and the
true meaning of the philosophy on which they are based, are en-
tirely unprovided with that power of fancy which is able to bring
before the eye, as in a living picture, the phantoms of the brain.
Новый кодира
K.
## p. 3643 (#631) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3643
SELECTED MAXIMS
ON MORALS, PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE, CHARACTER, CIRCUMSTANCES, ETC.
From the Chinese Moralists
F
ILIAL piety and fraternal submission, are they not the root
of all benevolent actions? -CONFUCIAN AN. , Heo Urh
(ch. ii. ).
The path of duty lies in what is near, and men seek fo in
what is remote. The work of duty lies in what is easy, and men
seek for it in what is difficult. If each man would love his
parents and show due respect to his elders, the whole empire
would enjoy tranquillity. —MENCIUS, Le Low (pt. i. , ch. xi. ).
Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles. - CONFUCIAN
AN. , Heo Urh (ch. viii. ).
If what we see is doubtful, how can we believe what is
spoken behind the back? -INSCRIPTION in "Celestial Influence
Temple. "
Words which are simple, while their meaning is far-reaching,
are good words. Principles which
Principles which are held as compendious,
while their application is extensive, are good principles. The
words of the superior man are not necessarily high-sounding,
but great principles are contained in them. - MENCIUS, Tsin Sin
(ch. xxxii. ).
The superior man is correctly firm, and not firm merely. —
CONFUCIAN AN. , Wei Ling Kung (ch. xxxvi. ).
For one word a man is often deemed to be wise; and for one
word he is often deemed to be foolish. We ought to be careful
indeed in what we say. - CONFUCIAN AN. , Observations of Tsze
Kung.
man.
In archery we have something like the way of the superior
When the archer misses the centre of the target, he turns
round and seeks for the cause of his failure in himself. - Doc-
TRINE OF THE MEAN (ch. xiv. ).
God leads men to tranquil security. -SHOO KING, ii. , Numer-
ous Officers (ch. ii. ).
## p. 3644 (#632) ###########################################
3644
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
The glory and tranquillity of a State may arise from the
excellence of one man. -SHOO KING, ii. , Speech of the Duke of
Tsin (ch. viii. ).
Mencius said, The superior man has two things in which he
delights, and to be ruler over the empire is not one of them.
That his father and mother are both alive, and that the con-
dition of his brothers affords no cause for anxiety; this is one
delight.
Then when looking up he has no occasion for shame before
heaven, and below he has no occasion to blush before men; this
is a second delight. — MENCIUS, Tsin Sin (pt. i. , ch. xx. ).
Fine words and an insinuating appearance are seldom asso-
ciated with virtue. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Yang Ho (ch. xvii. ).
I am pleased with your intelligent virtue, not loudly pro-
claimed nor portrayed, without extravagance or changeableness,
without consciousness of effort on your part, in accordance with
the pattern of God. SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes, Hwang I.
Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learn-
ing is perilous. CONFUCIAN AN. , Wei Ching (ch. xv. ).
――――――
Without recognizing the ordinances of Heaven it is impossible
to be a superior man. - CONFUCIAN AN. , Yaou Yue (ch. iii. ).
Be tremblingly fearful,
Be careful night and day;
――――――
Men trip not on mountains,
They trip on ant-hills.
YAOU'S WARNING, Poem from Hwae Nan.
The ways of God are not invariable; on the good doer he
sends down all blessings, and on the evil doer he sends down all
miseries. SHOO KING, Instructions of E (ch. iv. ).
In the way of superior man there are four things, not one of
which have I as yet attained:- To serve my father as I would
require my son to serve me; to serve my Prince as I would re-
quire my minister to serve me; to serve my elder brother as I
would require my younger brother to serve me; to set the
example in behaving to a friend as I would require him to
behave to me. DOCTRINE OF THE MEAN (ch. xiii. ).
Virtue has no invariable model. A supreme regard to what
is good gives the model of it. What is good has no invariable
## p. 3645 (#633) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3645
characteristic to be supremely regarded; it is found where there.
is conformity to the uniform decision of the mind. - SHOO KING,
Both Possessed Pure Virtue (ch. iii. ).
This King Wan
Watchfully and reverently
With entire intelligence served God,
And so secured the great blessing. -
SHE KING, Decade of King Wan II.
Man's nature to good is like the tendency of water to flow
downwards. There are none but have this tendency to good, just
as all water flows downwards. - MENCIUS, Kaou Tsze (pt. i. , ch.
ii. ).
Virtue is the root; wealth the result. -THE GREAT LEARNING
(ch. x. ).
Its sovereigns on their part were humbly careful not to lose
the favor of God. -SHOO KING, ii. , Numerous Officers (ch. viii. ).
He who loves his parents will not dare to incur the risk of
being hated by any man, and he who reveres his parents will
not dare to incur the risk of being condemned by any man.
HSIAO KING, Filial Piety (ch. ii. ).
Do not speak lightly; your words are your own.
Do not say,
This is of little importance; no one can hold my tongue for me;
words are not to be cast away. Every word finds its answer;
every good deed has its recompense. -SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes,
the Yi.
Looked at in friendly intercourse with superior men, you
make your countenance harmonious and mild, anxious not to do
anything wrong. Looked at in your chamber, you ought to be
equally free from shame before the light which shines in. Do
not say, This place is not public; no one can see me here: the
approaches of spiritual beings cannot be calculated beforehand,
but the more should they not be slighted. —SHE KING, ii. , Major
Odes, the Yi.
Let me
not say that Heaven is high aloft above me. It
ascends and descends about our doings; it daily inspects us
wherever we are. -SHE KING, i. , Sacrificial Odes of Kau, Ode,
King Kih.
## p. 3646 (#634) ###########################################
3646
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
What future misery have they and ought they to endure who
talk of what is not good in others? -MENCIUS, Le Low (pt. ii. ,
ch. ix. ).
Above all, sternly keep yourself from drink. -SHOO KING,
Announcement about Drunkenness (ch. xiii. ).
Of ten thousand evils, lewdness is the head.
Of one hundred virtues, filial piety is the first.
CONFUCIAN PROVERB.
There are three thousand offenses against which the five
punishments are directed, and there is not one of them greater
than being unfilial. - THE HSIAO KING, The Five Punishments.
Benevolence is man's mind and righteousness is man's path.
How lamentable is it to neglect the path and not pursue it,
to lose the mind and not know to seek it again. — MENCIUs, Kaou
Tsze (pt. i. , ch. xi. ).
Tsze Kung asked, saying, "What do you say of a man who
is loved by all the people of his village? " The Master replied,
"We may not for that accord our approval of him. " "And what
do you say of him who is hated by all the people of his vil-
lage? " The Master said, "We may not for that conclude that
he is bad. It is better than either of these cases that the good
in the village love him and the bad hate him. "- CONFUCIAN
AN. , Tsze Loo (ch. xxiv. ).
Men must be decided on what they will not do, and then
they are able to act with vigor in which they ought. -Mencius,
Le Low (pt. ii. , ch. viii. ).
Learn as if you could not reach your object and were always
fearing also lest you should lose it. -CONFUCIAN AN. , T'ae Pih
(ch. xvii. ).
King Wan looked on the people as he would on a man who
was wounded, and he looked toward the right path as if he
could not see it. -MENCIUS, Le Low (pt.
