- SHOO KING,
Both Possessed Pure Virtue (ch.
Both Possessed Pure Virtue (ch.
Warner - World's Best Literature - v06 - Cal to Chr
"
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. ii. , ch. xx. ).
To nourish the heart there is nothing better than to make
the desires few. -MENCIUS, Tsin Sin (ch. xxxv. ).
When Heaven is about to confer a great office on any man,
it first exercises his mind with suffering, and his sinews and
## p. 3647 (#635) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3647
bones with toil. It exposes his body to hunger, and subjects
him to extreme poverty. It confounds his undertakings. By all
these methods it stimulates his mind, hardens his nature, and
supplies his incompetencies. -MENCIUS, Kaou Tsze (pt. ii. ch. xv. ).
You should ever stand in awe of the punishment of Heaven.
SHOO KING, ii. ; Prince of Leu on Punishments.
Great Heaven is intelligent and is with you in all your
doings. Great Heaven is clear-seeing, and is with you in all
your wanderings and indulgences. -SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes,
the Pan.
Ke Loo asked about serving the spirits of the dead. The
Master said, << While you are not able to serve men, how can you
serve their spirits? " Ke Loo added, "I venture to ask about
death. " He was answered, "While you do not know life, how
can you know about death? - CONFUCIAN AN. , Seen Tsin (ch.
xi. ).
-
For all affairs let there be adequate preparation. With prep-
aration there will be no calamities. -SHOO KING, Charge of Yue
(ch. i. ).
As to what the superior man would feel to be a calamity,
there is no such thing. He does nothing which is not according
to propriety. If there should befall him one morning's calamity,
the superior man does not account it a calamity. —MENCIUS, Le
Low (pt. ii. , ch. xxviii. ).
God is with you, have no doubts in your heart. -SHE KING,
Decade of King Wan II.
Beware. What proceeds from you will return to you again. -
MENCIUS, King Hwuy (pt. ii. , ch. xii. ).
Show reverence for the weak. - SHO0 KING, Timber of the
Tsze Tree (ch. iii. ).
When the year becomes cold, then we know how the pine
and the cypress are the last to lose their leaves; i. e. , men are
not known save in times of adversity. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Tsze
Han (ch. xxvii. ).
By nature men are nearly alike; by practice they get to be
wide apart. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Yang Ho (ch. ii. ).
## p. 3648 (#636) ###########################################
3648
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
All are good at first, but few prove themselves to be so at
the last. SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes, the Tang.
-
In serving his parents a son may remonstrate with them, but
gently; when he sees that they do not incline to follow his
advice he shows an increased degree of reverence, but does not
abandon his purpose; and should they punish him he does not
allow himself to murmur. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Le Yin (ch. xviii. ).
The Great God has conferred on the inferior people a moral
sense, compliance with which would show their nature invariably
right. -SHOO KING, Announcement of T'ang (ch. ii. ).
Confucius said: "There are three things which the superior
man guards against. In youth when the physical powers are not
yet settled, he guards against lust. When he is strong and the
physical powers are full of vigor, he guards against quarrelsome-
ness. When he is old and the animal powers are decayed, he
guards against covetousness. "-CONFUCIAN AN. , Ke She (ch. vii. ).
-
He who stops short where stopping short is not allowable, will
stop short in everything. He who behaves shabbily to those
whom he ought to treat well, will behave shabbily to all. -MEN-
CIUS, Tsin Sin (pt. i. , ch. xliv. ).
Men are partial where they feel affection and love; partial
where they despise and dislike; partial where they stand in awe
and reverence; partial where they feel sorrow and compassion;
partial where they are arrogant and rude. Thus it is that there
are few men in the world who love and at the same time know
the bad qualities of the object of their love, or who hate and
yet know the excellences of the object of their hatred. - THE
GREAT LEARNING (ch. viii. ).
Heaven's plan in the production of mankind is this: that they
who are first informed should instruct those who are later in
being informed, and they who first apprehend principles should
instruct those who are slower to do so. I am one of Heaven's
people who first apprehended. I will take these principles and
instruct this people in them. - MENCIUS, Wan Chang (pt. i. , ch.
vii. ).
From The Proverbial Philosophy of Confucius': copyrighted 1895, by Forster
H. Jennings; G. P. Putnam's Sons, Publishers
## p. 3649 (#637) ###########################################
3649
RUFUS CHOATE
(1799-1859)
BY ALBERT STICKNEY
UFUS CHOATE, one of the greatest, if not the greatest, of
advocates who have appeared at the English or American
bar, was one of the most remarkable products of what is
ordinarily considered hard, prosaic, matter-of-fact New England.
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. ii. , ch. xx. ).
To nourish the heart there is nothing better than to make
the desires few. -MENCIUS, Tsin Sin (ch. xxxv. ).
When Heaven is about to confer a great office on any man,
it first exercises his mind with suffering, and his sinews and
## p. 3647 (#635) ###########################################
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
3647
bones with toil. It exposes his body to hunger, and subjects
him to extreme poverty. It confounds his undertakings. By all
these methods it stimulates his mind, hardens his nature, and
supplies his incompetencies. -MENCIUS, Kaou Tsze (pt. ii. ch. xv. ).
You should ever stand in awe of the punishment of Heaven.
SHOO KING, ii. ; Prince of Leu on Punishments.
Great Heaven is intelligent and is with you in all your
doings. Great Heaven is clear-seeing, and is with you in all
your wanderings and indulgences. -SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes,
the Pan.
Ke Loo asked about serving the spirits of the dead. The
Master said, << While you are not able to serve men, how can you
serve their spirits? " Ke Loo added, "I venture to ask about
death. " He was answered, "While you do not know life, how
can you know about death? - CONFUCIAN AN. , Seen Tsin (ch.
xi. ).
-
For all affairs let there be adequate preparation. With prep-
aration there will be no calamities. -SHOO KING, Charge of Yue
(ch. i. ).
As to what the superior man would feel to be a calamity,
there is no such thing. He does nothing which is not according
to propriety. If there should befall him one morning's calamity,
the superior man does not account it a calamity. —MENCIUS, Le
Low (pt. ii. , ch. xxviii. ).
God is with you, have no doubts in your heart. -SHE KING,
Decade of King Wan II.
Beware. What proceeds from you will return to you again. -
MENCIUS, King Hwuy (pt. ii. , ch. xii. ).
Show reverence for the weak. - SHO0 KING, Timber of the
Tsze Tree (ch. iii. ).
When the year becomes cold, then we know how the pine
and the cypress are the last to lose their leaves; i. e. , men are
not known save in times of adversity. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Tsze
Han (ch. xxvii. ).
By nature men are nearly alike; by practice they get to be
wide apart. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Yang Ho (ch. ii. ).
## p. 3648 (#636) ###########################################
3648
THE LITERATURE OF CHINA
All are good at first, but few prove themselves to be so at
the last. SHE KING, ii. , Major Odes, the Tang.
-
In serving his parents a son may remonstrate with them, but
gently; when he sees that they do not incline to follow his
advice he shows an increased degree of reverence, but does not
abandon his purpose; and should they punish him he does not
allow himself to murmur. -CONFUCIAN AN. , Le Yin (ch. xviii. ).
The Great God has conferred on the inferior people a moral
sense, compliance with which would show their nature invariably
right. -SHOO KING, Announcement of T'ang (ch. ii. ).
Confucius said: "There are three things which the superior
man guards against. In youth when the physical powers are not
yet settled, he guards against lust. When he is strong and the
physical powers are full of vigor, he guards against quarrelsome-
ness. When he is old and the animal powers are decayed, he
guards against covetousness. "-CONFUCIAN AN. , Ke She (ch. vii. ).
-
He who stops short where stopping short is not allowable, will
stop short in everything. He who behaves shabbily to those
whom he ought to treat well, will behave shabbily to all. -MEN-
CIUS, Tsin Sin (pt. i. , ch. xliv. ).
Men are partial where they feel affection and love; partial
where they despise and dislike; partial where they stand in awe
and reverence; partial where they feel sorrow and compassion;
partial where they are arrogant and rude. Thus it is that there
are few men in the world who love and at the same time know
the bad qualities of the object of their love, or who hate and
yet know the excellences of the object of their hatred. - THE
GREAT LEARNING (ch. viii. ).
Heaven's plan in the production of mankind is this: that they
who are first informed should instruct those who are later in
being informed, and they who first apprehend principles should
instruct those who are slower to do so. I am one of Heaven's
people who first apprehended. I will take these principles and
instruct this people in them. - MENCIUS, Wan Chang (pt. i. , ch.
vii. ).
From The Proverbial Philosophy of Confucius': copyrighted 1895, by Forster
H. Jennings; G. P. Putnam's Sons, Publishers
## p. 3649 (#637) ###########################################
3649
RUFUS CHOATE
(1799-1859)
BY ALBERT STICKNEY
UFUS CHOATE, one of the greatest, if not the greatest, of
advocates who have appeared at the English or American
bar, was one of the most remarkable products of what is
ordinarily considered hard, prosaic, matter-of-fact New England.
