Master Works Exam

The Mahabharata is an ancient Indian epic where the main story revolves around two branches of a
family - the Pandavas and Kauravas - who, in the Kurukshetra War, battle for the throne of Hastinapura.
Interwoven into this narrative are several smaller stories about people dead or living, and philosophical
discourses. Krishna-Dwaipayan Vyasa, himself a character in the epic, composed it; as, according to
tradition, he dictated the verses and Ganesha wrote them down. At 100,000 verses, it is the longest epic
poem ever written, generally thought to have been composed in the 4th century BCE or earlier. The
events in the epic play out in the Indian subcontinent and surrounding areas. It was first narrated by a
student of Vyasa at a snake-sacrifice of the great-grandson of one of the major characters of the story.
Including within it the Bhagavad Gita, the Mahabharata is one of the most important texts of ancient
Indian, indeed world, literature.

The prelude

Shantanu, the king of Hastinapur, was married to Ganga (personification of the Ganges) with whom he
had a son called Devavrat. Several years later, when Devavrat had grown up to be an accomplished
prince, Shantanu fell in love with Satyavati. Her father refused to let her marry the king unless the king
promised that Satyavati's son and descendants would inherit the throne. Unwilling to deny Devavrat his
rights, Shantanu declined to do so but the prince, on coming to know of the matter, rode over to
Satyavati's house, vowed to renounce the throne and to remain celibate throughout his life. The prince
then took Satyavati home to the palace so that the king, his father, could marry her. On account of the
terrible vow that he'd taken that day, Devavrat came to be known as Bheeshm. Shantanu was so
pleased with his son that he granted to Devavrat the boon of choosing the time of his own death.

No.2

What Is the Bhagavad Gita?

The Gita is the sixth book of the Mahabharata, one of India’s most famous epic poems. It’s unclear
exactly when the Gita was composed—estimates vary widely, but a number of scholars suggest it was
completed around 200 CE and then inserted into the larger work; many see it as the first fully realized
yogic scripture. Curious though it may seem that such an ancient text from a foreign culture has been so
enthusiastically received by Westerners, the Gita, like all truly great works of literature, can be read on
many levels: metaphysical, moral, spiritual, and practical; hence its appeal.

Read Bhagavad-Gita
For those who haven’t had the pleasure of reading it, the Gita recounts a dialogue between Arjuna, one
of five Pandava princes, and the Hindu deity Krishna, who in this epic serves as Arjuna’s charioteer.
Arjuna and his brothers have been exiled from the kingdom of Kurukshetra for 13 years and cut off from
their rightful heritage by another faction of the family; the Gita takes up their struggle to reclaim the
throne, which requires that Arjuna wage war against his own kinsmen, bringing his considerable military
skills to bear.

The story begins on the dusty plains of Kurukshetra, where Arjuna, a famed archer, is poised to fight. But
he hesitates. He sees arrayed against him friends, teachers, and kin, and believes that to fight—and
likely kill—these men would be to commit a grievous sin and could bring nothing good even if he were
to win the kingdom back. Krishna chides him for his cowardice—Arjuna is from the warrior caste after
all, and warriors are meant to fight—but then goes on to present a spiritual rationale for battling his
enemies, one that encompasses a discussion of the karma, jnana and bhakti yogas, as well as the nature
of divinity, humankind’s ultimate destiny, and the purpose of mortal life

No.3

Chinese poetry is poetry written, spoken, or chanted in the Chinese language. While this last term
comprises Classical Chinese, Standard Chinese, Mandarin Chinese, Yue Chinese, and other historical and
vernacular forms of the language, its poetry generally falls into one of two primary types, Classical
Chinese poetry and Modern Chinese poetry.

"Quatrain on Heavenly Mountain" by Emperor Gaozong

Poetry has consistently been held in extremely high regard in China, often incorporating expressive folk
influences filtered through the minds of Chinese literation. In Chinese culture, poetry has provided a
format and a forum for both public and private expressions of deep emotion, offering an audience of
peers, readers, and scholars insight into the inner life of Chinese writers across more than two millennia.
Westerners also have found in it an interesting and pleasurable field of study, in its exemplification of
essential contrasts between the Western world and Chinese civilization, and on its own terms.[1]

Classical Chinese poetry Edit

Hand-painted Chinese New Year's dui lian (对联 "couplet"), a by-product of Chinese poetry, pasted on
the sides of doors leading to people's homes, at Lijiang City, Yunnan.
Main article: Classical Chinese poetry

Classical Chinese poetry includes, perhaps first and foremost shi (詩/诗), and also other major types
such as ci (詞/词) and qu (曲). There is also a traditional Chinese literary form called fu (賦/赋), which
defies categorization into English more than the other terms, but perhaps can best be described as a
kind of prose-poem. During the modern period, there also has developed free verse in Western style.
Traditional forms of Chinese poetry are rhymed, however the mere rhyming of text may not qualify
literature as being poetry; and, as well, the lack of rhyme would not necessarily disqualify a modern
work from being considered poetry, in the sense of modern Chinese poetry. For example, lines from I
Ching are often rhymed, but may not be considered to be poetry, whereas modern verse may be
considered to be poetry even without rhyme. A cross-cultural comparison to this might be the Pre-
Socratic philosophical works in ancient Greece which were often written in verse versus free verse.

Beginnings of the tradition: Shijing and Chuci Edit

The earliest extant anthologies are the Shi Jing (诗经)and Chu Ci (楚辞). Both of these have had a great
impact on the subsequent poetic tradition. Earlier examples of ancient Chinese poetry may have been
lost because of the vicissitudes of history, such as the burning of books and burying of scholars ( 焚书坑
儒) by Qin Shi Huang, although one of the targets of this last event was the Shi Jing, which has
nevertheless survived.

Shijing Edit

（《诗经》）

Main article: Classic of Poetry

The elder of these two works, the Shijing (also familiarly known, in English, as the Classic of Poetry and
as the Book of Songs or transliterated as the Sheh Ching) is a preserved collection of Classical Chinese
poetry from over two millennia ago. Its content is divided into 3 parts: Feng (风, folk songs from 15 small
countries, 160 songs in total), Ya(雅,Imperial court songs, subdivided into daya and xiaoya, 105 songs in
total) and Song (颂,singing in ancestral worship, 40 songs in total).This anthology received its final
compilation sometime in the 7th century BCE.[2] The collection contains both aristocratic poems
regarding life at the royal court ("Odes") and also more rustic poetry and images of natural settings,
derived at least to some extent from folk songs ("Songs"). The Shijing poems are predominantly
composed of four-character lines (四言), rather than the five and seven character lines typical of later
Classical Chinese poetry. The main techniques of expression( rhetorics) are Fu (赋, Direct elaborate
narrative), bi (比, metaphor) and Xing(兴, describe other thing to foreshadowing the main content).
Chuci Edit

（《楚辞》）

Main article: Chuci

In contrast to the classic Shijing, the Chu Ci anthology (also familiarly known, in English, as the Songs of
Chu or the Songs of the South or transliterated as the Chu Tz'u) consists of verses more emphasizing lyric
and romantic features, as well as irregular line-lengths and other influences from the poetry typical of
the state of Chu. The Chuci collection consists primarily of poems ascribed to Qu Yuan(屈原) (329–299
BCE) and his follower Song Yu, although in its present form the anthology dates to Wang I's 158 CE
compilation and notes, which are the only historically reliable source of both the text and information
regarding its composition.[3] During the Han dynasty (206 BC-220AD), the Chu Ci style of poetry
contributed to the evolution of the fu ("descriptive poem") style, typified by a mixture of verse and
prose passages (often used as a virtuoso display the poet's skills and knowledge rather than to convey
intimate emotional experiences). The fu form remained popular during the subsequent Six Dynasties
period, although it became shorter and more personal. The fu form of poetry remains as one of the
generic pillars of Chinese poetry; although, in the Tang dynasty, five-character and seven-character shi
poetry begins to dominate.

Han poetry Edit

Main article: Han poetry

Also during the Han dynasty, a folk-song style of poetry became popular, known as yuefu (樂府/乐府)
"Music Bureau" poems, so named because of the government's role in collecting such poems, although
in time some poets began composing original works in yuefu style. Many yuefu poems are composed of
five-character (五言) or seven-character (七言) lines, in contrast to the four-character lines of earlier
times. A characteristic form of Han Dynasty literature is the fu. The poetic period of the end of the Han
Dynasty and the beginning of the Six Dynasties era is known as Jian'an poetry. An important collection of
Han poetry is the Nineteen Old Poems.

Jian'an poetry Edit

Main article: Jian'an poetry

Between and over-lapping the poetry of the latter days of the Han and the beginning period of the Six
Dynasties was Jian'an poetry. Examples of surviving poetry from this period include the works of the
"Three Caos": Cao Cao, Cao Pi, and Cao Zhi.

Six Dynasties poetry Edit

Main article: Six Dynasties poetry

A Tang dynasty era copy of the preface to the Lantingji Xu poems composed at the Orchid Pavilion
Gathering, originally attributed to Wang Xizhi (303–361 AD) of the Jin dynasty

The Six Dynasties era (220CE −589CE) was one of various developments in poetry, both continuing and
building on the traditions developed and handed down from previous eras and also leading up to further
developments of poetry in the future. Major examples of poetry surviving from this dynamic era include
the works of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, the poems of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, the
Midnight Songs poetry of the four seasons, the great "fields and garden" poet "Tao Yuanming", the
Yongming epoch poets, and the poems collected in the anthology New Songs from the Jade Terrace,
compiled by Xu Ling (507–83). The general and poet Lu Ji used Neo-Taoist cosmology to take literary
theory in a new direction with his Wen fu, or "Essay on Literature" in the Fu poetic form.

Tang poetry Edit

Main article: Tang poetry

A high point of classical Chinese poetry occurred during the Tang period (618–907): not only was this
period prolific in poets; but, also in poems (perhaps around 50,000 poems survive, many of them
collected in the Collected Tang Poems). During the time of, poetry was integrated into almost every
aspect of the professional and social life of the literate class, including becoming part of the Imperial
examinations taken by anyone wanting a government post. By this point, poetry was being composed
according to regulated tone patterns. Regulated and unregulated poetry were distinguished as "ancient-
style" gushi poetry and regulated, "recent-style" jintishi poetry. Jintishi (meaning "new style poetry"), or
regulated verse, is a stricter form developed in the early Tang Dynasty with rules governing the structure
of a poem, in terms of line-length, number of lines, tonal patterns within the lines, the use of rhyme, and
a certain level of mandatory parallelism. Good examples of the gushi and jintishi forms can be found in,
respectively, the works of the poets Li Bai and Du Fu. Tang poetic forms include: lushi, a type of
regulated verse with an eight-line form having five, six, or seven characters per line; ci (verse following
set rhythmic patterns); and jueju (truncated verse), a four-line poem with five, six, or seven characters
per line. Good examples of the jueju verse form can be found in the poems of Li Bai[4] and Wang Wei.
Over time, some Tang poetry became more realistic, more narrative and more critical of social norms;
for example, these traits can be seen in the works of Bai Juyi. The poetry of the Tang Dynasty remains
influential today. Other Late Tang poetry developed a more allusive and surreal character, as can be
seen, for example, in the works of Li He and Li Shangyin.

Song poetry Edit

Main article: Song poetry

By the Song dynasty (960–1279), another form had proven it could provide the flexibility that new poets
needed: the ci (词/詞) lyric—new lyrics written according to the set rhythms of existing tunes. Each of
the tunes had music that has often been lost, but having its own meter. Thus, each ci poem is labeled
"To the tune of [Tune Name]" (调寄[词牌]/調寄[詞牌]) and fits the meter and rhyme of the tune (much
in the same way that Christian hymn writers set new lyrics to pre-existing tunes). The titles of ci poems
are not necessarily related to their subject matter, and many poems may share a title. In terms of their
content, ci poetry most often expressed feelings of desire, often in an adopted persona. However, great
exponents of the form, such as the Southern Tang poet Li Houzhu and the Song dynasty poet Su Shi,
used the ci form to address a wide range of topics.

Yuan poetry Edit

Main article: Yuan poetry

Major developments of poetry during the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368) included the development of types
of poetry written to fixed-tone patterns, such as for the Yuan opera librettos. After the Song Dynasty, the
set rhythms of the ci came to be reflected in the set-rhythm pieces of Chinese Sanqu poetry (散曲), a
freer form based on new popular songs and dramatic arias, that developed and lasted into the Ming
dynasty (1368-1644). Examples can be seen in the work of playwrights Ma Zhiyuan 馬致遠 (c. 1270–
1330) and Guan Hanqing 關漢卿 (c. 1300).

Ming poetry Edit

Main article: Ming poetry

The Ming dynasty (1368–1644) poets include Gao Qi (1336–1374), Li Dongyang (1447–1516), and Yuan
Hongdao (1568–1610).

Ming-Qing Transition Edit

Ming-Qing Transition includes the interluding/overlapping periods of the brief so-called Shun dynasty
(also known as Dashun, 1644–1645) and the Southern Ming dynasty (1644 to 1662). One example of
poets who wrote during the difficult times of the late Ming, when the already troubled nation was ruled
by Chongzhen Emperor (reigned 1627 to 1644), the short-lived Dashun regime of peasant-rebel Li
Zicheng, and then the Manchu Qing dynasty are the so-called Three Masters of Jiangdong: Wu Weiye
(1609–1671), Qian Qianyi (1582–1664), and Gong Dingzi (1615–1673).

Qing poetry Edit

Main article: Qing poetry

The Qing dynasty (1644 to 1912) is notable in terms of development of the criticism of poetry and the
development of important poetry collections, such as the Qing era collections of Tang dynasty poetry
known as the QuanTangshi and the Three Hundred Tang Poems. Both shi and ci continued to be
composed beyond the end of the imperial period.

Post-imperial Classical Chinese poetry Edit

Both shi and ci continued to be composed past the end of the imperial period.

Modern (post-classical) poetry Edit

Main article: Modern Chinese poetry

Modern Chinese poetry (新诗/新詞 "new poetry") refers to the modern vernacular style of poetry, as
opposed to the traditional poetry written in Classical Chinese language. Usually Modern Chinese poetry
does not follow prescribed patterns. Poetry was revolutionized after 1919's May Fourth Movement,
when writers (like Hu Shih) tried to use vernacular styles closer to what was being spoken (baihua)
rather than previously prescribed forms. Early 20th-century poets like Xu Zhimo, Guo Moruo and Wen
Yiduo sought to break Chinese poetry from past conventions by adopting Western models. For example,
Xu consciously follows the style of the Romantic poets with end-rhymes.

In the post-revolutionary Communist era, poets like Ai Qing used more liberal running lines and direct
diction, which were vastly popular and widely imitated.

In the contemporary poetic scene, the most important and influential poets are in the group known as
Misty Poets, who use oblique allusions and hermetic references. The most important Misty Poets
include Shu Ting, Bei Dao, Gu Cheng, Duo Duo, and Yang Lian, most of whom were exiled after the
Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. A special case is the mystic poet Hai Zi, who became very famous
after his suicide.

However, even today, the concept of modern poetry is still debated. There are arguments and
contradiction as to whether modern poetry counts as poetry. Due to the special structure of Chinese
writing and Chinese grammar, modern poetry, or free verse poetry, may seem like a simple short
vernacular essay since they lack some of the structure traditionally used to define poetry.

Shijing 詩經 "Book of Songs" (or "Book of Poetry" or "Book of Odes"), also known as Maoshi 毛詩
"Mao's (version of the) Book of Songs" is one of the Confucian Classics. It is a collection of three
different types of songs originating in the Shang 商 (17th-11th cent. BCE) and the early and middle
phase of the Zhou period 周 (11th cent.-221 BCE), in 305 chapters. Of six chapters only the names are
preserved (Nangai 南陔, Baihua 白華, Huashu 華黍, Yougeng 由庚, Chongqiu 崇丘, and Youyi 由儀).

The Shijing and Related Texts

詩經 Shijing The "Book of Songs"

毛詩草木鳥獸蟲魚疏 Maoshi caomu niaoshou chongyu shu (Sanguo: Wu) 陸璣 Lu Ji

韓詩外傳 Hanshi waizhuan (Han) 韓嬰 Han Ying

Origin of the Text

The three types of songs are feng 風 "airs", ya 雅 "odes", and song 頌 "hymns". The 160 Airs are
arranged according to the state they originated from (hence called guofeng 國風 "airs from the states").
The Odes are divided into Major (daya 大雅) and Minor Odes (xiaoya 小雅) and arranged in decades (shi
什). The Hymns are religious chants sung in the ancestral temples of the house of Zhou, as well as Lu 魯,
the regional state of the Duke of Zhou 周公 and the home state of Confucius, as well as the house of
Shang, whose descendants lived in the state of Song 宋. The Airs of the states are folk songs, often
concered with a love theme. The Odes are said to come from the aristocratic class, the Major Odes
being sung at the royal court, the Minor Odes at the courts of the regional rulers. The songs collected in
the Shijing are not only of a high literary value as the oldest songs in China, but they also reveal much of
the activities of different social strata in early China. All poems are accompanied by a short preface
(xiaoxu 小序), the first poem or song also a Long Preface (Daxu 大序).

The oldest sources say that the court of the Zhou dynasty once ordered the collection of folk songs from
among the empire, quite similar to what the Han dynasty 漢 (206 BCE-220 CE) did later with the
establishment of the Music Bureau (yuefu 樂府). This is how the Airs came into being. The Odes,
however, were said to have been submitted by their composers to the throne directly. According to
records an original collection of songs included 300 chapters, a corpus which was compiled by Confucius,
who chose the best from more than 3,000 songs. In reality the compilation of the Shi 詩 corpus, as it
was called in earliest times, began in the 6th century BCE. That the "songs" were music, and not only
recited poems, is revealed by numerous sources. The oldest parts are said to be the hymns from Zhou.
The Major Odes were written in the early decades of the Zhou, the Minor Odes and part of the Major
Odes probably compiled in the late Western Zhou period 西周 (11th cent.-770 BCE). The major part of
the Airs and the Hymns of Lu and Shang were only recorded during the Spring and Autumn period 春秋
(770-5th cent. BCE).

Genres and Styles

Apart from the airs, odes, and hymns, there must have been other types of songs (altogher six, the liushi
六詩 "six types of songs" or liuyi 六義 "six meanings") of which no examples are preserved, namely the
types of fu 賦 "straightforward" (which during the Han period reappears as the genre of prose rhapsody,
which is a very descriptive and often didactic type of poem), bi 比 "simile, parable", and xing 興 "with an
atmospherical introduction". The great Tang-period 唐 (618-907) commentator Kong Yingda 孔穎達
(574-648) interprets those terms in the following way: feng, ya and song referred to certain external
compositional forms or functions, while fu, bi and xing were designations for certain methods of how
the content of the poem was approached, or stylistic devices. During the Han period, when only the four
designations of feng, daya, xiaoya and song were used, they were interpreted as the "four beginnings"
(sishi 四始) describing the flourishing and decline of the royal house of Zhou.

Table 1. Genres and Stylistic Devices in the "Songs"

Musical Forms and Genres in the "Songs"

風 feng "airs"

雅 ya "odes"

頌 song "hymns"

Stylistic Devices in the "Songs"

賦 fu "straightforward"

比 bi "parable"

興 xing "atmospherical introduction"

A very good example for the xing type is the beginning of the air Guanju 關雎.

Quotation 1. The air Guanju

關關雎鳩， Guan guan ju jiu,

在河之洲。 zai he zhi zhou.

窈窕淑女， Yaotiao shu nü,

君子好逑。 junzi hao qiu.

"Kwan, kwan, go the ospreys,

On the islet in the river.

The modest, retiring, virtuous, young lady:

For our prince a good mate she.

参差荇菜， Cenci xingcai,

左右流之。 zuo you liu zhi.

窈窕淑女， Yaotiao shu nü,

寤寐求之。 wumei qiu zhi.

Here long, there short, is the duckweed,

To the left, to the right, borne about by the current.

The modest, retiring, virtuous, young lady:

Waking and sleeping, he sought her.

求之不得， Qiu zhi bu de,

寤寐思服。 wumei si fu.

悠哉悠哉， You zai you zai,

輾轉反側。 zhanzhuan fan ce.

He sought her and found her not,

And waking and sleeping he thought about her.

Long he thought; oh! long and anxiously;

On his side, on his back, he turned, and back again.

参差荇菜， Cenci xingcai,

左右采之。 zuo you cai zhi.

窈窕淑女， Yaotiao shu nü,

琴瑟友之。 qin se you zhi.

Here long, there short, is the duckweed;

On the left, on the right, we gather it.

The modest, retiring, virtuous, young lady:

With lutes, small and large, let us give her friendly welcome.

参差荇菜， Cenci xingcai,

左右芼之。 zuo you mao zhi.

窈窕淑女， Yaotiao shu nü,

鐘锺鼓樂之。 zhong gu le zhi.

Here long, there short, is the duckweed;

On the left, on the right, we cook and present it.

The modest, retiring, virtuous, young lady:

With bells and drums let us show our delight in her."

Legge 1871: 1.

An example for the bi type is the air Shuoshu 碩鼠, where scheming and exploitative aristocrats are
compared to "large rats".

The air Qiyue 七月 proves an example for the fu type with the beginning

Quotation 2.

七月流火、 Qi yue liu huo,

九月授衣。 jiu yue shou yi.

"In the seventh month, the Fire Star passes the meridian;

In the 9th month, clothes are given out."

Legge 1871: 226.

Especially the Hymns, but also the Odes, can be used as historiographical sources for the late Shang and
early Zhou periods. Information about institutional history, leisure time activities of the upper class, as
well as the hardships of the life of ordinary people can be found. Many of the Airs are simple love songs,
the most famous of which being the first song of the Shijing. Very typical for the airs, but also for some
of the minor odes, is the repetition of verses in each of the stanzas, a phenomenon which is known in
the West in poems of the rondo type, but also in many folk songs. Another phenomenon very common
in the airs are double rhymes (dieyun 疊韻), like in the verse yao tiao shu nü 窈窕淑女 in the air Guanju,
multiple or special readings (shuangsheng 雙聲), like in the verse cenci [instead of cancha] xingcai 參差
荇菜 in the same air, and repeated words (diezi 疊字), like in the verses

Quotation 3.

風雨凄凄， Feng yu qiqi,

鷄鳴喈喈。 ji ming jiejie.

"Cold are the wind and the rain,

And shrilly crows the cock."

Legge 1871: 143.

A large part of the verses has four syllables, especially among the airs. The songs in the Shijing are the
oldest example for regular poems that later became so popular. From a linguistic viewpoint the rhymes
of the songs are an important help for the reconstruction of archaic Chinese.

An example for an ode is Qingmiao 清廟 "Hallowed temple"

Quotation 4. The ode Qingmiao

于穆清廟， Yu mu qing miao,

肅雝顯相。 su yong xian xiang.

濟濟多士， Jiji duo shi,

秉文之德。 bing Wen zhi de.

"Ah! solemn is the ancestral temple in its pure stillness.

Reverent and harmonious were the distinguished assistants;

Great was the number of the officers:

[All] assiduous followers of the virtue of [king] Wen.

對越在天， Dui yue zai tian,

駿奔走在廟。 jun beng zou zai miao

不顯不承？ Bu xian bu cheng?

無射於人斯！ wu she yu ren si!

In response to him in heaven,

Grandly they hurried about in the temple.

Isn't he distinguished and honoured?

He will never be wearied of among men!"

Legge 1871.

History of the Text

The Shijing had always attracted the interest of all groups of persons. Confucius once said that without
the Shijing there was nothing to talk about. With many examples from the Shijing he even taught his
disciples.

During the so-called literary inquisition under the First Emperor of Qin 秦始皇 (r. 246/221 – 210 BCE)
the Shijing survived virtually without damage, certainly because most of its songs were mainly passed on
orally, which is easier for songs than for prose texts. During the early Han period there were four
different versions available: the Qi 齊, Lu 魯, Han 韓, and Mao 毛 versions. The three former were
written in the modern chancery script style (lishu 隸書) and therefore considered as new-script texts,
while the Shijing of Mao Heng 毛亨 and his son Mao Chang 毛萇, Maoshi, was written in ancient
characters and thus considered to be from the old-text tradition (see old-text/new-text debate). For the
Qi, Lu and Han versions there were "professorships" (boshi 博士 "erudites") established at the National
University (taixue 太學), which means that they were the imperially acknowledged versions. The Lu
version was already lost in the 4rd century CE, while the Han version survived until the end of the
Northern Song period 北宋 (960-1126).

Table 2. Chapters of the Shijing

1.-160. 國風 Guofeng Airs of the States (160)

1.-11. 周南 Zhaonan Airs South of Zhou (11)

12.-25. 召南 Shaonan Airs South of Shao (14)

26.-44. 邶 Bei Airs of Bei (18)

45.-54. 鄘 Yong Airs of Yong (10)

55.-64. 衛 Wei Airs of Wei (10)

65.-74. 王 Wang Airs of the Royal Domain (10)

75.-95. 鄭 Zheng Airs of Zheng (21)

96.-106. 齊 Qi Airs of Qi (11)

107.-113. 魏 Wei Airs of Wei (7)

114.-125. 唐 Tang Airs of Tang (12)

126.-135. 秦 Qin Airs of Qin (10)

136.-145. 陳 Chen Airs of Chen (10)

146.-149. 檜 Gui Airs of Gui (4)

150.-153. 曹 Cao Airs of Cao (4)

154.-160. 豳 Bin Airs of Bin (7)

161.-234. 小雅 Xiaoya Minor Odes (74)

161.-170. 鹿鳴之什 Luming zhi shi Decade "Deer Cry"

171.-180. 南有嘉魚之什 Nan you jiayu zhi shi Decade "In the south there are lucky fish"

181.-190. 鴻鴈之什 Hongyan zhi shi Decade "Wild geese"

191.-200. 節南山之什 Jienanshan zhi shi Decade "High-crested southern hills"

201.-210. 谷風之什 Gufeng zhi shi Decade "Valley wind"

211.-220. 甫田之什 Futian zhi shi Decade "Large field"

221.-234. 魚藻之什 zhi shi Yuzao Decade "Fish and water-plants"

235.-265. 大雅 Daya Major Odes (31)

235.-244. 文王之什 Wenwang zhi shi Decade "King Wen"

245.-254. 生民之什 Shengmin zhi shi Decade "Birth to the people"

255.-265. 蕩之什 Tang zhi shi Decade "Mighty"

266.-305. 頌 Song Hymns (40)

266.-296. 周頌 Zhou song Hymns of Zhou (31)

266.-275. 清廟之什 Qingmiao zhi shi Decade "Hallowed temple"

276.-285. 臣工之什 Chengong zhi shi Decade "Servants and officers"

286.-296. 閔予小子之什 Min yu xiaozi zhi shi Decade "Pity me, your child"

297.-300. 魯頌 Lu song Hymns of Lu (4)

301.-305. 商頌 Shang song Hymns of Shang (5)

Commentaries

A kind of commentary on the Han version, Hanshi waizhuan 韓氏外傳 compiled by Han Ying 韓嬰 (c.
200-130 BCE). has lived on, which was treated as a sub-classic writing ever since. The Qi version was lost
during the 3rd century. The Mao version had been transmitted by descendants of Zixia 子夏, a disciple
of Confucius. Mao Heng introduced this version of the Shijing to Han-period scholars, but it only
obtained official status during the Later Han period 後漢 (25-220 CE) and was revised and commented
by Zheng Zhong 鄭眾 (d. 83 CE), Jia Kui 賈逵 (30-101 CE), Ma Rong 馬融 (79-176) and Zheng Xuan 鄭玄
(127-200). The latter wrote a commentary called Maoshi zhuanjian 毛詩傳箋. The most important
commentary is Kong Yingda's Maoshi zhengyi 毛詩正義. Today the Mao version is the only surviving
one. The Neo-Confucian master Zhu Xi 朱熹 (1130-1200) assembled all Song-period commentaries on
the Maoshi and published them as Shijizhuan 詩集傳.

Sources:

Legge, James (1871). The Chinese Classics, Vol. 4, The She King, or the Book of Poetry (London: Frowde)

Waley, Arthur (1996). The Book of Songs: The Ancient Chinese Classic of Poetry (New York: Grove).
Further reading:

Nylan, Michael (2001). The Five "Confucian" Classics (New Haven: Yale University Press).

No.4

DECEMBER 5TH 2017

China and its long history goes hand in hand with its rich literary tradition. The Zhou dynasty (1030-221
BC) saw some of the earliest forms of literature, and it was during this time that the writings of
Confucius and Lao Tzu were penned, from which the philosophies of Confucianism and Taoism arose.
Prose poetry flourished under the Han dynasty (202 BC-AD 220), and the Tang dynasty of the seventh-
through tenth-centuries marked the golden age of Chinese literature. The novel arose during the Song
dynasty (960-1279), and the following centuries saw the publication of the “four great classical novels.”
The twentieth century brought about the rapid modernization of China and its literature, though
censorship during the Cultural Revolution and under communist rule has threatened to halt this
transformation.

The names Confucius, Lao Tzu, and Sun Tzu are well-known around the world, but many of China’s
poets, philosophers, and novelists remain hidden gems to outsiders. Take a look at the list below and
discover 10 of China’s greatest writers, from the end of the Zhou dynasty to the twentieth century.

1. Qu Yuan (339-278 BC) was a statesman and poet during the Warring States period. He has been
attributed to the first seven poems of the Chu ci (Songs of Chu). He served under King Huai but was
banished after composing the poem “Li Sao” (Encountering Sorrow), which attacked the court for failing
to listen to his advice. He committed suicide by throwing himself in a river.

2. Wang Wei (701-761) was a painter, musician, poet, and devout Buddhist. He composed “landscape
poems” while roaming the lands near the Wang River, exchanging verses with his friend Pei Di. A Zen
Master taught him the doctrine of dunwu (instantaneous enlightenment), and Wei’s later poetry reflects
his devotion. He was referred to as Shi fo, or the Buddha of Poetry. The poet Su Shi said of his works:
“There is painting in his poetry, and poetry in his painting.”

3. Shi Nai’en (1296-1372) was the author of the first of the “four great classical novels,” though some
historians believe his mentor Luo Guanzhong played a role its writing. Not much is known about Shi, but
the work attributed to him, Shuihu zhuan (Water Margin), about a rebellious leader of outlaws, has been
equally banned and celebrated over hundreds of years. Water Margin was written in popular vernacular
and expanded on its characters in contrast to the historical writings of the time, advancing the art of the
novel.
4. Luo Guanzhong (1330-1400) was a prolific writer who has had many anonymous works attributed to
him over the years. Historians agree that the second of the “four great classical novels,” Sanguo yani
(Romance of the Three Kingdoms), was written by Luo. Over 750,000 Chinese characters long, the novel
told the story of three kingdoms over the course of a century. It was based on a historical account and
contained historical figures, but also incorporated folk stories and plots from popular dramas of the
time.

5. Not much is known about Wu Cheng’en (c. 1500-1582), the author to whom the third of the “four
great classical novels,” Xi you ji (Journey to the West), is attributed. Loosely based on the historical
account of the Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, the novel humorously followed a group of pilgrims on a
journey to India and back. The novel contained religious themes, witty dialogue, and elegant poems, as
well as critical commentary on contemporary Ming-era China.

6. The Laughing Scholar of Lanling was the pseudonym of the unknown author of the controversial novel
Jin Ping Mei (The Plum in the Golden Vase). It has been frequently banned for its pornographic nature
since its publication around 1610. American translator David Todd Roy suspected poet Xu Wei (1521-
1593) to be its author. Wei was famous for his painting and calligraphy, and he was an early proponent
of women’s rights, writing a popular play on the legend of Mulan; however, he was also imprisoned for
the murder of his second wife.

Eileen Chang (September 30, 1920 – September 8, 1995) was a Chinese (Republic of China) writer. Photo
was taken in 1954 in Hong Kong, by 北角英皇道兰心照相馆. Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

7. Cao Xueqin (1715-1763/64) was the author of the fourth of the “four great classical novels,” Honglou
meng (Dream of the Red Chamber), which told the story of an aristocratic family and its downfall. The
novel was written in vernacular and published in two editions: the 80-chapter version reportedly based
on Cao’s life, and the 120-chapter “Cheng edition,” published posthumously in 1791 and believed to
have been enhanced by the scholar Gao E. Cao’s novel is so important to Chinese literature that an
entire field of study called hongxue (redology) arose in the 1920s.

8. Lu Xun (1881-1936) studied medicine in Japan as a young man but ultimately concluded that he was
better served as a writer. In 1918, he published his first short story, A Madman’s Diary, the first
colloquial story in modern Chinese literature. His writings comprised many genres, from fiction to zawen
(satire) to a historical account of Chinese fiction. Mao Zedong called Lu “the standard-bearer” of the
new Chinese culture that arose after the May Fourth Movement.
9. Ba Jin (1904-2005), born Li Yaotang, began his career as a poet but achieved fame as a novelist. His
most famous novel was Jia (The Family); in addition to these novels, he also translated Russian, British,
German, and Italian works. Ba Jin’s most famous later work was Suixiang lu (Random Thoughts), a
painful reflection on the Cultural Revolution in which he was persecuted as a “counter-revolutionary.”

10. Zhang Ailing (or Eileen Chang) (1920-1995) was a student during the Japanese occupation of Hong
Kong during World War II. She returned to her home in Shanghai and supported herself by publishing
short stories and novels about the plight of women in difficult romantic relationships. She wrote the
anti-communist novel Rice Sprout Song in 1952 and moved to the United States three years later, where
she wrote novels and screenplays. In 2007, Ang Lee directed a movie adaptation of her novel Lust,
Caution.

Featured image credit: Romance of the Three Kingdoms mural at the Long Corridor by Shizhao. Public
Domain via Wikimedia Commons.

No.5