Shih King. Odes Of The Temple And The Altar. Part 20
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Ii. The Sacrificial Odes Of Ku.
In this division we have thirty-one sacrificial odes of "K"u, arranged in three decades, the third of which, however, contains eleven pieces. They belong mostly to the time of king Wn, the founder of the "K"u dynasty, and to the reigns of his son and grandson, kings W and "Kh"ng. The decades are named from the name of the first piece in each.
The First Decade, Or That Of "Kh"ing Mio.
Ode 1. The "Kh"ing Mio.
Celebrating The Reverential Manner In Which A Sacrifice To King Wn Was Performed, And Further Praising Him.
Chinese critics agree in assigning this piece to the sacrifice mentioned in the Sh, in the end of the thirteenth Book of Part V, when, the building of Lo being finished, king "Kh"ng came to
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the new city, and offered a red bull to Wn, and the same to W. It seems to me to have been sung in honour of Wn, after the service was completed. This determination of the occasion of the piece being accepted, we should refer it to B.c. 1108.
Oh! solemn is the ancestral temple in its pure stillness. Reverent and harmonious were the distinguished assistants 1; Great was the number of the officers 2:--(All) assiduous followers of the virtue of (king Wn). In response to him in heaven, Grandly they hurried about in the temple. Distinguished is he and honoured, And will never be wearied of among men.
Footnotes
314:1 These would be the princes who were assembled on the occasion, and assisted the king in the service.
314:2 That is, the officers who took part in the libations, prayers, and other parts of the sacrifice.
Ii. The Sacrificial Odes Of Ku.
In this division we have thirty-one sacrificial odes of "K"u, arranged in three decades, the third of which, however, contains eleven pieces. They belong mostly to the time of king Wn, the founder of the "K"u dynasty, and to the reigns of his son and grandson, kings W and "Kh"ng. The decades are named from the name of the first piece in each.
The First Decade, Or That Of "Kh"ing Mio.
Ode 1. The "Kh"ing Mio.
Celebrating The Reverential Manner In Which A Sacrifice To King Wn Was Performed, And Further Praising Him.
Chinese critics agree in assigning this piece to the sacrifice mentioned in the Sh, in the end of the thirteenth Book of Part V, when, the building of Lo being finished, king "Kh"ng came to
p. 314
the new city, and offered a red bull to Wn, and the same to W. It seems to me to have been sung in honour of Wn, after the service was completed. This determination of the occasion of the piece being accepted, we should refer it to B.c. 1108.
Oh! solemn is the ancestral temple in its pure stillness. Reverent and harmonious were the distinguished assistants 1; Great was the number of the officers 2:--(All) assiduous followers of the virtue of (king Wn). In response to him in heaven, Grandly they hurried about in the temple. Distinguished is he and honoured, And will never be wearied of among men.
Footnotes
314:1 These would be the princes who were assembled on the occasion, and assisted the king in the service.
314:2 That is, the officers who took part in the libations, prayers, and other parts of the sacrifice.
