Nanbei Dynasty Literature Essentials

Author: Chief Editor: Dai Yan
Publisher:
Publishing Date: July 1, 1998
Features: Since the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, Mr. Gao Buying has made outstanding achievements in the selection and annotation of classical Chinese literature. He has compiled and annotated numerous works, many of which were printed and distributed before the liberation, and were later re-edited and published with punctuation in the 1950s and 1960s. Works such as Tang and Song Poems at a Glance and Tang and Song Prose at a Glance were highly praised by academia. Gao Buying (1873-1940), styled Lanxian, was a native of Ba County, Hebei, and a student of Wu Ruyin (Zhipu), the later master of the Tongcheng School of classical Chinese prose. In the 1920s of this century, he taught at Beijing Normal University and Women's Normal University. Due to his profound foundation in the principles, textual research, and stylistics of classical Chinese, coupled with years of teaching experience, he was able to select texts with clear focus and exemplary significance; his annotations were extensive, rigorous, and insightful, truly earning him the title of a great selector. Mr. Gao's annotated manuscripts are numerous, and six of them are preserved in our publishing house: Selected Prose (Pre-Qin Period), Selected Prose from Classics, History, and Confucianism, Selected Prose (Han Dynasty Period), Essentials of Parallel Prose, Selected Prose (Wei and Jin Periods), and Essentials of Prose from the Southern and Northern Dynasties. We plan to uniformly arrange and publish them to serve the readers. Considering that the content of Essentials of Parallel Prose is already included in Essentials of Prose from the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it will not be published. The book Selected Prose from Classics, History, and Confucianism includes selected chapters from works such as Liji, Zuo Zhuan, Gongyang Zhuan, Guliang Zhuan, Shiji, and Han Shu, but it does not include the works of the Hundred Schools of Thought, making it an incomplete work. We plan to extract the selected texts from Shiji and Han Shu and incorporate them into the Selected Prose (Han Dynasty Period), while the remaining parts will not be published. Additionally, considering that the purpose and style of these annotations are the same as those of Tang and Song Prose at a Glance, to form a systematic and cohesive set, we will uniformly rename the titles as "Essentials of Prose." That is to say, after punctuating and editing, Mr. Gao Buying's manuscripts will be published as Essentials of Prose (Pre-Qin Period), Essentials of Prose (Han Dynasty Period), Essentials of Prose (Wei and Jin Periods), and Essentials of Prose from the Southern and Northern Dynasties. We hope they will serve as a useful resource for the reading and study of classical Chinese literature. Editorial Department of Zhonghua Book Company, October 1987
Excerpt: Also see the annotation in The Great Mourning Ceremony. In the annotation of The Visit to the Court of Disaster, Zheng said: "The materials for the temple were stone, while the burial used wood, and later, inscriptions were carved on them." Shuowen Jiezi states: "A stele is a vertical stone." (This follows the Da Xu edition.) Shi Ming. Interpretation of Classics and Arts says: "A stele is a covering. Originally, it was set during burials. A pulley was placed on top, and a rope was used to lower the coffin. Officials recorded the merits of their rulers and ancestors on it, and later, it was erected at the roadside or in a prominent place, with the inscriptions called a stele." The Art of Rhetoric. Chapter on Eulogies and Steles states: "A stele is a mound. In ancient times, emperors and kings marked their sacrificial sites with stone mounds, hence the term 'stele.' Also, in ancestral temples, steles were placed between the pillars, and the ceremony involved sacrificing deer, without recording achievements. Later, as bronze vessels became scarce, steles were used, with stone replacing gold, symbolizing immortality. From the temple to the tomb, it is like sealing the tomb." Shuowen Fanfu. Volume 18 states: "According to ancient customs, steles in ancestral temples were set with deer sacrifices, not stone. (Wang Bao's Investigation of Differences suggests that 'stele' and 'stone' should be exchanged.) Later, as inscriptions of merits and virtues were added, the character 'stone' was retained, and the term 'stele' was established since the Qin Dynasty. Some may ask: If there were seventy-two families who held sacrificial rites and inscribed stones in ancient times, why is it said that steles originated in the Qin Dynasty? The answer is: Although seventy-two families held sacrificial rites and inscribed stones in ancient times, they did not call them steles. The seventy-two families' records originated from Guan Zhong (see Guanzi. Chapter on Sacrificial Rites), and they did not mention steles. The Biography of the Son of Heaven states: 'The Son of Heaven recorded his deeds on stone at the Yangshan Mountain.' It also did not mention steles. Some may further ask: Why does Liu Xi's Interpretation of Names say it originated from hanging coffins? The response is: The origin of steles from hanging coffins refers to the modern spirit tablets, while the recording of merits and virtues should have begun with the ancestral temple steles for sacrifices." Gao Buying's note: The character 'stele' has already appeared in Yi Hui and Hui Ji, and Xiao Xu's claim that it was first established since the Qin Dynasty is incorrect. Moreover, Shiji. Biographies of Qin Shi Huang states: "Carving inscriptions was called 'setting up stones,' but it did not mention 'steles.' From the Han Dynasty onwards, the term 'stele' became commonly used. Therefore, merit and virtue steles originated from the stone inscriptions of ancient emperors, and later, they were referred to as steles, such as memorial steles and steles for benevolent governance. Ancestral temple steles originated from deer sacrifice steles, such as modern spirit tablets and ancestral temple steles. Tomb steles originated from the stone used to lower the coffin, such as modern tomb steles and spirit tablets. Others, such as jie and biao (Huang Zongxi's Essentials of Steles and Tablets states: "A tomb tablet records the essence of a person's life that can be passed down, without detailing specific actions."), have different systems and slightly different styles, but they are also similar to tomb steles. Yiwen Lüji. Ministry Section includes a stele text titled The Stele of Grand Minister Chu Yanhui, which follows Zhang's Collected Works of Wang Wenxian and Yan's Complete Writings of Qi Dynasty. However, it follows The Selection of Rhetoric. The highest virtue is to establish moral integrity, the next is to achieve merits, and this is called immortality. Thus, when Zi Chan passed away, Confucius wept for his legacy; when Wei Wu passed away, Zhao Wen cherished his influence. This is evident in Wen Jian Gong. The above is excerpted from Zuo Zhuan. Twenty-fourth Year of Mu. Mu Shu said: "I have heard that the highest virtue is to establish moral integrity, the next is to achieve merits, and the next is to establish words. Even if they are long-lasting, they are called immortality." Du's annotation states: "Establishing moral integrity refers to Huangdi, Yao, and Shun. Achieving merits refers to Yu and Ji." Shiwen states: "Great, pronounced Tai." Kong's commentary says: "Great above refers to the superior ones, the sages. The next refers to the, the great." Jiang Yuan's Explanation of Shuowen Examples says: "Great, anciently written as , not or . In the Book of Changes, it is ; in the Spring and Autumn Annals, it is and ; in the Book of Documents, it is and ; in the Shiji and Han Shu, it is and . Later, they were all read as , or some texts were altered to or , due to the ignorance of the common people, who could not fully appreciate , thus creating the idea that is more revered than . No one calls their ancestors , so this is a great confusion." Zhu Junsheng's Shuowen Tongun Dingsheng states: "All ren, dafu, taizi, and taajun are respectful terms. Shiji. Fan Shu states: 'King Wen of Zhou appointed Lü Shang as Dapu.' Liji. Zhongyong and , both refer to the original meaning." Case: The first two sentences in Yiwen do not have two "have" characters, and is . Zuo Zhuan. Twenty-first Year of Zhao states: "When Zi Chan passed away, Confucius heard and wept, saying: 'The legacy of the ancient sages.'" Poetry. Zhan Yang states: "People are gone." Han Shu. Biographies of Emperor Ping states: "In the first year of Yuan Shu, Confucius was posthumously honored as Baocheng Xian Gong." Left Tai Chong's Eulogy Poem states: "One word is as accurate as Confucius." Liji. Tan Gong Xia states: "Zhao Wenzi and Shu Yu viewed the Nine Origins. Wenzi said: 'If the dead could come back, whom would I return to? I would choose Wei Wuzi! He benefited his ruler without forgetting himself, and planned for himself without leaving his friends.' The people of Jin said Wenzi knew people.'" Zheng's annotation states: "Wuzi refers to Shi Hui, who had a fief in Wei and Fan, styled Ji." Also see the note in the biography of Ji You for the repair of Zhang Liang's temple. The Analects. Chapter on Zihan states: "King Wen passed away." The Three Kingdoms. Wei Biographies of Lu Yu notes the Continuation of Han Shu: "When Emperor Wu passed through Zhuo County, he ordered the governor to say: 'In the past, when Zheng lost Zi Chan, Confucius wept, and when I arrived in this state, I admired his legacy.'" Case: Yiwen has as , which is incorrect. The Southern Qi Book. Biography of Chu Yuan states: "Posthumously honored as Wen Jian." The Liang Book. Biography of Tao Jishan states: "The Minister of State Wang Jian admired Chu Yuan's exceptional nature and wanted to posthumously honor him as Wenxiao. Tao Jishan said: 'Wenxiao is the posthumous title given to Sima Daosi, a person who was not truly virtuous. It is better to be Wen Jian.'" Wang Jian agreed. Chu Yuan, styled Yanhui, was a native of Yangdi, Henan. The descendant of Micro opened the foundation with benevolence, and Song Duan established the surname with merits. By the two Han dynasties, scholars and scholars followed one after another; from the Wei and Jin dynasties onwards, the family's brilliance continued. His great-grandfather, the Grand Tutor Yuanmu Gong, had virtue that matched his time and conduct that matched the state. He had a deep understanding of right and wrong, not letting praise or criticism shape his words; he shone in the royal court, always adhering to the path of modesty and emptiness. He could be called gentle yet clear, and profound yet hidden. Since then, the tradition has not been abandoned, officials were appointed based on merit, and the positions were inherited generation after generation. The above is about his ancestors.