Spring and Autumn Annals of Zuo with Annotations (Volume 1 and 2): Standard Edition of Classical Masterpieces

Author: Chen Shuguo
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-05-01
Features: The Spring and Autumn Annals is a classic, while the Zuo Zhuan is merely a commentary. However, after the Tang Dynasty's Five Classics Rectification, all three commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Annals were elevated to the status of classics. Here is a preliminary note: The method I used in the early 1990s to proofread and collate the Four Books and Five Classics into a plain text version has now been improved. The annotations in this edition follow the order of the twelve sovereigns in the Spring and Autumn Annals, with titles such as "Jing [Year]" and "Chuan [Year]." The "Current Annotations" separate the text of the classics from our annotations, while the "Original Text" distinguishes the text of the commentaries from our annotations. Since the text of the classics is very brief, except for the first year of Yin (the Spring and Autumn Annals year), which is a commentary (as the events recorded occurred before that year), the text of any year, including Yin's, is presented together with its commentary in the same year, without the need for hierarchical division or labeling "Original Text." Only "Current Annotations" are used to separate the classic text from the annotations. This approach ensures that the original text of the Ruan edition remains unaltered and avoids confusion between the classics and the commentaries, bringing a sense of peace to the mind. Many ancient texts consider the Spring and Autumn Annals to be the work of Confucius. As for the Zuo Zhuan, many ancient scholars attributed it to Zuo Qiuming. Regarding these views, we have noted that there have been differing opinions from an early time, but we still believe that the above-mentioned general statements are largely true. This book is a standard edition of a classical masterpiece, published by Yue Lu Book Society.