The inheritance history of "The Book of Songs"
It is said that there were as many as 3,000 poems handed down in the Spring and Autumn Period, but later only 311 poems were left (including six Sheng poems: Nanmei, Baihua, Huashui, Yougeng, Chongqiu, Youyi). After Confucius compiled the Book of Songs, the earliest clearly recorded inheritor was Zixia, one of the "Ten Philosophers of Confucius" and one of the seventy-two sages. He had the strongest understanding of poetry, so he passed on the poetry. By the early Han Dynasty, the poets included Shen Peigong from Lu, Yuan Gusheng from Qi, and Han Ying from Yan, collectively known as the Three Poems. Qi poetry died in the Wei Dynasty, Lu poetry died in the Western Jin Dynasty, and Korean poetry was still circulating in the Tang Dynasty, but now there are only 10 volumes of external works left. The Book of Songs circulating in the world today is Mao's poems passed down by Mao Gong (Da Mao Gong: Mao Heng, Xiao Mao Gong: Mao Chang).
The Book of Songs is a collection of poems produced at the end of China's slave society. It is the beginning of ancient Chinese poetry and the earliest poetry collection. It collected 305 ancient poems from the 11th century BC to the 6th century BC, and 6 "Sheng Poems" with only titles but no verses, reflecting the social outlook of about 500 years from the early Western Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period.
The author of "The Book of Songs" is unknown. It is said that it was collected by Yin Jifu and compiled by Confucius. At first it was only called "Shi" or "Three Hundred Poems". By the Western Han Dynasty, it was revered as a Confucian classic and was called "The Book of Songs". The Book of Songs is compiled into three categories: "Wind", "Ya" and "Song". "Wind" is a ballad from various places in the Zhou Dynasty; "Ya" is a formal song of the Zhou people, and is divided into "Xiaoya" and "Daya"; Song", "Song of Lu" and "Song of Shang".
The Book of Songs is rich in content, reflecting labor and love, war and corvee, oppression and resistance, customs and marriage, ancestor worship and banquets, and even celestial phenomena, landforms, animals, plants and other aspects. It is a masterpiece of Zhou Dynasty A mirror of social life.
History
Origin of the name
The "Book of Songs" was written around the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period. It was originally called "Shi". Confucius mentioned this name many times, such as: "Three hundred poems can be summed up in one sentence: 'Thinking without evil'". "Recite "Poetry" three hundred times and teach them how to govern, but they are not up to the mark; when they are sent to all directions, they cannot be specific. Although there are many, is it ridiculous?"
Sima Qian also used this name, such as: "" There are three hundred poems in "Poems", which are probably the works of sages who were very angry."
Because the version handed down later recorded 311 poems, for the convenience of description, they are called "Poems". Three Hundred Poems". The reason why it was renamed "The Book of Songs" is because Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty used "Poems", "Books", "Li", "Yi" and "Spring and Autumn" as the Five Classics.
Era of production
The Book of Songs is the first collection of poems in China. The earliest records are from the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and the latest works were produced in the Spring and Autumn Period. The entire Book of Songs is The era spans about five to six hundred years. The area where it occurs is centered on the Yellow River Basin, extending south to the north bank of the Yangtze River, and is distributed in Shaanxi, Gansu, Shanxi, Shandong, Hebei, Henan, Anhui, Hubei and other places.
Experts on classics and history have determined that the works in the Book of Songs were produced after King Wu of Zhou destroyed the Shang Dynasty (1066 BC). [4]
Song of Zhou is the earliest, produced in the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty. It is a work of aristocratic literati. It mainly focuses on ancestral temple music and songs in praise of gods, and also partially describes agricultural production.
"Daya" is also a poem from the Western Zhou Dynasty and is the only remaining epic poem in ancient China.
"Xiaoya" was produced in the late Western Zhou Dynasty after the movement to the east.
Both "Song of Lu" and "Song of Shang" were produced after the Zhou Dynasty moved eastward (770 BC).
Creator
It is said that in the Zhou Dynasty, there was an official who collected poetry. Every spring, he would rock the wooden pole and go deep into the folk to collect folk songs, and sort out the works that could reflect the joys and sufferings of the people. The Taishi (the official in charge of music) composed music and sang it to the Emperor of Zhou as a reference for governing. The works of these unnamed folk authors account for the majority of the Book of Songs.
The works of aristocratic literati of the Zhou Dynasty constitute another part of the Book of Songs. "Shangshu" records that "Binfeng·Owl" was written by Zhou Gongdan. In the chapter "Qi Ye" among a batch of Warring States Bamboo Slips (referred to as Tsinghua Slips) that were collected by Tsinghua University in 2008, it is described that King Wu and others drank in celebration after the victory over Li State. During this period, Zhou Gongdan composed an impromptu poem "Cricket", the content of which is consistent with the existing The article "Cricket" in "The Book of Songs: Tang Feng" is closely related.
Creative background
"Historical Records" records: "From the east of Guanzhong from Qian and Yong to He and Hua, there are fertile fields for thousands of miles. From the tribute of Yuxia, it was considered to be in the fields. And the public Liu Shiyi, the great king, and Wang Ji were in Qi, King Wen was in charge of prosperity, and King Wu was in charge of Hao, so the people still had the legacy of the previous kings, and they were good at farming and cultivating grains."[9] Although the tribute of Yu and Xia mentioned here may not be credible, it is true that the ancestral homeland of the Zhou Dynasty was suitable for agriculture. Poems such as "Shengmin", "Gongliu", and "Mianmian Gualui" in "Daya" all show that the Zhou Dynasty relied on agriculture to prosper. "Binfeng July" completely narrates the agricultural activities and activities of the year. The hierarchical oppression relationship in society at that time. In addition, there are records of farming in the "Nanshan", "Chuci", "Datian", "Fengnian", "Liangshu" and other chapters in the "Book of Songs".
The development of agriculture promotes social progress. After King Wu defeated Zhou, the Zhou clan became the dominant people in the world. The family patriarchal system, private ownership of land, slaves, and the rule of noble lords became the social and political characteristics of this historical period.
Religious beliefs and social politics are integrated, which is why there are many sacrificial hymns and elegant poems in the Book of Songs as the social foundation.
The Zhou Dynasty was founded by Wen and Wu, and Cheng and Kang prospered. It is said in history that punishments were not used for forty years. This can be called the golden age of the Zhou Dynasty. After Zhao and Mu, the country gradually declined. Later, King Li was expelled, King You was killed, and King Ping moved eastward, entering the Spring and Autumn Period. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the royal family declined, princes merged, barbarians and Di invaded, and society was in turmoil. The Book of Songs, which reflects the social life from the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, is an image reflection of the social life in China during these five hundred years. It contains hymns about ancestors' entrepreneurship, music for worshiping gods and ghosts; There are banquets and interactions, resentments about uneven work and rest; there are also touching chapters reflecting labor, hunting, and a large number of love, marriage, and social customs.
Content
The Book of Songs has 305 existing chapters, divided into three parts: "Wind", "Ya" and "Song".
"Wind" has folk songs from fifteen countries and is the essence of the "Book of Songs". There are songs about love, labor and other beautiful things, as well as nostalgia for homeland, longing for people and reflections. The resentment and anger of oppression and anti-bullying. The technique of repetition is often used to chant repeatedly. Each chapter in a poem often only has a few different words, which reflects the characteristics of folk songs.
"Ya" is divided into "Daya" and "Xiaoya". They are mostly sacrificial poems by nobles, praying for good harvests and praising ancestors' virtues. The author of "Daya" was an aristocratic scholar, but he was dissatisfied with the real politics. In addition to banquet songs, sacrificial songs and epic poems, he also wrote some satirical poems that reflected the people's wishes. There are also some folk songs in "Xiaoya".
"Ode" is a poem for worship in the ancestral temple. The poems in "Ya" and "Song" are of great value for examining early history, religion and society.
Confucius once summarized the purpose of the "Book of Songs" as "innocence" and taught his disciples to read the "Book of Songs" as the standard for speech and action. Among the pre-Qin scholars, many quoted the Book of Songs. For example, Mencius, Xunzi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, Han Feizi, etc. often quoted sentences from the Book of Songs to enhance their persuasiveness when reasoning and demonstrating. Later, "The Book of Songs" was regarded as a classic by Confucianism and became one of the "Six Classics" and the "Five Classics".
Among the above three parts, there are 40 poems in "Song" and 105 poems in "Ya" (there are 6 poems in "Xiaoya" with no poems, not included), and "Wind" has the largest number. , ***160 articles, a total of 305 articles. The ancients took the integer and often said "three hundred poems".