Sacred-Texts Taoism

T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien
Treatise of the Exalted One on Response and Retribution
Translated from the Chinese by
Teitaro Suzuki and Dr. Paul Carus
La Salle, Ill. The Open Court Publishing Co.

[1906]

This work is a key text about Taoist morality and ethics. It is also translated in the Sacred Books of the East, Volume 40 as the Tai Shang Tractate, albeit without the wonderful fables included in this edition. The translators, Paul Carus and Teitaro Suzuki, also have other works at sacred texts: Paul Carus' Buddha, the Gospel, and Buddha, the Word, and Suzukis' Manual of Zen Buddhism.


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Title Page

Contents

Introduction

Treatise of the Exalted One On Response and Retribution

Introduction
Moral Injunctions
Blessings of the Good
A Description of Evil-Doers
Punishments for Evil-Doers
A Simile
Good and Evil Spirits
Quotations
Conclusion

Explanatory Notes

Moral Tales Illustrative of the Kan-ying P'ien

Rays of truth
The Pious Scholar's Good Fortune
Philanthropy Rewarded
The Power of a Good Man's Name
Good Spirits in Attendance
A Ruffian's Reform
The Impious Magistrate
A Visit to Hell
Misuse of Books
Punishment Apportioned to Crime
The Northern Constellation
The Incensed Goddess
The Spirit of the Hearth
The Storm Dragon
The Ants
The Cruel Hunters
A Chinese Home Mission Publishing Company

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T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien

Treatise of the Exalted One on Response and Retribution
Translated from the Chinese by
Teitaro Suzuki and Dr. Paul Carus
Containing Introduction, Chinese Text Verbatim Translation
Translation, Explanatory Notes and Moral Tales
Edited by
Dr. Paul Carus
With Sixteen Plates by Chinese Artists and a Frontispiece by Keichyu Yamada
La Salle, Ill. The Open Court Publishing Co.

COPYRIGHT BY THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING

[1906]

{Scanned at sacred-texts.com, January, 2002}



{p. 2}


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Next: Contents

CONTENTS.


PAGE

INTRODUCTION
3

CHINESE TEXT WITH VERBATIM TRANSLATION {omitted from etext}
12

TREATISE OF THE EXALTED ONE ON RESPONSE AND RETRIBUTION
51

EXPLANATORY NOTES
69

MORAL TALES ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE KAN-YING P'IEN.


Rays of Truth
83


The Pious Scholar's Good Fortune
86


Philanthropy Rewarded
89


The Power of a Good Man's Name
91


Good Spirits in Attendance
92


A Ruffian's Reform
93


The Impious Magistrate
95


A Visit to Hell
98


Misuse of Books
100


Punishment Apportioned to Crime
103


The Northern Constellation
105


The Incensed Goddess
108


The Spirit of the Hearth
110


The Storm Dragon
124


The Ants
126


The Cruel Hunters
128


A Chinese Home Mission Publishing Company
132





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Next: Introduction

INTRODUCTION.
IF the popularity of books must be measured by either the number of copies in which they appear or the devotion of their readers, the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien, i. e., "The Treatise of the Exalted One on Response and Retribution," will probably have to be assigned the first place of all publications on the globe. Its editions exceed even those of the Bible and Shakespeare, which of all the books published in the Western world are most numerous, and many millions of devout Chinese believe that great merit is gained by the dissemination of the book.

The T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien is a work of Taoist piety and ethics. It is not so deep as Lao Tze's Tao-Teh-King, but its moral maxims which are noble and pure, are presented with a more popular directness.

The main idea of the title is expressed in the words Kan, "response," and Ying, "retribution," which mean that in the spiritual realm of heaven there is "a response" to our sentiments, finding expression in "a retribution" of our deeds.

T'ai-Shang, literally, "the Grandly High" or "the Exalted One," is a current name of Lao Tze, the old philosopher, author of the Tao-Teh-King, who is revered by Taoists as the great teacher of mankind, the

{p. 4}

superior man, and the highest authority of religious truth.

Lao Tze's philosophy has percolated into the Chinese nation and we can distinguish three strata: the first represented by the Tao-Teh-King, the second by the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien, and the third by the stories appended to it. The first is profound though partly obscure, the second elevating, yet mixed with those popular notions which belong to the domain of mythology, and the third is devout in tone, but sometimes silly in its details.

The text of the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien consists of several parts: (1) an introduction, (2) moral injunctions, (3) a description of evil-doers and their penalty, (4) sayings from various sources, and (5) the conclusion. Internal evidence suggests that we have before us a compilation in which we can distinguish at least three authors of decidedly different characters. The introduction (being itself a compilation) and the passage "Punishment of Evil-Doers" apparently come from the pen of the final redactor, presumably a Tao Shih, a Taoist scholar or priest, while the second part, "Moral Injunctions," constitutes the most valuable portion of the book. The third part, "The Description of Evil-Doers," is written by a moralizer, or even denouncer, rather than a moralist. Possibly (nay even probably) he is identical with the final redactor, but scarcely with the author of the "Moral Injunctions." He has incorporated quotations from an unknown Taoist source (e. g., the beautiful passage, 1170-1198) and lines from the Buddhist Dhammapada (1210 ff.).

The passage on good words, good thoughts, and good deeds, and also on evil words, evil thoughts,

{p. 5}

and evil deeds sound like remote but clear echoes of the Zendavesta.

The second part, "Moral Injunctions," reaches the loftiest height of a truly moral and catholic spirit. It is short enough, but with all its conciseness every word of it is noble and deserves a place side by side with the best religious literature of the world. It should be quoted and requoted, learned by heart and acted upon by all mankind. The third part, "A Description of Evil-Doers," is on a lower level. The moral spirit of its author is narrower, more sectarian, nor free from superstitious notions. The introduction of the treatise (1-147) exhibits the attitude of a disciple,--a faithful devotee, who, however, has merely touched the hem of the Master's garment.

Some passages of the introduction, and perhaps its final redaction, seem to be written by the author of the third part.

The treatise, which is decidedly a work of Taoist devotion, shows obvious influences of Buddhist and Confucian[1] doctrines. Though it is not a canonical book its authoritative character is universally recognized in China, and it may be regarded as a typical exposition of the moral convictions of the average Chinese. It has become the most important guide of the people's conscience.

Though the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien may not have existed in its present shape before the fifteenth or sixteenth century, it contains passages which are very old, and though we are not prepared to give a detailed analysis of its contents, we will state here that some portions are quite ancient, belonging to the sixth century B. C. This is true not only of the Confucian

[1. Especially 172-175.]

{p. 6}

and Buddhist maxims but also of the first sentence. Rev. James Legge makes the following statement concerning the words, 4 ff., in one of the footnotes of his translation: "This paragraph, after the three first characters, is found in 3o Khwan under the tenth and eleventh notices in the twenty-third year of Duke Hsiang (549 B. C.),--part of an address to a young nobleman by the officer of Min 3ze-ma."

The mythological background of the arguments of the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien can be characterized as superstitious by those only who know nothing of comparative religion and are not familiar with the fact that the idea of Recording Angels is all but universal in a certain phase of the history of religion.

The treatise has its shortcomings, both in form and contents. Its materials are not systematically arranged, and side by side with maxims of highest morality we find such trivial injunctions as the one that we should not cook food with rotten sticks. Further, the idea of retribution is upon the whole conceived to work in a mechanical and external way, being doled out in exact proportions of merit and demerit. Yet, after all, if we consider the significance of its main idea, who will deny that there is a retribution which, though not meted out with a tape measure, is after all unfailing? We will judge mildly, if we consider that even in the Lord's Prayer God is asked to "forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors"--a passage which sounds more mercantile in the original which means "Let off to us our debts as also we let off our debtors." The suggestion is made here as well as in our Chinese treatise, that as our dealings are, so Heaven and God will deal with us; and considering all in all, the underlying idea is true.

{p. 7}

There is another weak point in the religious notions of our treatise, viz., the belief in demons which in the stories involves the superstition of obsession. But let us remember that the New Testament is full of it, and the era of witch persecution in Europe which is the worst aspect of obsession, is about simultaneous with the date of the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien.

The Chinese may not as yet have passed entirely the stage of childhood diseases, but let us remember that the European race too had its measles.

Without being blind to the shortcomings of our "Treatise on Response and Retribution," considered as a whole, we cannot deny that its general tendency is noble, and true,--and, we may add, also practical.

Practical it is, and "practical" means that it is as exactly adapted to the life and views of the people of its origin as if it had been prepared for them and dictated to its author by Divine Providence. From this point of view we may say that it is a work of prophetic inspiration.

The shortcomings of the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien appear to greater disadvantage in the stories which are appended to its moral maxims. Here the doctrine of the Exalted One reaches the broad strata of the masses, but even in this form a presentation of religious notions is needed so as to render its moral maxims intelligible among the superstitious. Perhaps we should say vice versa, that we see here how the uneducated assimilate a religious doctrine to their special wants. Every one has the religion he deserves, because every one adapts himself to his own spiritual needs.

The first translation of the Tai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien,

{p. 8}

made by a Western scholar, is Stanislas Julien's Le livre des recompenses et des peines, printed at Paris for the Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. It contains the Chinese text of the book and in addition to the French translation of the main text, a French translation of the glosses and stories of the Chinese commentator, which swell the work to a volume of considerable size. The English version of Prof. Robert K. Douglas is a translation of extracts from this French edition made by M. Julien. It appeared in his excellent little volume Confucianism and Taouism, (pp. 256-271) in the series of Non-Christian Religious Systems, published by the Society for promoting Christian Knowledge, London, 1839. Finally Prof. James Legge has translated our treatise in the Sacred Books of the East, Vol. XL, pp. 233-246, under the title T'ai Shang, Tractate of Actions and their Retributions.

*        *        *

Our text and illustrations of the stories are facsimile reproductions taken (with the exception of one picture) from a collection of Chinese texts made in Japan by Chinese scribes and artists. The scribe calls himself Lai Ho Nien of Kwei Ping. Stanislas Julien's text agrees pretty closely with ours--closely enough to render any further comments redundant. The stories appended to the main body of the book seem to differ considerably in different editions. At any rate they vary greatly in the French and Japanese versions at our disposal. They are of inferior worth and we deem it sufficient to have them here represented in extracts.

The present translation of the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien is a product of the common labors of Mr.

{p. 9}

Teitaro Suzuki and the Editor. Mr. Suzuki, who among the scholars of Eastern Asia living in our midst is one of the best authorities on the religious texts of ancient China, has gathered the necessary information concerning the lexicographical, grammatical, and archaeological meaning of the text; while the Editor is responsible for the arrangement of the whole, together with the final version of the English text in both the verbatim translation which is intended to be lexicographically exact, and the translation proper which is meant to offer a readable English version.

*        *        *

Our frontispiece is a picture of the great philosopher Lao Tze whom the Taoists call T'ai Shang, The Most Exalted One; or more fully T'ai Shang Lao Chün, i. e., The Most Exalted Ancient Master. The artist represents him with a little square cap usually worn by the common people and dressed, not in silk, but in rough woolen garments; for we know that he practised the simplicity which he preached. But, in contrast to this simple exterior, his countenance indicates a rare depth of thought and his eyes beam with benevolence. We have set above the picture a quotation from his great book, the Tao-Teh-King (Chapter 70) which reads:

Shang jan pei hö, hwai yü.
"A saint wears wool, but in his bosom are jewels."

In addition to the illustrations which are inserted in the stories to which they belong, the present edition of the Kan-Ying P'ien is adorned by a few apposite sketches and ornamental designs. Facing page 1, the fly leaf of the Introduction, we have the Chinese

{p. 10}

characters which denote the five blessings. These are, (1) longevity, (2) riches, (3) peacefulness and serenity, (4) love of virtue, and (5) [at an advanced] age a [happy] consummation of life.

The gate of honor which appears on page 48, bears an inscription which reads: "The Tao (i. e., divine reason) penetrates the past and the present"; in other words, it is eternal.

The inscription of the gate represented on page 80 reads: "Virtue harmonizes heaven and earth."

The design on the book cover bears the conventionalized form of the longevity symbol so popular among the Chinese.

The numbers of the words in the Chinese text (twelve hundred and seventy-seven characters in all not counting the heading nor the scribe's signature) are written underneath each column of both the Chinese text and the verbatim translation, and follow also the corresponding paragraphs of the English version.

Each footnote figure following the word to which it refers, is inserted in both the verbatim translation and the English text.

In those places where a word-for-word translation of the text would demand another order in English than obtains in the original Chinese, we have numbered the words as they would read in English.

The italicized headings of the several parts are placed within parentheses, because they are not in the original text and have been made by the Editor of the English version solely for the convenience of English readers.

{p. 51}


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Next: Treatise of the Exalted One On Response and Retribution
TREATISE OF THE EXALTED ONE[1] ON RESPONSE AND RETRIBUTION.[2]

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Next: Introduction

(Introduction.)
THE Exalted One says:[3] (1-3)

Curses and blessings do not come through gates,[4] but man himself invites their arrival.[5] (4-11)

The reward of good and evil is like the shadow accompanying a body, and so it is apparent[6] that heaven and earth are possessed of crime-recording spirits. (12-28)

According to[7] the lightness or gravity of his transgressions,[8] the sinner's term of life is reduced. Not only is his term of life reduced, but poverty[9] also strikes him. Often he meets with calamity and misery.[9] His neighbors[10] hate him. Punishments and curses pursue him. Good luck shuns him. Evil stars threaten him; and when his term of life comes to an end, he perishes. (29-67)

Further, there are the three councilor[11], spirit-lords of the northern constellation,[12] residing above the heads of the people, recorders

{p. 52}

of men's crimes and sins,[9] cutting off terms of from twelve years to a hundred days. (68-87)

Further, there are the three body-spirits[13] that live within man's person. Whenever Kêng Shên day[14] comes, they ascend to the heavenly master[15] and inform him of men's crimes and trespasses. (88-110)

On the last day of the month the Hearth Spirit,[16] too, does the same. (111-118)

Of all the offences which men commit, the greater ones cause a loss of twelve years, the smaller ones of a hundred days. These their offences, great as well as small, constitute some hundred affairs, and those who are anxious for life everlasting,[17] should above all avoid them.[18] (119-147)


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Next: Moral Injunctions

(Moral Injunctions.)
The right way leads forward; the wrong way backward.[19] (148-155)

Do not proceed on an evil path. (156-159)

Do not sin[20] in secret.[21] (160-163)

Accumulate virtue, increase merit. (164-167)

With a compassionate heart turn toward all creatures. (168-171)

Be faithful, filial, friendly, and brotherly.[22] (172-175)

First rectify thyself and then convert others. (176-179)

{p. 53}

Take pity on orphans, assist widows; respect the old, be kind to children. (180-187)

Even the multifarious insects, herbs, and trees should not be injured. (188-195)

Be grieved at the misfortune of others and rejoice at their good luck. (196-204)

Assist those in need, and rescue those in danger. (205-212)

Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and regard your neighbor's loss as your own loss. (213-228)

Do not call attention to the faults of others, nor boast of your own excellence. (229-236)

Stay evil and promote goodness. (237-240)

Renounce much, accept little. (241-244)

Show endurance in humiliation and bear no grudge. (245-248)

Receive favors as if surprised.[23] (249-252)

Extend your help without seeking reward. (253-257)

Give to others and do not regret or begrudge your liberality. (258-262)


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Next: Blessings of the Good
(Blessings of the Good.)
Those who are thus, are good: people honor them; Heaven's Reason[24] gives them grace[25]; blessings and abundance follow them; all ill luck keeps away[26]; angel spirits guard them. What

{p. 54}

ever they undertake will surely succeed, and even to spiritual saintliness[27] they may aspire. (263-294)

Those who wish to attain heavenly saintliness, should perform one thousand three hundred good deeds, and those who wish to attain to earthly saintliness should perform three hundred good deeds. (295-316)


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Next: A Description of Evil-Doers
(A Description of Evil-Doers.)
Yet[28] there are some people whose behavior is unrighteous. (317-322)

Their deportment is irrational.[29] (323-326)

In evil they delight.[30] (327-330)

With brutality they do harm and damage. (331-334)

Insidiously they injure the good and the law-abiding. (335-338)

Stealthily they despise their superiors and parents. (339-342)

They disregard their seniors and rebel against those whom they serve. (343-350)

They deceive the uninformed. (351-354)

They slander their fellow-students. (355-358)

Liars they are, bearing false witness, deceivers, and hypocrites; malevolent exposers of kith and kin[31]; mischievous and malignant; not humane; cruel and irrational; self-willed. (359-374)

{p. 55}

Right and wrong they confound. Their avowals  and disavowals are not as they ought to be.[32] (375-382)

They oppress their subordinates and appropriate their merit. (383-386)

They cringe to superiors to curry favor. (387-390)

Insentient to favors received, they remember their hatred and are never satisfied. (391-398)

They hold in contempt the lives of Heaven's people.[33] (399-402)

They agitate and disturb the public order. (403-406)

They patronize the unscrupulous and do harm to the inoffensive. (407-413)

They murder men to take their property, or have them ousted to take their places. (414-422)

They slay the yielding and slaughter those who have surrendered. (423-426)

They malign the righteous and dispossess the wise. (427-430)

They molest orphans and wrong widows. (431-434)

Disregarders of law they are, and bribe takers. They call crooked what is straight, straight what is crooked, and what is light they make heavy. (435-450)

When witnessing an execution, they aggravate it by harshness. (451-454)

{p. 56}

Though they know their mistakes they do not correct them; though they know the good they do not do it. (455-462)

In their own guilt they implicate others.[34] (463-466)

They impede and obstruct the professions and crafts.[35] (467-470)

They vilify and disparage the holy and the Wise. (471-474)

They ridicule and scorn reason and virtue.[36] (475-478)

They shoot the flying, chase the running, expose the hiding, surprise nestlings, close up entrance holes, upset nests, injure the pregnant, and break the egg. (479-494)

They wish others to incur loss. (495-498)

They disparage others that achieve merit. (499-502)

They endanger others to save themselves. (503-506)

They impoverish others for their own gain. (507-510)

For worthless things they exchange what is valuable. (511-514)

For private ends they neglect public duties. (515-518)

They appropriate the accomplishments of their neighbor and conceal his good qualities. They make known his foibles and expose his

{p. 57}

secrets. They squander his property and cause divisions in his family.[37] (519-542)

They attack that which is dear to others. (543-547)

They assist others in doing wrong. (548-551)

Their unbridled ambition makes for power, and through the degradation of others they seek success. (552-558)

They destroy the crops and fields of others. (559-562)

They break up betrothals. (563-566)

Improperly they have grown rich, and withal they remain vulgar. (567-570)

Improperly they shirk[38] without shame. (571-574)

They claim having done acts of favor and disclaim being at fault. (575-578)

They give away evil in marriage[39] and they sell wrongs. (579-582)

They sell and buy vainglory. (583-586)

They conceal and keep a treacherous heart. (s87-59o)

They crush that which is excellent in others. (591-594)

They are careful in hiding their shortcomings. (595-598)

Being on a high horse they threaten and intimidate. (599-6012)

{p. 58}

With unrestrained barbarism they kill and stab. (603-606)

Recklessly they cut cloth to waste.[40] (607-610)

Without festive occasions they prepare cattle for food.[41] (611-614)

They scatter and waste the five cereals.[42] (615-618)

They trouble and annoy many people. (619-622)

They break into others' houses to take their property and valuables. (623-630)

They misdirect the water and light fires to destroy the people's homes. (631-638)

They upset others' plans so as to prevent their success. (639-646)

They spoil a worker's utensils to hamper his efficiency. (647-654)

When seeing the success and prosperity of others they wish them to run down and fail. (655-662)

Seeing the wealth of others, they wish them bankrupt and ruined. (663-670)

They cannot see beauty without cherishing in their hearts thoughts of seduction. (671-678)

Being indebted to others for goods or property, they wish their creditors to die. (679-686)

When their requests are not granted they begin to curse and wax hateful. (687-694)

{p. 59}

Seeing their neighbor lose his vantage they gossip of his failure. (695-702)

Seeing a man imperfect in his bodily features they ridicule him. (703-711)

Observing the talent and ability of a man worthy of praise, they suppress the truth. (712-720)

They use charms[43] for the sake of controlling others.[44] (721-724)

They employ drugs to kill trees. (725-728)

Ill-humored and angry they are towards teachers and instructors. (729-732)

They resist and provoke father and elders. (733-736)

With violence they seize, with violence they demand. (737-740)

They delight in fraud, they delight in robbery, they make raids and commit depredations to get rich. (741-748)

By artful tricks they seek promotion. (749-752)

They reward and punish without justice. (753-756)

They indulge in comforts and enjoyments without measure. (757-761)

They harass and tyrannize over their subordinates. (762-765)

They terrify and threaten to overawe others. (766-768)

{p. 60}

They accuse heaven and find fault with man. (769-772)

They blame the wind and rail at the rain. (773-776)

They stir up party strife and law suits. (777-780)

Unprovoked they join factious associations.[45] (781-784)

They rely on their wives' and other women's gossip. (785-788)

They disobey the instructions of father and mother. (789-792)

They take up the new and forget the old. (793-796)

Their mouth asserts what their heart denies. (797-800)

Shamelessly greedy they are for wealth. (801-804)

They deceive their father and their superiors. (805-808)

They invent and circulate vile talk, traducing and slandering innocent men. (809-816)

They slander others, yet themselves feign honesty. (817-820)

They rail at spirits and claim to be right themselves. (821-824)

They reject a good cause and espouse a wrong cause, spurning what is near, longing for the distant.[46] (825-832)

{p. 61}

They point at heaven and earth[47] to make them witnesses of their mean thoughts. (833-839)

They even call on bright spirits to make them witness their degrading deeds. (840-846)

When they ever give charity they regret it afterwards. (847-850)

They borrow and accept without intention to return. (851-854)

Beyond their due lot they scheme and contrive. (855-858)

Above their means they plot and plan. (859-862)

Their lusty desires exceed all measure. (863-866)

Their heart is venomous while they show a compassionate face. (867-870)

With filthy food they feed the poor. (871-874)

With heresies they mislead others. (875-878)

They shorten the foot, they narrow the measure, they lighten the scales, they reduce the peck. (879-886)

They adulterate the genuine, and they seek profit[48] in illegitimate business. (887-894)

They compel respectable people to become lowly. (895-898)

They betray and deceive the simple-minded. (899-902)

They are greedy and covetous without satiety. (903-906)

{p. 62}

They curse and swear to seek vindication. (907-910)

Indulging in liquor they become rebellious and unruly. (911-914)

With the members of their own family[37] they are angry and quarrelsome. (915-918)

As husbands[49] they are neither faithful nor kind. (919-922)

As wives[49] they are neither gentle nor pliant. (923-926)

As husbands they are not in harmony with their wives;[50] as wives they are not respectful to their husbands. (927-934)

As husbands they delight in bragging and conceit. (935-938)

Always as wives they practice jealousy and suspicion. (939-952)

As husbands they behave unmannerly toward their wives and children. (943-947)

As wives they lack propriety to their father-in-law and their mother-in-law. (948-952)

They make light of the spirit of their ancestor. (953-956)

They disobey and dislike the commands of their superiors. (957-960)

They make and do what is not useful. (961-964)

They harbor and keep a treacherous[51] heart. (965-968)

{p. 63}

They curse themselves[52], they curse others. (969-972)

They are partial in their hatred and partial in their love. (973-976)

They step over the well and they step over the hearth. They jump over the food and jump over a person.[53] (977-984)

They kill the baby and cause abortion of the unborn. (985-988)

They do many clandestine and wrong deeds. (989-992)

The last day of the month and the last day of the year they sing and dance.[54] The first day of the month, the first day of the year, they start roaring and scolding. (993-1000)

Facing the north, they snivel and spit; facing the hearth, they sing, hum and weep.[55] (1001-1012)

Further, with hearth fire they burn incense,[56] and with filthy fagots they cook their food. (1013-1018)

In the night they rise and expose their nakedness.[57] (1019-1022)

On the eight festivals of the seasons they execute punishment.[58] (1023-1030)

They spit at falling stars and point at the many-colored rainbow.[59] (1031-1036)

Irreverently they point at the three

{p. 64}

luminaries;[60] intently they gaze at the sun and at the moon. (1037-1044)

In the spring they hunt with fire.[61] (1045-1048)

Facing the north, they use vile language.[55] (1049-1052)

Causelessly they kill tortoises and snakes. (1053-1058)


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Next: Punishments for Evil-Doers

(Punishments for Evil-Doers.)
For all these crimes the councilors of destiny deprive the guilty, according to the lightness or gravity of the offence, of terms from twelve years to a hundred days, and when the lease of life is exhausted they perish. (1059-1076)

If at death an unexpiated offence be left, the evil luck will be transferred to children and grandchildren. (1077-1085)

Moreover, all those who wrongly seize others' property may have to compensate for it, with wives or children or other family members, the expiation to be proportionate up to a punishment by death. (1086-1106)

If the guilt be not expiated by death, they will suffer by various evils, by water, by fire, by theft, or by robbery, by loss of property, by disease and illness, and by ill repute, to compensate for any unlawful violence of justice. (1107-1132)

{p. 65}

Further, those who unlawfully kill men will in turn have their weapons and arms turned on them; yea, they will kill each other.[62] (1133-1145)


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Next: A Simile
(A Simile.)
Those who seize property, are, to use an illustration, like those who relieve their hunger by eating tainted meat,[63] or quench their thirst by drinking poisoned liquor. Though they are not without temporary gratification, death will anon overcome them. (1146-1169)


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Next: Good and Evil Spirits

(Good and Evil Spirits.)
If a man's heart be awakened to the good, though the good be not yet accomplished, good spirits verily are already following him. (1170-1184)

If a man's heart be awakened to evil, though evil be not yet accomplished, evil spirits verily are already following him. (1185-1199)


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Next: Quotations

(Quotations.[64])
Those who have hitherto done evil deeds should henceforth mend and repent. (1200-1209)

If evil be no longer practiced and good deeds done, and if in this way a man continues and continues, he will surely obtain happiness

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and felicity. He will, indeed, so to speak, transform curses into blessings. (1210-1230)


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Next: Conclusion

(Conclusion.)
Therefore, blessed is the man who speaketh what is good, who thinketh what is good, who practiceth what is good. If but each single day he would persevere in these three ways of goodness,[65] within three years Heaven will surely shower on him blessings. (1231-1251)

Unfortunate is the man who speaketh what is evil, who thinketh what is evil, who practiceth what is evil. If but each single day he would persevere in these three ways of evildoing, within three years Heaven will surely shower on him curses. (1252-1271)

Why shall we not be diligent and comply with this? (1272-1277)

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Next: Explanatory Notes

EXPLANATORY NOTES.
1. T'ai-Shang, "the Exalted One," also called T'ai Shang Lao Chün, "the Exalted Ancient Master," is an honorary appellation of Li Er, who is popularly known as Lao Tze, "the Ancient Philosopher."

2. The title is commonly but not correctly translated "The Book of Rewards and Punishments."

For an explanation of the meaning of "Response and Retribution" see the Introduction.

3. The word "says" can scarcely be construed to imply a claim that the treatise has been written by T'ai Shang, i. e., Lao Tze; it simply means that the doctrines here enunciated are his.

4. The phrase, "have no gates," presents some difficulties. The obvious meaning is that curses and blessings are not limited to special avenues, on which they come down to mankind from heaven. There are no special doors in our houses through which they enter; they are independent of space and come in response to our actions. In other words, it is not blind fate that directs curses and blessings, but we ourselves are the forgers of our destiny. Curses and blessings come in exact proportion to man's merit or demerit. Following the sense rather than the words, Stanislas Julien translates: "Le malheur et le bonheur de

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l'homme s'attire lui même l'un ou l'autre par sa conduite." He adds the following explanation: "L'expression wou-men (6-7) veut dire qu'il n'y a point de porte ni de chemin déterminés d'avance par le ciel, qui conduisent au bonheur ou au malheur."

5. The word "arrival" does not stand in the original and is supplied by the context.

6. The two Chinese words here translated "therefore" are used (like the Latin ergo) to introduce a logical conclusion. They imply that the preceding statement is a proof for the truth of the following assertion. Accordingly, we translate: "and so it is apparent that ......

7. In the relative clause (words 29-34 of the Chinese text) the preposition "proportionately to" belongs to the nouns "lightness" and "gravity," and the whole relative clause, "man's of that in which he transgresses," is, in the Chinese, inserted. In such constructions we have a palpable instance of the incommensurability of the English and the Chinese grammars.

8. The character i is commonly translated by the preposition "through," or "with," or "by." Here it is used as an adverb "thereby," or "thus," which can be omitted in English.

9. In Chinese all words are monosyllables, and as there are more characters than sounds, the language abounds in homophones, i. e., words which sound alike but are written differently and have different meanings. To avoid a misunderstanding, the Chinese like to add a synonym to a doubtful word, so as to make sure of the meaning. Thus they add to the word "calamity" the word "trouble," which both together

{p. 71}

fuse into one idea, and there is no need of translating them by two terms. We have, as a rule, retained the Chinese mode of expressing one idea by two synonyms.

10. The Chinese character commonly translated by "all" has not the full weight of the English equivalent. It may simply be translated by the plural form of the following noun.

11. The three councilor spirits are represented in the starry heavens (according to Giles) by three stars (iota, kappa, lambda), according to Stanislas Julien by the six stars (iota, kappa; lambda, mu, nu, xi) in the Great Bear. See Giles, Chin. Dict., s. v. Tai = "councilor," Morrison, II, p. 1072, and the Chinese Encyclopaedia, San tsai tou hoei I, fol. 12. (Stanislas Julien, loc. cit. p. 13.)

12. That part of the constellation Ursa Major (the Great Bear), which is called "the Dipper" in the United States, is called "the Bushel" in China. On account of the conspicuous place which it holds in the sky, it is counted among the three measures of time, the other two being the sun and the moon; and it is commonly regarded as sacred.

13. According to Chinese views, the vital functions of man's body are presided over by the three body-spirits called san chi shên. They are the upper chi, Peng-Kiu; the middle chi, Peng-chi; and the lower chi, Peng-Kiao. According to Basile's Dictionnaire, they reside in the head, the stomach, and the abdomen. (See Julien, Le livre des récompenses, p. 15.) Other authorities make different statements. See, e. g., Du Bose's Dragon, Image and Demon, pp. 395-396.

When a man falls asleep on Kêng-shên day, the

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three body-spirits leave their habitation to bring the Heavenly Master information concerning the sins which they have witnessed. Hence originated the practice of keeping vigils on Kêng-shên days so as not to be found sleeping at the time of judgment, or (as otherwise the custom is explained) to prevent the three body-spirits from leaving the body.

14. The Chinese calendar is a complicated affair. The names of days are made up by a combination of two words belonging to two different sets of names one of which is called the Ten Stems and the other the Twelve Branches. The Ten Stems are repeated six times and the Twelve Branches five times, which yields sixty combinations. The Kêng-shên day, the day of judgment in the heavenly courts, is the fifty-seventh day in this sexagesimal system. See for further information Dr. Paul Carus' "Chinese Script and Thought" in The Monist, April, 1905.

15. The "Heavenly Master" is a Taoist term denoting the governor and judge of the world. He is also called the "Pearly Emperor" and is identified with "Shang Ti," the Lord on High.

16. The hearth-spirit watches the events in the house, and his day of reckoning is the last day of every month, called hwi in Chinese, which we translate in our verbatim translation by "ultimo" in the sense in which the word is used in continental Europe.

17. The character "long life" practically means "immortality" in Chinese, and so we have here translated it by "life everlasting." Stanislas Julien translates "L'immortalité."

18. Stanislas Julien translates this passage: "Il faut

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d'avance les éviter avec soin, si l'on veut obtenir l'immortalité"

19. The meaning of this sentence is that the right way is the one that leads onward. Stanislas Julien (loc. cit. p. 32) translates: "Avancez dans la bonne voie, et reculez devant la mauvaise voie." Legge (in the S. B. E., Vol. XL, p. 237) translates: "Is his way right, he should go forward in it; is it wrong, he should withdraw from it." Mr. Suzuki insists that this interpretation though it makes excellent sense, is positively untenable.

20. "To be false to oneself" means "to do wrong," or "to sin."

21. "In the dark room" simply means "in secret."

22. This sentence is a condensed statement of Confucian morality.

23. This sentence is a modified quotation from Lao Tze's Tao-Teh-King. Lao Tze says (chap. 13): "Favor and disgrace bode awe." The Chinese word ching, which, following the traditional interpretation, (see Carus, Lao Tze's Tao-Teh-King, p. 163) means "fearful surprise," or "awe," is the same that here simply means "surprise." We need not add that by the omission of the word "disgrace" the sense is somewhat altered. Yet, after all, the meaning of the word combination "favor and disgrace" does not so much mean "favor" and also "disgrace," but a condition of dependence, such as prevails in court life, where "favor and disgrace" are the significant features. It is an instance of an idea expressed in Chinese by the contrast of two opposites of which the idea consists.

24. For the word tao see Carus' Lao Tze's Tao-Teh-King,

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pp. 9 ff. and xxii-xxvi. The word tao is in one respect unlike its equivalent in English which we translate by "reason." It is a religious term with which is associated all the awe for the sanctity of the moral world-order, such as is attached to its Greek equivalent, the word logos or "word," i. e., "logical thought."

25. Stanislas Julien translates: "La providence le protége."

26. "Tous les démons s'éloignent de lui."

27. The word "saint" consists of the symbols "man" and "mountain." The Man of the Mountain was a hermit or recluse, and so the word acquired the meaning "saint." The etymological significance, though still noticeable in its etymology, is, however, lost sight of, and the word now simply means, "saint" or "saintly." According to Eitel (Handbook of Buddhism, p. 130), there are five degrees of saintliness: heavenly, ærial, human, earthly, and ghostly. In the present passage only two degrees of saintliness are referred to.

28. All the following sentences are dependent upon this conjunction Kou, i. e., "if," in this way: "If some people do not behave righteously, (if) they are unreasonable, (if) they take pride in evil, (if) they inflict wounds," etc., etc., down to the last sentence of "a description of evil-doers." The main sentence begins with the part entitled "Punishment of Evil-Doers" with the words (1059 ff.): "for such crimes the controllers of destiny cut short people's lives." We break up this long-winded construction to render our English version more readable.

29. The word "reason" is not here the same as tao, mentioned above, but li, which means "logical correctness"

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or "rationality," i. e., "reason," in a secular sense. The meaning of the sentence here is that unrighteousness is not only against the tao, i. e., against religion, but even against common sense.

30. Stanislas Julien translates: "Regarder la méchanceté comme une preuve de talent."

31. M. Julien translates this sentence: "Divulger les fautes de ses parens."

32. Stanislas Julien translates: "Ne pas savoir distinguer les personnes qu'il faut rechercher ou fuir."

33. The expression "heaven's people" is a Confucian term, which is used in China in the same way as in Christian countries the phrase "God's people" would mean all those who bear God's image and are dear to the Deity.

34. M. Julien translates: "Rejeter ses propres crimes sur les autres."

35. The words Fang-Shu, here rendered "divination" and "craft," denote first of all the practice of diviners; but it is here used in a general sense and applies to all skilled labor, especially the professions. M. Julien translates: "Arrèter l'exercice des arts et des métiers." He adds in a footnote: "According to the dictionary of the Fo Kien dialect, the Fang-Shu are (1) physicians, (2) men of letters, (3) painters, (4) diviners, (5) journalists, (6) merchants, (7) workmen, (8) fishers, and (9) woodcutters." (Ibid. p. 221.) For further information in regard to the Feng-Shui, see Dr. Carus' article "Chinese Occultism" in The Monist, Vol. XV, p. 500.

36. "Reason and virtue," i. e., tao and teh, are the two main subjects of Lao Tze's doctrine. We are at

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liberty to translate "reason and virtue," or "the way of virtue."

37. The term "bone and flesh" in Chinese means "family relations."

38. The meaning may be either "to escape punishment" or "to shirk duties."

39. "To give away evil in marriage" is a Chinese phrase.

40. Literally, "they cut and clip," which is a term in tailoring. The meaning of the sentence is that they are wasteful with material, and it goes without saying that it refers to wastefulness of any kind.

41. It is customary in China to kill cattle on festivals only, and it is considered improper and even irreligious to slay cattle for food without due occasion.

42. Wilful waste of food is rightly considered sinful in China.

43. Among the Chinese superstitions which are common also in other countries, is the habit of burying figures or worms, which are intended to represent some person, for the purpose of inflicting injury upon them, being a kind of black magic. This is called in Chinese "to bury vermin."

44. Stanislas Julien translates: "Cacher l'effigie d'un homme pour lui donner le cauchemar."

45. Associations or fraternities have always played an important part in Chinese politics. The Boxer movement is a well-known instance in modern times.

46. M. Julien translates: "Tourner le dos à ses proches parens et rechercher ses parens éloignés."

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47. To point at heaven and earth or the stars is deemed disrespectful in China, and the habit of making them witnesses of mean thoughts is considered a defiance of the divine powers.

48 "Illegitimate profit" refers to the business not licensed by the authorities, such as was the opium trade before the Opium War.

49 The following sentences refer alternately to husbands and wives, which for clearness' sake has to be repeated in English.

50. Literally, "the room," viz., the one in which the wife lives. Denoting the sphere of the wife's activity, the word has become a synonym for "wife."

51. Literally, "outside." An outside heart means a "treacherous heart."

52. According to the rules of Chinese grammar, the objective case of "self" precedes the verb.

53. It is considered disrespectful in China to step over the well, the hearth, food, or a person.

54. While the Chinese celebrate New Year's Eve as much as is done in Western countries, the custom to sing and to dance on such festivals is considered highly improper.

55. No act that may be regarded as disrespectful should be done while facing the North, and also in presence of the hearth which is the most sacred place of the house.

56. The proper way to light incense in olden times was to strike a spark from a flint. To burn incense in the fire of the hearth is both disrespectful for the hearth and improper so far as the incense is concerned.

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57. The command "not to expose one's nakedness in the night," is based upon an ancient notion, (viz., that spirits, angels, or demons may have intercourse with human beings,) a remnant of which is still preserved in the Old Testament (Gen. vi. 2), where we read that the sons of Elohim took to wives the daughters of men. One of the Chinese stories appended to the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien tells of a woman that conceived a changeling from a demon, and the Apostle Paul, for the same reason that underlies the notion of our present passage in the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien, requests women to wear a head covering (1 Cor. xi. 10).

58. It is considered as irreligious to have executions take place on festivals, a custom which is paralleled in the Jewish law, according to which it is unlawful to have a man stoned or crucified on the feast day.

59. The word "rainbow" is here as in many other places represented by two words, the second of which means literally "colored cloud." See Note 9.

60. The three luminaries (or more correctly the three kinds of luminaries) are sun, moon, and stars.

61. Hunting by setting the underbrush on fire in spring when animals begin to hatch, is rightly denounced as cruel in China.

62. I understand the sentence, "those who slay, exchange weapons," to mean that "he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword" (Rev. xiv. 10); and further, adds the Chinese moralist in the following sentence, "such evil-doers will turn their swords against one another and mutually kill

{p. 79}

themselves," which is a gradation, for it is stated that not only will they be killed, but they will slay one another.

63. Meat that has by carelessness been exposed to the water dripping from the eaves has frequently proved fatal to those who partook of it. Thus the term "dripping water meat" means "tainted meat."

64. These passages are quotations from the Dhammapada which has become a household book of religious devotion all over China.

65. The threefold way of good thoughts, good words, and good deeds, is a proposition which, so far as we know, was first taught in the West by Zarathushtra, the great prophet of Iran.

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Next: Moral Tales Illustrative of the Kan-ying P'ien

MORAL TALES ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE KAN-YING P'IEN

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Next: Rays of truth

RAYS OF TRUTH.


A COPY of the T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying P'ien had been handed down in the family of Wan Teh-Hsü from one of his ancestors as a very precious heirloom. Four successive generations had reverently read and recited it, and now when it came into the possession of Wan Teh-Hsü, he kept it in a place of honor in the Middle Hall; and he, and all the members of his family, had many merits recorded in their favor, for they vied with one another in living up to the moral principles laid down in the sacred document.

One day a Taoist priest visited the home of the pious man and was cordially received. Wan Teh-Hsü presented his guest with gifts and requested him to discourse on the mystery of religion, whereupon the stranger expounded the Tao, that divine rationality which pervades all things.

{p. 84}

"The soul," he said. "is Tao, and the Tao is soul. The soul and the Tao are not different in essence. If the Tao is separated from the soul, you will transmigrate through the six domains and keep on the three paths,[1] but if the soul and the Tao are united, you will finally reach paradise and the land of immortals. Hell and heaven are in your own heart. Unless heaven reside within you, the mere reading or reciting of sacred books profiteth nothing." Then looking around in the Middle Hall he added: "You have a rare gem in your house; for when I entered I saw the radiance of a holy light. Where do you keep your treasure?"

The host answered: "In this poor dwelling there is nothing worthy the name of a treasure."

The priest then took Wan Teh-Hsü by the hand and led him to the place where the Kan Ying P'ien lay, saying: "This holy book is the treasure. All the holy men of the three religions selected and compiled it to point out the way of virtue on which every one should walk. If a man disciplines himself according to its instructions, the truth will shine forth in all

[1. The six domains are those of (1) the gods, (2) human beings, (3) animals, (4) asuras or fighting demons, (5) hungry ghosts, and (6) denizens of hell. The three paths are lust, wrath, and greed. The three paths and the six domains constitute the wheel of Samsara.]

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its glory, and every letter in the sacred writing will emit rays of divine light. But if you recite the sacred text with a secret desire for profit or reward, selfishness will darken its native glory, and the writing will show no illumination. To my vision the glorification of the holy book is perfect. Its saintly atmosphere has ascended to heaven, resulting in an harmonious blending of your heart with the will of the Lord on High. Your immortality is assured and I bless you. But keeping in sight the heavenly station that awaits you, you must continue to exercise still more self-control in your dealings with your fellow men. Be diligent and fail not to fulfil the work so auspiciously begun."

In accordance with the words of the Taoist priest, Teh-Hsü practiced the teachings of the Kan-Ying P'ien with even greater zeal. For thirty more years, he did everything in his power to benefit others and to promote general welfare. One day his neighbors heard heavenly music resound from above, and saw the entire family of Wan ascend to heaven in broad daylight, surrounded by a host of celestial beings.

Later the villagers built a monument to Wan on his own homestead, where they paid

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him homage and offered prayers which were answered and granted.

[Our illustration shows Ti Chün, the Lord Superior (also called Wen Chang, the patron god of the Taoist religion) accompanied by two attendants, welcoming the good man and his family as they are carried up to heaven. Below we see the neighbors, some of them on their knees, witnessing the scene.]


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Next: The Pious Scholar's Good Fortune


THE PIOUS SCHOLAR'S GOOD FORTUNE.


Shang Shih-Ying of the Ming dynasty was a good caligrapher. Though poor, he was diligent in doing good. Once he saw a man asking for aid to print and distribute the Kan-Ying P'ien. He wanted to help the man, and having no means, pawned his clothing. With the cash thus realized he gratified his pious desire, but on this account had to go without warm clothing in winter. Even when he was thirty years of age, he was as poor as ever. He went to the capital to try his fortune, but nobody seemed to recognize his abilities. To gain a living he was obliged to compose and copy for other people, poems which were to be dedicated to Kwang Ti.

New Year's Eve was approaching and the chief mandarin had some official business to attend to at the shrine of Kwang Ti. He sent

{p. 87}

one of his clerks who was a man of good judgment, and he greatly admired the work of Shang, hung up in the shrine, and asked the poor scholar to accompany him home as a guest of honor.

On the night of the fifteenth of January, the festival of lanterns, the chief mandarin, according to custom, decorated his garden and tested the poetical and calligraphic skill of his invited friends in competitive games, the best compositions to be attached to the lanterns. Since the result was not very satisfactory, the clerk recommended the poor scholar who stayed at his house. Shang was at once summoned and his unusual talents were admired by the whole company.

It happened that evening that the Emperor came to inspect the illumination, and he was greatly impressed by the beautiful handwriting of the inscriptions. He had their author presented to him, and recognizing his worth, conferred a high literary degree upon him. From that time, Shang's promotion was rapid till he was honored with the highest literary title and occupied the very important position of secretary to the Emperor.

One day after his regular work at the Court, he went to the shrine of Kwang Ti to give thanks for his prosperity. The priest received

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him very cordially, and when the ceremony was over, let him take a rest in the temple when lo, Kwang Ti appeared to him in his ethereal form and said: "The prosperity you are enjoying to-day is the result of your meritorious work in helping others print and distribute the Kan-Ying P'ien. Keep on cultivating piety in your heart as before, be loyal and faithful to your superiors as well as to the State, and never think of abusing the power which is yours at present."

Coming to know the reason of his unparalleled success in life, he advised others to follow his example and made many converts.

[The reader of this story should know that Kwang Ti, the war god, is not merely the Chinese Mars, but presides generally over the affairs of mortals. He may be compared to St. Peter or the Archangel Michael.

In the illustration, the inscription over the entrance of the temple reads literally: "All the heavens together are filled with glory," reminding us of the beginning of the nineteenth Psalm: "The heavens declare the glory of God." The inscription reading downwards on the column is a loose quotation from the Kan-Ying P'ien: "Lucky stars follow the good man."]

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Next: Philanthropy Rewarded



PHILANTHROPY REWARDED.


The people in the province of Chiang-Hsi had an objection to raising daughters, and on that account there were a great many bachelors there. The governor wanted to put a stop to the inhuman custom of drowning infants, and so he summoned some of his old councilors to see what measures could best be taken to effect this. Old state documents were consulted and it appeared that many of the preceding governors had attempted the same reform but had signally failed. So the task seemed to be beset with insurmountable difficulties.

After a meeting with his councilors the governor retired, still thinking that there must be some method which would effectively put an end to the barbarous practice, and he thought, what could cause people to suppress parental love but the expense and trouble they must undergo at the time of giving their daughters in marriage. If there were built a sort of public nursery where all the female children could be provided for by the state, the cruelty of drowning girls would naturally cease.

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While going over the old records, the governor had found that there were deserted temples and shrines to which a regular annual revenue was still attached. He thought these revenues might be used with great benefit to the public. In the morning he would go to the temple of the Heavenly Mother and ask her gracious assistance for this scheme.

That same night the priest of the temple was informed in a dream by the Heavenly Mother concerning the governor's humane project and his impending visit in the morning. She added that though his philanthropic scheme had not yet been executed, the very thought of lovingkindness that prompted it, had caused a commotion in heaven and he was attended by a host of angels.

According to the divine command, every preparation was made in the temple to receive the governor. After due salutation, the priest inquired whether his mission was about the establishment of a nursery. The governor was greatly surprised to find him well informed in regard to the secret plan which had not been divulged to anybody. The priest then told him all about the previous night's communication from the Heavenly Mother.

The benevolent plan was successfully put into execution and general prosperity began

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to reign in the district. The governor was promoted by the Emperor and died at an advanced age, surrounded by his children who were all prosperous and respected.


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Next: The Power of a Good Man's Name

THE POWER OF A GOOD MAN'S NAME.
King Tsing, while on his way to a large gathering, passed through a district called Chun-Hoa, where there lived a young girl who was possessed of evil spirits. When King passed the night at her home, the demons did not dare to enter, but they returned as soon as he left the house. The young girl asked them the reason and they answered, "We are afraid of King." She then told her father who ran after King Tsing to call him back. But the good man simply wrote these four words on a slip of paper: King Tsing tsaï tzu ("King Tsing is here"), and advised him to paste it on the door. The demons never dared to return.

This true story goes to prove that the presence of a good man can put evil spirits to flight.

[This story encourages the use of charms and incantations, but it reveals to us the logic of exorcism. If the presence of a good man keeps demons away, the same result might be effected in his absence, if the demons

{p. 92}

can be made to believe that the good man whom they fear is actually present.

It is a common belief that the mere name of a person or god is as efficient as its owner, and hence is to be kept sacred. In this way, according to the faith of the early Christians, miracles are performed in the name of Jesus.]


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Next: Good Spirits in Attendance



GOOD SPIRITS IN ATTENDANCE.


Yuen, having conceived a violent hatred against an acquaintance, set out one morning, knife in hand, with the purpose of killing him. A venerable man sitting in a convent saw him pass, and was amazed to observe several scores of spirits closely following him, some of whom clutched his weapon, while others seemed endeavoring to delay his progress. About the space of a meal-time the patriarch noticed Yuen's return, accompanied this time by more than a hundred spirits wearing golden caps and bearing banners raised on high. Yuen himself appeared with so happy a face, in place of his gloomy countenance of the early morning, that the old man sadly concluded that his enemy must be dead and his revenge gratified.

"When you passed this way at daybreak," he asked, "where were you going, and why do you return so soon?"

"It was owing to my quarrel with Miu,"

{p. 93}

said Yuen, "that made me wish to kill him. But in passing this convent door better thoughts came to me as I pondered upon the distress his wife and children would come to, and of his aged mother, none of whom had done me wrong. I determined then not to kill him, and return thus promptly from my evil Purpose."

It hardly needed the sage's commendations to increase the reformed murderer's inner contentment, imparted by the train of ghostly helpers; he continued on his way rejoicing.

[This story, reproduced from Williams' Middle Kingdom, is not contained in the moral tales annexed to the Kan-Ying P'ien but is taken from a similar collection following the Sacred Edict of Kang-Hi. Its insertion here is justified since it illustrates a quotation from the Kan-Ying P'ien (1184-1188) which is almost literal and is inscribed in a corner of the picture.]


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Next: A Ruffian's Reform

A RUFFIAN'S REFORM.


Wu Chien-Chiu of Shan-Yu had wonderful muscular strength, and nobody in his town could beat him at boxing or fencing. He became so overbearing that any person who dared affront him was sure to pay a penalty for it. He borrowed the property of others without ever returning it, and he compelled people to

{p. 94}

do things for him under threats of severe punishment.

One summer evening he went up to the tower to cool off in the breeze. When the people who had gathered there saw the ruffian come they ran away, except one old man who seemed quite indifferent to his presence.

"Why do you alone dare defy my power?" cried Wu, intending to intimidate the old gentleman, but the latter replied:

"How profound your ignorance is! Your mother's womb sheltered you for ten long months, and your mother's arms took tender care of you for three more years. Your parents wanted you to grow and mature into a good, serviceable citizen of the Empire. When you would achieve something for the State, your family name would become known and glorified. You have undoubtedly some unusual talents. Why, then, degrade yourself thus and become the useless fellow you are now? The State loses in you a serviceable citizen, and the spirits of your parents feet disgusted with you, This is greatly to be deplored."

Wu felt so much ashamed that he had a chill of cold perspiration, and he said: "The people have marked me as a desperate character, and I have acted accordingly; but by

{p. 95}

your words I realize my predicament; pray tell me how to retrieve my good name."

The old gentleman replied: "You know the story of the butcher who became a saintly Buddhist at the instant when he repented and dropped the knife. Follow his example. If you repent and start on a righteous march onward, you will certainly become a just man and command the respect of others."

Wu was serious in his reform and having joined the army was finally promoted to the rank of general.


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Next: The Impious Magistrate


THE IMPIOUS MAGISTRATE.


Wang An-shih, a high magistrate of the Sung dynasty (960-1278 A. D.), was a learned scholar but recklessly irreverent, and so introduced, radical innovations in his administration. People complained, officers demurred, and the emperor expressed surprise; but he would say, "Heavenly omens should not be heeded, human discontent need not be minded, and there is no sense in following the ancestral laws." He and his son, who assisted him in his office, even attempted to revive the ancient cruel custom of corporal punishment; but before the law was passed, the son died, and

{p. 96}

Wang An-shih built a Buddhist temple on the site of his son's residence.

While the magistrate was performing the customary Buddhist rite, he thought he faintly perceived in the flame of a burning candle the image of his son, bound hand and foot in a cangue,[1] crying: "Our attempt to revive corporal mutilation angered Heaven, and I have no chance of getting out of this infernal torture."

Later An-shih fell in disgrace; he lost his position and died miserably in exile.

Now it happened that soon afterwards, one of An-shih's relatives was taken ill, and swooned, and when he recovered, he said that he had been ushered into a special department in hell, where hung the sign: "Wickedness and Crime Eternally Prohibited," and there lie saw a noble-looking man in a cangue, who had gray hair and large eyes. Though he did not mention the name of this unfortunate person, every one around knew that it was Wang An-shih of whom he spoke. When An-shih's daughter inquired what could be done, the sick man simply said: "All that is necessary is to accumulate merits and nothing more."

[1. The Chinese pillory.]

{p. 97}

[Our illustration shows the vision in which the magistrate's son is seen to suffer. The inscription above the door reads, translated verbatim, "Eternally Prohibited Depravities and Crimes," which means that here is the department for punishing evil-doers of this class.

A CHRISTIAN CONCEPTION OF HELL.

It is interesting to notice that the Chinese conception of the maws of hell which has apparently developed

{p. 98}

quite independently of Christian influence, is nevertheless, practically the same. This may be seen by a comparison of the lower part of the illustrations of this story and the next with the typical conception of hell as held in Christendom during the Middle Ages. Our picture is a reproduction of a German woodcut made at the time of the Reformation, but similar representations can be met with in the literature of the same age in other Christian countries. One of these appears on the main entrance of the Cathedral of Bourges, France (Carus, History of the Devil, p. 181). The Chinese conception was directly derived from India, indirectly from Babylon, and the Christian view can be traced to the same source.]


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Next: A Visit to Hell




A VISIT TO HELL.


Ch'üan Ju-Yü of Pu-Hai was a poor man, but he was never tired of doing every good and charitable work in his power. He also employed himself indefatigably, although he was often in poor health, in copying many good books to be distributed among his neighbors. When he was asked why he exerted himself so much in spite of his physical weakness, he replied that he was not trying to seek any reward, but simply wanted to give relief to his mind, which could not be kept idle for one moment.

One day he went to sea, and encountering a strong gale, found himself stranded on a

{p. 99}

lonely island. The scenery was very beautiful and he was full of joy, when suddenly there appeared to him a Taoist scholar who said: "The world delights in hypocrisy, but the Lord on High praises sincerity. You have hitherto done good work in distributing sound moral tractates, and this not for the sake of courting a good opinion of yourself from others, but simply from pure unaffected good-will., So much the more praiseworthy are your deeds in the eyes of our Lord. Many scholars are clever enough, yet they do not employ their talents for the true cause; they abuse them in writing immoral, seditious books; but they are now suffering in the infernal regions the consequences brought on them by their own acts. I shall take you there and let you see by way of contrast how much better your fate is."

Then they went through space to that strangest of lands. The Taoist explained everything they saw there. All kinds of torture were being applied to those immoral writers, who, while in the world, stirred up man's beastly nature and allured many good people to an early downfall. The stranger also showed him a stately-looking man in the palace, who had been a good, upright officer when on earth, punishing every crime that tended to disturb social and political peace,

{p. 100}

and was now superintending this department in the world below.

When the visit was over, the Taoist scholar brought Ch'üan back to the same island, where he secured a sailboat and finally succeeded in reaching his home. Ever since, he is wont to tell his neighbors how horrible the scene was which he had seen on his visit to hell.

[The peculiar attraction of this story is in its parallelism to Dante's Inferno. The Chinese characters over the entrance of hell are, Feng Tu Cheng, which means verbatim "The Inferno's Fortified Castle." The last two characters, taken as one word, form the common term for capital, and so we might translate it briefly by "The Capital of Hell."

In the upper right hand corner we see King Yama, the sovereign of the under world, seated on a throne with one of his attendants.]


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Next: Misuse of Books

MISUSE OF BOOKS.
A temple in the district of Wu-Kung-Hien contained a library which students from the district school often consulted. One winter day, four of them used some of the sacred books for fuel to heat the room, while another burned one book to warm some water for his toilet. Only one of their number, Kang Tui-Shan by name, was indignant at their conduct, but he dared not offer a word of censure.

{p. 101}

The next night Kang Tui-Shan had a dream in which he and his fellow-students were led before the tribunal of the three divine Lord-Superior Magistrates.[1] The six prostrated themselves and one of the gods said: "Buddha is a great saint, why have you dared burn his sacred books to warm yourselves?"

The four students struck their foreheads against the ground and besought pardon for their crime, but were condemned to death. The one who warmed water for his toilet was doomed never to receive any advancement during his life. Finally the god asked Kang Tui-Shan why he had not remonstrated with his companions.

"I knew that they were doing wrong," answered Kang, "but as they are my elders, I was afraid my reproaches would off end them."

"I will pardon you," said the god, "but when you have risen to a prominent position do not fail to give your support and protection to the religion of Buddha."

When he awoke Kang wrote down his

[1. The name of this divine tribunal is Shen San-Kuan Ti Chün, which, literally translated, means the Divine Trinity of Official Lord Superiors. They are the gods of heaven, of earth, and of water. Their birthdays are celebrated on the fifteenth of the first, seventh, and tenth months, respectively. The first distributes blessings, the second forgives sins, and the third saves from fire.]

{p. 102}

dream. He obtained the degree of Chwang-Yüen[1] when the four other students failed in their examinations and were excluded from the contest. Six months later the plague spread in their country and all four perished with their families, while the student who burned the sacred books to heat water was still, in his old age, merely a poor schoolmaster. He died from starvation in the seventh year of the reign of Shih-Tsung of the Ming dynasty (A. D. 1529).

Now it is a greater sin to waste sacred books than to mock and slander sages and saints. Paper, whether written or printed, often contains maxims that wise men have bequeathed on us. If we use it for unclean purposes, if we trample it underfoot, instead of carefully preserving it, we are committing a crime as serious as if we slandered them.

[1. The first rank in the list of doctors.]

[This respect for books is not peculiar to the Chinese. Among Western authors, Milton in his "Areopagitica" on the freedom of the press, uses very vigorous language, saying:

"Books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a potency of life in them to be as active as that soul was whose progeny they are; nay, they do preserve as in a vial the purest efficacy and extraction of that living intellect that bred them. I know they are as lively, and as vigorously productive, as those

{p. 103}

fabulous dragon's teeth, and, being sown up and down, may chance to spring up armed men. And yet, on the other hand, unless wariness be used, as good almost kill a man as kill a good book: who kills a man kills a reasonable creature, God's image; but he who destroys a good book kills reason itself, kills the image of God, as it were, in the eye. Many a man lives a burden to the earth; but a good book is the precious life-blood of a master-spirit, embalmed and treasured up on purpose to a life beyond life. It is true, no age can restore a life, whereof, perhaps, there is no great loss; and revolutions of ages do not oft recover the loss of a rejected truth, for the want of which whole nations fare the worse."]


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Next: Punishment Apportioned to Crime



PUNISHMENT APPORTIONED TO CRIME.


In the garden of the city of Sieu-Shui-Siuen, there once lived a man by the name of Fan Ki, who led a wicked life. He induced men to stir up quarrels and lawsuits with each other, to seize by violence what did not belong to them, and to dishonor other men's wives and daughters. When he could not succeed easily in carrying out his evil purposes, he made use of the most odious stratagems.

One day he died suddenly, but came back to life twenty-four hours afterward and bade his wife gather together their relatives and neighbors. When all were assembled he told them that he had seen the king of the dark

{p. 104}

realm who said to him, "Here the dead receive punishment for their deeds of evil. The living know not the lot that is reserved for them. They must be thrown into a bed of coals whose heat is in proportion to the extent of their crimes and to the harm they have done their fellows."

The assembled company listened to this report as to the words of a feverish patient; they were incredulous and refused to believe the story. But Fan Ki had filled the measure of crime, and Yama, the king of hell, had decided to make an example of him so as to frighten men from their evil ways. At Yama's command Fan Ki took a knife and mutilated himself, saying, "This is my punishment for inciting men to dissolute lives." He put out both his eyes, saying, "This is my punishment for having looked with anger at my parents, and at the wives and daughters of other men with guilt in my heart." He cut off his right hand, saying, "This is my punishment for having killed a great number of animals." He cut open his body and plucked out his heart, saying, "This is my punishment for causing others to die under tortures." And last of all he cut out his tongue to punish himself for lying and slandering.

The rumor of these occurrences spread

{p. 105}

afar, and people came from every direction to see the mangled body of the unhappy man. His wife and children were overcome with grief and shame, and closed the door to keep out the curious crowd. But Fan Ki, still living by the ordeal of Yama, said in inarticulate sounds, "I have but executed the commands of the king of hell, who wants my punishment to serve as a warning to others. What right have you to prevent them from seeing me?"

For six days the wicked man rolled upon the ground in the most horrible agonies, and at the end of that time he died.

This story teaches us what punishments are in store for evil-doers. How dare men act contrary to what they know to be just and right!

[This story is taken from Julien's French version, but the Chinese edition at our command contains a similar, though less detailed, story of self-mutilation, for the illustration of which the accompanying picture was originally used.]


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Next: The Northern Constellation

THE NORTHERN CONSTELLATION.


P'ang Hêng-Hsiu organized with his friends an association the purpose of which was to worship the Northern Constellation. He observed all necessary religious disciplines

{p. 106}

and recited the sutras with reverence. One day, however, he became so intoxicated that he forgot himself. He stripped off his garments and slept facing the north. Waking up in the night, he showed his disrespect toward the constellation, when suddenly he heard a series of thunderclaps in the northwestern quarter, and lo! the gate of heaven was thrown wide open. Awed by this unexpected turn of affairs, P'ang hastily put on his clothing and was at the point of paying due homage to the Lord, when a god with dark face and dragonlike whiskers, carrying a golden rod in his hand, came down from above. He severely censured Pang for his offence, saying: "You have organized a religious society yourself and are well aware of the sacred laws. Therefore, your violation of them becomes doubly punishable."

P'ang humbly begged for divine mercy, excusing his deportment by the temporary derangement of his mind.

The god said: "The reason why men of good behavior are free from blame, is that they never relax their moral vigilance at any moment. Remember the story of Ch'ü Pai-Yü who at night passed by the royal palace, yet he dismounted from his carriage as was customary to do in the daytime, and paid proper

{p. 107}

reverence to the Imperial house. People are still praising his unparalleled sincerity. Even in darkness men must not unbridle themselves and yield to their wanton passions. We will let you go at present, but you will have to suffer for your offence later on in life by receiving some civil punishment."

Ever since, P'ang shut himself up in his house and did not dare to go outside lest some misfortune should befall him. But how could a poor mortal escape heavenly ordained punishment? One day he received an invitation from one of his honorable relatives who had just been promoted to an eminent official position at the capital. He accepted gladly and went to the capital. While there, he went out and in at pleasure. Once he passed by an Imperial shrine, and, not knowing the official regulations, kept on riding apace. Thereupon the guard of the shrine arrested him for the offence, and the judge sentenced him to one hundred stripes. Fang then came to realize the significance of the divine prophecy.

[The Northern Constellation, called in Chinese "the Bushel" and in Western countries "Ursa Major," is sacred to Ti Chün, (the Lord Superior), and any intentional irreverence shown to it is regarded as disrespect toward the good Lord himself. Our illustration

{p. 108}

shows a messenger of Ti Chün stepping forth from the gate of heaven to warn the trespasser.]


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Next: The Incensed Goddess



THE INCENSED GODDESS.


There was a shrine to the water-goddess in the village of Ch'ing Ch'i, and her image that was placed there was so nicely carved that it looked like a real goddess of splendid beauty. The villagers made her the guardian of the district and paid her great respect.

It was the second month of the year when the pear-blossoms on the grounds were very pretty, that a party of young students was passing by and admired the flowers. One of them lifted the curtain that was hung before the image of the goddess and exclaimed: "How lovely she is! If she were alive I would make her my mistress!"

His friends were shocked, but he laughed at their scruples, saying that spirits and gods have no reality; that it is well enough for the people to believe in and fear them, because such superstition made them the more amenable. He then composed a libelous poem and wrote it on the wall, but his friends did not say anything more, knowing the uselessness of their advice.

After this they all went to the examination

{p. 109}

hall, and stayed at the Wên Chang Dormitory. One evening the Lord Wên Chang[1] appeared to them in a dream, and they were greatly afraid to be in the presence of his august majesty. He had a roll on his table and declared to them: "As you know well, any student who is guilty of trifling with women is excluded from the list. Even a plain, ordinary woman should be respected by you; and how much more this is true of a holy goddess, you all must know. According to a report I have received it seems there is one of your number who has insulted the goddess of Ch'ing Ch'i." Having ascertained the name of the offender, the Lord cancelled it from the list, adding that this was done because the man was guilty of wronging a woman.

When the students met the following morning, they learned that each had the same dream during the night. Yet the offender himself was obdurate and said: "What has the Lord of Literature to do with such trifles? What harm can an image of clay do to me?"

He entered an examination cell, and having written down his seven essays with unusual vigor and brilliancy, felt assured of his

[1. Wên Chang means "Scripture Glory" and he bears the title Ti-Chün, "Lord Superior." He is worshiped all over China as the god of written revelation and is the patron of all educational institutions.]

{p. 110}

final success. But when the night was far advanced, there appeared before him the goddess of water with her attendants. She censured him for both his grave offence and impenitence, and then ordered her maids to strike him with their sticks until the student lost his mind and destroyed all of his papers. When he was carried out of the cell in the morning, he was unconscious and died soon.

[The accompanying picture illustrates the examination hall where every candidate is seated in a separate cell. The row in the corner is inscribed with the words, "Heaven-Character Number," which means "number one." In explanation we have to state that one way of counting in Chinese is according to the words of the Thousand Character Book, Chien Tzu Wen, which begins with the words Tien ti hsüan huang. This book is used as a primer in Chinese schools, and every partly educated {Chinese} knows it by heart. It contains the thousand most important characters used in daily life and no two characters are alike. Thus, tien (heaven) means "one," ti (earth) means "two," hsüan (dark) means "three," huang (yellow) means "four," etc.]


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Next: The Spirit of the Hearth

THE SPIRIT OF THE HEARTH.
In the days of the Ming dynasty (1368-1628 A. D.) during the years called Kia-Tsing (1522-1567 A. D.) there lived in the province of Kiang-Shih a man named Yu

{p. 111}

Kong. His posthumous name was Tu, and his honorary title Liang-Chin. He was gifted with unusual capacity and had acquired a scholarship as thorough as it was varied. At the age of sixteen he received the Bachelor's degree, and had always been first in all examinations. But when he had reached the age of thirty, he found himself in such straits that he was obliged to give lessons for a livelihood. He joined several Bachelors who had studied at the same college and commenced with them to offer sacrifices to Wen-Chang Ti Chün, the "Lord Superior of Scripture Glory." He carefully guarded written paper,[1] and set at liberty captive birds; he refrained from enjoying the pleasures of sense, from the killing of animals, and from the sins of the tongue. Although he had faithfully observed these rules of conduct for many years, he failed seven times in competitive examination for the second degree.

He married and had five sons; the fourth

[1. According to Chinese views it is impious to throw away paper on which characters are inscribed, because words, both printed or written, are deemed to partake of the spiritual nature of the Tao; and this notion is not altogether foreign to the Western idea that the Logos or "word" is the incarnation of God. There is a class of Taoist monks who devote themselves to the task of collecting and burning all scraps of inscribed paper to spare their writing the sorry fate of defilement.]

{p. 112}

fell ill and died a premature death. His third son, a child of rare intelligence and charming features, had two black spots under the sole of his left foot. He was an especial favorite with his parents, but one day when he was eight years old, while playing in the street he lost his way and no one knew what had become of him. Yu Kong had four daughters, but only one lived, and his wife lost her sight from mourning for her children. Although he worked incessantly year after year, his misery only increased from day to day. So he examined himself, and finding he had committed no great sin, became resigned, although not without murmuring, to heaven's chastening hand.

When he had passed the age of forty, every year at the end of the twelfth moon he wrote a prayer on yellow paper and burned it before the Spirit of the Hearth, beseeching him to carry his vows to heaven. This practice he continued for several years without having the slightest response.

When he was forty-seven, he spent the last evening of the year in the company of his blind wife and only daughter. Gathered together in a room very scantily furnished, the three tried to console one another in their afflictions, when all at once a knock was heard at the

{p. 113}

door. Yu Kong took the lamp and went to see who it was, and lo, there stood a man whose beard and hair were partly whitened by age. The stranger was clad in black and wore a square cap. He entered with a bow and sat down. "My family name is Chang," he said to Yu Kong, "I have come hither a long distance because I have heard your sighs and complaints, and wish to comfort you in your distress."

Yu Kong was filled with wonder and paid him every mark of respectful deference. "All my life," he said to Chang, "I have consecrated to study and the pursuit of virtue, and yet up to this day have never been able to obtain any advancement. Death has robbed me of nearly all my children, my wife has lost her sight, and we can hardly earn enough to keep us from hunger and cold. Moreover," he added, "I have never ceased importuning the Spirit of the Hearth and burning before him written prayers."

"For many years," Chang replied, "I have taken an interest in the affairs of your house, and I am sorry that with your evil thoughts you have filled the measure to overflowing. Concerned only to acquire empty renown you sent to heaven unacceptable prayers, filled with

{p. 114}

murmurings and accusations. I fear that your visitation is not yet at an end."

Yu Kong was frightened. "I have heard," he said with emotion, "that in the other world even the smallest virtues are written in a book. I have sworn to do good, and for a long time have carefully followed the rules which are laid down for men. Can you then say that I have worked for mere vainglory?"

"My friend," Chang answered, "among those precepts there is one which bids you to respect written characters. Yet your pupils and fellow students often use the leaves of ancient books to redress the walls of their rooms and to make envelopes; some, indeed, even use them to wipe off their tables. Then they excuse themselves by saying that although they soil the paper, they burn it immediately afterwards. This happens daily under your eyes and you say not a word to prevent it. Indeed when you yourself find a scrap of written paper in the street you take it home and throw it in the fire. While you suffer others to trespass, tell me please what good does it do that you act rightly? It is true, too, that every month you set animals at liberty that have been doomed to death; but in this you blindly follow the crowd and act only according to the counsel of others. It would even seem that you remain

{p. 115}

undecided and irresolute if others do not first set the example. Good feeling and compassion have never been spontaneous in your heart. You have kids and lobsters served on your table, without considering that they, too, are endowed with the breath of life. As to the sins of the tongue, you shine by reason of your readiness of speech and force of argument and never fail to silence all who dispute with you, but you are insentient to the fact that thereby you wound others' feelings and lose their friendship. Often, too, carried away by the heat of discussion, you take advantage of your superiority and taunt your opponents with biting sarcasm. You pierce them with the bitter darts of your tongue and thus draw upon you the anger of the gods. You are unaware of the number of your offences which are recorded in the spiritual world, and yet you picture yourself the most virtuous of men. Who is there who pretends to deceive me? Do you think any one can impose upon heaven?

"It is true that you commit no actual crimes; but when you meet a beautiful woman in another's home and cannot banish her from your thoughts, you have committed adultery with her in your heart. Consider a moment! Would you have sufficient control over yourself to imitate the sage Lu Nan-Tze if you

{p. 116}

were placed in a similar position? When he once found himself obliged to pass the night in a house whose only other occupant was a woman, he lighted a lamp and read aloud until morning to avoid exposing her to unjust suspicions.[1] You say that you have kept yourself pure and unspotted throughout your life, and believe that you can without fear present yourself before heaven and earth, before demons and spirits! You are deceiving yourself. If this is the way you have followed the precepts which you have sworn to observe, what need is there to speak of others?

"I have presented to heaven the supplications which you have burned before my altar. The Supreme Master has charged a spirit to keep careful account of your good and evil deeds, and for several years he has not found a single virtue worth recording. When you are alone and given over to yourself, I see nothing in your heart but thoughts of avarice, of envy, of selfishness; thoughts of pride, of scorn and of ambition; and thoughts of hate and ingratitude towards your benefactors and your friends. These thoughts grow on you;

[1. See Mayers, Chinese Reader's Manual, Nos. 429 and 403. This incident is commonly told of Kwang Yü, deified as Kwang Ti, the Chinese god of war. Cf. ibid., No. 297, where the common version of Lu Nan-Tze's adventure as told by Mayers, differs somewhat from our story.]

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so plentifully they swarm in the depths of your heart that I could not enumerate them all. The gods have already recorded a vast number of them and the punishment of heaven is increasing daily. Since you have not even time to escape the calamities which threaten you, what use to pray for happiness!"

At these words Yu Kong was panic-stricken. He prostrated himself upon the earth and burst into a torrent of tears.

"Oh Lord!" he groaned, "I know that thou art a god since thou knowest things which are hidden. Have mercy upon me and save me!"

"My friend," Chang replied, "you study the works of the ancients, you are instructed in your duties, and love of truth has always been a delight to you. When you hear a noble word, you are for the moment carried away with zeal and emulation, while if you witness a good action, your heart leaps for very joy. But as soon as these things are out of your sight and hearing, you forget them at once. Faith has not planted her roots deeply in your heart, and therefore your good principles have no solid foundation. Then, too, the good words and actions of your whole life have never been anything but empty show. Have you ever done a single thing that betrayed a noble motive? And yet, when your heart is full of wrong

{p. 118}

thoughts which surround and bind you on all sides, you dare ask heaven for the rewards which only virtue can claim. You are like a man who would sow only thistles and thorns in his field and expect a rich harvest of good fruit. Would not that be the height of folly?

"From this time forward, arm yourself with courage, and banish all impure and unworthy thoughts that may present themselves to your mind. You must first bring forth a crop of pure and noble thoughts, and after that you may direct your efforts to the accomplishment of good. If an opportunity comes to do a good action which is within the limits of your strength, hasten to do it with a firm and resolute heart, without calculating whether it is large or small, difficult or easy, or whether it will bring you any advantage. If this good act is above your strength, use the same zeal and effort in order to show your sincere intention. Your first duty is patience without limit, your second, tireless perseverance. Above all, keep yourself from indifference and avoid self-deception. When you have followed these rules of conduct for a long time you will reap untold benefits.

"Within your home you have served me with a pure and reverential heart and it is for

{p. 119}

this reason that I have come with the especial purpose of bringing you instructions. If you make haste to carry them out with all your might you may appease heaven and cause it to change its decision."

While speaking the stranger entered farther within the house. Yu Kong rose eagerly and followed. But on approaching the hearth, the weird visitor vanished. Then Yu Kong realized that it was the Spirit of the Hearth who presides over the destiny of men. He at once burned incense in his honor and prostrated himself in grateful acknowledgment.

The next day which was the first day of the first month of the year, he directed prayers and praise to heaven. He avoided his former errors and began to do well with a sincere heart. He changed his literary name to Tseng-I Tao-Jen which means "the Taoist bent on the purification of his heart," and then wrote out a vow to banish all blameworthy thoughts.

The first day he was besieged by a thousand conflicting thoughts; now he fell into doubt, and again into indifference and inaction. He allowed hours and days to pass fruitlessly and it was not long before he returned to the path in which he had before lost his way. At last he prostrated himself before the altar of

{p. 120}

the great Kwan Yin[1] whom he worshiped in his home, and shed tears of blood.

"I vow," he said, "that my only desire is to have none but worthy thoughts, to keep myself pure and unspotted, and to use every effort to advance towards perfection. If I relax a hair's breadth may I fall into the depths of hell."

Every day he rose very early and invoked one hundred times in sincerity and faith the holy name of Ta-Tzé Ta-Peï (the Most Benevolent and Most Compassionate One) that he might obtain divine aid. From that moment he controlled his thoughts, words, and actions as if spirits were constantly at his side. He dared not permit himself the slightest wavering.

Whenever anything occurred to him that might be of use to man or beast, he did not

[1. Kwan Yin, or in full Kwan-Shih-Yin Tze-Tsai, is the Buddha of mercy, a divinity which is peculiarly Chinese, having incorporated features of the founder of Buddhism but being represented as a goddess. She is the most popular deity in China and is in many respects comparable to the Virgin-Mary in Roman Catholic countries. Her name in Tibet is Tara; her Chinese name is an abbreviation of the Sanskrit Avalokitesvara, which means the Isvara, or sovereign Lord, and avoloki, on-looking, i. e., considerate.

In the Saddharma-pundarika, Chapter XXIV, (S. B. E., XXI, p. 410 et seq.), she is referred to as a preacher of the Good Law, and this chapter is recited daily both morning and evening in Buddhist temples.]

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consider whether it was a great or a small thing, whether he had time or was too busily engaged, or whether he had or had not sufficient ability and means to perform it. He hastened to undertake it with enthusiasm, and stopped only after its complete accomplishment. He did good as often as he found opportunity and spread benefits in secret far and wide. He performed every duty faithfully and applied himself to study untiringly. He practiced humility, bore insults, and endeavored to influence to well-doing all the men that he met. The days were not long enough for his good works. On the last day of each month he made a list on yellow paper of all his acts and words during the thirty preceding days and burned it before the Spirit of the Hearth.

Yu Kong soon ripened in the practice of noble deeds. While he was up and doing every one of his acts was followed by a thousand good results, and when he rested no blameworthy thought troubled the serenity of his soul. So he continued for three years.

When Yu Kong reached the age of fifty, in the second year of the reign of Wan Li (1574 A. D.), Chang Kiang-Lin who held the office of First Minister of State, sought an instructor for his son, and with one voice, every one recommended Yu Kong for the place. The

{p. 122}

Minister himself went to invite him, and brought him and his family to the capital.

Chang, who appreciated Yu Kong's strength of character, induced him to enter the imperial college, and in the year Ping-Tsée (1576 A. D.) he competed for and obtained the degree of Licentiate and the next year was raised to the rank of Tsin-Ssé (Doctor).

One day while still sojourning in the capital, he went to visit a eunuch whose name was Yang Kong. Yang introduced his five adopted sons whom he had purchased in different parts of the realm to be a comfort to him in his old age; and there was among them a youth of sixteen years, whose face seemed somehow familiar to Yu Kong. So he asked him where he was born.

"I am from the district of Kiang-Shih," the youth replied. "When I was a child I became lost by heedlessly embarking with a cargo of grain. The name of my family and also my native village are very dim in my memory."

Yu Kong was surprised and deeply moved. Begging the youth to uncover his left foot he recognized the two black spots and cried out, "You are my son!"

Yang Kong rejoiced at the good fortune of this happy meeting and allowed the father

{p. 123}

to take his son home. The blind mother embraced her son tenderly and shed tears of sorrow and joy. The boy wept too and pressing his mother's face between his hands, gently touched her eyes with his tongue and instantly she recovered her sight.[1] Yu Kong's happiness was now complete, and in spite of the tears with which his eyes were still moist, his face beamed with joy.

From this time Yu Kong gave up his situation and took leave of Chan Kiang-Lin to return to his native village. The Minister, however, affected by the nobility of his tutor's character, would not permit him to leave until he had presented him with many rich gifts.

Having reached his native country, Yu Kong continued his good deeds with increased zeal. His son married, and had in his turn, seven sons, all of whom lived to inherit the talents and renown of their grandfather.

Yu Kong wrote a book in which he told the history of his life before and after his happy conversion, and gave the book to his grandsons to learn from his experiences. He lived to the .age of eighty-eight years, and every one looked upon his long life as the just reward for his

[1. According to a very ancient belief spittle is possessed of magic power. We read in the Gospel that Jesus used it for healing both the deaf (Mark vii. 33) and the blind (John ix. 6).]

{p. 124}

noble deeds by which he had changed the decision of heaven in his favor.


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Next: The Storm Dragon



THE STORM DRAGON.


Shen of Tai-Ts'ang was wealthy, but a brutal and inhumane man who treated his fellow-citizens shamefully, and especially exhibited his bad character in damaging their instruments and machines, or any utensils which were used by workers in tilling the soil, manufacturing, fishing, hunting, and other occupations of life.

Once when he was building a guest hall in his house, he hired Liu of a neighboring village, well known as a skilled sculptor, to carve some figures on pillars and beams; but when the artist had finished his work Shen refused to pay him the stipulated sum. The sculptor remonstrated and the dispute was finally settled by a lawsuit against Shen, who for this reason began to scheme for revenge.

Some time later, the Buddhist Priests in a southern metropolis intended to have the statues of five hundred Arhats carved for their temple, and having heard of Liu's fame, invited him to compete for the task. Shen thought his opportunity had come. So he hired a man to join Liu's party. While on the way, this villain,

{p. 125}

following the instructions of Shen, spoiled the instruments of the sculptor and absconded without being discovered. When Liu on his arrival could use none of his tools he was unable to compete with the native sculptors, whereby he lost his employment and became quite destitute.

Since Shen continued in his evil practices, his daughter-in-law warned him that unless he reformed, heaven would certainly visit the family with misfortune; but Shen resented her words and drove her from his home charging her with impudence, and disobedience. Before she was more than a mile or so away from the house, there came a sudden terrific outburst of thunder and lightning, and she hid herself in the woods near by. Then she saw a scarlet dragon come out of the black clouds and enter Shen's residence. The building was completely wrecked, everything inside destroyed and every living thing instantly killed. No member of the family escaped, except the daughter-in-law who had been driven out. Heaven favored her and she lived a long and prosperous life.

[Our illustration exhibits the typical Chinese conception of thunder and lightning. The thunder demon holds a mallet in either hand and is surrounded by a circle of drums and flames. Lightning is represented as a woman from whose hands flow streams of flame.

{p. 126}

The scarlet dragon is the storm sweeping over the country leaving destruction in its wake.]


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Next: The Ants



THE ANTS.


Ho Kwan of Kuang Nan was a kindhearted man and never killed any living thing. He had a jar containing one thousand pieces of silver which he kept in a casket. The white ants, of which there were so many in his district, invaded the casket and ate part of the silver. When his family found what had happened, they traced the ants to a hollow cave where millions of them were living. They thought if they put all of these ants in a crucible, perhaps they could recover a part of the lost silver. But Ho objected to the scheme, saying: "I cannot bear to see all these many creatures killed on account of a small sum of silver."

So they let the matter drop. That night he dreamed that scores of soldiers in white armor came to him, asking him to enter a carriage which they had with them and to come to the palace of their king. Ho Kwan proceeded with the soldiers to a town where the people looked prosperous and the buildings were all magnificent. Numerous officers came to meet him and took him to a splendid palace.

{p. 127}

The king, clad in royal fashion, descended from the throne, and, cordially saluting Ho Kwan, said: "By your benevolent acts we have been saved from our enemy. While not forgetting your kindness, the lack of strict discipline among my people caused you some trouble recently, but by your mercy they have again been saved from calamity. How could I let your kindness go unrequited this time? There is a certain tree near your residence readily identified, under which in olden times a certain person buried a jar full of silver. Just dig that out and keep it for yourself. You are the unicorn of mankind (the emblem of perfect goodness) that will never hurt any living soul. It is a pity that you are now too old to enjoy the fruits of your kindness yourself, but your descendents will reap what you have sown."

After this Ho Kwan was escorted back to his own house as before, by armed soldiers. When he awoke he meditated on the dream and found it to be the work of the ants. So he dug up the place as told by their king and recovered a jar buried therein these many years. His son became an eminent scholar.

[Our picture is an instance of the method used by Chinese artists to represent dreams. The spirit of the sleeper is supposed to go out into the distance.

{p. 128}

Sometimes we find the dreamer pictured in a sleeping posture with the dream curves which envelope the vision proceeding from his head.]


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Next: The Cruel Hunters





THE CRUEL HUNTERS.


In the county of Hsiang-Tan in Hu-Kuang there was an old and much respected gentleman. He had three sons who did not care for culture and refinement but spent every day in sports and roaming through the mountains.

One day the three went out hunting with a large company of young people and they met unexpectedly an old man in white garments who knelt and thus addressed them: "To refrain from injuring all growing things and from killing whatever is awakening into life is the part of universal lovingkindness as observed by saints and sages. It is now springtime when everything in nature is starting to life again. If you pay no attention to the tenderness of heart as practiced by holy men., and by unchecking the wild passions lurking in men's hearts, if you set the woods afire and exterminate the animals and insects that inhabit them, you will surely incur heavenly displeasure and suffer the consequences thereof. I, poor old creature, have seven young children in my family, and there is not time to remove

{p. 129}

them to a place of safety; but if you, gentlemen, have pity on us, we will never forget your mercy and will reward you later."

The three leaders of the party did not exactly understand what the old man wanted but without further thought promised to do as he had requested.

When the old man was gone some of the party began to wonder who he could have been and whence he might have come into this wilderness; and they argued that his appeal to their sympathy did not sound human. Possibly he was the spirit of some old wild animal living around in the mountains.

Upon this suggestion they pursued him, and seeing him enter a cave, spread a net before it and started a fire in the entrance. Suddenly a white stag darted forth from the hole, and breaking through the besiegers, climbed tip to a near rock, and then assuming the form of an old man, turned back to the hunting party, exclaiming: "You have killed my seven young daughters. You shall have to pay a penalty for this heartless act. A calamity ten times greater than I have suffered, will befall your family."

The three young men tried to shoot him, but he caught up the arrows in his hands and breaking them to pieces disappeared.

{p. 130}

Later, there came to their house a Taoist monk who predicted for them an imperial career and great prosperity for the future. Incited by this prophecy, they organized a rebellion in which many of their friends joined, for the purpose of overthrowing the reigning dynasty and establishing a new government under their own leadership. While the preparations were going on secretly, somebody betrayed their conspiracy to the authorities. Soldiers were immediately dispatched to their home, and, surrounding the house, put every one of the family under arrest. On examination they were found guilty of treason. Seventy members of their families and associates were executed according to law; but nobody ever knew what became of the Taoist monk who had been the real leader of the scheme. He as well as the man who had betrayed them disappeared.

[This curious story, especially the figure of the mountain spirit who acts as a protector of wild animals, reminds us of Schiller's poem, Der Alpenjäger, which we quote entire from Bulwer-Lytton's translation, slightly modified:

THE ALPINE HUNTER.

"'Wilt thou not be lambkins heeding?
Innocent and gentle, they
Meekly on sweet herbs are feeding, {p. 131}
And beside the brook they play.'
Mother, keep me not at home,
Let me as a hunter roam!'

'Wilt thou not, thy herds assembling,
Lure with lively horn along?--
Sweet their clear bells tinkle trembling,
Sweet the echoing woods among!'
'Mother, mother, let me go,
O'er the wilds to chase the roe.'

"'Wilt thou nurture not the flowers,
Tend them like my own dear child?
Dark and drear the mountain lowers,
Wild is nature on the wild!'
'Leave the flowers in peace to blow.
Mother, mother, let me go!'

"Forth the hunter bounds unheeding,
On his hardy footsteps press;
Hot and eager, blindly speeding
To the mountain's last recess.
Swift before him, as the wind,
Panting trembling, flies the hind.

"Up the ribbed crag-tops driven,
Up she clambers, steep on steep;
O'er the rocks asunder riven
Springs her dizzy, daring leap:
Still unwearied, with the bow
Of death, behind her flies the foe.

"On the peak that rudely, drearly
Jags the summit, bleak and hoar,
Where the rocks, descending sheerly, {p. 132}
Leave to flight no path before;
There she halts at last, to find
Chasms beneath--the foe behind!

"To the hard man--dumb-lamenting,
Turns her look of pleading woe;
Turns in vain--the Unrelenting
Meets the look--and bends the bow,
Yawn'd the rock; from his abode
Th' Ancient of the mountain strode;

"And his godlike hand extending,
To protect her from her foe,
'Wherefore death and slaughter sending,
Bringst thou to my realm this woe?
Shall my herds before thee fall?
Room there is on earth for all!'"]


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Next: A Chinese Home Mission Publishing Company


A CHINESE HOME MISSION PUBLISHING COMPANY.


There are Bible societies in Europe and America, the contributors to which deem it meritorious to publish and propagate the canonical books of Christianity; and in China we meet with analogous sentiments which prompt people to spread abroad religious books proclaiming the moral principles of their faith. The Chinese think to gain merit by writing, copying, or publishing such books as the Kan Ying-P'ien, and our illustration represents a publishing office maintained either by some

{p. 133}

pious man who is possessed of sufficient wealth, or an association inspired by the same motive. It is the picture of a Chinese Home Mission Publishing Company.

We see in the lower left-hand corner two engravers busily employed in writing characters upon engraving blocks. At the further end of the table stands a pile of tracts, Yü Hai Tze Hang, which treat of the "Voyage of Mercy over the Ocean of Desire," a Buddhist Pilgrim's Progress. A man is engaged in storing away another tract, the Hsing T'ien Yüh Ching, which discusses the subject "how with a heavenly nature we may adjust ourselves to circumstances."

At the right-hand table where the three men are printing with brushes, we see another tract, the Kung Kuo Ko, which means "the Table of Merits and Demerits"--a curious little book which is incorporated as an appendix to the Chinese copy of the Kan Ying P'ien in our possession. It contains a list of all good and evil deeds, and marks their value in figures in a system similar to that in use in our schools. Stopping a fight counts +3; inducing people to abstain from eating flesh for one year counts +20; gossiping with evil tongue, -3; to return favors, +20; to keep a promise seems to

{p. 134}

be considered as a matter of course, for it counts but +1; to abstain from taking things that do not belong to us, counts also but +1; sincerity, or, as the book expresses it, "to speak as one thinks," counts +1 per day; betrayal of a neighbor's secrets counts -50. At the end of the book there are blanks for lists of both meritorious and demeritorious deeds, for the sums total on both sides, and for the statement of the balance.

The pile of tracts which is just being carried to the shelves is a volume of the same book, as may be recognized by the first word kung, "merits."

The stacks in the background contain the following books: on the left upper shelf are three rows of the Kan-Ying P'ien; on the left middle shelf is the Yin Chih Wên, or The Tract of the Quiet Way;[1] on the left lower shelf we read the title Ti Chün Hsiao King, "The Imperial Lord's Book of Filial Piety," a work of Taoist ethics, probably written in the same strain as the Kan-Ying P'ien; on the right upper shelf is the "Canonical Book (King) of the Pearly Emperor"; on the right middle shelf we see a Buddhist book called "The Diamond Cutter," Chin Kang King, a

[1. Chicago: The Open Court Publishing Co., 1906.]

{p. 135}

well-known treatise published in English translation among the Sacred Books of the East; and on the lowest right-hand shelf is to be found the Ta Chih King, or "Book of Great Thoughts."

Sacred Texts  Taoism 

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  Yin Chih Wen
The Tract of the Quiet Way
Teitaro Suzuki and Paul Carus
[1906]



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title Page
Contents.
Introduction.
The Tract of the Quiet Way.
Notes of the Chinese Commentator.
Translator's Notes.
Index.
YIN CHIH WEN
THE TRACT OF THE QUIET WAY WITH EXTRACTS FROM THE CHINESE COMMENTARY
TRANSLATED FROM THE CHINESE BY
TEITARO SUZUKI AND DR. PAUL CARUS
EDITED BY
DR. PAUL CARUS
WITH FRONTISPIECE
scanned at sacred-texts.com, May 2002. J.B. Hare, redactor.
CHICAGO THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY
LONDON AGENTS KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRÜBNER & CO., LTD.
1906

p. verso

COPYRIGHT BY

THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING CO.

CHICAGO, U. S. A.

1906.

All Rights Reserved.



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Next: Contents.

p. 1
CONTENTS.

  Page

INTRODUCTION
3

    Yin Chih.
3

    Wen Ch'ang Ti Chün.
7

    Kwan Ti and Wen Ch'ang.
9

    Chang-O.
10

    The Chinese Title.
11

    The Age of the Yin Chih Wen.
12

THE TRACT OF THE QUIET WAY
17

NOTES OF THE CHINESE COMMENTATOR
25

    Man's Indebtedness to the Lord
25

    Heaven and Earth
25

    A Good Judge
26

    Humaneness Rewarded
27

    Saving Many Lives
29

    The Double-headed Snake
30

    The Foundation of Bliss
31

    Seek Truth for the Sake of Salvation
32

    The Disease of Egotism
32

    Filial Piety
33

    Several Ways
34

    Buddhism and Confucianism
34

    A Sympathetic Heart
35

    The Voice Within
36

TRANSLATOR'S NOTES
39

INDEX
47







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Next: Introduction

p. 3
INTRODUCTION.
THE Yin Chih Wen is a religio-ethical tract, which, in spite of its popularity all over the Middle Kingdom, has not as yet, so far as we know, been translated into any Western language. Next to the Kan-Ying P'ien it is read and studied and taught both in schools and at the home, and there is probably no family in China without it; but its contents are very little known in the. Western world, and we have only once met with references to it by Professor Douglas in his Confucianism and Taouism under the title of "Book of Secret Blessings." 1

YIN CHIH.
It is difficult to translate the title of the book. All we can say is that the rendering by Douglas, "Book of Secret Blessings," does not recommend itself; but the truth is that a-n exact translation which would be as terse and as expressive as is the Chinese, appears to be all but impossible.

We have long been in doubt as to what English words would best express the term Yin Chih, and we


p. 4

have seriously considered the following three possibilities: "secret virtue," "heaven's quiet dispensation," and "mysterious workings." None of these versions would be incorrect, but they do not sufficiently express the full meaning of the term. The first and second express two meanings which ought to be combined into one such as is the third, in order to serve as an equivalent of this peculiar expression; and we have finally decided to render our title The Tract of the Quiet Way, which, however, though it is sufficiently broad and brief, is not intelligible without further explanation.

The word chih is used both as verb and as noun. As a verb it means "to determine," "to raise"; as a noun it may be defined by "principle," "rule," "method," "dispensation," "way." 1 The word yin means "in secret," either in the sense of "unheeded" or "unostentatious." It also conveys the idea of anything possessed with a deeper meaning, anything mysterious; and the two words together, yin chih, denote the quiet way of Heaven, which works out the ends of divine dispensation, invisibly yet unfailingly, to the awe and astonishment of every sapient observer, as says the Christian hymn:

"God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform."

If we had to translate these lines into Chinese, we


p. 5

might render the words "a mysterious way" very appropriately by yin chih.

It is an old maxim of the traditional wisdom of China which is most emphatically insisted upon by Lao Tze and all the sages of his school, that these quiet ways of Heaven should be imitated by man. As Heaven lets its sun shine upon good and evil, without discrimination and also without expecting reward or advantages; so man should do good to his fellows, perform acts of rectitude, of justice, and of mercy, show benevolence and kindness toward all in an impartial spirit without cherishing ulterior motives, without hope of reward, and without desire for praise. The man who thus imitates "Heaven's quiet way" in unostentatiously realizing the ideal of heavenly goodness is truly virtuous, and so yin chih has also come to denote a condition which may be characterized as, and translated by, "secret virtue," reminding us of Christ's injunction not to let our right hand know what the left hand is doing (Matt. vi. 1-4).

In the title of the book the words Yin Chih cover the general idea of the "secret ways" both as they are working in the divine dispensation and in human action, and if either meaning predominates we should say that it is certainly the former--the quiet ways of Heaven which determine the destiny of man and which are described by Shakespeare as

"A divinity that shapes our ends,
Rough-hew them how we will."

--Hamlet, VI, 1-4.

The word chih occurs for the first time in Chinese literature in the "Great Plan" of the Shu King, and there it is used in the verbal sense "to regulate, to rule,

p. 6

to determine." The commentator of the Fin Chill Wen explains the title in the following words:

"In the 'Great Plan,' a chapter of the Shuh King, we read: 'wei tien yin chih hsia min.' [Only | Heaven | mysteriously | rules | below | the people] and a gloss explains the word chih by ting, 'to determine.'"

The quoted passage means that "Heaven alone, in a quiet or mysteriously unnoticeable way, directs the affairs of mankind living below on earth."

The commentator continues:

"The human soul is most intelligent and its essential nature is intrinsically good. All our moral relations and daily actions have their reasons why they should be so. When Heaven above created these beings it mysteriously endowed them with something to guide (ting) them, and this something appears when the people practise goodness. Indeed it is the guiding (ting) principle of creation that good men never lose an opportunity to do what is good. If you really practise it (i. e., the good) in your heart it is not necessary that others should know of it, for there is something in the unseen which fully regulates and determines (ting) your affairs. Those who deny this fact commit a secret (yin) sin (o) and their retribution will be speedy. Therefore this book is called Yin Chih."

The words Yin Chih ("the quiet way," or more explicitly, "the mysterious dispensation of Heaven showing itself in man's unostentatious virtue") are opposed to yin o, i. e., "the hidden evil in the bad man's heart." The word o (a compound of "crookedness" and "heart") is the common term for evil or badness.

p. 7

The contrast in which yin chih stands to yin o explains title by how far it would be proper to translate our "secret virtue."

Considering the fact that the word "way" in English is as broad as the meaning of chih in Chinese, and that the former is widely used with a deep religious significance, we have finally chosen as a translation of our title the term "the quiet way." We are fully conscious of the shortcomings of our rendering, but our readers will bear in mind the original sense and become accustomed to our translation by associating it with its right interpretation.

WEN CH'ANG TI CHÜN.
Our frontispiece, drawn by Shen Chin-Ching, represents Wen Ch'ang Ti Chün, one of the highest divinities of China, revealing himself to the author of the tract. Wen Ch'ang is the name of the god, and Ti Chün his title.

The picture represents the god as accompanied by two attendants. The white charger on which he has come down from heaven stands in the foreground. The god is seated on a stool and the scribe of the book reverently kneels before him holding the Yin Chih Wen in his hands.

The inscription of the picture reads Ti tze Shen Chin-Ching hui, which means "the humble disciple Shen Chin-Ching pinxit." Ti means "younger brother," and tze "child," here used as a diminutive. "Little Younger brother" is the usual term meaning "disciple," or "devotee," by which title the artist here calls himself to indicate that he is a follower of the religious doctrines taught in the Yin Chih Wen.

p. 8

Wen Ch'ang means "scripture glory."

The word wen is the same character which occurs in the last word of the title of our book. It denotes writing in general, and is especially applied to short exhortations of a religious nature such as are commonly called in Western terminology "tracts." Hence we translate "The Tract of the Quiet Way," not "the book," as Douglas has it. With reference to the god's name, we translate wen by "scripture," because in English the term scripture refers mainly to religious literature and is similar to the Chinese original in so far as it has a devotional ring.

Ch'ang means "glory" or "radiance," the character being composed of two suns, indicating an intensified brightness of light.

To characterize the god Wen Ch'ang or "scripture glory" as god of literature (as is sometimes done) is, to say the least, misleading. He is the god of learning in general, and in Chinese high schools a hall is dedicated to him as the patron saint of education, refinement, and especially moral instruction through religious books. Belles lettres form only one and in fact an insignificant branch of his department. He is, above all, the god of divine revelation through scripture.

The rank of Wen Ch'ang in the world of gods, is "Emperor" or "Ti," and the word Ti Chün, "the higher emperor," is commonly translated by "lord superior."

The word chün means "superior," or "master" and so "Ti Chün" (Lord Superior) might also be translated "imperial master." Chün is the term by which chün tze the "higher man" is denoted in Lao Tze's Tao Teh King, an anticipation of Nietzsche's

p. 9

"superman," only with this difference that Lao Tze's "higher man" bears a great resemblance to Christ and Buddha, while Nietzsche's "superman" is more like Kubla Khan, or Attila, or Napoleon. The term chün is commonly applied also to leading thinkers such as Lao Tze and Confucius.

KWAN TI AND WEN CH'ANG.
The title Ti, "emperor," is also borne by the god of war, Kwan Ti, and if the latter is compared to the archangel Michael, the former, Wen Ch'ang, should be likened to Gabriel. In fact, we cannot deny that there is a strong probability of historical connection between these highest princes among the angels, for the conception of both may have been derived from Babylonian prototypes, Michael being represented by Marduk and Gabriel by Nebo.

Michael means literally "who is like God," and seems to designate that divine presence (viz. the ineffable name) which is believed to be equal to God; but in the classical period of Jewish monotheism the word Michael was explained not as a characterization of the archangel as being like God, but as expressing faith in monotheism, implying the proposition that there is no second to God. Michael, according to the angel lore of the Hebrews, is the representative of God, and so he is identified with God's cause. He is the guardian angel of Israel, the chosen people, and also commander-in-chief of the angelic hosts. As Marduk fought with Tiamat, so Michael wages war against the dragon (Rev. xii. 7).

Gabriel is as different in character from Michael as Wen Ch'ang is from Kwan Ti. Gabriel means

p. 10

"the man of God." He is deemed superior to all other angels except Michael and is generally represented as the angel of God's special revelation and the interpreter of God's intentions. Thus, it is Gabriel who explains Daniel's vision; nor can we doubt that the angel with an inkhorn by his side, mentioned in Ezekiel x. 2-3, was Gabriel, the scribe of God. Old Testament scholars have pointed out his resemblance to the Babylonian god Nebo, who in the monuments is depicted in human form with an inkhorn at his side, differently from the Cherubim (the human-headed winged bulls), which fact throws light on the vision of Ezekiel, alluded to above, and shows that there is a specific meaning in the name "man of God."

In the New Testament Gabriel continues to represent God's revelation. It is he who announces the birth of John the Baptist and of Jesus. There is no figure in Christian tradition which would resemble Wen Ch'ang more closely than Gabriel.

CHANG-O.
As Kwan Ti, the god of war, was represented to have lived on earth as a man, so Wen Ch'ang, or "scripture glory," is said to have been an ancient Chinese sage, but little is known of the man to whom the Chinese tradition refers.

According to the commentator, "he lived during the T'ang dynasty (620-950 A. D.), and his secular name was Chang-O. Yüeh was his native province, but later he moved to Tzu T'ung in the district of Shu. We are told that his personality was distinguished by nobility and piety. His writings were clear, luminous, and forcible. He began to exercise a moral power

p. 11

over the people, who unconsciously felt his spirituality. He entered for a while upon an official career, but, not satisfied with the course of politics, he resigned his government position and lived as a saintly recluse. The people of Shu showed great affection for him. and, when he died, built a temple in his honor calling it 'Temple of the Sage of Tzu T'ung.' People far and near came to offer prayers which were remarkably well responded to by the sage. Everybody, then, said, 'There is in the heavens a star called Wen Ch'ang; the sage [i. e., Chang-O] must have been its incarnation.'"

Our tract bears the name of the god Wen Ch'ang, and accordingly he is regarded as its author, or at least as the divinity who has guided the pen of the man who composed it; but (unless we assume that Chang-O was the author which is not positively impossible) the name of the scribe who made himself the mouthpiece of Wen Ch'ang and who in human consideration ought to be regarded as its author, is not recorded.

THE CHINESE TITLE.
We reproduce the complete title of the Tract of the Quiet Way in its original Chinese characters on the fly leaf preceding our translation, and there it reads: "Wen-Chang Ti-Chün Yin Chih Wen Shih-Hsün." This means in a verbatim translation, "[Of] Scripture Glory, [the] Imperial Master, [the] Quiet-Way-tract, normal instruction." The last two words form one idea which might be translated "educational." Shih means "model," "norm" or "pattern"; and hsün, "instruction." In their combination the two denote that the present book is intended to serve educational purposes,

p. 12

and that it contains the established or orthodox standard of conduct.

THE AGE OF THE YIN CHIH WEN.
The date of the Yin Chih Wen can only approximately be determined. It appears that it cannot be older than Chang-O and must not therefore be dated earlier than the time of the T'ang dynasty. In the days of Kang-Hi, however, the pamphlet was not only well known, but commented upon and supplied with explanatory stories. Accordingly we cannot stray far from truth when we look upon the Yin Chih Wen as approximately simultaneous with the Kan-Ying P'ien which in many respects it greatly resembles, and so we would say that we should certainly not set the date of its composition later than about 1600 A. D.

Specialists of Chinese literature will probably be able to ascertain the age of the Yin Chih Wen more accurately by pointing out quotations from it in other books whose date of composition is unquestionable.

The original Yin Chih Wen consists (1) of the tract itself which is here translated, (2) of glosses added by commentators, and finally (3) of a great many stories which are similar to the stories of the Kan-Ying P'ien, except that they are more rational and appear to avoid all reference to miracles and superstitious agencies. The book has apparently appealed more to the rationalistic Confucianists or literati, who, while upon the whole agnostic, exhibit at the same time due respect for the officially recognized religions.

p. 13

EDITORIAL COMMENTS.
The sinological part of the present version is more exclusively the work of Mr. Teitaro Suzuki than in our edition of the Kan-Ying P'ien; and in our own version of terms and other details we have not been satisfied until we had his assent.

In addition to the text of the Yin Chih Wen, the editor has picked out from the Notes of the Chinese Commentator those passages that appealed to him, and has abstained from publishing any one of the stories, because he thought that Western readers would not take a great interest in them. The general tenor of these moralizing tales is sufficiently indicated in the stories of the Kan-Ying P'ien.

L'ENVOI.
We hope that the publication of this book will help Western readers to understand better the Chinese character and especially its undeniable fervor for moral ideals. Though the Chinese mind, especially among the uneducated classes, is filled with superstitious notions, we cannot help granting that the character of their moral maxims ranges very high; and we must confess that among all the nations of the world there is perhaps none other so seriously determined to live up to the highest standard of ethical culture.

An appreciation of the virtues of the Chinese will help Western people to treat them with more consideration, and so we contribute our interpretation of this treatise as a mite towards a better understanding between the East and the West, between the white races of Europe and America and the natives of Asia. We

p. 14

hope that the day will come when the mutual distrust will disappear, and when both in reciprocal appreciation of their natural good qualities, will be anxious to treat each other with fairness and brotherly kindness.

P. C.



p. 15







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Next: The Tract of the Quiet Way.

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Footnotes
3:1 Professor Douglas's book is one in the series of Non-Christian Religious Systems published by the Society for the Advancement of Christian Knowledge. His reference to the Yin Chih Wen is made on pp. 256 and 272.

4:1 The character is presumably phonetic. It consists of the radical "horse," which is modified by the symbol "to ascend," "to go up higher," the latter being a compound of "higher" and "to step up." In common language the word chih means "stallion," but we may bc sure that this is an accidental homophony. A sameness of sound led to the use of the same character, an occurrence which is very frequent in the Chinese language.


p. 17
THE TRACT OF THE QUIET WAY.
The Lord says: CC1

For seventeen generations I have been incarnated 1 as a high mandarin, and I have never oppressed my people nor maltreated my subordinates. I have helped them in misfortune; I have rescued them from poverty; I have taken compassion on their orphans; I have forgiven their transgressions; I have extensively practised secret virtue (yin chih  2) which is attuned to heaven above. CC2 If you are able to keep your hearts as I have kept mine, Heaven will surely bestow upon you blessings. Therefore, these are the instructions I declare unto mankind: 3

He who wants to expand the field of happiness, 4 let him lay the foundation of it on the bottom of his heart. CC7

Practise benevolence 5 wherever you find an opportunity, and let your deeds of merit be unheeded (yin).

Benefit all creatures 6; benefit the people. CC8

p. 18

Practise goodness: acquire merit.

Be honest like Heaven in conducting your affairs.

Compassionate and auspicious, the state government must be devoted to the salvation of the people.

Let your heart be impartial 7 and wide of range. CC9

Fulfil the four obligations 8; impartially observe the three doctrines. 9

Be faithful and reverential to the ruler. Be filial and obedient to parents. CC10 Be congenial and friendly to brothers. Be sincere in your intercourse with friends. 10

Let some worship the Truthful One, 11 and revere the Northern Constellation, while others bow before the Buddha and recite sutras. CC12

By discoursing on morality and righteousness, convert both the cunning and the dull. By preaching on the canonical books and histories, enlighten the ignorant and the benighted.

Relieve people in distress as speedily as you must release a fish from a dry rill [lest he die]. Deliver people from danger as quickly as you must free a sparrow from a tight noose.

Be compassionate to orphans and relieve widows. Respect the old and help the poor.

p. 19

Promote the good and recommend the wise. Be lenient with others and exacting with yourself.

Save your clothing and provisions that ye may befriend the hungry and cold on the road.

Give away coffins and cases lest the dead of the poor be exposed.

Build charitable graveyards for unclaimed corpses.

Establish philanthropic institutions for the education of children.

If your own family is well provided, extend a helping hand to your relatives. If the harvest fails, provide for and relieve your neighbors and friends.

Let measures and scales be accurate; and be neither chary in selling nor exacting in buying.

Treat your servants with generosity and consideration. Do not expect perfection nor be too strict in your demands.

Publish and make known sutras 12 and tracts. Build and repair temples and shrines.

Distribute medicine to alleviate the suffering of the sick. With tea or water relieve the distress of the thirsty.

Light lanterns in the night to illuminate where people walk. Keep boats on rivers to ferry people across.

p. 20

Buy captive animals and give them freedom. 13 CC13

How commendable is abstinence 14 that dispenses with the butcher!

While walking be mindful of worms and ants.

Be cautious with fire and do not set mountain woods or forests ablaze.

Do not go into the mountain to catch birds in nets, 15 nor to the water to poison fishes and minnows.

Do not butcher the ox that plows thy field.

Do not throw away paper that is written on. 16

Do not scheme for others' property.

Do not envy others' accomplishments.

Do not approach thy neighbor's wife or maids.

Do not stir thy neighbors to litigation.

Do not injure thy neighbor's reputation or interest.

Do not meddle with thy neighbor's conjugal affairs.

Set not, for personal malice, brothers at variance with one another.

Set not father and son at variance for trifles.

Never take advantage of your power, nor disgrace the good and law-abiding.

p. 21

Presume not, ye that are rich; nor deceive the needy and suffering.

While attending to your duty, 17 be humble and modest.

Live in concord with your relatives and clansmen.

Let go hatred 18 and forgive malice.

Those that are good, seek ye for friends; that will help you to practise virtue with body and soul. Those that are wicked, keep at a distance; it will prevent evil from approaching you.

Pass in silence over things wicked, but promulgate all that is good.

Do not assert with your mouth what your heart denies. 1

Always have in mind helpful sayings.

Do not use improper language.

Cut the brambles and thorns that obstruct the highway. Remove bricks and stones that lie in the path.

Repair the defiles though for many hundred years they have remained unimproved.

Build bridges to be traversed by thousands and ten thousands of people.


p. 22

Expound moral maxims to correct the people's faults.

Supply the means to give instruction to people of talent.

Let your work conform to Heaven's reason, CC14 and let your speech express humaneness.

Keep the ancient sages before your eyes even when at supper or while looking over the fence. 19

Be mindful when you are alone 14 in the shadow of your coverlet. 20

Anything evil refrain ye from doing; CC14 all good deeds do! 21 So will you be released forever from the influence of evil stars, and always be encompassed by good guardian angels. 22

Rewards may be immediate, and you will receive them in person, or rewards may be remote, and will devolve upon your posterity.

Blessings come a hundredfold in loads as if drawn by horses; good fortune is piled up a thousandfold like a mass of clouds.

Do not all these things accrue to the heart of the quiet way?



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Next: Notes of the Chinese Commentator.

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Footnotes
21:1 This recalls the fact that in Babylon "to say 'Yea' with the mouth, and 'nay' with the heart . . . was repeatedly branded as a sin." See Delitzsch, Babel and Bible: Two Lectures, p. 47, and "Third and Last Lecture" in The Open Court, XX, p. 151. Cf. also the Biblical expression in Ezek. xxxiii. 31.
NOTES OF THE CHINESE COMMENTATOR.
1. MAN'S INDEBTEDNESS TO THE LORD.
The Lord Superior takes compassion on the ignorance of all sentient beings, who are unable to liberate themselves from the curse of their karma. So he proclaims these moral instructions, thereby to lead to enlightenment the generations to come.

His love is greater than that of a father who instructs his children; his discipline is greater than that of a master who trains his disciples. How sincere, earnest, and kindhearted are his words! They are surely the road that leads to sainthood and enlightenment, the best method that avoids misfortune and rescues us from evil.

May people who receive these instructions exert all their mental energy to put them in practice and be attuned to the Great Lord's boundless love to save the world.

2. HEAVEN AND EARTH. 1
Chou-tze says: "Heaven and Earth are constantly at work to regenerate the ten thousand things. That


p. 26

is their purport. If the thought of a person is always bent on benefiting others, then he becomes himself Heaven and Earth.

"It is not sufficient for an officer of high position to refrain from coveting promotion and from seeking wealth. He should employ his benevolence so as to benefit his fellow men; otherwise the purpose for which Heaven has created us will be altogether lost."

A GOOD JUDGE. 1
In olden times, Yü King, judge of the criminal court, was held in such high esteem [on account of his virtue] that a gateway for four-horse carriages was erected in his honor.

Yü King of the Han dynasty (206 B. C. to A. D. 23) was judge of a criminal court on the eastern shore of China. In his district there was a young widow who, on account of her parental devotion, showed no disposition to marry again, lest her mother-in-law be left without support. The aged woman, however, was so much distressed over her helplessness that finally she hanged herself to release her daughter-in-law from the duty of self-sacrifice. Her own daughter hearing of the incident went to court and charged her sister-in-law with murder, and the latter, unable to vindicate herself, was condemned to death in spite of Yü King's


p. 27

protest. After this tragedy, Heaven failed to give rain all along the eastern coast for a period of three years. When a new governor was installed, Yü King explained to him the cause of the long drought. Thereupon the grave of the dutiful daughter-in-law was officially decorated, and then at last it started to rain.

Yü King showed his humane disposition in many other trials. When the elder people in his district proposed to repair his family gate which was dilapidating, Yü King advised them to have it raised and enlarged, so that a four-horse carriage could be driven through it, saying: "I have a great many times in my official life practised secret virtue (yin teh) and have never condemned the innocent. Among my descendants there will surely be some one who will rise high and will occupy important positions." And so things came to pass. His son became prime minister and was created a noble, and his grandson, too, was promoted to a responsible position in the government.

HUMANENESS REWARDED. 1
The Tou family saved people and thus nobly obtained the five-branched olea. 2

Tou Yü-Chün was not yet favored with a son when he was thirty years old. One night his grandfather appeared to him in a dream and said: "You may not have any issue at all, nor may you live long, unless you are diligent in performing benevolent deeds."



p. 28

Yü-Chün was a well-to-do man and could afford to do many benevolent things. One of his servants stole a considerable sum of money from his chest. When the fact was exposed, the guilty one fled leaving his daughter thirteen years old, to whom a note was attached which read: "Offer this girl and my house for sale. With the money thus realized I wish to pay my debt."

Yü-Chün burned the note, took the girl to his own house, and had her reared by his wife. When she reached maturity he gave her a large dowry and chose for her a good husband. When her father heard of it he was greatly affected and returned home full of repentance. His old master forgave him and did not say anything about his former crime.

Yü-Chün did many other good things. The poor who could not afford funeral services for their dead, were liberally assisted by him, and those who could not, on account of a lack of dowry, give their daughters in marriage, were handsomely supplied with gold. Poor children were educated and the helpless taken care of, while he himself lived most frugally. He also built a large library and gave employment to many learned men.

In the meantime he saw again his grandfather in a dream, who said: "You were originally destined not to have any offspring and to live only a few more years. But on account of your humane deeds, your merits have been recorded by the Heavenly Lord. Your life will be prolonged and you will have five children who will be very prosperous."

"The way of Yin and Yang," the spirit added, "is like the law of Karma. The reward may become manifest either in this life or in succeeding lives. The

p. 29

heavenly net is vast and hangs loosely, but it never permits things to escape. You must cherish no doubt about this."

Yü-Chün's five sons successfully passed the literary examinations and were promoted to high official positions.

5. SAVING MANY LIVES. 1
He who took pity on ants attained the highest literary honor.

Sung Chiao and Sung Ch'i (eleventh century A. D.) were brothers. When they were both at college, a strange Buddhist monk examined their physiognomy and prophesied: "The younger Sung will be the first on the list of literary graduates, and the elder, too, will unfailingly pass."

Ten years later, the elder Sung again happened to meet the monk on the road. The monk showed great astonishment, exclaiming: "Your fortunes have suddenly changed. You look as if you had saved millions of lives." Sung said, laughing: "How could I, a poor follower of Confucius, achieve such a feat as that?" "Yes," replied the monk, "Even the meanest creatures are enjoying their lives you know." Reflecting a little while, Sung said: "I remember that about ten days ago I found an ants' nest under my porch in danger of being flooded. I took a few bamboo sticks and made a bridge over the water to let the poor ants cross over it. May this be it?" "Exactly," answered the monk, "the younger Sung is now leading the list but you will not be second to him."

When the order of literary graduates was declared,


p. 30

the younger Sung was found to be the first and the elder Sung the second. But the Empress Chang Hsien decreed that the younger brother should not precede the elder, and Sung Chiao was put at the head of the list.

6. THE DOUBLE-HEADED STAKE. 1
He who buried [out of sight] the snake [of bad omen] was deemed worthy of the honor of premiership.

Shun Shu-Ao, of Chu state, when a boy, used to go out very frequently. One day he saw a double-headed snake which he killed and to put it out of sight, buried it in the ground. He came home in gloom and showed no appetite at the table. An anxious inquiry of his mother brought him to tears, and he said mournfully: "People say, those who have seen a double-headed snake are doomed to die soon. I saw one to-day and fear that before long I shall die, mother, and will have to leave you alone." The mother then asked him, "Where is the snake now?" "Fearing that others might see it too, I killed and buried it." "Never mind then," replied the mother, "you will not die. I understand that secret virtue (yin teh) brings rewards that are open. Where there is virtue, thither will be gathered a thousand blessings. Where there is benevolence, a hundred evils are distanced. Heaven above attends to affairs below. You are sure to become eminent in this state."

When Shun was a man, he was made a minister of state.


p. 31

7. THE FOUNDATION OF BLISS
All deeds originate in the heart 2

All the good acts that are enumerated below begin in the heart and are completed, too, in the heart. The heart's inmost recess is the very spot where there is Heaven and where there is Hell.

The difference between sages such as Yao and Shun and wretches such as Chieh or Chou, simply pivots here around this puny little thing. Unexpected blessings grow, as it were, in a very actual field, which can be ploughed and harvested. The heart, though spiritual and mysterious, yet possesses a solid, tangible soil, which can be watered and tilled.

The soul of a true, earnest gentleman 3 has its root in this obscure recess, which he examines and purifies in solemn silence and privacy. Merely this, a heart to save the world; not one mote of a heart for worldliness. Merely this, a heart to love mankind; not a mote of a heart for hatred of people. Merely this, a heart to have respect for others; not a mote of a heart for making light of the world. Merely this, a heart earnestly to promote one's conversion; not a mote of a heart for indulgent self-delusion. This is the way of self-purification and the sure foundation of bliss.



p. 32

8. SEEK TRUTH FOR THE SAKE OF SALVATION.
Ch'ang-tze says: "If a respectable gentleman is at all disposed towards lovingkindness, he cannot help doing things beneficial to others." Supplementing this, Ch'en An-Shan says: "If a villain is ever bent on selfishness, he will surely do things harmful to others." Both of these sayings are indisputably true.

Those who are able to think of others are called superior men, and those who think of themselves are called small men. The difference is in one's own fundamental thought, whether it is of the ego or not. Some incessantly accumulate evils, others good deeds; and when we see the result, it is the difference between Heaven and Earth.

Li Kwang-Yüen, an eminent seeker of truth, was once warned by a strange saintly personage, thus: "I see thou art seeking truth. But wouldst thou have it for thy private self, saints and gods will have no regard for thee." Are not gods and saints 4 as well as sages and holy men 5 bent on saving the world? Some seek saintliness in their pursuit of life everlasting and immortality; but if their hearts are tainted with a single thought of egotism, they are grievously at fault, though it be hidden and they know it not; and there is no thought of their ever attaining to saintship.

9. THE DISEASE OF EGOTISM.
Mother Cheng used to instruct her children to this effect: "When others do good, fall in line as if it were your work and be sure to bring it to completion. Treat



p. 33

others' property as if it were your own, so you will be thoughtful in using it."

Hsieh Wen-Ching says: "The reason why a man has thousands of troubles is because he clings to the idea of self: therefore, he schemes and contrives in ten thousand different ways. He alone wants to be rich, he alone wants to be honored, he alone wants to be easy, he alone wants to be happy, he alone wants to enjoy life, he alone wants to be blessed with longevity; and to others' poverty, misery, danger, or suffering, be is altogether indifferent. It is for this reason that the life-will 6 of others is disregarded and Heaven's Reason neglected. Only be cured of the disease of egotism, and your heart will be broadened even to the vastness of infinite space, so that wealth, honor, happiness, comfort, health, longevity could all be enjoyed with others. And, then, the will to live will have its way, everything will have its natural longings satisfied, and Heaven's Reason will be displayed in an untold exuberance.

10. FILIAL PIETY.
Filial piety is the guide of all actions. It is the ultimate root of humaneness; and is it possible that the root be rotten while the branches and leaves grow luxuriously?


p. 34

Yao-Jao Hou says: "The four essential elements of filial piety are: (1) To be established in virtue; (2) To keep up the family; (3) To keep the body unimpaired; (4) To cultivate the character."

Pious children will not let their parents' hearts be roused to thoughts of cold indifference. They will not let their parents' hearts be annoyed or harassed. They will not let their parents' hearts be alarmed or filled with fear. They will not let their parents' hearts be grieved or embarrassed. They will not let their parents' hearts be perplexed. They will not let their parents' hearts feel ashamed or indignant.

11. SEVERAL WAYS.
In his anxiety lest all people might not be induced to goodness, the Lord Superior invites them to come to him in any way they may be pleased to follow. They may pay homage at the Taoist sanctuary; they may worship the Northern Constellation; they may bow before the Buddha and recite his Sutras: if they only do so with singleness and sincerity of heart, these roads will lead to goodness; but there should be no thought of attaining blessings or acquiring rewards.

12. BUDDHISM AND CONFUCIANISM.
P'an Ch'ung-Mou says:

"What is to be avoided most in our life is vacillation and frivolity (wang nien); and what is most excellent is a reverential heart. Therefore, we Confucians endeavor to preserve sincerity of heart and consider reverence as most essential. It is needless

p. 35

to say that sincerity and reverence make us companions of heaven and earth, gods and spirits.

"There is, however, another class of people who adopt Buddhism as their guidance. They bow before the Buddha and recite his Sutras, always bent on preserving reverence and awe. They will never relax their vigilant guard over the heart, which will by degrees become pure and bright, free from evil thoughts and ready to do good. This enlightenment is called their most happy land. 7 What is necessary, then, for Buddhists as well as Confucians is to avoid vacillation and frivolity, which will render you unreliable. Keep the heart always restrained by reverence and awe. Otherwise what can be the use of the recitation of Sutras or the discourses of Confucius?"

13. A SYMPATHETIC HEART.
The great virtue of heaven and earth is to create, and all living beings, men and animals alike, derive their vitality from this one and the same source. Nowhere under the sun is there a being that dislikes life and embraces death with joy.

To buy up captive animals for the sake of setting them free is nothing but an outburst of a sympathetic heart. Thoughtless people make light of puny creatures such as ants, spiders, etc., and wantonly kill them, having no thought of pity or remorse; but pious hearts refrain from such cruelty.


p. 36

14. THE VOICE WITHIN 8
"Heaven's Reason consists of two words; but they are in your own heart. If when you do a thing, there remains in your heart some misgiving, then your deed is against Heaven and contrary to Reason. A virtuous man punctiliously guards himself when alone, solely to retain Heaven's Reason 9 and to calm human desires. Therefore says Tung Ch'ung-Shu [a famous Confucian]: "Attend to your duty and scheme not for gain. Look after what you ought to do and measure not your merit."

The source of good and evil is in the heart, and the best method of controlling it is a reverential attitude of the heart.

Ever turbulent is the heart of him who does evil; ever wakeful is the heart of him who does good.

The teachings of holy men are written in the six canonical books. There are thousand gates and ten thousand doors; through which shall we enter? The main thing is to guard oneself when alone, lest one go astray; then you will see how one's strength grows.

Proceed in goodness for a thousand days and there will be not enough; proceed in evil for half a minute and you will have too much.





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Next: Translator's Notes.

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Footnotes
25:1 The term "heaven and earth" stands for the two divine principles, also called yang and yin, which shape all conditions in the world including the destinies of human affairs.

26:1 The words printed in large type in the present and the three following notes belong in all original Chinese editions to the text of the Yin Chih Wen proper. Accordingly we have set them in the same type in which our translation of the text is set, but have removed them to the Chinese Commentary, because they appear to be out of place in the text. Compare note 3 on page 39.

27:1 See footnote on page 26, and note 3, page 39.

27:2 Olea or cassia is kwei in Chinese and symbolizes success, prosperity, and honor.

29:1 See footnote on page 26, and note 3, page 39.

30:1 See footnote on page 26, and note 3, page 39.

31:2 This passage resembles the first line of the Dhammapada and may be a translation of it.

31:3 Shih. The term literally means "scholar," but it is also used in the sense of "gentleman," being a title given to persons of distinction, sometimes equivalent to the English "Esquire." It covers the ideal of a truly respectable man who deserves the esteem of his fellow-citizens.

32:4 The ideals of Taoism.

32:5 The ideals of the Confucians.

33:6 The term sheng i, i. e. "life-will," is a noteworthy anticipation of Schopenhauer's idea of the "will to live." The commentator insists that our egotism and vanity is the main cause of evil in the world,-an idea apparently imbibed from Buddhism, and he declares that we should let sheng i, the "will to live," as it exists in other creatures, develop without hindrance, which will result in an untold exuberance of the display of T'ien Tao, Heavenly Reason.

35:7 The commentator refers to the Western Paradise (sukhâvati) of the Pure Land sect, which is here interpreted as a state of mind.

36:8 These three passages dealing with the same subject are three consecutive comments as indicated by the references.

36:9 Heaven's Reason is here not T'ien Tao, but T'ien Li, which means "reason" or "rationality" in the commonly accepted sense.

p. 39
TRANSLATOR'S NOTES.
1. The doctrine of reincarnation is not indigenous in China. We must consider this opening passage as showing a strong Hindu influence which was introduced to China through Buddhism. The Jâtaka Stories tell us that Buddha appeared a great many times as a Bodhisatthva on this earth, again and again practising the six virtues of perfection (pâramitâ). The Taoist Book of Incarnations (Hua Shu), contains narrations of the previous lives of Lord Scripture Glory, written in the same tone as the Buddhist Jâtaka.

2. For the exact meaning of this word see the Preface.

3. We omit here a few lines which to the English reader, not familiar with Chinese ways, would appear to interrupt the context. In the opening sentence of the Chinese text, Lord Scripture Glory alludes to a number of moral stories, well known among the Chinese, as instances of rewards of virtue. We have removed the lines here omitted to the Chinese Commentary, where they are printed in the same type as our translation of the text of Yin Chih Wen, so as to render them easily recognizable. For all we know the passages may be a later addition which has crept into the text, but even then, of course, they must be older than the commentaries belonging to them in which the stories alluded to are told. For further details see the Chinese Commentary 3-6, entitled "A Good Judge," CC4 "Humaneness Rewarded," CC5 "Saving Many Lives," and "The Double-Headed Snake." CC6

4. "Bliss of happiness" is a Buddhist term and its Sanskrit original is probably punyakshetra.

5. The word benevolence translates the Chinese fang pien literally "deeds of benevolence," which is the common version

p. 40

of the Buddhist term upâya and means "method" or "successful way of attaining an end." It is especially applied in the literature of the Mahayana, in the sense which the English word "method" has acquired among Wesleyan Methodists. Prajnâ, "wisdom," is in itself insufficient because it is enlightenment in the abstract. In order to become efficient for salvation it must be applied, and the method of applying prajnâ is upâya, commonly designated kausala, i. e., "good or excellent." The method of salvation according to Buddhist teachers is by "deeds of benevolence" as indicated by its Chinese translation.

The commentator interprets the term fang pien in a popular sense and takes it for "any deed that is beneficial to others." In Buddhism this word plays a very important part, and its adoption here shows how strongly the author of this short treatise was influenced by Indian thought.

6. "Creatures" should be understood in the broadest sense, for it refers to all objects about us.

7. "Impartiality of heart" again belongs to Buddhist phraseology. The Sanskrit original is samatâcitta or samatâhridaya. The commentator, however, understands it in the sense of the Confucian Golden Rule, that whatever you do not desire to have done to you, you should not do to others (the Lun Yü, XII, 21), and also in the Buddhist sense that a Bodhisattva (intelligent being) should be free from the thought of an ego (atmasamjnâ). (The Diamond-Cutter Sutra.)

8. According to a Chinese Buddhist sutra, the first obligation is to the parents, the second to all sentient beings, the third to the ruler of the country, and the fourth to the Triple Treasure (triratna) of Buddhism. Though the author must have borrowed the idea from Buddhism, the commentator's enumeration does not agree with the latter. He puts teachers and elders in place of the Triple Treasure, and Heaven and Earth, for all sentient beings.

9. The three doctrines are Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. The commentator evidently thinks humaneness (jên) to be the essence of Confucianism, compassion (karunâ) that

p. 41

of Buddhism, and response and retribution (kan ying) that of Taoism, and declares that they all come out of the human heart, which is one and the same in all three religions.

10. It is strange that the author does not say anything here about the relation between husband and wife, while he is manifestly referring to the five eternal virtues (wu chang) of Confucianism.

11. The term "the Truthful One" (i. e., chen) refers to the religion of the Taoists. Chen may denote Lao Tze, or the doctrine in general, or Taoist saints, or the Taoist sacred book, T'ai-Shang Kan-Ying Pien.

12. The term "Sutras" originally refers only to Buddhist books, but the commentator does not wish to have the phrase interpreted in that sense, and says: "Though they seem specifically to denote Buddhist literature, we may better understand them as virtually including all the classical books belonging to the three religions."

13. This is a Buddhist custom, for the saving of lives is considered to be very meritorious. The Buddhist theory is that if in this life we do not act humanely we are sure to be born in the form of a lower animal and to suffer for what we have done. We may perchance find some of our own ancestors among horses or dogs or birds whom we now treat carelessly and contemptuously, forgetting the good they did for us.

14. This is also distinctly a Buddhist sentiment, not originally found in China.

15. In the Lun Yü (Confucian Analects) we read: "The Master angled, but did not use a net. He shot, but not at birds perching." (XII, 27.) The passage is understood to mean that Confucius was so tender-hearted as not to take advantage of animals when hunting, and that he killed them only when it was necessary for the sustenance of human life.

16. The Chinese show great respect for writing and writing materials, because, they say, by them we become acquainted with the virtues, wisdom and sayings of ancient sages. Any

p. 42

writing, to the Chinese, partakes of the nature of spirit, and there is a special order of monks who make it their duty to collect written scraps of paper and burn them, to save them the disgrace of any disrespectful treatment.

17. Says a Taoist sage, according to the commentator: "I have three canonical books, which altogether consist of only six characters. The one-character book reads, 'Meekness'; the two-character book, 'Good-will'; and the three-character book, 'Do your duty.' These three sacred books are not found in the Great Tripitaka [collection of Buddhist literature], but in your own heart."

18. "Let go hatred" translates the words hsieh yüan. "To owe a grudge" is called in Chinese, "Tieing (the knot of) hatred or enmity," that is, chieh yüan; and so to return to an amicable relation is conceived as a loosening, or untieing.

19. This means not to forget for a moment the deeds or instructions of wise men of old, "to be always on guard lest the heart might go astray." Says Confucius (Lun Yü, IV, 5): "The superior man does not, even for a space of a single meal, act contrary to virtue. In moments of haste his mind dwells on it. In time of danger his mind dwells on it." In the Chung Yung, (Doctrine of the Mean), it is said that the tao ("path," or "doctrine") is not for a moment to, be ignored, for that which can be ignored is not the tao.

20. This is decidedly Confucian. The Great Learning (Tai Hsiao) as well as The Doctrine of the Mean (Chung Yung) teach one to be watchful over himself when he is alone. This watchfulness is not merely intellectual, but full of religious feelings. In spite of their agnostic tendencies, the Confucians show a great earnestness and solemn reverence toward Heaven's Reason (Tien Tao).

21. This is one of the noblest injunctions given by the Buddha. (The Dhammapada, verse 183). In Pali it reads:

"Sabba pâpassa akaranam,
Kusalassa upasampadâ."

Niao Che, a Buddhist recluse who lived in Hang Chou about 800 A. D., declares: "Even a three year old child can

p. 43

say this, but even a gray-haired man finds it difficult to practise." Cf. also Psalm xxxiv, 14 and xxxvii, 27.

22. "The Chinese word shen means god or any spiritual being, and according to the context would here best be translated by "angel."



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Next: Index.

p. 47
INDEX.
Abstinence, commendable, 20.

Age of the Yin Chih Wen, 12.

Angel, 43.

Ants, Mindful Of, 20; Nest Of, 29.



Babylon, 21 n.

Befriend the hungry, 19.

Benefit all, 17.

Bliss, Foundation of, 31; of happiness, 39.

Books in heart, 42.

Brothers at variance, 20.

Buddha, 18, 34.

Buddhism, 35.



Captive animals, 35; Buy, 20.

Ch'ang 8.

Chang-O 12; incarnation of Wen Ch'ang, 10.

Ch'ang-tze, 32.

Ch'en An-Shan, 32.

Chih defined, 4; first used, 5.

Child can say this, etc., 42-43

Chou-tze, 25.

Christ, 5.

Chün, 8.

Coffins, Give away, 19.

Confucianism, 34.

Confucius, 42.

Convert, 18.

Coverlet, 22.



Daniel's vision, 10.

Delitzsch, 21 n.

Deliver from danger, 18.

Dhammapada, 31 n., 42.

Discourse on morality, 18.

Doctrines, The three, 18, 40.

Douglas, R. K. 3, 8.



Egotism, 32.

Evil, Refrain from, 22.



Father, Like a, 25.

Filial piety, 33; Elements of, 34.

Fire, Be cautious with, 20.

Foundation of happiness, 17, 39.

Four obligations, 18, 40.

Frivolity, 34, 35.

Frontispiece, by Shen Chin-Ching, 7.



Gabriel, 9.

Golden Rule 40.

Good deeds do, 22, 42.

Graveyards, Build, 19.

Great Plan, 5 f.

Guiding principle (ting) 6.



Happiness, Foundation of, 17, 39.

Hatred, Let go, 21.

Heart, and mouth, 21; Books in, 42; impartial, 18, 40; Reverential, 34.

Heaven, and earth, 25, 26; Be honest like, 18; Quiet way of, 4; Secret virtue attuned to, 17.

Heaven's reason, 22, 33 n, 36, 42; way should be imitated, 5.

Helpful sayings, 21.

Honest, Be, like Heaven, 18.

Hsieh Wen-Ching, 33.

Humaneness rewarded, 27, 29.

Humble, Be, 21.

Hungry, Befriend the, 19.



Improper language, 21.

Incarnated seventeen times, 17.

p. 48

Incarnations, Book of, 39.

Indebtedness to the Lord, 25.



Jâtaka Stories, 39.

Judge, A good, 26.



Kan-Ying P'ien, 3.

Karma, 28.

Kwan Ti, 9.



Lao Tze, 5, 8 f.

Life-will, 33 n.

Light lanterns, 19.

Litigation, Do not stir, 20.

Love of the Lord, 25.



Marduk, 9.

Measures, accurate, 19.

Meddle, Do not, 20.

Methodists, 40.

Michael, 9.

Mindful of ants, 20.

Morality, Discourse on, 18.

Mouth and heart, 21.



Nebo, 9.

Nietzsche, 8.

Northern Constellation, 18, 34.



Orphans, 17, 18.

Ox that Plows, 20.



Paper written on, 20, 41.

Philanthropic institutions, 19.

Popularity of Yin Chih Wen, 3.

Practise goodness, 18.

Presume not, Let the rich, 21.

Proceed in goodness, 36.

Publish sutras, 19.



Reincarnation, 17, 39.

Reverential heart, 34.

Rewards, 22.

Rich presume not, Let the, 21.



Salvation and truth, 32.

Schopenhauer, 33 n.

Scripture glory, 8.

Secret, sin (Yin o), 6; virtue, 4-5; virtue attuned to heaven, 17.

Self, Idea of, 32-33.

Seventeen times incarnated, 17.

Shakespeare, 5.

Shen Chin-Ching, Frontispiece by, 7.

Shu-King, 5.

Snake, Double-headed, 30.

Suzuki, Teitaro, 13.



Three doctrines, 18, 40.

Ti, 8, 9.

Ting, "Guiding principle," 6.

Title, Chinese characters of, p. 15. Cf. pp. 3 f. and 11; Difficulties of translation, 3; explained by commentator, 6.

Truth and salvation, 32.

Truthful One, 18, 41.



Unheeded, Let deeds be, 17.



Ways, Several, 34.

Wen, 8.

Wen Ch'ang, 9.

Wen Ch'ang Ti Chün, 7 f.

Widows, 8.

Writing, Respect for, 20, 41.



Yang and Yin, 28.

Yin Chih, 3 ff., 17.

Yin Chih Wen, Contents of, 12; Popularity of, 3.

Yin defined, 4.

Yin o "Secret sin," 6.

Taoist Texts:
Ethical, Political, and Speculative
Frederic Henry Balfour
[Shanghai and London, 1884]
{Reduced to HTML by Christopher M. Weimer, Sept. 2003}

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This is a small selection of varied texts from the Taoist Canon, including yet another translation of the Tao Te Ching. As intimated in the subtitle, some of the books relate to ethics, some to politics, and some to internal alchemy. Selections marked with an * are not translated in Legge's Texts of Taoism, and are thus believed to be new to the internet here. The English translations of the titles shown below are given in the text, but only on the headers of the pages. There are in the original moderately extensive notes in Chinese, but the characters have all been replaced with ### in this edition in the interest of saving bandwidth, resulting in some notes which are now absurdly meaningless.


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Title Page
INTRODUCTION.
THE TAO TE CHING. (The Principle of Nature and Its Attributes)
THE YIN FU CHING. (Clue to the Unseen)
* THE T'AI HSI CHING. (Respiration of the Embryo)
* THE HSIN YIN CHING. (Imprint of the Heart)
* THE TA T'UNG CHING. (Universal Understanding)
* THE CH'IH WEN TUNG. (The Red-Streaked Cave)
THE CH'ING CHING CHING. (Purity and Rest)
* A CHAPTER FROM THE HUNG LIEH CHUAN, BY HUAI-NAN TSZE, PRINCE OF KUANG LING. (History of Great Light)
* THE SU SHU. (The Book of Plain Words)
THE KAN YING PIEN. (The Book of Recompenses)

TAOIST TEXTS
ETHICAL POLITICAL AND SPECULATIVE
BY
FREDERIC HENRY BALFOUR
Editor of the North-China Herald; Author of Waifs & Strays from the Far East, The Divine Classic of Nanhua, Idiomatic Dialogues in the Peking Colloquial, etc.


[London and Shanghai, 1884]
{Reduced to HTML by Christopher M. Weimer, Sept. 2003}

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Next
p. 1

THE TAO TÊ CHING.

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PREFATORY NOTE.

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IT is only after some years of hesitation that I have undertaken a new version of the Tao Tê Ching. The task has already been performed by Julien, Chalmers, Strauss, Plänckner, and Legge, most of whom, at any rate, are scholars of the first water. But it occurs to me—and with all deference I make the avowal—that one prime defect lies at the root of every translation that has been published hitherto; and this is, that not one seems to have been based solely and entirely on commentaries furnished by members of the Taoist school. The Confucian element enters largely into all; and here, I think, an injustice has been done to Lao Tsze. To a Confucianist, the Taoist system is in every sense of the word a heresy, and a commentator holding this opinion is surely not the best expositor. It is as a grammarian rather than as a philosopher that a member of the Ju-chia deals with the Tao Tê Ching; he gives the sense of a passage according to the syntactical construction rather than according to the genius of the philosophy itself; and in attempting to explain the text by his own canons instead of by the canons of Taoism, he mistakes the superficial and apparently obvious meaning for the hidden and esoteric interpretation. One of the greatest reproaches levelled at the Taoist system by Confucian scholars is the alleged scorn of ethical morality attributed to Lao Tsze and his followers. They have been represented as ascribing all the troubles and vices of China to the example of Yao and Shun, and to the doctrines respecting benevolence, rectitude, ceremonies, and music enforced by the Sages who immediately succeeded them. Lü Tsu, in his commentary, vehemently controverts this theory, and strives to prove, not only that Taoism and Confucianism are at one upon such points, but that the latter is actually based upon the former—being a mere carrying-out in practice, a careful systematising, as it were, of the radical doctrines of Lao Chün. The fact that I have entirely discarded all assistance from commentators of the Confucian school is my only excuse for coming forward with a new translation of this important classic. The version now presented is based solely upon the commentaries of Lü Ch‘un-yang, commonly called Lü Tsu, the well-known Taoist patriarch of the eighth century of our era; and his guidance I have followed throughout. I candidly admit that this has not been done without some effort. It was no means easy, at first, to reject what appeared p. 2 to be the plain, clear, unmistakeable meaning of the text—a meaning, too, endorsed by many eminent Chinese scholars, such as Chu Hsi, Liu Chieh-fu, Wang Pi, and Su Tsze-yu, and adopted by Legge, Julien, and Chalmers—in favour of an interpretation at once far-fetched and obscure. But I felt that I was after all under the guidance of a disciple, and not a critic, of the Master; and although many passages which before stood out distinctly enough are now dimmed by mysticism, I cannot help thinking that we have advanced a step towards the comprehension of their true significance. There are other passages the existing translations of which, apart from questions of commentary, I believe to be entirely, and indeed palpably, wrong, and of these I now offer a new rendering with confidence. The versions of Julien and Chalmers have lain beside me, and I have constantly referred to them; but far from relying on them for assistance, each glance has shown me how wide and radical was the divergence between them and the work growing slowly but steadily under my hand.

  I need only add that the words enclosed in brackets [thus] are for the most part representative of the commentary I have followed, and thus serve to supplement the meagre and laconic text. Occasionally a few lines of additional elucidation or remark have been appended, where necessary, in smaller type.


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TEXT.

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I.
  The TAO, or Principle of Nature, may be discussed [by all]; it is not the popular or common Tao—[e.g., the tao-li of ethics, dealing with the ### and the ###].

  Its Name may be named [i.e., the TAO may receive a designation, though of itself it has none]; but it is not an ordinary name, [or name in the usual sense of the word, for it is a presentment or ειδωλον of the Infinite].

p. 3

  Its nameless period was that which preceded the birth of the Universe, [the ###];

  In being spoken of by name, it is as the Progenitrix of All Things, [the period of the ###, which divided and produced the ###].

  It is therefore in habitual passionlessness [the ### or Quiescent phase of TAO] that its mystery may be scanned; and in habitual desire [the ### or Active phase of TAO] that its developments may be perceived.

  These two conditions, the Active and the Quiescent, alike proceed [from TAO]; it is only in name that they differ. Both may be called profundities; and the depth of profundity is the gate of every mystery.


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II.
  The Beautiful being once recognised as such by the world, the Repulsive appears [as its converse]. Goodness being once recognised as such, Evil appears in like manner. Thus existence and non-existence produce each other; the difficult and the easy bring about each other; the long and the short impart form to each other; the high and low comply [or change places] with each other; sounds and voices harmonise with each other; priority and sequence alternate with each other.

  Wherefore the Sage pursues a policy of inaction, and teaches men in silence; [i.e., he conforms to the TAO or Course of Nature, which proceeds silently and spontaneously, and thus the people learn to govern themselves by his example without needing the interferences of legislation and instruction].

  He forms all things without shrinking [from the labour]; produces them without claiming the possession [of virtue]; acts without presuming on [his ability]; and completes his achievements without taking any credit to himself. It is only he who thus does not stand upon his merit; and therefore his merit does not depart from him.

p. 4


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III.
  [The Sage], by not showing exclusive approval of those who are eminent in virtue, prevents the people from quarrelling; by not setting high store on things difficult to obtain, he prevents the people from becoming robbers; by closing his eyes to objects of desire, he secures his heart from corruption. Wherefore the Sage, in governing, does so with a heart empty [of all distractions and temptations], but a bosom full [of justice and benevolence]; he makes his will pliant, his bodily frame-work firm; he ever keeps the people from [harmful] knowledge and desires, and prevents those who have such knowledge from daring to put it into practice. He pursues a policy of inaction, and there is therefore nothing that is left ungoverned.


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IV.
  The TAO is full [q.d., exhaustless and complete]; yet in operation as though not self-elated. In its origin it is as it were the Ancestor of All Things. It chastens asperity; it unravels confusion; it moderates the radiance [proceeding from those in whom TAO is embodied—see Chuang Tsze, 'Kêng-sang Ch‘u']; and it identifies itself with the sordid ones of the earth [the "dust" or common people—see Mencius, Book V, chap. 1, sec. 3; q.d., it enables a man to associate with the base without being defiled]. Pellucid [as a spreading ocean] it yet has the semblance of permanence. I know not whose offspring it is. Its ειδωλον existed before God was.

p. 5


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V.
  If Heaven and Earth were not benevolent, they would regard creation in the light of grass [which is worthless] and dogs [which are killed]. If the Sage were not benevolent, he would likewise regard the people in the light of grass and dogs.

  *⁎* The Commentator insists at some length that the phrase ### is hypothetical, and must not be taken as stating an actual fact.

  The space between Heaven and Earth may be compared to a leathern bag, or box; [a receptacle with Heaven for a lid and Earth for a floor]. It is a vacuum [outside which there is nothing], exercising no pressure [on that which is within]; the more it moves, the more prolific it is. Those who talk too much will often come to an end of their words. It is better to maintain rectitude [inwardly].


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VI.
  The Spirit of the Depths is immortal; it is called the Azure [Heaven] and the Mother [Earth]. The passage through which these Two Influences [###] emerge and enter is called the root [or nidus] of the visible creation. They are ceaseless in action as though permanent, and may be drawn upon [used, or laid under contribution] without ever being exhausted.

  *⁎* Compare the passage ### in the ###.

p. 6


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VII.
  Heaven is everlasting; Earth endures. The reason of the endurance of Heaven and Earth is that they were not self-produced. Therefore it is that they are able to endure for ever. Thus, though the Sage [in imitation of them] regards the cultivation of his body as of secondary importance, his body still progresses [of its own accord]; he discards his body, and yet his body is preserved. Is not this because he has no selfishness? Wherefore he is able to realise all his wishes [in carrying out the principles of TAO in his own person].


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VIII.
  The goodness of the Ruler resembles water [in pliancy, adaptability, and fertilising power]. The goodness of water is beneficial to all things, and that without struggling.

  The abiding-place [of the Imperial goodness] is despised by the multitude [for it is lowly—referring to the downward course of water]; and therefore it is near to TAO. Wherever it dwells, it sanctifies the spot. In the heart, its sanctifying properties are unfathomable. In bestowing, it sanctifies benevolence; in speaking, it sanctifies trustworthiness; in administration, it sanctifies government; in the fulfilment of daily work, it sanctifies ability; in the adoption of public measures it sanctifies acting seasonably. It alone never strives against [or places itself in opposition to] anyone; and therefore it gives rise to no resentful feelings.


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IX.
  It is better to desist altogether, than, having once grasped [the TAO], to pride oneself on one's self-sufficiency. Research, if carried on to too p. 7 keen a point, prevents the preservation of the body [q.d., hastens death]. When a hall is filled up with gold and jewels, it cannot be guarded intact. When wealth and honours are combined with arrogance, they themselves invoke calamity. To keep oneself in the background when merit has been achieved and fame has followed in its wake; this is the way of Heaven.


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X.
  Having received, in the birth-process, a living soul, one is able, by preserving its individuality [pure and uncorrupted], to prevent disunion [with the pure original]. By controlling the vital force, and bringing it to the utmost degre'e of pliancy, one is able to become as a little child again—[revert to one's pristine state of innocence]. By washing and cleansing oneself of that which Heaven alone can see [i.e., secret sins], one may become without one blemish. By governing the Empire by love towards the people, one is able to keep them from knowing [evil; they will live in an atmosphere of contentment and trust].

  When the Door of Heaven is now open, now closed, then the Female Principle will disappear; [all will be pure Yang].

  *⁎* The Commentator points out that this is the Door of Virtue, through which men are permitted by Heaven to pass to and fro; and these will be assimilated with the Yang in all its purity, which is dominated by ###. The admixture of Yin and Yang in a man's heart leads to disturbance, and is therefore to be avoided. The opening and closing of the Door are to be understood as signifying ### and ### respectively.

  If one's understanding reaches in every direction, he can disregard knowledge [as such; there will be no such thing, to him, as ignorance]. What he produces, he nourishes. Producing, he does not claim the possession [of virtue]; acting, he does not presume upon [his ability]. Though he be a veteran among his fellows, he assumes no seignory over them. This may be called Sublime Virtue—[the highest development of TAO].

p. 8


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XI.
  Thirty spokes, uniting in a nave, were employed [in olden times] before the invention of carriages. Clay made into utensils was employed before the time of palaces and dwellings [when there were no sacrificial vases, goblets, or bowls]. A door and a window, hewn [in a hill-side], did duty for a residence before the erection of houses. Wherefore, the possession of these things may be regarded as beneficial, while their [former] absence may be said to have been useful [in that it led to the necessity of their being made].

  *⁎* In support of this translation, vide the Commentaries of Confucius on the Yî Ching, Part II, chap. 2.


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XII.
  The five colours blind the eyes of men. The five tones deafen their ears. The five flavours vitiate their palates. Galloping and hunting induce derangement of the mind. Objects that are difficult of attainment lead them to incur obstacles, [or injury—in their pursuit].

  Thus the Sage cares for his inner self, and not for that which his eye can see; for which reason he discards the latter and preserves the former.

p. 9


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XIII.
  Favour and disgrace are alike a cause of fear. Honours bring great calamity upon the body.

  What is it that one calls favour and disgrace? Disgrace implies downfal; the loss of one and subjection to the other, are equally causes of apprehension. Therefore it may be said that favour and disgrace both give rise to fear.

  And what is meant by saying that honours bring calamity upon the body? The calamities which come upon me are the consequence of my possessing a body; had I none, what calamities could I incur?

  Wherefore, if the honours which come upon me personally are on account of my position as a ruler, then the whole Empire will subject itself to me; and those who cultivate personal benevolence in ruling may commit themselves to the Empire for ever.


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XIV.
  That which may be looked for, but proves invisible, is called the Distant. That which may be listened for, but proves inaudible, is called Vacancy. That which may be clutched at, but proves intangible, is called the Subtle. Words are inadequate thoroughly to examine these three properties; therefore they blend together and become One.

  Above, it is not bright; below, it is not dim. Continuous in endurance, it cannot be named. In reverting to vacuity it may be called the Form of Formlessness, the Image of the Non-existent; for which reasons it is unsearchable.

  Standing opposite to it, one cannot see its head [front]; following it, one cannot perceive its back [or foot-prints].

  Obtaining the TAO of ancient times, and applying it as an aid to the methods in vogue at the present day, so that one is able to arrive at a knowledge of its long-past origin, may be called [getting] the Germ, or Clue, of TAO.

p. 10


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XV.
  [The TAO of] those eminent for wisdom in the olden times was subtle, mysterious, recondite, and penetrating; its depths were uncognizable by others. These, [the non-adepts], being unable to learn it, strove by main force, therefore, to act it out in practice. They endured [the hardships of their search] as those who ford streams in the winter. Cautious were they, as those who dread [the ridicule of] their neighbours; reverent were they, as those who entertain a visitor; expansive were they, as ice on the point of melting; simple and unpolished were they, as unhewn wood; vacant were they, as a ravine; undiscerning were they, as turbid water.

  Who is able to make turbid water grow gradually clear by reducing it to quiescence? Who is able to impart [unending] life to that which is at rest by setting it in perpetual motion? Those who preserve this TAO desire no fulness; wherefore, having no fulness, they are able to guard it in their hearts for ever and it never requires to be renewed.


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XVI.
  When the extreme of emptiness is reached [as by Heaven], and quiescence rigidly preserved [as by Earth], then all things are simultaneously produced; and by this [example] I observe their revolutions. All things, after flourishing like the herb yün, return each to what it sprang from. Returning to this source is called quiescence, p. 11 and this implies a reversion to the original ordinance [of Heaven]. Reversion to the original ordinance [of Heaven] is called the basis or pivot [###] of TAO. Knowledge of this may be called enlightenment, while ignorance of it leads to a reckless working-out of one's own ruin. He who knows it, bears with others. Bearing with others, he is just; being just, he is fit to be a king; being a king, he is the associate of Heaven [whose decree he holds and whose ordinancee he carries out]. Heaven is [the offspring of] TAO; and TAO survives the death of him who is the embodiment of it, living on unharmed for ever.


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XVII.
  Those of preëminent wisdom and purity knew [this TAO] intuitively from their birth, and so possessed it. Those of the second rank—the men of virtue—approached it nearly, and eulogised it. Those of the third rank—who were still above the commonalty—stood in awe of it. Those of the lowest rank held it in light esteem. Their belief in it was superficial, or imperfect; while there were even some who did not believe in it at all.

  [The first] spoke only with forethought and calculation, as though honouring their words. When their [public] labours were achieved, and affairs progressed unimpeded, the people all said, "This is our natural and spontaneous condition."


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XVIII.
  When the Great TAO [of the Five Rulers and the Three Dynasties] fell into disuse, Benevolence and Rectitude appeared.

  *⁎* This refers to the rise of ethical science under the Sages—a substitute for the silent guidance of TAO. under which the golden age of China had been passed.

  Men of wisdom and kindness came forth, and then hypocrisy began to spread—[good men were counterfeited by the base]. Discord arose p. 12 in families, and this manifested [by contrast] the virtues of filial piety and compassion. The State was thrown into anarchy, and this led to the appearance of faithful Ministers.


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XIX.
  When Sages are rejected as rulers, and the services of the wise are discarded, the people's wealth will increase a hundredfold; [for their hearts will all be set on covetousness]. When benevolence and rectitude [in government] are abjured, [such will be the height of disorder that] the people will revert to their natural qualities of filial piety and compassion [by sheer force of reaction]. When ingenuities of luxury and eagerness for gain are renounced, there will be no more robbers—[for there will be no accumulations of wealth to be worth stealing]. These three propositions show that mere externals are insufficient for good government, and therefore each man should be ordered to confine himself to performing his own special work in life.

  *⁎* It is evident, from the forced interpretation of the above sentences, that the Commentator has expended all his ingenuity in an attempt to clear Lao Tsze from the imputation of reviling the Sages and repudiating ethical morality. How far he has succeeded, those who are familiar with the Confucianist expositors are able to judge for themselves.

p. 13


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XX.
  By looking always on the reality of things, and preserving the simple truth, [the people] will become less selfish and have fewer desires; and by pursuing their researches [into the Doctrine] to the utmost limit, they may avoid sorrow.

  How small is the distance dividing a prompt affirmative from a sycophantic acquiescence; [yet] how great is that between virtue and immorality! I cannot but fear that which is feared by others. [Their scholarship], how neglected is it! It is still night with them.

  The world is joyful and merry as on a day of sacrifice, or as those who mount a belvedere in spring-time. I alone prefer solitude and quiet, and seek not to pry into futurity. I am like an infant ere it has grown to be a child; listlessly I roam hither and thither, as though I had no home to go to. The multitude have abundance and to spare; I alone am like one who has relinquished everything. Have I, therefore, the heart of a fool? Confused and dim, while the vulgar are [apparently] enlightened; I alone am in the dark. Tossed to and fro, like the sea; roving without cessation. The multitude have whereupon to employ their energies; I alone am doltish as a clown. [But] I alone differ from all others in that I reverence my Nursing Mother.


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