THE CHINESE CLASSICS (PROLEGOMENA)
by James Legge
A note from the digitizer
This digitized version preserves the original page breaks. The text ofeach page is followed by its notes. Note reference numbers in the text areenclosed in brackets.
In a few places I have substituted the character forms available in theBig 5 character set for rare or (what are now considered) nonstandardforms used by Legge. Characters not included in the Big 5 character set inany form are described by their constituent elements.
THE CHINESE CLASSICS
with a translation, critical and exegetical notes,prolegomena, and copious indexes
by
James Legge
IN FIVE VOLUMES
CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
THE GREAT LEARNING
THE DOCTRINE OF THE MEAN
PROLEGOMENA.
CHAPTER I.
OF THE CHINESE CLASSICS GENERALLY.
SECTION I.
BOOKS INCLUDED UNDER THE NAME OF THE CHINESE CLASSICS.
1. The Books now recognised as of highest authority in China arecomprehended under the denominations of 'The five Ching [1]' and'The four Shu [2].' The term Ching is of textile origin, andsignifies the warp threads of a web, and their adjustment. An easyapplication of it is to denote what is regular and insures regularity. Asused with reference to books, it indicates their authority on the subjects ofwhich they treat. 'The five Ching' are the five canonical Works,containing the truth upon the highest subjects from the sages of China, andwhich should be received as law by all generations. The term Shusimply means Writings or Books, = the Pencil Speaking; it maybe used of a single character, or of books containing thousands ofcharacters.
2. 'The five Ching' are: the Yi [3], or, as it has been styled, 'TheBook of Changes;' the Shu [4], or 'The Book of History;' the Shih[5], or 'The Book of Poetry;' the Li Chi [6], or 'Record of Rites;' and theCh'un Ch'iu [7], or 'Spring and Autumn,' a chronicle of events,extending from 722 to 481 B.C. The authorship, or compilation rather, of allthese Works is loosely attributed to Confucius. But much of the Li Chi isfrom later hands. Of the Yi, the Shu, and the Shih, it is only in the first thatwe find additions attributed to the philosopher himself, in the shape ofappendixes. The Ch'un Ch'iu is the only one of the five Ching which can,with an approximation to correctness, be described as of his own 'making.'
1 五經.
2 四書.
3 易經.
4 書經.
5 詩經.
6 禮記.
7 春秋.
'The Four Books' is an abbreviation for 'The Books of the FourPhilosophers [1].' The first is the Lun Yu [2], or 'Digested Conversations,'being occupied chiefly with the sayings of Confucius. He is the philosopherto whom it belongs. It appears in this Work under the title of 'ConfucianAnalects.' The second is the Ta Hsio [3], or 'Great Learning,' now commonlyattributed to Tsang Shan [4], a disciple of the sage. He is he philosopher ofit. The third is the Chung Yung [5], or 'Doctrine of the Mean,' as the namehas often been translated, though it would be better to render it, as in thepresent edition, by 'The State of Equilibrium and Harmony.' Its compositionis ascribed to K'ung Chi [6], the grandson of Confucius. He is the philosopherof it. The fourth contains the works of Mencius.