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儒林下
Confucian Scholars, Part Two
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列傳第七十儒林下
Biography 70: Confucian Scholars, Part Two
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沈重樊深熊安生樂遜黎景熙冀俊趙文深辛彥之何妥蕭該包愷房暉遠馬光劉焯劉炫褚暉顧彪魯世達張沖王孝籍
Shen Chong, Fan Shen, Xiong Ansheng, Yue Xun, Li Jingxi, Ji Jun, Zhao Wenshen, Xin Yanzhi, He Tuo, Xiao Gai, Bao Kai, Fang Huiyuan, Ma Guang, Liu Chao, Liu Xuan, Chu Hui, Gu Biao, Lu Shida, Zhang Chong, and Wang Xiaoji.
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沈重，字子厚，吳興武康人也。 性聰悟，弱歲而孤，居喪合禮。 及長，專心儒學，從師不遠千里。 遂博覽群書，尤明《詩》及《左氏春秋》。 梁武帝欲高置學官，以崇儒教。 中大通四年，乃革選，以重補國子助教。 後除《五經》博士。 梁元帝之在籓也，甚歎異之。 及即位，乃遣主書何武迎重西上。
Shen Chong, styled Zihou, came from Wukang in Wuxing. He was bright by nature, orphaned in youth, and observed mourning with proper ritual decorum. As an adult he devoted himself to Confucian studies, traveling great distances to seek instruction. He came to read widely and was especially expert in the Book of Odes and the Zuo Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals. Emperor Wu of Liang wished to raise the standing of the state academies to exalt Confucian instruction. In the fourth year of Zhongdatong (532), the court reformed its selections and appointed Chong assistant instructor at the Imperial Academy. He was later made Erudite of the Five Classics. When Emperor Yuan of Liang was still a prince, he held Chong in exceptional regard. Upon his accession, Yuan sent Chief Clerk He Wu west to bring Chong to court.
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魏平江陵，重乃留事梁主蕭察，累遷都官尚書，領羽林監。 察又令重于合歡殿講《周禮》。 武帝以重經明行修，乃遣宣納上士柳裘致書禮聘，又敕襄州總管衛公直敦喻遣之，在途供給，務從優厚。 保定末，至於京師，詔令討論《五經》，並校定鐘律。 天和中，復於紫極殿講三教義，朝士、儒生、桑門、道士至者二千餘人。 重辭義優洽，樞機明辯，凡所解釋，咸為諸儒所推。 六年，授驃騎大將軍、開府儀同三司、露門博士，仍于露門館為皇太子講《論語》。 建德末，表請還梁，武帝優詔不許。 重固請，乃許。 為遣小司門上士楊汪送之。 梁主蕭巋拜重散騎常侍、太常卿。 大象二年，來朝京師。 開皇三年卒，年八十四。 隋文帝遣舍人蕭子寶祭以少牢，贈使持節、上開府儀同三司、許州刺史。 重學業該博，為當世儒宗。 至於陰陽圖緯、道經、釋典，無不通涉。 著《周禮義》三十一卷、《儀禮義》三十五卷、《禮記義》三十卷、《毛詩義》二十八卷、《喪服經義》五卷、《周禮音》一卷、《儀禮音》一卷、《禮記音》二卷、《毛詩音》二卷。
After Wei captured Jiangling, Chong remained in the service of the Liang ruler Xiao Cha, rising to Minister of the Court for State Ceremonies while also holding the post of Superintendent of the Forest Guard. Cha also had him expound the Rites of Zhou in the Hall of Joined Delight. Seeing that Chong was learned in the classics and upright in conduct, Emperor Wu of Zhou sent Senior Adviser Liu Qiu with a formal letter of invitation and ordered Xiangzhou’s regional commander, Duke Wei, to press him to come; his travel provisions were to be as generous as possible. At the end of the Baoding era he reached the capital, where an edict charged him to deliberate on the Five Classics and to collate the pitch-pipes and musical standards. During the Tianhe era he again expounded the Three Teachings in the Hall of Purple Perfection before an audience of more than two thousand court officials, Confucian scholars, Buddhist monks, and Daoist priests. Chong’s exposition was fluent and thorough, his reasoning sharp and incisive, and every explanation he gave won the acclaim of the assembled scholars. In the sixth year he was made General of Agile Cavalry, Director with powers equal to the Three Dukes, and Erudite of the Lumen Gate, and he continued to lecture on the Analects to the crown prince at the Lumen Gate Academy. At the end of the Jiande era he submitted a memorial asking to return to Liang; the emperor replied with a gracious edict refusing permission. Chong pressed his request again, and at last permission was granted. The court sent Junior Keeper of the Inner Gate, Senior Gentleman Yang Wang, to escort him home. The Liang ruler Xiao Kui appointed him Palace Attendant at Large and Minister of Ceremonies. In the second year of Daxiang (581) he came to the capital on a court visit. He died in the third year of Kaihuang (583), aged eighty-four. Emperor Wen of Sui sent Palace Attendant Xiao Zibao to offer the secondary sacrifice and posthumously conferred on him the title of Commissioner with Extraordinary Powers, First-Rank Director with Powers Equal to the Three Dukes, and Governor of Xuzhou. Chong’s scholarship was comprehensive, and he was regarded as the leading Confucian authority of his age. He also ranged across yin-yang lore, apocryphal texts, Daoist scriptures, and Buddhist sutras without exception. His writings included Exegesis on the Rites of Zhou in thirty-one juan, Exegesis on the Ceremonies in thirty-five juan, Exegesis on the Record of Rites in thirty juan, Exegesis on the Mao Odes in twenty-eight juan, Exegesis on the Canon of Mourning Garments in five juan, and phonological studies on the Rites of Zhou, the Ceremonies, the Record of Rites, and the Mao Odes.
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樊深，字文深，河樂猗氏人也。 事繼母甚謹，弱冠好學，負書從師於河西，講習《五經》，晝夜不倦。 魏永安中，隨軍征討，以功累遷中散大夫。 嘗讀書，見吾丘子，遂歸侍養。
Fan Shen, styled Wenshen, was a native of Yishi in Hele. He served his stepmother with great devotion; in his youth he loved learning, shouldered his books, and followed teachers in Hexi, studying the Five Classics day and night without fatigue. During the Yongan era of Wei he campaigned with the army and, for his achievements, rose repeatedly to Palace Gentleman for Regular Attendance. Once, while reading, he came upon the story of Wuqiu Zi and returned home to care for his parents.
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孝武西遷，樊王二姓舉義，為魏所誅。 深父保周、叔父歡周並被害。 深因避難，墜崖傷足，絕食再宿。 於後遇得一簞餅，欲食之，然念繼母老痺，或免虜掠，乃弗食。 夜中匍匐尋覓，母得見，因以饋母。 還復遁去，改易姓名，遊學于汾晉間。 習天文及算曆之術。 後為人所告，囚送河東。 屬東魏將韓軌長史張曜重其儒學，延深至家，因是便得逃隱。 周文平河東，贈保周南郢州刺史，歡周儀同三司。 深歸葬其父，負土成墳。
When Emperor Xiaowu moved the capital west, the Fan and Wang clans rose in loyal protest and were put to death by Wei. Shen’s father Bao Zhou and his uncle Huan Zhou were both killed in the purge. Shen fled the slaughter, fell from a cliff and injured his foot, and went without food for two nights. Later he found a basket of cakes and was about to eat, but remembering that his aged and crippled stepmother might yet escape capture, he refused to touch them. That night he crawled about searching for her; when he found his mother, he gave her the cakes. He fled again, changed his name, and traveled to study in the Fen and Jin regions. He also studied astronomy and calendrical computation. Later someone denounced him, and he was imprisoned and sent to Hedong. At that time Zhang Yao, chief clerk to the Eastern Wei general Han Gui, valued his scholarship and took him into his household, allowing him to escape and live in hiding. When Emperor Wen of Zhou pacified Hedong, he posthumously made Bao Zhou Governor of Nan’e and Huan Zhou a Director with powers equal to the Three Dukes. Shen returned to bury his father and carried earth on his back to build the tomb mound himself.
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尋而於謹引為府參軍事，令在館授教子孫。 周文置學東館，教諸將子弟，以深為博士。 深經學通贍，每解書，多引漢魏以來諸家義而說之。 故後生聽其言者，不能曉悟，背而譏之曰：「樊生講書，多門戶，不可解。」 然儒者推其博物。 性好學，老而不怠。 朝暮還往，常據鞍讀書，至馬驚墜地，損折支體，終亦不改。 後除國子博士，賜姓萬紐於氏。 天平二年，遷縣伯中大夫，加開府儀同三司。 建德元年，表乞骸骨，詔許之。 朝廷有疑議，常召問焉。 後以疾卒。
Soon afterward Yu Jin took him on as a staff officer and had him teach the sons and grandsons in his household. Emperor Wen of Zhou established a school in the Eastern Hall to educate the sons of his generals and appointed Shen its erudite. Shen was thoroughly versed in the classics; whenever he lectured, he drew on interpretations from Han and Wei scholars of many schools. His younger listeners often could not follow him and mocked him behind his back: “When Master Fan lectures, there are too many schools at once—nothing can be made of it. Yet the scholarly community still admired his encyclopedic learning. By nature he loved learning and never slackened, even in old age. Morning and evening on the road to court he would read in the saddle; when his horse bolted and threw him, breaking his limbs, he still did not change the habit. He was later appointed Erudite of the National University and granted the surname Wanniu. In the second year of Tianping he was promoted to Grand Master of the State with the rank of district marquis and given additional powers equal to the Three Dukes. In the first year of Jiande he asked to retire on grounds of age, and the court granted his request. Whenever the court faced doubtful matters, he was regularly summoned for consultation. He later died of illness.
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深既專經，又讀諸史及《倉》、《雅》、篆、籀、陰陽、卜筮之書。 學雖博贍，訥於辭辯，故不為當時所稱。 撰《孝經》《喪服問疑》各一卷。 又撰《七經異同》三卷。 子義綱。
Shen devoted himself to the classics and also read histories, primers such as the Cang Jie and Erya, seal and clerical scripts, and works on yin-yang lore and divination. Though his learning was broad, he was slow of speech and therefore won little contemporary renown. He compiled one juan each of Questions and Doubts on the Classic of Filial Piety and on Mourning Garments. He also compiled three juan on Differences and Agreements among the Seven Classics. His son was Yigang.
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熊安生，字植之，長樂阜城人也。 少好學，勵精不倦。 從陳達受《三傳》，從房虯受《周禮》，事徐遵明，服膺歷年，後受《禮》于李寶鼎，遂博通《五經》。 然專以《三禮》教授，弟子自遠方至者千餘人。 乃討論圖緯，捃摭異聞。 先儒所未悟者，皆發明之。 齊河清中，陽休之特奏為國子博士。 時西朝既行《周禮》，公卿以下，多習其業，有宿疑碩滯者數十條，皆莫能詳辨。 天和三年，周齊通好，兵部尹公正使焉。 與齊人語及《周禮》，齊人不能對。 乃令安生至賓館，與公正言。 公正有口辯，安生語所未至者，便撮機要而驟問之。 安生曰：「《禮》義弘深，自有條貫，必欲升堂睹奧，寧可汨其先後？ 但能留意，當為次第陳之。」 公正於是問所疑，安生皆為一一演說，咸究其根本。 公正嗟服。 還，具言之于武帝，帝大欽重之。
Xiong Ansheng, styled Zhizhi, came from Fucheng in Changle. In youth he loved learning and strove tirelessly without slackening. He studied the Three Commentaries under Chen Da, the Rites of Zhou under Fang Qiu, and studied under Xu Zunming for many years with devoted respect; later he received instruction in the Rites from Li Baoding and came to master the Five Classics. He specialized in teaching the Three Rites, and more than a thousand disciples came from distant places to study with him. He investigated apocryphal texts and gathered unusual traditions. Whatever earlier scholars had not yet understood, he elucidated. In the Heqing era of Northern Qi, Yang Xiuzhi specially memorialized that he be appointed Erudite of the National University. At that time the Western court had adopted the Rites of Zhou; among dukes, ministers, and officials below, many studied the text, yet several dozen longstanding doubts remained that no one could clearly resolve. In the third year of Tianhe (568), when Zhou and Qi were on friendly terms, Yin Gongzheng of the Ministry of War was sent as envoy. When he spoke with the men of Qi about the Rites of Zhou, they could not answer. They then had Ansheng come to the guest quarters to debate with Gongzheng. Gongzheng was skilled in debate; wherever Ansheng’s exposition had not yet reached, he would seize the crucial point and press him with sudden questions. Ansheng said, “The meaning of the Rites is vast and deep and follows its own order; if you wish to ascend the hall and glimpse the inner sanctum, how can you muddy the sequence by leaping ahead? If you will pay attention, I shall set them forth for you in due order. Gongzheng then asked his doubts, and Ansheng explained each one, tracing every point to its root. Gongzheng sighed in admiration. On his return he reported fully to the emperor, who held Ansheng in high esteem.
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及入鄴，安生遽令掃門。 家人怪而問之，安生曰：「周帝重道尊儒，必將見我矣。」 俄而帝幸其第，詔不聽拜，親執其手，引與同坐，謂曰：「朕未能去兵，以此為愧。」 安生曰：「黃帝尚有阪泉之戰，況陛下龔行天罰乎！」 帝又曰：「齊氏賦役繁興，竭人財力，朕救焚拯溺，思革其弊，欲以府庫及三台雜物散之百姓，公以為何如？」 安生曰：「昔武王克商，散鹿台之財，發巨橋之粟，陛下此詔，異代同美。」 帝又曰：「朕何如武王？」 安生曰：「武王伐紂，懸首白旗； 陛下平齊，兵不血刃，愚謂聖略為優。」 帝大悅，賜帛三百匹、米三百石、宅一區，並賜象笏及九鐶金帶，自餘什物稱是。 又詔所司給安車駟馬，令隨駕入朝，並敕所在供給。 至京，敕令於大乘佛寺，參議五禮。 宣政元年，拜露門博士、下大夫，時年八十餘。 尋致仕，卒於家。
When the Zhou army entered Ye, Ansheng immediately ordered his gate swept. His family wondered and asked why; Ansheng said, “The Zhou emperor honors the Way and esteems Confucian learning—he is sure to visit me. Before long the emperor visited his home, ordered that he need not bow, personally took his hand, and seated him beside himself, saying, “I have not yet been able to lay down arms—for this I am ashamed.” Ansheng said, “Even the Yellow Emperor still fought at Banquan—how much more when Your Majesty is carrying out Heaven’s punishment!” The emperor also said, “Under the Qi, taxes and corvée were heavy and drained the people’s wealth; I am rescuing them from fire and flood and wish to reform these abuses. I intend to distribute the contents of the treasuries and the miscellaneous goods of the Three Platforms among the people—what do you think?” Ansheng said, “When King Wu overcame Shang, he dispersed the wealth of Lutai and released the grain of Juqiao; Your Majesty’s edict matches the beauty of that ancient deed.” The emperor also asked, “How do I compare with King Wu?” Ansheng said, “King Wu attacked Zhou and hung his head on a white flag; Your Majesty pacified Qi without bloodshed on the blades—in my humble view your sagely strategy is superior.” The emperor was greatly pleased and bestowed three hundred bolts of silk, three hundred shi of grain, and a residence, along with an ivory court tablet and a gold belt with nine rings; the remaining gifts were of like generosity. He also ordered the relevant offices to supply a four-horse carriage and commanded him to enter court with the imperial procession, with orders that local authorities provide for him along the way. When he reached the capital, an edict ordered him to take part at the Mahayana Monastery in deliberating on the Five Rites. In the first year of Xuanzheng he was appointed Erudite of the Lumen Gate and Junior Grand Master, being then more than eighty years old. Soon afterward he retired from office and died at home.
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安生既學為儒宗，嘗受其業，擅名於後者，有馬榮伯、張黑奴、竇士榮、孔籠、劉焯、劉炫等，皆其門人焉。 所撰《周禮義疏》二十卷，《禮記義疏》三十卷、《孝經義》一卷，並行於世。 安生與同郡宗道暉、張暉、紀顯敬、徐遵明等為祖師。 道暉好著高翅帽、大屐，州將初臨，輒服以謁見，仰頭舉肘，拜於屐上，自言學士比三公。 後齊任城王湝鞭之，道暉徐呼安偉，安偉出，謂人曰：「我受鞭，不漢體。」 復躡屐而去。 冀州人為之語曰「顯公鐘，宋公鼓，宗道暉屐，李洛姬肚」，謂之四大。 顯公，沙門也，宋公，安德太守也； 洛姬，婦人也。
As the leading Confucian authority of his age, Ansheng had among his disciples those who later won fame, including Ma Rongbo, Zhang Heinu, Dou Shirong, Kong Long, Liu Chao, and Liu Xuan. His writings included twenty juan of Exegesis and Commentary on the Rites of Zhou, thirty juan on the Record of Rites, and one juan of Exegesis on the Classic of Filial Piety, all of which circulated in his time. Ansheng, together with his fellow townsman Zong Daohui, Zhang Hui, Ji Xianjing, and Xu Zunming, were regarded as founding masters of the school. Daohui liked to wear a high-winged cap and large clogs; whenever a regional commander first arrived, he would dress thus to pay his respects, lifting his head and elbows to bow atop his clogs while declaring that a scholar was the equal of the Three Dukes. Later the Prince of Rencheng of Qi, Xiao Kan, whipped him; Daohui slowly called for An Wei, and when An Wei emerged he told the onlookers, “I took the lash, but I am not dressed as a Han man. He then strode off again in his clogs. The people of Jizhou made a saying of it: “Abbot Xian’s bell, Lord Song’s drum, Zong Daohui’s clogs, and Li Luoji’s belly”—these were called the Four Wonders. “Abbot Xian” was a Buddhist monk; “Lord Song” was the Administrator of Ande; Luoji was a woman.
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安生在山東時，歲歲遊講，從之者傾郡縣。 或誑之曰：「某村古鹆塚，是晉河南將軍熊光，去七十二世。 舊有碑，為村人埋匿。」 安生掘地求之，不得，連年訟焉。 冀州長史鄭大訁雚判之曰：「七十二世，乃是羲皇上人； 河南將軍，晉無此號。 訴非理記。」 安生率其族向鹆塚而號。 將通名，見徐之才、和士開二人相對，以徐之才諱「雄」，和士開諱「安」，乃稱「觸觸生」，群公哂之。
While Ansheng was in Shandong, he lectured on tour every year, and followers thronged from every commandery and county. Someone tricked him, saying, "In a certain village is an ancient magpie grave mound belonging to Xiong Guang, Jin General of Henan, seventy-two generations back. An old stele had been buried and hidden by the villagers. Ansheng dug in the earth seeking it but found nothing, and for years he kept bringing lawsuits over the matter. Zheng Dahuan, chief clerk of Jizhou, ruled on the case: "Seventy-two generations—that would be a man of Fuxi the August One's age; General of Henan—there was no such title in Jin. This suit has no basis in reason. Ansheng led his clan to the magpie grave mound and wailed aloud. When he was about to announce his name, he saw Xu Zhicai and He Shikai facing each other; because Xu Zhicai avoided the character xiong and He Shikai avoided an, he called himself "Mr. Chuchu"—and the assembled lords laughed at him.
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樂遜，字遵賢，河東猗氏人也。 幼有成人之操，從徐遵明于趙、魏間，受《孝經》、《喪服》、《論語》、《詩》、《書》、《禮》、《易》、《左氏春秋》大義。 尋而山東寇亂，學者散逸，遜於擾擾之中，猶志道不倦。 大統七年，除子都督。 九年，太尉李弼請遜教授諸子。 既而周文盛選賢良，授以守令。 相府戶曹柳敏、行台郎中盧光、河東郡丞辛粲相繼舉遜，稱有牧人之才。 弼請留不遣。 魏廢帝二年，周文召遜教授諸子。 在館六年，與諸儒分授經業，講《孝經》、《論語》、《毛詩》及服虔所注《春秋左氏傳》。 周閔帝踐阼，以遜有理務材，除秋官府上士，轉小師氏下大夫。 自譙王儉以下，並束脩行弟子之禮。 遜以經術教授，甚有訓導之方。 及衛公直鎮蒲州，遜為直主簿。
Yue Xun, whose courtesy name was Zunxian, came from Yishi in Hedong commandery. As a youth he already showed mature conduct; he studied under Xu Zunming in Zhao and Wei and mastered the essential meanings of the Classic of Filial Piety, Mourning Garments, the Analects, the Odes, the Documents, the Rites, the Changes, and the Zuo Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals. Before long bandits ravaged Shandong and scholars scattered; amid the turmoil Xun still pursued the Way without tiring. In the seventh year of the Datong era he was made junior commandant. In the ninth year Grand Commandant Li Bi asked Xun to instruct his sons. Soon Duke Wen of Zhou conducted a broad selection of worthy men and appointed them prefects and magistrates. Liu Min, household clerk of the chancellor's office, Lu Guang, secretariat gentleman of the traveling secretariat, and Xin Can, assistant administrator of Hedong, recommended Xun in turn, praising his talent for governing the people. Li Bi asked that he be kept and not sent away. In the second year of the Deposed Emperor of Wei, Duke Wen of Zhou summoned Xun to teach his sons. He spent six years at the academy, sharing classical instruction with other Confucian masters, and lectured on the Classic of Filial Piety, the Analects, the Mao Odes, and Fu Qian's commentary on the Zuo version of the Spring and Autumn Annals. When Emperor Xiaomin of Zhou took the throne, Xun was made senior clerk of the Ministry of Punishments and then lower grand master of the Junior Master Shi, on account of his talent for practical administration. From Prince of Qiao Jian downward, all presented silk tribute and observed the rites due a disciple. Xun taught the classics and had excellent methods of instruction and guidance. When Prince Wei Zhi governed Puzhou, Xun served as his chief clerk.
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遜性柔謹，寡交遊，立身以忠信為本。 不自矜尚。 每在眾言論，未嘗為人之先，學者以此稱之。 所著《孝經》、《論語》、《毛詩》、《左氏春秋序論》十餘篇。 又著《春秋序義》，通賈、服說，發杜氏違，辭理並可觀。
Xun was gentle and cautious by nature, kept few associates, and grounded his conduct in loyalty and trustworthiness. He never put himself forward. In company he never spoke before others, and scholars praised him for this. He wrote more than ten works, including preface essays on the Classic of Filial Piety, the Analects, the Mao Odes, and the Zuoshi Spring and Autumn. He also wrote Preface to the Meaning of the Spring and Autumn, drawing on the commentaries of Jia Kui and Fu Qian while exposing flaws in Du Yu's readings—a work admirable in both style and argument.
16
初，周又有黎景熙，以古學顯。
Earlier in Zhou there was also Li Jingxi, who won renown for ancient learning.
17
黎景熙，字季明，河間鄭人，少以孝行聞於世。 曾祖嶷，魏太武時，以軍功賜爵容城縣男，後為燕郡守。 祖鎮、父瓊，並襲爵。 季明少好讀書，性強記默識，而無應對之能。 其從祖廣，太武時尚書郎，善古學。 常從吏部尚書清河崔宏受字義，又從司徒崔浩學楷篆，自是家傳其法。 季明亦傳習之，頗與許氏有異。 又好玄象，頗知術數，而落魄不事生業。 有書千餘卷。 雖窮居獨處，不以饑寒易操。 與范陽盧道源為莫逆交。 永安中，道源勸令入仕，始為威烈將軍。 孝武西遷，季明乃寓居伊洛。 侯景徇地河外，召季明從軍，稍遷黎陽郡守。 季明從至懸瓠，察景終不足恃，遂去之。 客於潁川。 時王思政鎮潁川，累使召季明，留於內館。 月餘，周文又征之，遂入關。 乃令季明正定古今文字於東閣。 大統末，拜著作佐郎。 于時倫輩，皆位兼常伯，車服華盛，唯季明獨以貧素居之，而無愧色。 又勤於所職，著述不怠。 然性尤專固，不合于時，是以一為史官，遂十年不調。 武成末，遷外史下大夫。
Li Jingxi, courtesy name Jiming, came from Zheng in Hejian and was known from youth for his filial conduct. His great-grandfather Ni, under Emperor Taiwu of Wei, was enfeoffed as baron of Rongcheng for military merit and later served as administrator of Yan commandery. His grandfather Zhen and his father Qiong both inherited the title. From youth Jiming loved books; he remembered silently and retained much, but was awkward in conversation. His paternal uncle Guang, under Emperor Taiwu, was a gentleman in the masters of writing and excelled in ancient learning. He studied the meaning of characters under Cui Hong of Qinghe, minister of personnel, and regular and seal script under Minister of State Cui Hao; the family thereafter transmitted these arts. Jiming learned them too, though his tradition differed somewhat from the Xu school. He also loved celestial divination and knew something of numerology, yet lived in poverty and did not pursue a regular livelihood. He owned more than a thousand scrolls of books. Though he lived alone in poverty, hunger and cold never changed his principles. He and Lu Daoyuan of Fanyang were the closest of friends. In the Yongan era Daoyuan urged him into office; he first became general of majestic valor. When Emperor Xiaowu fled west, Jiming settled in the Yi and Luo region. Hou Jing overran the lands beyond the Yellow River, summoned Jiming to his army, and soon made him administrator of Liyang commandery. Jiming followed him to Xuanhu, saw that Hou Jing could not be relied upon in the end, and left him. He stayed in Yingchuan as a guest. Wang Sizheng was then defending Yingchuan, summoned Jiming repeatedly, and kept him in the inner lodge. After more than a month Duke Wen of Zhou summoned him again, and he entered the passes. He was ordered to standardize ancient and modern writing in the Eastern Pavilion. At the end of the Datong era he was made assistant gentleman for composition. His peers all held concurrent posts as regular palace attendants and dressed in splendid style; only Jiming lived in poverty and simplicity without a trace of shame. He was also diligent in his duties and never slackened in his writing. Yet he was stubborn by nature and ill suited to the times; once he became a historiographer, he went ten years without promotion. At the end of the Wucheng era he was promoted to lower grand master of the outer historiography.
18
保定三年，盛營宮室。 春夏大旱，詔公卿百僚，極言得失。 季明上封事曰：
In the third year of Baoding palace construction was carried out on a grand scale. Spring and summer brought severe drought; the throne ordered ministers and officials to speak freely on what was going wrong. Jiming submitted a sealed memorial:
19
臣聞成湯遭旱，以六事自陳。 宣王太甚，而圭璧斯竭。 豈非遠慮元元，俯哀黎庶。 今農要之月，時雨猶愆，率土之心，有懷渴仰。 陛下垂情萬類，子愛群生，覲禮百神，猶未豐洽。 豈或作事不節，有違時令，舉措失中，當邀斯旱。
I have heard that when Cheng Tang encountered drought, he confessed his faults in six matters. When King Xuan of Zhou went too far, even jade offerings were exhausted. Surely that was because he looked to the welfare of the people and pitied the masses. Now in the month when agriculture matters most, timely rain is still lacking, and the whole realm looks up in thirst. Your Majesty cares for all living things and loves the people as his children; you perform rites to the spirits, yet blessings are not yet complete. Could it be that undertakings are ill timed, the seasons violated, or measures misplaced, and so this drought has been invited?
20
《春秋》，君舉必書，動為典禮。 水旱陰陽，莫不應行而至。 孔子曰：「言行，君子之所以動天地，可不慎乎！」 《春秋》莊公三十一年冬，不雨，《五行傳》以為是歲一年而三築台，奢侈不恤人也。 僖公二十一年夏，大旱，《五行傳》以為時作南門，勞人興役。 漢惠帝二年夏，大旱，五年夏，大旱，江河水少，溪澗水絕，《五行傳》以為先是發十四萬六千人城長安。 漢武帝元狩三年夏，大旱，《五行傳》以為是歲發天下故吏，穿昆明池。 然則土木之功，動人興役，天輒應之以異。 典籍作誡，倘或可思，上天譴告，改之則善。 今若息人省役，以答天譴，庶靈澤時降，嘉谷有時，則年登可覬，子來非晚。 《詩》云：「人亦勞止，迄可小康，惠此中國，以綏四方。」 或恐極陽生陰，秋多雨水，年復不登，人將無覬。 如又薦饑，為慮更甚。
The Spring and Autumn Annals records every act of a ruler; conduct is canon and ritual. Flood, drought, and the balance of yin and yang all respond to how a ruler behaves. Confucius said, "Words and conduct are how the gentleman moves Heaven and Earth—can one not be cautious? The Spring and Autumn Annals records that in the thirty-first year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, winter, there was no rain. The Treatise on the Five Phases holds that in that year three platforms were built in one year—extravagance without pity for the people. In the twenty-first year of Duke Xi of Lu, summer, there was great drought. The Treatise on the Five Phases holds that at that time the southern gate was under construction, exhausting the people with labor. In the second year of Emperor Hui of Han, summer, there was great drought. In the fifth year, summer, there was great drought; the great rivers ran low and streams dried up. The Treatise on the Five Phases holds that before this 146,000 men had been mobilized to build the walls of Chang'an. In the third year of Yuanshou of Emperor Wu of Han, summer, there was great drought. The Treatise on the Five Phases holds that in that year former officials throughout the realm were mobilized to dig the Kunming Pool. Thus whenever earth and wood works mobilize the people, Heaven responds with anomalies. The warnings of the classics are perhaps worth pondering; Heaven's reproof, if heeded, leads to good. If Your Majesty now rests the people and reduces corvée to answer Heaven's reproof, timely rain may fall, grain ripen, and the people come gladly—not too late. The Odes say, "The people also have labored; let them have a little ease; show favor to this central kingdom to bring peace to the four quarters. Or perhaps when yang reaches its extreme, yin will arise; autumn may bring heavy rain, the harvest may fail again, and the people will have nothing to hope for. If famine follows as well, the danger is even greater.
21
時豪富之家，競為奢麗。 季明又上書曰：
At the time wealthy families competed in extravagant display. Jiming submitted another memorial:
22
臣聞寬大所以兼覆，慈愛所以懷眾。 故天地稱其高厚者，萬物得其容養焉； 四時著其寒暑者，庶類資其忠信焉。 是以帝王者，寬大象天地，忠信則四時。 招搖東指，天下識其春； 人君布德，率土懷其惠。 伏惟陛下，資乾禦宇，品物咸亨，時乘六龍，自強不息，好問受規，天下幸甚。
I have heard that breadth enables covering all, and kindness enables embracing the multitude. Heaven and Earth are called high and thick because the ten thousand things receive shelter and nurture from them; the four seasons show cold and heat because all living kinds rely on their constancy and good faith. Thus emperors and kings model themselves on the breadth of Heaven and Earth and the good faith of the four seasons. When the Dipper points east, all under Heaven knows spring has come; when a ruler spreads virtue, the realm cherishes his grace. Your Majesty, endowed with Heaven's potency, governs all things in prosperity, rides the six dragons without cease, and loves to ask and receive remonstrance—the realm is greatly blessed.
23
自古至道之君，亦皆廣延博訪，詢采皞蕘，置鼓樹木，以求其過。 頃者亢旱逾時，人懷望歲，陛下爰發明詔，廣求六瘼，同禹、湯之罪己，高宋景之守正，澍雨應時，年穀斯稔。 克己節用，慕質去華，此則尚矣。 然而硃紫仍耀于衢路，綺縠猶侈于豪富，短褐未充於細人，糟糠未厭於編戶。 此則勸導之理，有所未周故也。 今雖導之以禮，齊之以刑，風俗固難以一矣。 昔漢文帝集上書之囊，以作帷帳； 惜十家之產，不造露臺。 後宮所幸，衣不曳地，方之今日富室之飾，嘗不如婢隸之服。 然而以身率下，國富刑清，廟稱太宗，良有以也。 臣聞聖人久于其道而天下化成。 今承魏氏衰亂之後，貞信未興。 宜先尊五美，屏四惡，革浮華之俗，抑流競之風，察鴻都之小藝，焚雉頭之異服，無益之貨勿重于時，虧德之器勿陳於側，則人知德矣。
Since antiquity rulers of utmost virtue have sought counsel widely, even from the humblest, and welcomed criticism to learn their faults. In recent years drought lasted beyond its season and the people hoped for rain. Your Majesty issued a brilliant edict seeking the people's afflictions, matching Yu and Tang in blaming yourself and Song Jing in holding to the upright; timely rain came and the year's grain ripened. You restrained yourself and economized, admired simplicity and detested extravagance—this is already lofty. Yet crimson and purple still blaze on the roads, fine silks still adorn wealthy houses, coarse cloth does not clothe the common people, and coarse grain does not fill their bowls. This shows that guidance and persuasion have not yet reached everywhere. Though you guide them with ritual and align them with punishments, custom is hard to unify at once. Formerly Emperor Wen of Han gathered memorial bags to make curtains; he would not build a terrace that cost the wealth of ten households; palace women wore robes that did not trail on the ground—compared with rich houses today, even servants dress more lavishly. By leading through his own example the state grew rich and punishments were clear; the temple honors him as Emperor Taizong, and rightly so. When the sage long abides in the Way, all under Heaven is transformed. Now, after the disorders of Wei, constancy and trust have not yet been restored. First follow the five beauties and banish the four evils: reform empty display, restrain reckless competition, examine minor arts, burn outlandish dress, let useless goods not be prized, and harmful luxuries not be displayed—then the people will know virtue.
24
臣又聞之，為政之要，在於選舉。 若差之毫釐，則有千里之失； 後來居上，則致積薪之譏。 是以古之善為政者，貫魚以次，任必以能。 爵人於朝，不以私愛。 簡才以授其官，量能以任其用。 官得其才，任當其用，六轡既調，坐致千里。 虞舜選眾，不仁者遠，則庶事康哉，人知其化矣。
The essential of governing lies in selection and appointment. A hairsbreadth of error leads to a thousand-li mistake; If inferiors outrank their seniors, they invite the reproach of heaping fuel upon fuel. The ancients who governed well advanced men in proper sequence, like fish strung on a line, and always assigned office according to ability. They ennobled men at court without private favoritism. They selected talent for office and measured capacity for duty. When office held the right talent and assignment matched capacity, the six reins were tuned and a thousand li could be reached without rising from the seat. When Yu Shun chose from among the multitude and the unworthy stood far off, the myriad affairs were well ordered and the people knew his transforming power.
25
帝覽而嘉之。
The emperor read the memorial and commended him.
26
時外史廨宇屢移，未有定所。 季明又上言曰：「外史之職，漢之東觀，帝王所寶，此焉攸在。 自魏及周，公館不立，臣雖愚瞽，猶知其非。 是以去年十一月中，敢冒奏陳，特降中旨，即遣修營。 荏苒一周，未知功力。 臣職思其憂，敢不重請。」 帝納焉，於是廨宇方立。 天和二年，進車騎大將軍、儀同三司。 後以疾卒。
At that time the outer historians’ offices were repeatedly relocated and had no fixed site. Jiming submitted another memorial: “The office of outer historian corresponds to the Eastern Pavilion of Han—what emperors treasure is kept here. From Wei through Zhou no public hall was established; though I am foolish and blind, I still know this was wrong. Therefore in the eleventh month of last year I dared memorialize, and a special edict descended ordering construction at once. A full year has passed and the progress of the work is still unknown. The duties of my office weigh upon my mind; I dare press the request again. The emperor accepted it, and only then were the offices established. In the second year of Tianhe he was promoted to General of Chariots and Cavalry and Director with powers equal to the Three Dukes. He later died of illness.
27
又周文初，屬天下分崩，時學術之士蓋寡，故曲學末伎，咸見引納。 至若冀俊、趙文深之徒，雖才愧昔人，而名著於世，並見收用。
In the early years of Emperor Wen of Zhou, when the realm was sundered, scholars were few; crooked learning and petty skills were therefore all brought in and employed. Men such as Ji Jun and Zhao Wenshen, though their talent fell short of the men of old, were renowned in their age and were all received and employed.
28
冀俊，字僧俊，太原陽邑人也。 性沈謹，善隸書，特工模寫。 初為賀拔岳墨曹參軍。 岳被害，周文引為記室。 時周文志平侯莫陳悅，乃令俊偽為魏帝敕書與費也頭，令將兵助周文討悅。 俊尋舊敕模寫，及代舍人、主書等署，與真無異。 周文大悅。 費也頭見敕，不以為疑，遂遣兵受周文節度。 大統初，封長安縣男，從征弘農，戰于沙苑，進爵為子。 累遷襄樂郡守。 尋征還，教明帝及宋獻公等隸書。 時俗入書學者亦行束修之禮，謂之謝章。 俊以書字所興，起自蒼頡，若同常俗，未為合禮，遂啟周文，釋奠蒼頡及先聖、先師。 除黃門侍郎、本州大中正。 累遷湖州刺史。 靜退，每以清約自處。 前後所曆，頗有聲稱。 尋加驃騎大將軍、開府儀同三司。 後進爵為昌樂侯，卒。
Ji Jun, styled Sengjun, came from Yangyi in Taiyuan. By nature he was reserved and careful, skilled in clerical script, and especially expert at imitation and copying. At first he served as a staff officer in the Ink Office under Heba Yue. When Yue was killed, Emperor Wen of Zhou took him on as recorder. At that time Emperor Wen wished to pacify Hou Mo Chen Yue and ordered Jun to forge an imperial edict of the Wei emperor to the Feiye’er tribe, commanding them to lead troops to aid him in attacking Yue. Jun copied from old edicts and substituted the signatures of the attendant secretaries and chief clerks, so that it was indistinguishable from the genuine. Emperor Wen was greatly pleased. The Feiye’er saw the edict and had no suspicion, and sent troops to accept Emperor Wen’s command. In the early Dazong era he was enfeoffed as Baron of Chang’an; he followed the campaign against Hongnong and fought at Shaye, and was advanced to viscount. He was repeatedly promoted to Administrator of Xiangyue. Soon he was recalled and instructed Emperor Ming and Duke Xian of Song and others in clerical script. At that time those who entered schools of calligraphy also observed the ceremony of presenting dried meat, called the “letter of thanks.” Jun held that because writing arose with Cang Jie, to follow ordinary custom would not accord with ritual; he therefore memorialized Emperor Wen to offer sacrifices to Cang Jie and to the Former Sage and Former Teacher. He was appointed Palace Attendant and chief rectifier of his native province. He was repeatedly promoted to Governor of Huzhou. Quiet and retiring, he always maintained himself in frugal purity. In the offices he successively held, he won a fair reputation. He was soon additionally made General of Agile Cavalry and Director with powers equal to the Three Dukes. He was later advanced to Marquis of Changle and died.
29
趙文深，字德本，南陽宛人也。 父遐，以醫術仕魏，為尚藥典禦。 文深少學楷隸。 年十一，獻書于魏帝。 後立義歸朝，除大丞相府法曹參軍。 雅有鐘、王之則，筆勢可觀。 當時碑榜，唯文深、冀俊而已。 大統十二年，追論立義功，封白石縣男。 文帝以隸書紕繆，命文深與黎季明、沈遐等依《說文》及《字林》，刊定六體，成一萬餘言，行於世。 及平江陵之後，王褒入關，貴遊等翕然並學褒書。 文深之書，遂被遐棄。 文深慚恨，形於言色。 後知好尚難及，亦改習褒書。 然竟無所成，轉被譏議，謂之學步邯鄲焉。 至於碑榜，余人猶莫之逮。 王褒亦每推先之。 宮殿樓閣，皆其跡也。 遷縣伯下大夫。 明帝令至江陵書影覆寺碑，漢南人士，亦以為工。 梁主蕭察觀而美之，賞遺甚厚。 天和元年，露寢等初成，文深以題榜之功，除趙興郡守。 文深雖居外任，每須題榜，輒復追之。 後以疾卒。
Zhao Wenshen, styled Deben, came from Wan in Nanyang. His father Xia served Wei with medical skill as Director of the Palace Pharmacy. Wenshen in youth studied regular and clerical scripts. At eleven he presented a writing to the Wei emperor. Later he raised righteous troops and submitted to the court, and was appointed legal staff officer in the Grand Chancellor’s headquarters. He had the standards of Zhong and Wang in elegance, and his brushwork was admirable. At that time for steles and placards only Wenshen and Ji Jun were employed. In the twelfth year of Dazong, in reckoning merit for raising righteous troops, he was enfeoffed as Baron of Baishi. Because clerical script was erroneous, Emperor Wen ordered Wenshen, together with Li Jiming and Shen Xia and others, to collate the six scripts according to the Shuowen and the Zilin, producing more than ten thousand characters that circulated in the world. After the pacification of Jiangling, Wang Bao entered the Pass, and the nobility all at once studied Bao’s calligraphy. Wenshen’s writing was then cast far behind. Wenshen’s resentment showed in his words and countenance. Later, knowing that prevailing taste was hard to match, he also changed to studying Bao’s script. Yet in the end he achieved nothing and was ridiculed as one who imitated the Handan gait. As for steles and placards, others still could not match him. Wang Bao also always gave him precedence. Palaces, towers, and pavilions all bear traces of his hand. He was promoted to Junior Grand Master with the rank of district marquis. Emperor Ming ordered him to Jiangling to write the stele of the Yingfu Temple, and the gentlemen of Hannan also deemed it accomplished. The Liang ruler Xiao Cha viewed it and admired it, rewarding him very generously. In the first year of Tianhe, when the Lumen dormitory and other buildings were first completed, Wenshen was made Administrator of Zhaoxing for his merit in inscribing the placards. Though Wenshen held an outer post, whenever placards were needed he was summoned back. He later died of illness.
30
隋文帝受禪，除太常少卿，改封任城郡公，進位開府。 曆國子祭酒、禮部尚書。 與秘書監牛弘撰新禮。 帝嘗令彥之與沈重論議，重不能抗，避席而謝曰：「辛君所謂金城湯池，無可攻之勢。」 帝大悅。 後除隨州刺史。 時州牧多貢珍玩，惟彥之所貢，並供祭之類。 上謂朝臣曰：「人安得無學！ 彥之所貢，稽古之力也。」 遷潞州刺史，前後俱有惠政。 彥之又崇信佛道，於城內立浮圖二所，並十五層。 開皇十一年，州人張元暴死，數日乃蘇。 雲遊天上，見新構一堂，制極崇麗。 元問其故，雲潞州刺史辛彥之有功德，造此堂以待之。 彥之聞而不悅。 其年卒，諡曰宣。
When Emperor Wen of Sui received the abdication, he was appointed Vice Minister of Ceremonies, his fief changed to Duke of Rencheng, and he was advanced to Director with powers equal to the Three Dukes. He successively held the posts of Chancellor of the National University and Minister of Rites. Together with the Director of the Secretariat Niu Hong he compiled the new rites. The emperor once ordered Yanzhi to debate with Shen Chong; Chong could not withstand him, rose from his mat, and apologized, saying, “What Lord Xin calls a golden rampart and boiling moat has no point that can be attacked. The emperor was greatly pleased. He was later appointed Governor of Suizhou. At that time most governors presented rare curiosities, but what Yanzhi presented consisted entirely of items for sacrifice. The emperor said to the court officials, “How can a man do without learning! What Yanzhi presented shows the force of investigating antiquity. He was transferred to Governor of Luzhou, and in both posts he had benevolent government. Yanzhi also deeply honored the Buddhist Way and erected within the city two pagodas of fifteen stories each. In the eleventh year of Kaihuang, Zhang Yuan of the province suddenly died and after several days revived. He said he traveled in Heaven and saw a newly built hall of utmost splendor. Yuan asked the reason; he was told that Governor Xin Yanzhi of Luzhou had merit, and this hall was built to await him. Yanzhi heard it and was displeased. He died that year, and his posthumous title was Xuan.
31
彥之撰《墳典》一部、《六官》一部、《祝文》一部、《禮耍》一部、《新禮》一部、《五經異義》一部，並行於世。 子孝舒、仲龕，並早有令譽。
Yanzhi authored one work each on the Canon of Documents, the Six Offices, Prayer Texts, Essentials of Rites, New Rites, and Differences of Opinion on the Five Classics, all of which circulated in his time. His sons Xiaoshu and Zhongqian both early won fine reputations.
32
何妥，字棲風，西城人也。 父細腳胡，通商入蜀，遂家郫縣。 事梁武陵王紀，主知金帛，因致巨富，號為西州大賈。 妥少機警，八歲游國子學，助教顧良戲之曰：「汝姓何，是荷葉之荷？ 為河水之河？」 妥應聲答曰：「先生姓顧，是眷顧之顧？ 為新故之故？」 眾咸異之。 十七，以伎巧事湘東王。 後知其聰明，召為誦書左右。 時蘭陵蕭翽，亦有俊才，住青楊巷，妥住白楊頭。 時人為之語曰：「世有兩俊，白楊何妥，青楊蕭翽。」 其見美如此。
He Tuo, styled Qifeng, came from Xicheng. His father was a Sogdian merchant who traded into Shu and then made his home in Pixian. He served the Liang Prince of Wuling, Xiao Ji, as overseer of gold and silk, and thereby amassed great wealth, being called the greatest merchant of the Western Provinces. Tuo was clever from youth; at eight he entered the Imperial Academy, and Assistant Instructor Gu Liang teased him, saying, “Your surname He—is it the he of lotus leaf? Or the he of river water? Tuo answered at once, “Sir, your surname Gu—is it the gu of regard? Or the gu of old and new? The crowd all marveled at him. At seventeen he served the Prince of Xiangdong with skill in craft. Later, knowing his intelligence, the prince summoned him as a recitation attendant at his side. At that time Xiao Xu of Lanling also had outstanding talent; Xu lived on Green Poplar Lane and Tuo at White Poplar Head. People of the time made a saying of it: “In the age there are two outstanding men—He Tuo of White Poplar and Xiao Xu of Green Poplar. Thus was he admired.
33
江陵平，入周，仕為太學博士。 宣帝初立五後，問儒者辛彥之。 對曰：「後與天子匹體齊尊，不宜有五。」 妥駁曰：「帝嚳四妃，舜又二妃，亦何常數？」 由是封襄城縣男。 文帝受禪，除國子博士，加通直散騎常侍，進爵為公。
When Jiangling was pacified he entered Zhou and served as Erudite of the Grand Academy. When Emperor Xuan first established five empresses, he asked the Confucian Xin Yanzhi. He answered, “An empress shares the body and equal honor with the Son of Heaven; there should not be five. Tuo rebutted, saying, “Emperor Ku had four consorts and Shun again had two—what fixed number is there?” Thereupon he was enfeoffed as Baron of Xiangcheng. When Emperor Wen received the abdication, he was appointed Erudite of the National University, additionally made Regular Attendant at Large with direct access, and advanced in rank to duke.
34
妥姓勁急，有口才，好是非人物。 納言蘇威嘗言於上曰：「臣先人每誡臣云：唯讀《孝經》一卷，足可立身經國，何用多為？」 上亦然之。 妥進曰：「蘇威所學，非止《孝經》。 厥父若信有此言，威不從訓，是其不孝； 若無此言，面欺陛下，是其不誠。 不誠不孝，何以事君？ 且夫子又云：'不讀《詩》無以言，不讀《禮》無以立。 '豈容蘇綽教子，獨反聖人之訓乎？」 威時兼領五職，上甚親重之。 妥因奏威不可信任。 又以掌天文律度，皆不稱職，妥上八事以諫。
Tuo’s nature was forceful and urgent; he had a ready tongue and loved to pass judgment on others. Adviser Su Wei once said to the emperor, “My forefathers always admonished me: to read only one juan of the Classic of Filial Piety is enough to establish oneself and govern the state—what need is there to read much? The emperor agreed with him. Tuo stepped forward and said, "Su Wei's learning is not limited to the Classic of Filial Piety alone. If his father truly said this and Wei did not follow the teaching, that is unfilial; if there was no such saying, then to deceive Your Majesty to his face is insincerity. Insincere and unfilial—how can he serve his lord? Moreover the Master also said: "Without reading the Odes one has nothing to say; without reading the Rites one has no footing. How could Su Chuo alone, in teaching his son, go against the sage's instruction? At that time Wei held five offices concurrently, and the emperor favored and esteemed him greatly. Tuo thereupon memorialized that Wei could not be trusted. He also said that in astronomy and pitch-pipes Wei was altogether unfit for office, and Tuo submitted eight points in remonstrance.
35
其一事曰：臣聞知人則哲，惟帝難之。 孔子曰：舉直錯枉則人服，舉枉錯直則人不服。 由此言之，政之安危，必慎所舉。 故進賢受上賞，蔽賢蒙顯戮。 察今之舉人，良異於此。 無論諂直，莫擇賢愚。 心欲崇高，則起家喉舌之任； 意須抑屈，必白首郎署之官。 人不之服，實由於此。 臣聞爵人於朝，與士共之； 刑人於市，與眾棄之。 伏見留心獄訟，愛人如子，每應決獄，無不詢訪群公，刑之不濫，君之明也。 刑既如此。 爵亦宜然。 若有懋功，簡在帝心者，便可擢用。 自斯以降，若選重官，必參以眾議，勿信一人之舉，則上不偏私，下無怨望。
The first point said: I have heard that to know men is wisdom—only the emperor finds it difficult. Confucius said: Raise the upright and set them above the crooked and the people will submit; raise the crooked and set them above the upright and the people will not submit. From this it follows that the safety or peril of government depends on whom one appoints. Therefore to advance the worthy wins the highest reward, while to screen the worthy brings conspicuous punishment. Examining appointments today, the practice is quite the opposite. Flatterer or upright, none distinguishes worthy from unworthy. If one desires eminence, one begins with the duties of the throat and tongue; if one must be kept down, one ends white-haired in a secretariat post. That the people do not submit is truly owing to this. I have heard that to ennoble a man at court is to share him with the gentlemen; to punish a man in the market is to cast him off with the multitude. I observe that you attend carefully to lawsuits and love your people as sons; whenever you judge a case, you consult the high ministers—punishment without excess is the mark of a clear-sighted ruler. Punishment is already thus. Rewards should be the same. If there is outstanding merit and one is singled out in the emperor's heart, promote and employ him at once. From here on, when choosing high offices, consult broad deliberation; do not trust a single man's nomination—then above there will be no partiality and below no resentment.
36
其二事曰：孔子云：是察阿黨，則罪無掩蔽。 又曰：「君子周而不比，小人比而不周。」 所謂比者，即阿黨也。 謂心之所愛，既已光華榮顯，猶加提挈； 心之所惡，既已沈滯屈辱，薄言必怒。 提挈既成，必相掩蔽，則欺上之心生矣； 屈辱既加，則有怨恨，謗讟之言出矣。 伏願廣加訪察，勿使朋黨路開，威恩自任。 有國之患，莫大於此。
The second point said: Confucius said: Discern factions, and crimes cannot be concealed. He also said: "The gentleman is inclusive but does not form factions; the petty man forms factions but is not inclusive. What is called "forming factions" is precisely factional cliquing. Those whom the heart loves, though already splendid and honored, are still further elevated; those whom the heart hates, though already sunk low and humiliated, at the slightest word meet with wrath. Once elevation is accomplished, mutual concealment follows, and the heart to deceive one's superiors is born; once humiliation is added, resentment arises and slander goes forth. I humbly ask that you broaden investigation and not let the path of factions open so that authority and favor are taken into one's own hands. For one who holds a state, there is no affliction greater than this.
37
其三事曰：臣聞舜舉十六族，所謂八元八凱也。 計其賢明，理優今日。 猶復擇才授任，不相侵濫。 故得四門雍穆，庶績咸熙。 今官員極多，用人甚少，一人身上，乃兼數職。 為是國無人也？ 為是人不善也？ 今萬乘大國，髦彥不少，縱有明哲，無由自達。 東方朔言曰：「尊之則為將，卑之則為虜。」 斯言信矣。 今當官之人，不度德量力，既無呂望、傅說之能，自負傅岩、渭水之氣。 不慮憂深責重，唯畏總領不多。 安斯寵任，輕彼權軸。 顛沛致蹶，實此之由。 《易》曰：「鼎折足，覆公餗，其形渥，凶。」 言不勝其任也。 臣聞窮力舉重，不能為用。 伏願更任賢良，分才參掌，使各行其力，則庶事康哉。
The third point said: I have heard that Shun raised sixteen clans—the so-called Eight Worthies and Eight Heroes. Considering their worth and wisdom, they were in principle superior to men of today. Yet he still chose talent and assigned duties without mutual encroachment or excess. Therefore the four gates were harmonious and all achievements flourished. Today officials are extremely numerous but few are employed—on a single person several offices are piled. Is it because the state has no men? Or because the men are not good? Now in a great state of ten thousand chariots outstanding talents are not few; yet even the wise and clear-minded have no way to advance themselves. Dongfang Shuo said: "Honor a man and he becomes a general; degrade him and he becomes a captive. That saying is indeed true. Those who hold office today do not measure virtue and weigh capacity; lacking the ability of Lü Wang or Fu Yue, they yet pride themselves on the air of Fuyan and the Wei River. They do not consider that cares are deep and burdens heavy; they only fear that their overall charge is not extensive enough. Content with such favor and appointment, they treat lightly the axle of power. Overturning and falling—truly it comes from this. The Book of Changes says: "The cauldron's legs break; the lord's stew is overturned; his person is stained—misfortune. It speaks of not being equal to one's charge. I have heard that to exhaust one's strength lifting a heavy weight cannot be made useful. I humbly ask that you reassign the worthy and good, divide talents and share governance, and let each exert his strength—then the myriad affairs will be well ordered.
38
其四事曰：臣聞《禮》云：析言破律，亂名改作，執左道以亂政者殺。 孔子曰：仍舊貫，何必改作。 伏見比年以來，改作者多矣。 如範威刻漏，十載不成； 趙翊尺秤，七年方決； 公孫濟迂誕，醫方費逾巨萬； 徐道慶回互子午，糜耗飲食； 常明破律，多曆歲時； 王渥亂名，曾無紀極； 張山居未知星位，前已蹂藉太常； 曹魏祖不識北辰，今復晳蘭轢太史。 莫不用其短見，便自誇毗，邀射名譽，厚相誣罔。 請今日已後，有如此者，若其言不驗，必加重罰。 庶令有所畏忌，不敢輕奏狂簡。
The fourth point said: I have heard the Rites say: To twist words and break statutes, to disorder names and alter institutions, to hold to heterodox ways and disorder government—such men are put to death. Confucius said: Follow the old pattern—why alter and remake? I observe that in recent years those who alter and remake have been many. Fan Wei's clepsydra took ten years and was still not completed; Zhao Yi's yard-measure and scales were settled only after seven years; Gongsun Ji's pedantry and extravagance cost more than ten thousand in medical prescriptions; Xu Daoqing's twisting of the noon and midnight hours squandered food and drink; Chang Ming's breaking of statutes lasted many years; Wang Wo's disordering of names knew no limit; Zhang Shanju did not know the star positions—before, he had already trampled the Grand Steward; Cao Weizu did not recognize the North Star—now again he crushes the Grand Astrologer. None fails to employ his shallow views, boast to neighbors, seek reputation, and thickly deceive one another. I beg that from today onward, when there are such men, if their words are not verified, punishment be increased. So that they may have something to fear and not dare lightly submit wild and coarse memorials.
39
其餘文多不載。 時蘇威權兼數職，先嘗隱武功，故妥言「自負傅岩、渭水之氣」，以此激上。 書奏，威大銜之。 二年，威定考文學，妥更相訶詆。 威勃然曰：「無何妥，不慮無博士！」 妥應聲曰：「無蘇威，亦何憂無執事！」 於是與威有隙。
The remainder is mostly not recorded. At that time Su Wei held several offices concurrently; he had earlier concealed his military achievements, so Tuo's words about "priding oneself on the air of Fuyan and the Wei River" were meant to provoke the emperor. When the memorial was submitted, Wei deeply resented it. In the second year, when Wei set the assessments for literary scholars, Tuo and he again reviled each other. Wei said in rage: "Without He Tuo, I do not worry that there will be no erudites! Tuo answered on the spot: "Without Su Wei, what worry is there of having no chief administrator! Thereupon he had a breach with Wei.
40
其後，上令妥考定鐘律。 妥又上表曰：
Afterward the emperor ordered Tuo to examine and fix the bells and pitch-pipes. Tuo again submitted a memorial, saying:
41
臣聞明則有禮樂，幽則有鬼神。 然則動天地，感鬼神，莫近于禮樂。 又云：樂至則無怨，禮至則不爭。 揖讓而臨天下者，禮樂之謂也。 臣聞樂有二：一曰奸聲，二曰正聲。 夫奸聲感人而逆氣應之，正聲感人而順氣應之。 順氣成象，故樂行而倫清，耳目聰明，血氣和平，移風易俗，天下皆寧。 孔子曰：「放鄭聲，遠佞人。」 故鄭、衛、宋、趙之聲出，內則發疾，外則傷人。 是以宮亂則荒，其君驕； 商亂則破，其官壞； 角亂則憂，其人怨； 徵亂則哀，其事勤； 羽亂則危，其財匱。 五者皆亂，則國亡無日矣。
I have heard: when manifest there are rites and music; when hidden there are ghosts and spirits. To move Heaven and earth and touch ghosts and spirits, nothing is closer than rites and music. It is also said: when music reaches its utmost there is no resentment; when rites reach their utmost there is no contention. To rule all under Heaven through bowing and yielding—that is what rites and music mean. I have heard that music has two kinds: one called corrupt sound, one called correct sound. Corrupt sound moves people and contrary qi responds; correct sound moves people and harmonious qi responds. When harmonious qi forms images, music proceeds and relationships are clear, ears and eyes are keen, blood and breath are peaceful, customs are transformed, and all under Heaven is tranquil. Confucius said: "Banish the sounds of Zheng; keep sycophants at a distance. Therefore when the sounds of Zheng, Wei, Song, and Zhao appear, inwardly they produce illness; outwardly they harm people. If gong is disordered, there is desolation and the ruler becomes arrogant; if shang is disordered, there is collapse and the ministers are ruined; if jue is disordered, there is grief and the people resent; if zhi is disordered, there is sorrow and affairs are labored; if yu is disordered, there is peril and wealth is exhausted. If all five are disordered, the state will perish without delay.
42
魏文侯問子夏曰：「吾端冕而聽古樂，則欲寐； 聽鄭衛之音而不倦，何也？」 子夏對曰：「夫古樂者，始奏以文，復亂以武。 修身及家，平均天下。 鄭衛之音者，奸聲以亂，溺而不止，優雜子女，不知父子。 今君所問者，樂也，所愛者，音也。 夫樂之與音，相近而不同。 為人君者，謹審其好惡。」 案聖人之作樂也，非止苟悅耳目而已矣。 欲使在宗廟之內，君臣同聽之，則莫不和敬； 在鄉里之內，長幼同聽之，則莫不和順； 在閨門之內，父子同聽之，則莫不和親。 此先王立樂之方也。 故知聲而不知音者，禽獸是也； 知音而不知樂者，眾庶是也。 故黃鐘、大呂，弦歌幹戚，童子皆能舞之。 能知樂者，其惟君子。 不知聲者不可與言音，不知音者不可與言樂，知樂則幾於道矣。 紂為無道，太師抱樂器以奔周。 晉君德薄，師曠固惜清徵。
Marquis Wen of Wei asked Zixia: "When I wear my cap and robe and listen to ancient music, I want to sleep; when I listen to the sounds of Zheng and Wei I am not weary—why? Zixia replied: "Ancient music begins with civility and returns with martial vigor. It cultivates the person and the family and brings equity to all under Heaven. The sounds of Zheng and Wei are corrupt sounds in disorder, drowning without end, mixing actors and women until father and son are not known. Now what my lord asks about is music; what he loves is mere sound. Music and sound are close yet not the same. For a ruler, carefully examine what he favors and dislikes. For in the sages' making of music, it was not merely to please ears and eyes in passing. They wished that within the ancestral temple, when ruler and ministers listened together, all would be harmonious and reverent; In the villages, when elders and youths listen as one, none fail to live in harmony; Within the household gates, when father and son listen as one, none fail to be bound in affection. Such was the way the ancient kings set music in the world. Those who know sound but not pitch are no better than beasts; those who know pitch but not music are the common crowd. With the yellow bell and great bell, with strings and song, shields and halberds—even children can dance to them. To know music—that belongs to the gentleman alone. Speak not of pitch to one who knows not sound; speak not of music to one who knows not pitch; to know music is to stand almost upon the Way. Chou walked without the Way; the Grand Music Master clasped his instruments and fled to the house of Chou. When the Chin ruler's virtue ran thin, Music Master Kuang still would not lightly yield the clear chih mode.
43
上古之時，未有音樂，鼓腹擊壤，樂在其間。 《易》曰：「先王作樂崇德，殷薦之上帝，以配祖考。」 至於黃帝作《咸池》，顓頊作《六莖》，帝嚳作《五英》，堯作《大章》，舜作《大韶》，禹作《大夏》，湯作《大濩》，武王作《大武》。 從夏以來，年代久遠，唯有名字，其聲不可得聞。 自殷至周，備於《詩·頌》。 故自聖賢已下，多習樂者，至如伏羲減瑟，文王足琴，仲尼擊磬，子路鼓瑟，漢高擊築，元帝吹簫。
In the farthest antiquity there was no music yet—men beat their bellies and struck the earth, and joy lived in that alone. The Changes says: "The former kings made music to exalt virtue; in the Yin season they offered to the Supreme Lord, pairing him with the ancestors. The Yellow Emperor composed the "Xian-ch'ih"; Chuan-hsü the "Six Stems"; Emperor Ku the "Five Blossoms"; Yao the "Great Pattern"; Shun the "Great Shao"; Yü the "Great Hsia"; T'ang the "Great Hu"; King Wu the "Great Martial." From the Hsia onward the years stretch too far; only the titles survive—their music cannot be heard. From the Yin through the Chou, the canon is complete in the Odes and Hymns. From the sages downward, many mastered music: Fu-hsi reduced the se, King Wen trimmed the ch'in, Chung-ni struck the stone chimes, Tzu-lu plucked the se, Han Kao-tsu beat the chu, and Yuan-ti played the hsiao.
44
漢祖之初，叔孫通因秦樂人，制宗廟之樂。 迎神於廟門，奏《嘉至之樂》，猶古降神之樂也。 皇帝入廟門，奏《永至之樂》，以為行步之節，猶古《采薺肆夏》也。 乾豆上薦，奏《登歌之樂》，猶古清廟之歌也。 登歌再終，奏《休成之樂》，美神饗也。 皇帝就東廂坐定，奏《永安之樂》，美禮成也。 其《休成》、《永至》二曲，叔孫通所制也。 漢高祖廟，奏《武德》、《文始》、《五行之舞》。 當春秋時，陳公子完奔齊，陳是舜後，故齊有《韶》樂。 孔子在齊聞韶，三月不知肉味是也。 秦始皇滅齊，《韶》樂傳于秦。 漢高祖滅秦，《韶》樂傳於漢。 漢高祖改名《文始》，以示不相襲也。 《五行舞》者，本周《大武》樂也，始皇改曰《五行》。 及于孝文，復作《四時之舞》，以示天下安和，四時順也。 孝景采《武德舞》以為《昭德》，孝宣又采《昭德》以為《盛德》。 雖變其名，大抵皆因秦舊事。 至於晉、魏，皆用古樂。 魏之三祖，並制樂辭。 自永嘉播越，五都傾蕩，樂聲南度，以是大備江東。 宋、齊已來，至於梁代，所行樂事，猶皆傳古。 三雍四始，實稱大盛。 及侯景篡逆，樂師分散，其四舞三調，悉度偽齊。 齊氏雖知傳受，得曲而不用之於宗廟朝廷也。
In the first days of the Han, Shusun T'ung drew on Ch'in musicians and fashioned the ancestral-temple rites. At the temple gate they played "Chia-chih" to welcome the spirit—music of the old rite for summoning the god down. When the emperor crossed the temple threshold, "Yung-chih" marked his pace—as once "Ts'ai-ch'i" and "Ssu-hsia" had done. When the dried meats were raised in offering, they sang the Ascent Hymn—the old song of the pure temple. After the ascent hymn sounded twice, "Hsiu-ch'eng" followed, praising the god who had feasted. When the emperor sat in the east wing, "Yung-an" celebrated that the rite was complete. The two airs "Hsiu-ch'eng" and "Yung-chih" were Shusun T'ung's own work. In Han Kao-tsu's temple they danced "Martial Virtue," "Literary Beginning," and the Five Phases. In the Spring and Autumn era, Wan of Ch'en fled to Ch'i; Ch'en was Shun's line, and so Ch'i kept the Shao. Confucius heard the Shao in Ch'i and for three months forgot the taste of meat—this is that story. The First Emperor overthrew Ch'i, and the Shao passed into Ch'in. Han Kao-tsu overthrew Ch'in, and the Shao passed into Han. Han Kao-tsu renamed it "Literary Beginning," declaring he would not inherit the old title unchanged. The Five Phases dance was once the Chou Great Martial; the First Emperor retitled it Five Phases. Under Hsiao-wen they added the Four Seasons dance, proclaiming peace under Heaven and the seasons in their course. Hsiao-ching drew on Martial Virtue to fashion Manifest Virtue; Hsiao-hsüan drew on Manifest Virtue to fashion Abundant Virtue. Names shifted, yet nearly everything still followed Ch'in custom. In Chin and Wei alike, the court kept the ancient music. Wei's three founding emperors each wrote texts for the rites of sound. After the Yung-chia upheaval the five capitals fell, and music fled south—so the eastern riverlands came to hold the full tradition. From Sung and Ch'i through Liang, what the court played still came down from antiquity. The three Yung and four Beginnings—there was indeed a great flowering. Hou Ching's treason scattered the masters; the four dances and three modes all crossed to false Ch'i. Ch'i could hand the tunes down, yet though they held the scores they never sounded them in temple or hall.
45
臣少好音律，留意管弦，年雖耆老，頗皆記憶。 及東土克定，樂人悉反，問其逗留，果雲是梁人所教。 今三調四舞，並皆有手，雖不能精熟，亦頗具雅聲。 若令教習傳授，庶得流傳古樂。 然後取其會歸，撮其指要，因循損益，更制嘉名，歌盛德於當今，傳雅正于來葉，豈不美歟。 謹具錄三調四舞曲名，又制歌辭如別。 其有聲曲流宕，不可以陳於殿庭者，亦悉附之於後。
I have loved pitch and mode since youth and kept watch over strings and pipes; though I am old now, much still lives in memory. When the east was settled, the musicians came back; asked where they had lingered, they answered, as truth bore out, that men of Liang had taught them. The three modes and four dances still have hands to play them; though mastery is thin, an elegant tone remains. Let them be taught and passed on, and the ancient music might yet survive. Then gather their principles, seize their essentials, adjust by precedent, and give new honorable names—praising today's virtue, sending elegance to ages yet unborn: would that not be fine? I respectfully record the names of the three modes and four dances, and have drafted lyrics for them apart. Tunes too wandering for the palace hall I append at the end as well.
46
書奏，別敕太常，取妥節度。 於是作清、平、瑟三調聲，又作八佾《鞸》、《鐸》、《巾》、《拂》四舞。 先是太常所傳宗廟雅樂，歷數十年，唯作大呂，廢黃鐘。 妥又深乖古意，乃奏請用黃鐘。 詔下公卿議，從之。 俄而子蔚為秘書郎。 有罪當刑，上哀之，減死論。 是後恩禮漸薄。 六年，出為龍州刺史。 時有負笈遊學者，妥皆為講說教授之。 又為《刺史箴》，勒於州門外。 在職三年，以疾請還，詔許之。 復知學事。
The memorial went in; a separate edict ordered the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to let T'uo regulate the measures. He then fashioned the three modes Ch'ing, P'ing, and Se, and the four eight-row dances: Pien, Tuo, Chin, and Fu. For decades the Court of Imperial Sacrifices had played only the great lü in temple music and cast aside the yellow bell. T'uo, finding this again far from antiquity, memorialized to restore the yellow bell. The edict went to the ministers for debate, and they assented. Soon after, Tzu-wei was made Secretary Gentleman. He had earned a capital sentence; the emperor pitied him and spared his life. Thereafter imperial favor thinned by degrees. In the sixth year he was sent out as governor of Lung-chou. Students who came with book-bundles to study he lectured and taught without stint. He wrote an Admonition for Governors and had it cut into stone at the prefectural gate. After three years he begged leave for illness; the emperor granted it. He again oversaw the schools.
47
時上方使蘇夔在太常參議鐘律，夔有所建議，朝士多從之。 妥獨不同，每言夔之短。 帝下其議，群臣多排妥。 妥復上封事，指陳得失，大抵論時政損益，並指斥當世朋黨。 於是蘇威及吏部尚書盧愷、侍郎薛道衡等皆坐得罪。 除伊州刺史，不行。 尋為國子祭酒，卒官。 諡曰肅。
The court had posted Su Kuei at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to debate bells and pitch; many officials sided with his proposals. T'uo alone dissented, and at every turn spoke of Kuei's shortcomings. The emperor circulated their debate; most ministers turned against T'uo. T'uo sent up another sealed memorial on gains and losses—mostly on the state of policy, and on the cliques of the day. Su Wei, Minister of Personnel Lu K'ai, Vice Director Hsüeh Tao-heng, and others were all punished in the affair. He was named governor of I-chou but never took up the post. Soon he was made Director of the National University and died in that office. He was given the posthumous name Su.
48
撰《周易講疏》三卷、《孝經義疏》二卷、《莊子義疏》四卷。 與沈重等撰《三十六科鬼神感應等大義》九卷、《封禪書》一卷、《樂要》一卷、文集十卷，並行於世。
He wrote Expository Commentary on the Changes in three juan, on the Classic of Filial Piety in two, and on Chuang-tzu in four. With Shen Chung and others he compiled Great Principles on Spirit Response in nine juan, a book on the Feng and Shan in one, Essentials of Music in one, and ten juan of collected writings—all in circulation.
49
于時學士之自江南來者，蕭該、包愷並知名。
Among scholars who had come from the south, Hsiao Gai and Pao K'ai were both famed.
50
蕭該，蘭陵人。 梁鄱陽王恢之孫，少封攸侯。 荊州平，與何妥同至長安。 性篤學，《詩》、《書》、《春秋》、《禮記》並通大義，尤精《漢書》，甚為貴遊所禮。 開皇初，賜爵山陰縣公，拜國子博士。 奉詔與妥正定經史。 然各執所見，遞相是非，久而不能就。 上譴而罷之。 該後撰《漢書》及《文選音義》，咸為當時所貴。
Hsiao Gai came from Lan-ling. He was grandson of the Liang Prince of P'o-yang, Hui, and in youth held the marquisate of Yu. When Ching-chou fell, he reached Ch'ang-an with He T'o. Devoted to learning by nature, he mastered the broad sense of the Odes, Documents, Spring and Autumn, and Record of Rites, and excelled above all in the Han shu—men of rank held him in high regard. In early K'ai-huang he was made Duke of Shan-yin and Erudite of the National University. By edict he worked with T'o to fix the classics and histories. Each held to his own view and refuted the other; months passed and nothing was settled. The emperor reproved them and called the work off. Gai later wrote phonological studies on the Han shu and the Wen hsüan—both were treasures of the time.
51
包愷，字和樂，東海人。 其兄愉，明《五經》，愷悉傳其業。 及從王仲通受《史記》、《漢書》，尤稱精究。 大業中，為國子助教。 於是《漢書》學者以蕭、包二人為宗，遠近聚徒教授者數千人。 卒，門人起墳立碣焉。
Pao K'ai, styled Ho-lo, came from Tung-hai. His brother Yu mastered the Five Classics; K'ai took all his teaching. Under Wang Chung-t'ung he studied the Records of the Historian and the Han shu, and was famed for depth. In the Ta-yeh reign he was Assistant Instructor at the National University. Students of the Han shu made Hsiao and Pao their patriarchs; thousands came from far and near to sit at their feet. At his death his disciples raised his mound and carved a stele.
52
房暉遠，字崇儒，恆山真定人也。 世傳儒學。 暉遠幼有志行，明《三禮》、《春秋三傳》、《詩》、《書》、《周易》，兼善圖緯。 恆以教授為務，遠方負笈而從者，動以千計。 齊南陽王綽為定州刺史，聞其名，召為博士。 周武帝平齊，搜訪儒俊，暉遠首應辟命，授小學下士。 隋文帝受禪，遷太常博士。 太常卿牛弘每稱為《五經》庫。 吏部尚書韋世康薦之，遷太學博士。 尋與沛公鄭譯修正樂章。 後復為太常博士，未幾擢為國子博士。 會上令國子生通一經者，並悉薦舉，將擢用之。 既策問訖，博士不能時定臧否。 祭酒元善怪問之，暉遠曰：「江南、河北，義例不同，博士不能遍涉。 學生皆持其所短，稱己所長； 博士各各自疑，所以久而不決也。」 祭酒因令暉遠考定之，暉遠攬筆便下，初無疑滯。 或有不服者，暉遠問其所傳義疏，輒為始末誦之，然後出其所短。 自是無敢飾非者。 所試四五百人，數日便決。 諸儒莫不推其通博，皆自以為不能測也。 尋奉詔預修令式。 文帝嘗謂群臣曰：「自古天子有女樂乎？」 楊素以下，莫知所出，遂言無女樂。 暉遠曰：「臣聞'窈窕淑女，鐘鼓樂之'，此即王者房中之樂，著於《雅》《頌》，不得言無。」 帝大悅。 仁壽中，卒官，朝廷嗟惜焉，賵賻甚厚，贈員外散騎常侍。
Fang Hui-yüan, styled Ch'ung-ju, came from Chen-ting in Heng-shan. Confucian learning ran in his house for generations. Hui-yüan was purposeful from boyhood, versed in the Three Rites, the three Spring and Autumn commentaries, the Odes, Documents, and Changes, and skilled besides in charts and apocrypha. Teaching was his constant work; disciples who came from afar with book-bundles often numbered a thousand or more. The Ch'i Prince of Nan-yang, Ch'uo, governor of Ting-chou, heard of him and made him Erudite. When Chou Wu-ti pacified Ch'i he sought Confucian talent; Hui-yüan was first to answer and was made Junior Scholar. When Wen-ti took the throne, Hui-yüan became Erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Niu Hung, Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, called him a storehouse of the Five Classics. Wei Shih-k'ang of Personnel recommended him, and he rose to Erudite of the Grand Academy. Soon he joined the Duke of P'ei, Cheng I, in revising the ritual hymns. He returned as Erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, then was soon raised to Erudite of the National University. The emperor ordered every National University student who had mastered one classic to be recommended for office. When the examination ended, the Erudites could not settle who had passed. Director Yüan Shan asked why; Hui-yüan said, "South of the Yangtze and north of the river the exegetical traditions differ—the Erudites cannot master them all. Each student clings to another's weakness and praises his own strength; the Erudites doubt themselves in turn—hence the long delay. The Director set Hui-yüan to judge; he took brush and wrote at once, never faltering. When a man demurred, Hui-yüan asked which commentary he followed, recited it through from end to end, then named his faults. After that none dared hide his failings. Four or five hundred candidates—he settled them in a few days. Every scholar praised his breadth; each felt he could not plumb his depth. Soon he was ordered to help compile statutes and forms. Wen-ti once asked the ministers, "Since antiquity, has any Son of Heaven kept female musicians? From Yang Su downward, none knew the allusion, and they said there were none. Hui-yüan said, "I have heard, 'Fair and gentle maiden—bells and drums rejoice in her.' That is the king's chamber music, recorded in the Ya and Sung—it cannot be called absent. The emperor was delighted. In Jen-shou he died in office; the court mourned him, gave lavish funeral gifts, and posthumously made him Supernumerary Palace Attendant.
53
馬光，字榮伯，武安人也。 少好學，從師數十年，晝夜不息，圖書讖緯，莫不畢覽。 尤明《三禮》，為儒者所宗。
Ma Kuang, styled Jung-po, came from Wu-an. From boyhood he loved learning; for decades he followed teachers without rest by day or night, and read every book, chart, and apocryphon he could find. He excelled above all in the Three Rites, and the ru looked to him.
54
隋開皇初，征山東義學之士，光與張仲讓、孔籠、竇仕榮、張買奴、劉祖仁等俱至，並授太學博士，時人號為六儒。 然皆鄙野無儀範，朝廷不之貴也。 仕榮尋病死。 仲讓未幾告歸鄉里，著書十卷，自云：「此書若奏，必為宰相。」 又數言玄象事。 州縣列上，竟坐誅。 孔籠、張買奴、劉祖仁未幾亦被譴亡。 唯光獨存。
In early K'ai-huang the court summoned righteous scholars of the east; Kuang came with Chang Chung-jang, K'ung Lung, Tou Shih-jung, Chang Mai-nu, Liu Tsu-jen, and others, all made Erudites of the Grand Academy—the age called them the Six Confucians. Yet they were coarse and without manners, and the court held them cheap. Shih-jung soon died. Chung-jang soon went home and wrote ten juan, saying, "If this book reaches the throne, I shall surely be chief minister. He also spoke often of omens in the sky. The local officials reported him, and in the end he was executed. K'ung Lung, Chang Mai-nu, and Liu Tsu-jen soon shared the same fate. Only Kuang remained.
55
嘗因釋奠，帝親幸國子學，王公已下畢集，光升坐講《禮》，啟發章門。 已而諸儒生以次論難者十餘，皆當時碩學。 光剖析疑滯，雖辭非俊辯，而《禮》義弘贍。 論者莫測其淺深，咸共推服。 上嘉而勞焉。 山東《三禮》學者，自熊安生後，唯宗光一人。 初教授瀛、博間，門徒千數，至是多負笈從入長安。 後數年，丁母憂歸鄉里，以疾卒於家。
At a libation rite the emperor visited the National University; lords and officials gathered; Kuang mounted the dais and lectured on the Rites, opening the gates of meaning. Then a dozen leading scholars rose in turn to debate him. Kuang untied every knot; his words were not sharp, yet the Rites stood wide and full before them. None could tell shallow from deep; all yielded. The emperor praised and rewarded him. After Hsiung An-sheng, only Kuang was master to the east for the Three Rites. He had taught between Ying and Po with a thousand disciples; now many followed him into Ch'ang-an with book-bundles on their backs. Years later he went home for his mother's mourning and died there of illness.
56
劉焯，字士元，信都昌亭人也。 犀額龜背，望高視遠，聰敏沉深，弱不好弄。 少與河間劉炫結盟為友，同受《詩》于同郡劉軌思，受《左傳》于廣平郭懋，嘗問《禮》于阜城熊安生，皆不卒業而去。 武強交津橋劉智海家，素多墳籍，焯就之讀書，向經十載，雖衣食不繼，晏如也。 遂以儒學知名，為州博士。
Liu Ch'ao, styled Shih-yüan, came from Ch'ang-t'ing in Hsin-tu. He had a rhinoceros brow and tortoise back, a far-reaching gaze, a clever and deep mind, and from childhood scorned idle play. In youth he swore friendship with Liu Hsüan of Ho-chien; both studied the Odes under Liu Kuei-ssu, the Tso chuan under Kuo Mao of Kuang-p'ing, and once questioned Hsiung An-sheng on the Rites—yet left each master before finishing. He read for nearly ten years at the house of Liu Chih-hai by Chiao-chin Bridge in Wu-ch'iang, where old tomes piled high—though food and clothes often failed, he was content. He won fame as a Confucian and became the prefectural Erudite.
57
隋開皇中，刺史趙煚引為從事。 舉秀才，射策甲科。 與著作郎王劭同修國史，兼參議律曆。 仍直門下省，以待顧問。 俄除員外將軍。 後與諸儒于秘書省考定群言。 因假還鄉里，縣令韋之業引為功曹。 尋復入京，與左僕射楊素、吏部尚書牛弘、國子祭酒蘇威、元善、博士蕭該、何妥、太學博士房暉遠、崔崇德、晉王文學崔賾等，于國子共論古今滯義，前賢所不通者。 每升坐，論難鋒起，皆不能屈。 楊素等莫不服其精博。 六年，運洛陽《石經》至京師，文字磨滅，莫能知者。 奉敕與劉炫二人論義，深挫諸儒，咸懷妒恨。 遂為飛章所謗，除名。
In Sui K'ai-huang, Governor Chao Huan took him on as aide. Recommended as hsiu-ts'ai, he placed first in the policy examination. With Academician Wang Shao he revised the national history and joined debates on law and calendar. He served at the Imperial Secretariat, awaiting the emperor's questions. Soon he was made Supernumerary General. Later he joined other scholars in the Imperial Library to fix the canon of texts. On leave he went home; Magistrate Wei Chih-yeh made him Merit Officer. He returned to the capital and, with Yang Su, Niu Hung, Su Wei, Yüan Shan, Hsiao Gai, He T'o, Fang Hui-yüan, Ts'ui Ch'ung-te, Ts'ui Yen, and others, debated at the National University the hard knots of antiquity that sages had never cleared. Whenever he sat, debate flashed like blades, and none could bend him. Yang Su and the rest yielded to his depth. In the sixth year the Lo-yang Stone Classics reached the capital worn smooth—no one could read them. By edict he and Liu Hsüan expounded them, crushing the other scholars, who burned with envy. A flying memorial slandered him, and he was struck from the rolls.
58
於是優遊鄉里，專以教授著述為務，孜孜不倦。 賈、馬、王、鄭所傳章句，多所是非。 《九章算術》、《周髀》、《七曜曆書》十餘部，推步日月之經，量度山海之術，莫不核其根本，窮其秘奧。 著《稽極》十卷，《曆書》十卷，《五經述議》，並行於世。 劉炫聰明博學，名亞於焯，故時人稱二劉焉。 天下名儒後進，質疑受業，不遠千里而至者，不可勝數。 論者以為數百年已來，博學通儒無能出其右者。 然懷抱不曠，又嗇於財。 不行束脩者，未嘗有所教誨，時人以此少之。
He wandered at ease at home, teaching and writing without rest. He challenged much in the commentaries handed down from Chia, Ma, Wang, and Cheng. More than ten works—the Nine Chapters, the Chou pei, the Seven Luminaries Calendar—methods for sun and moon, for mountains and seas: he traced every root and plumbed every secret. He wrote Investigations into the Ultimate in ten juan, Calendrics in ten juan, and Discussions of the Five Classics—all in circulation. Liu Hsüan was clever and vast in learning, second only to Ch'ao—men called them the Two Lius. Famed scholars and young students came a thousand li with their doubts—no one could count them. For centuries, men said, no scholar of such breadth had appeared. Yet his heart was narrow, and he clutched his coins. He never taught a man who brought no bundle of dried meat; for that the age thought less of him.
59
廢主子勇聞而召之，未及進謁，詔令事蜀王。 非共好也，久之不至。 王聞而大怒，遣人枷送於蜀，配之軍防。 其後典校書籍。 王以罪廢，焯又與諸儒修定禮、律，除雲騎尉。 煬帝即位，遷太學博士，俄以品卑去職。 數年，復被征以待顧問。 因上所著《曆書》，與太史令張胄玄多不同，被駁不用。 卒，劉炫為之請諡，朝廷不許。
The deposed heir Tzu-yung summoned him; before he could attend, an edict sent him to the Prince of Shu. Their tempers did not match, and he delayed. The prince raged, sent men to fetter him and drag him to Shu, and set him to guard the army. Later he was charged with collating books. When the prince fell, Ch'ao helped the scholars fix the Rites and laws and was made Cloud Cavalry Commandant. Under Yang-ti he became Erudite of the Grand Academy, then left because his rank was too low. Years later he was summoned again to await the emperor's questions. He submitted his Calendrics; it clashed with Grand Astrologer Chang Chou-hsüan and was rejected. At his death Liu Hsüan asked a posthumous name; the court refused.
60
劉炫，字光伯，河間景城人也。 少以聰敏見稱。 與信都劉焯閉戶讀書，十年不出。 炫眸子精明，視日不眩，強記默識，莫與為儔。 左畫圓，右畫方，口誦，目數，耳聽，五事同舉，無所遺失。 周武帝平齊，瀛州刺史宇文亢召為戶曹從事。 後刺史李繪署禮曹從事，以吏幹知名。
Liu Hsüan, styled Kuang-po, came from Ching-ch'eng in Ho-chien. From boyhood he was famed for quickness of mind. With Liu Ch'ao of Hsin-tu he barred the door and read for ten years without stepping out. His eyes were bright—he could stare at the sun unblinded—and in memory none could match him. Left hand a circle, right hand a square; mouth reciting, eyes counting, ears listening—five tasks at once, nothing dropped. When Chou Wu-ti pacified Ch'i, Ying-chou governor Yuwen K'ang made him Clerk of the Household Bureau. Later Governor Li Hui made him Clerk of the Rites Bureau, famed for competence in office.
61
隋開皇中，奉敕與著作郎王劭同修國史，俄直門下省，以待顧問。 又詔諸術者修天文律曆，兼于內史省考定群言。 內史令博陵李德林甚禮之。 炫雖遍直三省，竟不得官，為縣司責其賦役。 炫自陳于內史，內史送詣吏部。 尚書韋世康問其所能，炫自為狀曰：「《周禮》、《禮記》、《毛詩》、《尚書》、《公羊》、《左傳》、《孝經》、《論語》，孔、鄭、王、何、服、杜等注，凡十三家，雖義有精粗，並堪講授； 《周易》、《儀禮》、《谷梁》用功差少； 史子文集，嘉言故事，咸誦於心； 天文、律曆，窮核微妙。 至於公私文翰，未嘗假手。」 吏部竟不詳試。 然在朝知名之士十餘人，保明炫所陳不謬，於是除殿內將軍。 時牛弘奏購求天下遺逸之書，炫遂偽造書百餘卷，題為《連山易》、《魯史記》等，錄上送官，取賞而去。 後有人訟之，經赦免死，坐除名。 歸於家，以教授為務。 廢太子勇聞而召之。 既至京師，敕令事蜀王秀，遷延不往。 秀大怒，枷送益州。 既而配為帳內，每使執仗為門衛。 俄而釋之，典校書史。 炫因擬屈原《卜居》為《筮塗》以自寄。 及秀廢，與諸儒修定五禮，授旅騎尉。
In Sui K'ai-huang he joined Wang Shao in revising the national history, then served at the Imperial Secretariat awaiting questions. Again he was ordered with specialists to revise astronomy, pitch, and calendar, and to fix texts at the Imperial Secretariat. Li Te-lin, Director of the Imperial Secretariat of Po-ling, treated him with great honor. Though he served all three departments, he won no post, and the county pressed him for tax and labor. He pleaded his case to the Secretariat, which sent him on to Personnel. Minister Wei Shih-k'ang asked his talents; Hsüan wrote: "The Rites of Chou, Record of Rites, Mao Odes, Documents, Kung-yang, Tso chuan, Filial Piety, and Analects—the commentaries of K'ung, Cheng, Wang, Ho, Fu, and Tu, thirteen houses in all, coarse or fine, I can lecture on them all; the Changes, Ceremonies, and Ku-liang somewhat less; histories, masters, anthologies—fine phrases and old tales I hold in memory; astronomy, pitch, and calendar I have traced to their subtlest point. For public or private writing he never borrowed another's hand. Personnel never tested him at all. Yet a dozen famed men at court vouched that his words were true, and he was made Palace Interior General. When Niu Hung sought lost books of the realm, Hsüan forged more than a hundred juan—the Lien-shan Changes, Records of Lu, and the like—sent them in, took the reward, and fled. Someone sued him; an amnesty spared his life, but he was struck from the rolls. He went home and took up teaching. The deposed heir Yung heard of him and summoned him. He reached the capital; an edict sent him to Prince Hsiu of Shu, but he lingered and would not go. Hsiu raged and sent him in the cangue to I-chou. Soon he was assigned to the prince's household and made to stand at the gate with a spear. Before long he was freed and charged with collating books. He modeled Ch'ü Yüan's Divining and wrote Divining the Road to pour out his heart. When Hsiu fell, he helped fix the Five Rites and was made Traveling Cavalry Commandant.
62
吏部尚書牛弘建議以為《禮》：諸侯絕傍期，大夫降一等。 今之上柱國雖不同古諸侯，比大夫可也，官在第二品，宜降傍親一等。 議者多以為然。 炫駁之曰：「古之仕者，宗一人而已，庶子不得進，由是先王重嫡。 其宗子有分祿之義，族人與宗子雖疏遠，猶服衰三月，良由受其恩也。 令之仕者，位以才升，不限嫡庶，與古既異，何降之有。 令之貴者，多忽近親，若或降之，人道之疏，自此始矣。」 遂寢其事。
Niu Hung of Personnel proposed, citing the Rites: "Feudal lords end collateral mourning at the second degree; great officers reduce one degree." Today's Upper Pillar of State is not an ancient feudal lord, yet may be compared to a great officer; at second rank, collateral kin should mourn one degree less. Most debaters agreed. Xuan objected, saying: "In olden days office went to a single lineage head alone; younger sons did not rise—therefore the former kings held the primary line dear. The head of the line bore the obligation to share emoluments; kin, however far from him, still mourned three months in sackcloth—because they had tasted his grace. Men now take rank by ability, not by whether they are primary or secondary sons; the age has parted from the ancients—why impose a lowering at all? The great of today often slight close kin; should one demote them in mourning, the fraying of human bonds would start here." And so the proposal was dropped.
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開皇二十年，廢國子、四門及州縣學，唯置太學，博士二人，學生七十二人。 炫上表言學校不宜廢，情理甚切，帝不納。 時國家殷盛，皆以遼東為意。 炫以為遼東不可伐，作《撫夷論》以諷焉。 當時莫有悟者。 及大業之季，三征不克，炫言方驗。
In the twentieth year of K'ai-huang the Directorate of Education, the Four Gates, and all prefectural and county schools were shut; only the Imperial University remained, with two erudites and seventy-two students. Xuan submitted a memorial arguing that schools must not be abolished—his plea was urgent and heartfelt—and the emperor would not heed it. The realm then stood full and strong; every mind turned toward Liaotung. Xuan believed Liaotung could not be conquered and wrote the "Treatise on Pacifying the Yi" as a subtle warning. None at the time took his meaning. When the Ta-yeh years waned and three expeditions had failed, Xuan's warning at last stood vindicated.
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煬帝即位，牛弘引炫修律令。 始文帝時，以刀筆吏類多小人，年久長奸，勢使然也； 又以風俗陵遲，婦人無節。 於是立格：州縣佐吏，三年而代之； 九品妻，無得再醮。 炫著論以為不可，弘竟從之。 諸郡置學官及流外給稟，皆發於炫。 弘嘗問炫：「案《周禮》，士多而府史少，今令史百倍于前，判官減則不濟。 其故何也？」 炫曰：「古人委任責成，歲終考其殿最，案不重校，文不繁悉，府史之任，掌要目而已。 今之文簿，恆慮勘覆鍛煉，若其不密，萬里追證百年舊案。 故諺云：'老吏抱案死。 '今古不同，若此之相懸也。 事煩政弊，職此之由。」 弘又問：「魏、齊之時，令史從容而已，今則不遑寧舍。 其事何由？」 炫曰：「齊氏立州，不過數十； 三府行台，遞相統領，文書行下，不過十條。 今州三百。 其繁一也。 往者，州唯置綱紀，郡置守、丞，縣唯令而已，其所具僚，則長官自辟，受詔赴任，每州不過數十。 今則不然，大小之官，悉由吏部，纖介之跡，皆屬考功。 其繁二也。 省官不如省事，省事不如清心，官事不省而望從容，其可得乎！」 弘甚善其言而不能用。
After Emperor Yang came to the throne, Niu Hung brought Xuan in to help revise the laws. Under Emperor Wen it was held that brush-wielding clerks were mostly small men who, the longer they served, the more they turned treacherous—such was the drift of the times; and because custom had sunk and women lacked restraint, rules were laid down: prefectural and county assistants must rotate every three years; and wives of officials of the nine ranks might not marry again. Xuan wrote a treatise arguing this would not do, yet Hung followed the policy all the same. The posting of school officers in every commandery and stipends for men outside the regular rolls—all these measures came from Xuan. Hung once asked Xuan: "The Rites of Chou show many scholars and few repository clerks; today clerks outnumber the old count a hundredfold, yet cut the reviewing officers and nothing gets finished. Why is that?" Xuan said: "The ancients delegated and demanded results; at year's end they graded achievement. Dockets were not re-checked, papers were not piled high—the clerk's task was only to hold the main headings. Today's ledgers live in fear of audit, re-review, and forced confession; leave a gap and a hundred-year-old case is chased for proof a thousand li away. Hence the saying: 'The old clerk dies hugging his dossiers. Past and present stand thus far apart. Business grows tangled and government sickens—this is the root of it." Hung asked again: "Under Wei and Ch'i the clerks were unhurried; today they cannot spare a moment's rest. What accounts for it?" Xuan said: "When the Ch'i house set up prefectures there were no more than several tens; the three ministries and traveling secretariats ruled one another in turn; papers sent down rarely exceeded ten items. Today there are three hundred prefectures. That is the first burden. Formerly a prefecture kept only a chief coordinator; a commandery had prefect and assistant; a county had only a magistrate—staff were recruited by the chief himself. With the edict they went to post; each prefecture had fewer than several tens. Today it is otherwise: every office great or small comes from the Ministry of Personnel; the smallest mark falls under the Office of Merit. That is the second burden. Cutting posts is not equal to cutting work; cutting work is not equal to clearing the mind. Leave the work uncut and hope for ease—can that be had!" Hung admired his words deeply but could not put them into practice.
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納言楊達舉炫博學有文章，射策高第，除太學博士。 歲餘，以品卑去任。 還至長平，奉敕追詣行在所。 或言其無行，帝遂罷之。 歸於河間。 時盜賊峰起，穀食踴貴，經籍道息，教授不行。 炫與妻子，相去百里，聲聞斷絕，鬱鬱不得志，乃自為贊曰：
Counselor Yang Ta recommended Xuan for broad learning and literary skill; he placed high in the written examination and was made Erudite of the Imperial University. After a year and more he left office, his rank being too low. On his way back to Ch'ang-p'ing he was summoned by edict to the emperor's camp. Someone spoke of his want of conduct, and the emperor set the appointment aside. He went home to Ho-chien. Bandits swarmed; grain leaped in price; the classics went untaught and instruction ceased. Xuan was a hundred li from wife and children; no word passed between them. Sick at heart and thwarted, he wrote a self-eulogy, saying:
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通人司馬相如、揚子雲、馬季長、鄭康成等皆自敘徽美，傳芳來葉。 余豈敢仰均先進，貽笑後昆？ 徒以日迫桑榆，大命將近，故友飄零，門徒雨散，溘死朝露，魂埋朔野。 親故莫照其心，後人不見其跡。 殆及余喘，薄言胸臆，貽及行邁，傳之州裏，使夫將來俊哲，知餘鄙志耳。
Men of penetration—Ssu-ma Hsiang-ju, Yang Tzu-yün, Ma Chi-ch'ang, Cheng Hsüan—each told his own worth and left fragrance for generations after. How dare I measure myself against those forebears and become a jest to those who come after? Only because the mulberry sun sinks and the great mandate nears—old friends scatter, disciples fly apart like rain—I shall die like morning dew and my soul lie in the northern wilds. Kin and friends do not light my heart; posterity will not see my trail. While breath yet remains, let me speak plainly from the breast and send it down the road through the district, that future wise men may know my humble mind.
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餘從綰發以來，迄于白首，嬰孩為慈親所恕，捶撻未嘗加； 從學為明師所矜，榎楚弗之及。 暨乎敦敘邦族，交結等夷，重物輕身，先人後己。 昔在幼弱，樂參長者； 爰及耆艾，數接後生。 學則服而不厭，誨則勞而不倦。 幽情寡適，心事多違。 內省生平，顧循終始，其大幸有四，深恨有一。
From the tying of my hair to white old age: as a child I was spared by a loving parent—the rod never fell; in study I was cherished by enlightened teachers—the mulberry switch never touched me. When I ordered kin and made friends among peers, I prized goods lightly and the self heavily, and put others before myself. In youth I delighted to keep company with elders; in gray age I often welcomed the young. In learning I never tired of being taught; in teaching I labored and did not weary. In solitude I found little ease; what the heart wished mostly went awry. Looking inward over my life from start to finish, I count four great blessings and one deep regret.
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性本愚蔽，家業貧窶，為父兄所饒，廁縉紳之末。 遂得博覽典誥，窺涉今古，小善著於丘園，虛名聞于邦國。 其幸一也。
By nature I was dull and my house poor; yet father and brothers indulged me and I stood among the girdled ranks. Thus I ranged the classics and touched present and past; small merit showed in my garden, hollow fame sounded in the realm. That was the first blessing.
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隱顯人間，沈浮世俗，數忝徒勞之職，久執城旦之書。 名不掛于白簡，事不染於丹筆。 立身立行，慚恧實多，啟手啟足，庶幾可免。 其幸二也。
Hidden and shown among men, sunk and floated in the world, I often held thankless posts and long kept the penal registers. My name never hung on the impeachment slips; my deeds were never marked by the censor's brush. In person and conduct I have much to blush for, yet in hand and foot I may nearly escape reproach. That was the second blessing.
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以此庸虛，屢動宸眷； 以此卑賤，每升天府。 齊鑣驥騄，比翼鵷鴻，整槹素于鳳池，記言動於麟閣。 參謁宰輔，造請群公，厚禮殊恩，增榮改價。 其幸三也。
With this mediocrity I yet stirred the Son of Heaven's favor again and again; with this low rank I yet climbed again and again to the halls of state. I ran beside swift horses and fine steeds, wing to wing with yuan and wild swans, set the plain staff in the Phoenix Pool, and recorded words and deeds in the Unicorn Pavilion. I called on chief ministers and sought out the great; rich gifts and special grace raised my honor and changed my worth. That was the third blessing.
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晝漏方盡，大耋已嗟，退反初服，歸骸故里。 玩文史以怡神，閱魚鳥以散慮。 觀省野物，登臨園沼，緩步代車，無事為貴。 其幸四也。
The day-water was nearly spent; great age already lamented. I put off office and returned my bones to my native soil. I took joy in letters and histories to refresh the spirit and watched fish and birds to scatter care. I looked on wild things, climbed gardens and ponds, walked where others rode—having nothing to do was the treasure. That was the fourth blessing.
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仰休明之盛世，慨道教之陵遲，蹈先儒之逸軌，傷群言之蕪穢。 馳騁墳典，厘改僻謬，修撰始畢，事業適成。 天違人願，途不我與，世路未夷，學校盡廢，道不備於當時，業不傳於身後。 銜恨泉壤，實在茲乎！ 其深恨一也。
I looked up at a radiant age and grieved that the teaching Way had sunk; I followed the lost tracks of former ru and mourned the weeds choking the many texts. I ranged the classics and tombs, corrected errors and strangeness; the writing was finished and the work stood complete. Heaven crossed human wish; the road would not keep me company. The world was not at peace; schools were abolished to the last. The Way was not whole in the time; the work would not live after my body. To carry regret into the yellow springs—here indeed it lies! That was the one deep regret.
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時在郡城，糧餉斷絕。 其門人多隨賊盜。 哀炫窮乏，詣城下索炫，郡官乃出炫與之。 炫為賊所將，過下城堡。 未幾，賊為官軍所破，炫饑餓無所依，復投縣官。 縣官意炫與賊相知，恐為後變，遂閉門不納。 時夜冰寒，因此凍餒而死。 其後門人諡曰宣德先生。
He was then in the commandery seat; grain and supplies ran out. Most of his disciples went over to the rebels. Ai, moved by Xuan's want, came beneath the wall to demand him; the commandery officials then surrendered Xuan to him. Xuan was marched off by the rebels and passed the lower fort. Soon the rebels were broken by government troops; hungry and with nowhere to turn, Xuan again sought the county office. The county magistrate thought Xuan knew the rebels and feared future trouble; he shut the gate and would not take him in. The night was bitter cold; there he died of cold and hunger. Afterward his disciples gave him the posthumous style Master Hsüan-te.
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炫性躁競，頗好俳諧，多自矜伐，好輕侮當世，為執政所醜，由是宦途不遂。 著《論語述議》十卷、《春秋攻昧》十卷、《五經正名》十二卷、《孝經述議》五卷、《春秋述議》四十卷、《尚書述議》二十卷、《毛詩述議》四十卷，注《詩序》一卷、《算術》一卷，並所著文集，並行於世。
Xuan was hasty and contentious, fond of jest and banter, given to self-praise and to slighting the men of his day; those in power loathed him, and his road to office never opened. He wrote the Expository Discourse on the Analects (10 juan), Attack on Obscurity in the Spring and Autumn (10 juan), Correct Names of the Five Classics (12 juan), Expository Discourse on the Filial Classic (5 juan), on the Spring and Autumn (40 juan), on the Documents (20 juan), on the Mao Odes (40 juan); he annotated the Preface to the Odes and wrote Arithmetic (1 juan each), with his collected writings—all in circulation.
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時儒學之士，又有褚暉、顧彪、魯世達、張沖、王孝籍並知名。
Among the ru of the time Chu Hui, Ku Piao, Lu Shih-ta, Chang Chong, and Wang Hsiao-chi were also well known.
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褚暉，字高明，吳郡人。 以《三禮》學稱於江南。 煬帝時，徵天下儒術之士，悉集內史省，相次講論。 暉辯博，無能屈者，由是擢為太學博士。 撰疏一百卷。
Chu Hui, style Kao-ming, came from Wu commandery. South of the Yangtze he was famed for mastery of the Three Rites. Under Emperor Yang the empire's Confucians were summoned to the Inner Secretariat and lectured in turn. Hui debated with breadth and none could best him; he was raised to Erudite of the Imperial University. He composed commentaries in a hundred scrolls.
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顧彪，字仲文，余杭人。 明《尚書》、《春秋》。 煬帝時，為秘書學士。 撰《古文尚書義疏》二十卷，行於世。
Ku Piao, style Chung-wen, was from Yü-hang. He was versed in the Documents and the Spring and Autumn. Under Emperor Yang he served as Secretary Scholar. He wrote the Expository Commentary on the Ancient Text Documents in twenty scrolls, which circulated.
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魯世達，余杭人。 煬帝時，為國子助教。 撰《毛詩章句義疏》四十二卷，行於世。
Lu Shih-ta was from Yü-hang. Under Emperor Yang he was Assistant Erudite of the Directorate of Education. He wrote the Expository Commentary on the Mao Odes by Chapter and Phrase in forty-two scrolls, which circulated.
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張沖，字叔玄，吳郡人。 仕陳，為左中郎將，非其好也。 乃覃思經典，撰《春秋義略》，異于杜氏七十餘事，《喪服義》三卷、《孝經義》三卷、《論語義》十卷、《前漢音義》十二卷。 官至漢王侍讀。
Chang Chong, style Shu-hsüan, was from Wu commandery. In Ch'en he served as Left Gentlemen-of-the-Guard—a post he did not love. He turned to the classics in deep study and wrote the Essentials of Meaning in the Spring and Autumn, differing from the Tu tradition in more than seventy points, plus Mourning Dress Meaning (3 juan), Filial Classic Meaning (3 juan), Analects Meaning (10 juan), and Sounds and Meaning of the Former Han (12 juan). He rose to Reader to the Prince of Han.
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王孝籍，平原人。 少好學，博覽群言，遍習《五經》，頗有文翰。 與河間劉炫，同志友善。 開皇中，召入秘書，助王劭修國史。 劭不之禮。 在省多年，不免輸稅，鬱鬱不得志，奏記于吏部尚書牛弘曰：
Wang Hsiao-chi was from P'ing-yüan. As a youth he loved learning, ranged widely among texts, mastered all the Five Classics, and wrote with some skill. He shared aims and close friendship with Liu Xuan of Ho-chien. In K'ai-huang he was called to the Secretariat to help Wang Shao revise the national history. Shao did not honor him. Years in the Secretariat yet he still paid taxes like any commoner. Sick at heart, he wrote to Minister of Personnel Niu Hung, saying:
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竊以毒螫絪膚，則申旦不寐； 饑寒切體，亦卒歲無聊。 何則？ 痛苦難以安，貧窮易為戚。 況懷抱之內，冰火鑠脂膏，腠理之間，風霜侵骨髓。 安可齰舌緘脣，吞聲飲氣，惡呻吟之響，忍酸辛之酷哉！ 伏惟明尚書公，動哀矜之色，開寬裕之懷，咳唾足以活涸鱗，吹噓可用飛窮羽。 芬椒蘭之氣，暖布帛之詞，許小人之請，聞大君之聽。 雖復山川綿遠，鬼神在茲，信而有征，言無不履。 猶恐拯溺遲於援手，救跌緩於扶足，待越人之舟楫，求魯燕之雲梯，則必懸于喬樹之枝，沒於深泉之底。
I venture: when poison stings the skin one cannot sleep from midnight to dawn; when hunger and cold cut the flesh, the whole year knows no ease. Why? Pain will not let one rest; poverty easily turns to grief. Within the breast ice and fire melt the fat; in the pores wind and frost gnaw the marrow. How can one bite the tongue, seal the lips, swallow voice and breath, hate the sound of groaning, and endure such bitter pain! I bow before the enlightened Minister: show a face of pity, open a heart of grace—a word from you revives the dried fish; your breath lifts the fallen bird. Let pepper and orchid scent your words; let cloth and silk warm them—grant this petty man's plea and let the great lord listen. Though mountains and rivers lie far and ghosts attend, faith has signs; no word of yours fails to stand. Yet I fear that to save the drowning is slower than the hand that reaches, to lift the fallen slower than the foot that steadies—wait for the Yüeh man's boat and the Lu and Yen cloud-ladder, and one will hang from the high branch and sink to the deep spring.
82
夫以一介貧人，七年直省，課役不免，慶賞不沾。 賣貢禹之田，供釋之之費； 有弱子之累，乏強兄之產。 加以慈母在堂，光陰遲暮，寒暑違闕，關山超遠。 齧臂為期，前途逾邈； 倚閭之望，朝夕傾對。 謝相如之病，無官可以免； 發梅福之狂，非仙所能避。 愁疾甚乎厲鬼，人生異夫金石。 營魂且散，恐筮予無徵； 齎恨入冥，則虛緣恩顧。 此乃王稽所以致言，應侯為之不樂也。 潛鬢髮之內，居眉睫之間，子野未曾聞，離硃所未見。 久淪東觀，留滯南史，終無薦引，永同埋殯。 三世不移，雖由寂寞； 十年不調，實乏知己。
A single poor man, seven years straight service in the Secretariat, yet corvée and tax never lifted, reward and bounty never granted— he sells Kung Yü's fields to pay Shih's costs; he bears weak sons and lacks a strong brother's estate. His mother still lives; her years are late; he cannot tend cold and heat; mountains and passes lie far away. He bites his arm to fix a return, yet the road ahead only lengthens; his mother leans on the hedge and waits, morning and evening, straining toward him. Ssu-ma Hsiang-ju's old sickness had no office by which to win release; Mei Fu's madness not even an immortal could ward off. Grief and sickness outdo the evil ghost; human life is not metal and stone. The soul is about to scatter; I fear the oracle for me shows no sign; carry regret into the dark and your gracious regard will have been empty. This is why Wang Chi spoke up and the Marquis of Ying grew unhappy. It hides in the temples of the hair and lives between the eyebrows—Tzu-yeh never heard of it, Li Chu never saw it. Long sunk in the Eastern Pavilion, stuck on the Southern History—never recommended, forever like a coffin in the earth. Three generations without promotion—though that comes from obscurity; ten years without appointment—truly I lack one who knows me.
83
夫不世出者，聖明之君也； 不萬一者，誠賢之臣也。 以夫不世出而逢不萬一，小人所以為明尚書幸也。 坐人物之源，運銓衡之柄，反被狐白，不好緇衣，此小人為明尚書不取也。 昔荊玉未剖，刖卞和之足； 百里未用，碎禽息之首。 居得言之地，有能用之資，憎耳目之明，無首足之戚，憚而不為，孰知其解！ 夫官或不稱其能，士或未申其屈，一夫竊議，語流天下，勞不見圖，安能無望！ 倘病未及死，狂還克念，汗窮愁之簡，屬離憂之詞。 托志于前修，通心於來哲，使千載之下，哀其不遇，追咎執事，有玷清塵。 則不肖之軀，死生為累，小人之罪，方且未刊。 願少加憐湣，留心無忽。
The lord who appears once in an age is the sage ruler; the minister who is one in ten thousand is the truly worthy man. That this unlucky age should meet this one-in-ten-thousand minister—this petty man therefore calls the enlightened Minister blessed. You sit at the spring of men and things and hold the balance—yet you wrap yourself in fox fur and do not love the black robe; this petty man counts against you. Once, before the Ching jade was opened, Pien Ho's feet were severed; before Po-li was used, Ch'in Wu's head was broken. You stand where speech is heard and have power to employ talent—yet you hate clear sight and sound and feel no fear for head or foot; you shrink and do not act—who understands why! When office does not fit ability or a scholar cannot voice his wrong, one man whispers and the tale runs under heaven; labor unseen in the plan—how can one not still hope! If sickness has not yet killed me and madness can still turn to thought, I will wet the slips of utter want and leave words of parting grief. I set my aim with the ancients and my heart with sages yet unborn, that a thousand years hence they may pity my ill lot, lay blame on the officer, and stain his clear name. Then this worthless body, in life and death, will be your burden; this petty man's fault will not yet be wiped away. I beg a little pity—do not forget me.
84
弘亦知其學業，而竟不得調。 後歸鄉里，以教授為業，終於家。 注《尚書》及《詩》，遭亂零落。
Hung knew his learning too, yet never secured him a post. Later he went home and lived by teaching until he died in his house. His commentaries on the Documents and the Odes were scattered in the chaos.
85
論曰：古語云：「容體不足觀，勇力不足恃，族姓不足道，先祖不足稱，然而顯聞四方，流聲後胤者，其惟學乎？」 信哉斯言也！ 梁越之徒，篤志不倦，自求諸己，遂能聞道下風，稱珍席上。 或聚徒千百，或服冕乘軒，咸稽古之力也。 然遠惟漢、魏，碩學多清通； 逮乎近古，巨儒多鄙俗。 文武不墜，弘之在人，豈獨愚蔽於當今，而皆明哲於往昔？ 在乎用與不用，知與不知耳。 然曩之弼諧庶績，必舉德于鴻儒； 近代左右邦家，咸取士於刀筆。 縱有學優入室，勤逾刺股，名高海內，擢第甲科，若命偶時來，未有望於青紫； 或數將運舛，必見棄於草澤。 然則古之學者，祿在其中； 今之學者，困于貧賤。 明達之人，志識之士，安肯滯于所習，以求貧賤者哉！ 此所以儒罕通人，學多鄙俗者也。 至若劉焯，德冠縉紳，數窮天象，既精且博，洞究幽微，鉤深致遠，源流不測。 數百年來，斯一人而已。 劉炫學實通儒，才堪成務，九流七略，無不該覽。 雖探賾索隱，不逮於焯； 裁成義說，文雅過之。 並時不我與，餒棄溝壑。 斯乃子夏所謂，「死生有命，富貴在天」。 天之所與者聰明，所不與者貴仕，上聖且猶不免，焯、炫其如命何！ 孝籍徒離騷其文，尚何救也！
The historian comments: An old saying runs: "Form is not worth looking at, strength not worth trusting, clan not worth naming, ancestors not worth praising—yet to shine in the four quarters and leave a name to posterity: is it not learning?" How true that is! Men like Liang Yüeh, steadfast and unwearied, seeking from within themselves, could hear the Way from afar and be called treasures at the high table. Some gathered hundreds of disciples; some wore caps and rode in carriages—all through the force of classical learning. Yet look far to Han and Wei: great scholars were mostly clear and penetrating; come to recent times and great ru are mostly coarse and vulgar. That culture and arms do not fall depends on the man who spreads them—are only today's men dull while all the past were wise? It lies in use or disuse, knowing or not knowing. Yet in olden days, in harmonizing the many tasks, virtue was always drawn from great ru; in recent times those who stood at the ruler's side in governing the state all took men from the brush. Even if learning could enter the inner room, diligence outdid the thigh-pricker, fame filled the seas, and one topped the examination—if fate and hour did not align, there was still no hope of purple and scarlet; or if fortune turned several times against one, one was sure to be abandoned in the wilds. Thus the scholars of old had salary within their learning; the scholars of today are trapped in want and low estate. Men of insight and firm purpose—how would they cling to what they have mastered only to seek poverty! This is why ru rarely produce penetrating men and learning grows coarse and vulgar. As for Liu Chao, virtue crowned the court; in number he exhausted the signs of heaven—refined and broad, probing the subtle, hooking the deep and reaching far, his source-stream none can sound. In several hundred years there has been only this one. Liu Xuan's learning was truly that of a penetrating ru; his talent could carry great affairs. Of the Nine Schools and Seven Summaries none escaped his reading. Though in probing the hidden and seeking the obscure he did not match Chao; in shaping exegetical meaning and literary grace he surpassed him. Both alike—the time would not keep them; they starved and were cast into ditches. This is what Tzu-hsia meant: "Life and death are by fate; wealth and honor are by Heaven." Heaven gives intelligence; it does not give noble rank—even the highest sage could not escape it; what could Chao and Xuan do against fate! Hsiao-chi only patterned the Li-sao in his prose—what could that save!