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Shi Jing Introduction Table of content – The Book of Odes

The oldest collection of Chinese poetry, more than three hundred songs, odes and hymns. Tr. Legge (en) and Granet (fr, incomplete).

Section II — Minor odes of the kingdom
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Chapter 1 — 鹿 Decade of Lu Ming

161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169

Shijing II. 1. (167)

Let us gather the thorn-ferns, let us gather the thorn-ferns ;
The thorn-ferns are now springing up.
When shall we return ? When shall we return ?
It will be late in the [next] year.
Wife and husband will be separated,
Because of the Xian-yun.
We shall have no leisure to rest,
Because of the Xian-yun.

Let us gather the thorn-ferns, let us gather the thorn-ferns ;
The thorn-ferns are now tender.
When shall we return ? When shall we return ?
Our hearts are sorrowful ;
Our hearts are sad and sorrowful ;
We shall hunger, we shall thirst.
While our service on guard is not finished,
We can send no one home to enquire about our families.

Let us gather the thorn-ferns, let us gather the thorn-ferns ;
The thorn-ferns are now hard.
When shall we return ? When shall we return ?
The year will be in the tenth month.
But the king's business must not be slackly performed ;
We shall have no leisure to rest.
Our sorrowing hearts are in great distress ;
But we shall not return from our expedition.

What is that so gorgeous ?
It is the flowers of the cherry tree.
What carriage is that ?
It is the carriage of our general.
His war carriage is yoked ;
The four steeds are strong.
Dare we remain inactive ?
In one month we shall have three victories.

The four steeds are yoked,
The four steeds, eager and strong ; –
The confidence of the general,
The protection of the men.
The four steeds move regularly, like wings ; –
There are the bow with its ivory ends, and the seal-skin quiver.
Shall we not daily warn one another ?
The business of the Xian-yun is very urgent.

At first, when we set out,
The willows were fresh and green ;
Now, when we shall be returning,
The snow will be falling in clouds.
Long and tedious will be our marching ;
We shall hunger ; we shall thirst.
Our hearts are wounded with grief,
And no one knows our sadness.

Legge 167

Shi Jing II. 1. (167) IntroductionTable of content
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The Book of Odes – Shi Jing II. 1. (167) – Chinese on/offFrançais/English
Alias Shijing, Shi Jing, Book of Odes, Book of Songs, Classic of Odes, Classic of Poetry, Livre des Odes, Canon des Poèmes.

The Book of Odes, The Analects, Great Learning, Doctrine of the Mean, Three-characters book, The Book of Changes, The Way and its Power, 300 Tang Poems, The Art of War, Thirty-Six Strategies
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