73. Therefore Heaven produced the spirit-like things, and the sages took advantage of them. (The operations of) heaven and earth are marked by (so many) changes and transformations; and the sages imitated them (by means of the Yi). Heaven hangs out its (brilliant) figures from which are seen good fortune and bad, and the sages made their emblema- tic interpretations accordingly. The Ho gave forth the map, and the Lo the writing, of (both of) which the sages took advantage.
74. In the (scheme of the) Yi there are the four symbolic figures by which they inform men (in divin- ing of the lines making up the diagrams); the expla- nations appended to them convey the significance (of the diagrams and lines); and the determination (of the divination) as fortunate or the reverse, to settle the doubts (of men).
Chapter XI, paragraphs 66-74, treats of divination, and the scheme of it supplied in the Yi. That scheme must be referred first to Heaven, which produced the spirit-like things,—the divining- plant and the tortoise; and next to the sages, who knew the mind of Heaven, and made the plant and shell subservient to the pur- pose for which they were intended.
Paragraph 66 answers the question of what the Yi does; and if there were truth or reason in it, the book and its use would be most important. I have closed the quotation of “the Master's” words at the end of the paragraph; but really we do not know if they extend so far, or farther.
Paragraphs 67 and 68 glorify the sages and their work. The virtues of the divining-plant all belonged to them, and it was thus that they were able to organise the scheme of divination. The production of ‘the spirit-like things’ is, in paragraph 73, ascribed to ‘Heaven;’ the characters about them in these paragraphs mean no more than is expressed in the translation.
CHAP. 12. APPENDIX III. 375 Chapter XII. 75. It is said in the Yi, ‘Help is given to him from Heaven. There will be good fortune; advantage in every respect. The Master Paragraph 69 shows how the antinomy of the yin and yang pervades all nature, and how the sages turned it, as existing pre- eminently in the divining-plant, to account.
Paragraph 70. Evidently the author had in view here the genesis of the diagrams of the Yi, the number of figures increasing in a geometrical progression with the ratio of 2, while the lines of the figures form an arithmetical progression with the common differ- ence of 1. This is quite plain after ‘the two elementary forms (——— and —- —)’ have been made. They give birth to ‘the four emblematic symbols,’ each of two lines (——, ==, —=,, == =}, known, in this order, as the Grand or old Yang, the young Yin, the young Yang, and the Grand or old Yin). By the addition to each of these symbols first of the yang line, and then of the yin, there arise the eight trigrams, each of three lines; and the process of formation might be continued indefinitely.
But how was the first step taken in the formation of the two ele- mentary lines? Here, it is said, they were produced by the Thai Ki, or the Grand Terminus, This is represented in At Hsi’s ‘Youth’s Introduction to the Study of the Yi,’ by a circle; but he tells us that that representation of it was first made by Kau-jze (A.D. 1017-1073, called also Kau Tun-t, Kau Mau-shf, and, most of all, Aau Lien-#Ai), and that his readers must be careful not to suppose that Fa-hsit had such a figure in his mind’s eye. I fail myself to understand how there can be generated from a circle the undivided and the broken line. Given those two lines, and the formation of the sixty-four hexagrams proceeds regularly according to the method above described. We must start from them, whether we can account or not Jor the rise of the idea of them in the mind of Ff-hsi.
Leaving the subject of the figure of the Thai A?, the name gives us hardly any clue to its meaning. A? is used for the extreme term of anything, as the ridge-pole of a house, or the pinnacle of a pagoda. The comment on the first sentence in the paragraph by Wang Pi (a.p. 226-249) is:—‘ Existence must begin in non- existence, and therefore the Grand Terminus produced the two elementary Forms. Thai A7 is the denomination of what has no denomination. As it cannot be named, the text takes the extreme 376 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. I.
said:—‘ Yd (jf) is the symbol of assisting. He whom Heaven assists is observant (of what is right); he whom men assist is sincere. The individual here indicated treads the path of sincerity and desires to be observant (of what is right), and studies to exalt the worthy. Hence “Help is given to him from Heaven. There will be good fortune, advantage in every respect.” ’ 76. The Master said:—‘ The written characters are point of anything that exists as an analogous term for the Thai AY’ Expanding Wang’s comment, Khung Ying-ta says:—‘Thai Ki means the original subtle matter, that formed the one chaotic mass before heaven and earth were divided;’ and then he refers to certain passages in Lao-zze’s Tao Teh King, and identifies the Thai Ki with his Tao. ‘This would seem to give to Thai A? a material meaning. The later philosophers of the Sung school, however, insist on its being immaterial, now calling it lf, the principle of order in nature, now t4o, the defined course of things, now T%, the Supreme Power or God, now sh4n, the spiritual working of God. According to KAang-3ze, all these names are to be referred to that of ‘Heaven, of which they express so many different concepts.
Paragraph 71 speaks of divination in practice, and paragraph 72 celebrates the service done by that through the plant and shell, as equal to, and indeed the complement of, all the other services ren- dered by heaven and earth, the seasons, the sun and moon, the sages, and the greatest potentates. Surely, it is all very extravagant.
The last two paragraphs resume the theme of the making of the Yi by the sages, and their teaching the practice of divination. Of the Ho map and the Lo writing, I have spoken in the Introduction, pages 14-18. But if we accept the statement that the Lo writing had anything to do with the making of the Yi, we must except Ffi-hsi from the sages to whom we are indebted for it. It was to the Great Yii, more than a thousand years later than Ff-hsi, that the Lo disclosed its writing; and Yiiis never said to have had anything to do with the Yf. Nor is either of these things mentioned in Section ii, paragraph 11, where the work of Ff-hsf is described more in detail.
CHAP. I2. APPENDIX III. 377 not the full exponent of speech, and speech is not the full expression of ideas;—is it impossible then to discover the ideas of the sages?’ The Master said:—‘ The sages made their emblematic symbols to set forth fully their ideas; appointed (all) the diagrams to show fully the truth and falsehood (of things); appended their explanations to give the full expression of their words; and changed (the various lines) and made general the method of doing so, to exhibit fully what was advantageous. They (thus) stimulated (the people) as by drums and dances, thereby completely developing the spirit-like (character of the Yi).’
77. May we not say that Ahien and KhwAan [=the yang and yin, or the undivided and divided lines] are the secret and substance of the Yi? hien and Khwan being established in their several places, the system of changes was thereby constituted. If Akien and Khwan were taken away, there would be no means of seeing that system; and if that system were not seen, A Zien and Khwan would almost cease to act.
78. Hence that which is antecedent to the ma: terial form exists, we say, as an ideal method, and that which is subsequent to the material form exists, we say, as a definite thing.
Transformation and shaping is what we call change; carrying this out and operating with it is what we call generalising the method; taking the result and setting it forth for all the people under heaven is, we say, (securing the success of) the business of life.
79. Hence, to speak of the emblematic figures:— (The sage) was able to survey all the complex phe- 78 THE APPENDIXES. SECTAk ee nomena under the sky. He then considered in his mind how they could be figured, and (by means of the diagrams) represented their material forms and their character. Hence those (diagrams) are denominated Semblances. A (later) sage was able to survey the motive influences working all under the sky. He contemplated them in their common action and special nature, in order to bring out the standard and proper tendency of each. He then appended his explanation (to each line), to determine the good or evil indicated by it. Hence those (lines with their explanations) are denominated Imitations (the Yao).
80. The most thorough mastery of all the com- plex phenomena under the sky is obtained from the diagrams. The greatest stimulus to movement in adaptation to all affairs under the sky is obtained from the explanations.
81. The transformations and shaping that take place are obtained from the changes (of the lines); the carrying this out and operating with it is ob- tained from the general method (that has been established). The seeing their spirit-like intima- tions and understanding them depended on their being the proper men; and the completing (the study of) them by silent meditation, and securing the faith of others without the use of words, de- pended on their virtuous conduct.
Go Chapter XII, paragraphs 75-81, endeavours to show how we have in the Y? a representation of the changing phenomena of nature, and such a representation as words or speech could not convey.
Paragraph 75 has a good meaning, taken by itself; but it has no apparent connexion with the rest of the chapter. A Hs? thought CHAP. I. APPENDIX III. 379 Section II.
Chapter I. 1. The eight trigrams having been completed in their proper order, there were in each the (three) emblematic lines. They were then it was misplaced in its present position, and should be at the end of chapter 8. Compare paragraph 14.
The first two statements of paragraph 76 are general, but made here specially to exalt the Y?, as teaching more clearly and fully than written characters could have done. The Khang-hs? editors decide that ‘the emblematic figures’ here are the eight trigrams of Ffi-hsi,—against the view of AQ Hsi, which restricts them to signify the undivided and divided lines. The repetition of the words, ‘The Master said,’ is probably the error of an early transcriber.
Paragraphs 77 and 78 refer to the phenomena of nature and the course of human affairs, as suggesting and controlling the forma- tion of the system of the Yi. The formation of that becomes the subject in paragraph 79. AAien and KhwA4n are used, as we have already seen them more than once, for the active and inactive con- ditions in nature, indicated by the divided and undivided lines. It is difficult to translate what is said in paragraph 78, about Tao and Khi;—what | have called, ‘an ideal method’ and ‘a definite’ thing. P. Regis translates the text by—‘ Quod non est inter figurata aut corporea sed supereminet est rationale, est ratio, Tao; quod (est) inter figurata subjacetque certae figurae est sensibile, est instru- mentum. But tao cannot here signify ratio or reason; for tao and kAf are names for the same thing under different conditions; first as a possibility, and next as an actuality. Such is the natural interpretation of the text, and so all the great scholars of the Sung dynasty construed it, as may be seen in the ‘ Collected Comments’ of the imperial edition. So far they were correct, however many of them might stumble and fall in confounding this ‘ ideal method’ with God.
What follows in the paragraph has no connexion with these two statements. P. Regis, who divides his translation into two paragraphs, says:—‘ Satis patet utramque textus hujus partem non cohaerere.
380 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. Il.
multiplied by a process of addition till the (six) component lines appeared.
2. The strong line and the weak push them- selves each into the place of the other, and hence the changes (of the diagrams) take place. The appended explanations attach to every form of them its character (of good or ill), and hence the movements (suggested by divination) are deter- mined accordingly.
3. Good fortune and ill, occasion for repentance or regret, all arise from these movements.
4. The strong and the weak (lines) have their fixed and proper places (in the diagrams); their changes, however varied, are according to the re- quirements of the time (when they take place).
5. Good fortune and ill are continually prevailing each against the other by an exact rule.
6. By the same rule, heaven and earth, in their course, continually give forth (their lessons); the sun and moon continually emit their light; all the movements under the sky are constantly subject to this one and the same rule.
Quod ergo illas divisimus, id fecimus majoris perspicuitatis causa, non ratione ordinis qui certe nullus est, ut in re potius assuta quam connexa.’
Paragraph 79 is a repetition of paragraphs 38, 39, ‘ to introduce,’ says Afi Hsf, ‘the two paragraphs’ that follow.
The editors of the imperial edition find in 80, 81, an amplifica- tion mainly of 76, showing how what is said there of the natural phenomena is exhibited in the Yi. The concluding sentence is a declaration (hardly necessary) about the sage makers, to the effect that they were as distinguished for virtuous conduct as for wisdom,—‘the proper men’ to stand between Heaven and the mass of men as they did.
CHAP. I. APPENDIX III. cal 7. Khien, (the symbol of heaven, and) conveying the idea of strength, shows to men its easy (and natural) action. Awan, (the symbol of earth, and) conveying the idea of docility, shows to men its compendious (receptivity and operation).
8. The Yao (or lines) are imitative representa- tions of this. The Hsiang, or emblematic figures, are pictorial representations of the same.
9. The movements of the lines and figures take place (at the hand of the operator), and are un- seen; the good fortune or ill is seen openly and is beyond. The work to be done appears by the changes; the sympathies of the sages are seen in their explanations.
10. The great attribute of heaven and earth is the giving and maintaining life. What is most precious for the sage is to get the (highest) place— (in which he can be the human representative of heaven and earth). What will guard this position for him? Men. How shall he collect a large population round him? By the power of his wealth. The right administration of that wealth, correct instructions to the people, and prohibitions against wrong-doing;—these constitute his righteousness.
Chapter I, paragraphs 1-10, is an amplification, according to Khung Ying-té and the editors of the imperial edition of the present dynasty, of the second chapter of Section i. The latter say that as all the chapters of Section i from the third onwards serve to elucidate chapter 2, so it is with this chapter and all that follow in this Section. The formation of the diagrams, and of their several lines, their indication of good fortune and bad, and the analogy between the processes of nature and the operations of divination, and other kindred subjects, are all touched on.
The order of the eight trigrams in paragraph 1, is &Aien, tui, 382 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. II.
Chapter II. 11. Anciently, when Pao-hst had come to the rule of all under heaven, looking up, he contemplated the brilliant forms exhibited in the sky, and looking down he surveyed the patterns shown on the earth. He contemplated the orna- mental appearances of birds and beasts and the (different) suitabilities of the soil. Near at hand, in his own person, he found things for consideration, and the same at a distance, in things in general. On this he devised the eight trigrams, to show fully the 1?, Ain, sun, khan, kin, khwan. The three lines of each are emblematic,—the first of heaven, the second of man, the third of earth. This is the most likely explanation of hsiang, ‘the em- blems’ or ‘similitudes’ here. Why the maker—‘ sages ’—stopt at sixty-four figures, of six lines each, is a question that cannot be answered.
Paragraph 2. Of course it was a great delusion to suppose that the changes of lines consequent on divination could be so con- nected with the movements of life as to justify the characterising them as good or evil, or afford any guidance in the ordering of conduct.
Paragraph 4. Who can tell ‘the requirements of the time’ amid the complexity of the phenomena of nature or the ever-varying events of human experience and history? The wiser men are, the more correct will be their judgments in such matters; but is there any reason for trusting to divination about them?
Paragraphs 5, 6. It is difficult to say what is ‘the exact rule’ intended here; unless it be that the factors in every movement shall act according to their proper nature. The Khang-hs? editors say:—‘ We see the good sometimes meeting with misfortune, and the bad with good fortune; but such is not the general rule.’ ‘ The lessons that heaven and earth give forth’ are those concerning the method of their operation as stated in paragraph 7, and more fully in 6, 7, 8 of Section i.
What is said in paragraph 1o is striking and important, and in harmony with the general strain of Confucian teaching;—as in the Great Learning, chapter 10, and many other places; but I fail to see ils appropriateness in its present place in the Yi.
CHAP. 2. APPENDIX III. 383 attributes of the spirit-like and intelligent (operations working secretly), and to classify the qualities of the myriads of things.
12. He invented the making of nets of various kinds by knitting strings, both for hunting and fishing. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Li (the third trigram, and thirtieth hexa- gram).
13. On the death of Pao-hsi, there arose Shan- nang (in his place). He fashioned wood to form the share, and bent wood to make the plough- handle. The advantages of ploughing and weeding were then taught to all under heaven. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Yi (the forty- second hexagram).
14. He caused markets to be held at midday, thus bringing together all the people, and assem- bling in one place all their wares. They made their exchanges and retired, every one having got what he wanted. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Shih Ho (the twenty-first hexagram).
15. After the death of Shan-nang, there arose Hwang Ti, Yao, and Shun. They carried through the (necessarily occurring) changes, so that the peo- ple did (what was required of them) without being wearied; yea, they exerted such a spirit-like trans- formation, that the people felt constrained to approve their (ordinances) as right. When a series of changes has run all its course, another change ensues. When it obtains free course, it will continue long. Hence it was that ‘these (sovereigns) were helped by Heaven; they had good fortune, and their every movement was advantageous. Hwang Ti, Yao, and Shun (simply) wore their upper and 384 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. II.
a lower garments (as patterns to the people), and good order was secured all under heaven. The idea of all this was taken, probably, from A /ien and Khwan (the first and eighth trigrams, or the first and second hexagrams).
16. They hollowed out trees to form canoes; they cut others long and thin to make oars. Thus arose the benefit of canoes and oars for the help of those who had no means of intercourse with others. They could now reach the most distant parts, and all under heaven were benefited. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Hwan (the fifty-ninth hexagram).
17. They used oxen (in carts) and yoked horses (to chariots), thus providing for the carriage of what was heavy, and for distant journeys,—thereby benefiting all under the sky. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Sui (the seventeenth hexagram).
18. They made the (defence of the) double gates, and (the warning of) the clapper, as a preparation against the approach of marauding visitors. The ‘dea of this was taken, probably, from Yt (the sixteenth hexagram).
19. They cut wood and fashioned it into pestles; they dug in the ground and formed mortars. Thus the myriads of the people received the benefit arising from the use of the pestle and mortar. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Hsiao Kwo (the sixty-second hexagram).
20. They bent wood by means of string so as to form bows, and sharpened wood so as to make arrows. ‘This gave the benefit of bows and arrows, and served to produce everywhere a feeling of awe.
CHAP, 2. APPENDIX III. 385 The idea of this was taken, probably, from Khwei (the thirty-eighth hexagram).
21. In the highest antiquity they made their homes (in winter) in caves, and (in summer) dwelt in the open country. In subsequent ages, for these the sages substituted houses, with the ridge- beam above and the projecting roof below, as a provision against wind and rain. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Ta Awang (the thirty- fourth hexagram).
22. When the ancients buried their dead, they covered the body thickly with pieces of wood, having laid it in the open country. They raised no mound over it, nor planted trees around; nor had they any fixed period for mourning. In subse- quent ages the sages substituted for these practices the inner and outer coffins. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Ta Kwo (the twenty-eighth hexagram). | 23. In the highest antiquity, government was carried on successfully by the use of knotted cords (to preserve the memory of things). In subse- quent ages the sages substituted for these written characters and bonds. By means of these (the doings of) all the officers could be regulated, and (the affairs of) all the people accurately examined. The idea of this was taken, probably, from Kwai (the forty-third hexagram).
Chapter II, paragraphs 11-23, treats of the progress of civi- lisation in China, and how the great men of antiquity who led the way in the various steps of that progress were guided by the Yi. Only five of these are mentioned;—the first, FG-hsi, the beginning of whose reign, according to the least unlikely of the chronological accounts, must be placed in the 34th century B.c., while Shun’s 386 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. II.
eee rl a A A A Chapter III. 24. Therefore what we calletheay t is (a collection of) emblematic lines. They are styled emblematic as being resemblances.
RR eee reign ended in B.c. 2203. The time embraced in this chapter therefore is about twelve centuries and a half. But the writer gives his own opinion that the various discoveries and inventions mentioned were suggested to their authors by certain hexagrams of the Y%. The most commonly received view, however, is that FQ-hst had only the eight trigrams, and that the multipli- cation of them to the 64 hexagrams was the work of king Wan, fully a thousand years later than Sbun. This is the view of the editors of the imperial Yf. If it be contended that Fii-hsi himself multiplied his trigrams, and gave their names to the resulting hexagrams, how could he have wrapped up in them the intimations of discoveries which were not made till many centuries after his death? The statements in the chapter cannot be received as historical. It came from another hand, and not from Confucius himself, The writer or compiler gives the legends current about the various inventions of his time. The making of the trigrams is placed first of all to do honour to the Yt. The account of it is different from that given in paragraph 73 of the former Section, and we hear nothing of the Ho map or Lo writing.
Paragraph rz. PAao-hsi here and in 13 is the same as Ff-hsi. As P4o is written here, there is no meaning in it; but another character Phéo ( Kel, ) is more common, and Ph4o-hsi would mean the inventor of the kitchen and cookery. This was the first step towards civilisation, and was appropriately followed by the hunting and fishing—both by means of nets—in paragraph 12.
Paragraphs 13, 14 celebrate the work of Shan-nang, ‘the mar- vellous or spirit-like husbandman.’ There was no metal about the primitive plough. The market for the exchange of commodities, without the use of coin, was an important advance.
The invention of the robes, or of dress, mentioned in paragraph 1s, would seem to show that previously men had been in a very rude state. The passage indicates, however, the courtesies and proprieties of social life, in which dress plays an important part, and which now began to be organised.
The infant navigation in paragraph 16 was as little indebted to the use of metal as the agriculture of 13.
Paragraphs 17 and 18 show that in those primitive times there CHAP. 3. APPENDIX III.. 387 25. What we call the Thwan (or king Wan’s explanations) are based on the significance (of each hexagram as a whole).
26. We call the lines (of the figures) Yao from their being according to the movements taking place all under the sky.
27. In this way (we see) the rise of good fortune and evil, and the manifestation of repentance and regret.
were already the practices of rapine and war. ‘The double gates’ were those of the city wall, and of the enclosed suburb. The clapper may still be heard all over China. Bows and arrows, however, came rather later, as in 20.
I suppose ‘the sages’ in paragraphs 21, 22, 23 refer generally to the great names mentioned in the previous chapters; nor can we define the distinction in the writer or compiler’s mind between ‘antiquity ’ and ‘the highest antiquity.’ Compare what is said on the rise of the coffin in 22 with Mencius’ remarks on the same subject in Book III, ii, 5. 4. He would hardly have expressed himself as he did, if he had been familiar with this text. The invention of written characters is generally ascribed to Fifi-hsi. Paragraph 23 does not say so, but the inventor is said to have been a sage of a subsequent age to the time of ‘high antiquity.’ That ‘high antiquity’ must stretch back very far.
Chapter III, paragraphs 24-27, treats of the Yi as made up of figurative diagrams, which again are composed of lines ever changing, in accordance with the phenomena of nature and human experience, while to the resulting figures their moral character and providential issues are appended by the sages. It may be regarded as an epitome of chapter 2 in Section i.
Paragraph 24. It is observed by the editors of the imperial edition that a chapter should not begin with a ‘therefore;’ and they are inclined to agree with many critics who would enter this as the last paragraph of the preceding chapter. In that case it would be a summing-up of the concluding sentences of the different paragraphs, the truth and genuineness of which are deservedly suspected. The characters for ‘ therefore,’ however, are very loosely used in these Appendixes.—The lines, as they were intended by 388 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. II.
Chapter IV. 28. In the Yang trigrams (or those of the undivided line) there are more of the Yin lines, and in the Yin trigrams (or those of the divided line) there are more of the Yang lines.
29. What is the cause of this? It is because the Yang lines are odd (or made by one stroke), and the Yin lines are even (or made by two strokes).
30. What (method of) virtuous conduct is thus intimated? In the Yang trigrams we have one ruler, and two subjects,—suggesting the way of the superior man. In the Yin trigrams we have two rulers, and one subject,—suggesting the way of the small man.
Fa-hsi, were emblematic; and they are still more so, as interpreted by the duke of Kau. Meanings are drawn from the figures that resemble or illustrate principles in the subjects to which they are applied.
Paragraph 25. The character rendered ‘the significance’ means materials, and is illustrated by reference to all the different materials out of which a house is composed. So there are half-a-dozen things about the diagrams, their lineal structure, emblematic in- tention, their attributes, &c., out of which their interpretation is fashioned.
Paragraph 26. E.g. an undivided line may appear in an odd place, which is right, or in an even place, which is wrong; and the case is the opposite with the divided lines. But what has this to do with the right or wrong of the events divined about?
Chapter 1V, paragraphs 28-30. Of the distinction of the trigrams into Yang and Yin.
The trigrams that contain only one undivided line—an (= =), khan (==), and kan (S="==)—are called Yang. The undivided line is called ‘the lord’ in them. It is just the opposite with the Yin trigrams, in which there are two undivided lines, and one divided,—sun (===), li (===), and tui (===>). These together constitute the ‘six children,’ or ‘three CHAP. 5. APPENDIX III. 8 5 Chapter V. 31. It is said in the Yi, ‘Full of anxious thoughts you go and come; (only) friends will follow you and think with you. The Master said:—‘In all (the processes taking place) under heaven, what is there of thinking? what is there of anxious scheming? They all come to the same (suc- cessful) issue, though by different paths; there is one result, though there might be a hundred anxious schemes. What is there of thinking? what is there of anxious scheming?’
32. The sun goes and the moon comes; the moon goes and the sun comes;—the sun and moon thus take the place each of the other, and their shining is the result. The cold goes and the heat comes; the heat goes and the cold comes;—it is by this mutual succession of the cold and heat that the year is completed. That which goes becomes less and less, and that which comes waxes more and more;—it is by the influence on each other of this contraction and expansion that the advantages (of the different conditions) are produced.
33. When the looper coils itself up, it thereby straightens itself again; when worms and snakes sons’ and ‘three daughters’ in the later arrangement of the tri- grams, ascribed to king Wan.
Paragraph 29. Each part of the divided line counts as one; hence a yang trigram counts as 1+2+2=5 strokes, four of which are yin, while a yin trigram counts as 2+1+1 = 4, only two of which are yang. But this is mere trifling.
In explanation of paragraph 30 it is said that ‘we have in the yang trigrams two (or more) subjects serving one ruler, and in the yin one subject serving two rulers, and two rulers striving together for the, allegiance of one subject.’ This is ingenious, but fanciful; as indeed this distinction of the trigrams into a yang class and a yin is a mere play of fancy.
390 THE APPENDIXES. SECT.IL (ie go into the state of hybernation, they thereby keep themselves alive. (So), when we minutely inves- tigate the nature and reasons (of things), till we have entered into the inscrutable and spirit-like in them, we attain to the largest practical application of them; when that application becomes the quickest and readiest, and all personal restfulness is secured, our virtue is thereby exalted.
34. Going on beyond this, we reach a point which it is hardly possible to know. We have thoroughly comprehended the inscrutable and _spirit-like, and know the processes of transformation;—this is the fulness of virtue.
35. It is said in the Yi, ‘(The third line shows its subject) distressed before a rock, and trying to lay hold of thorns; entering into his palace and not seeing his wife:—there will be evil’ The Master said:—‘ If one be distressed by what need not distress him, his name is sure to be disgraced; if he lay hold on what he should not touch, his life is sure to be imperilled. In disgrace and danger, his death will (soon) come;—is it possible for him in such circum- stances to see his wife?’
36. It is said in the Yi, ‘ The duke with (his bow) shoots at the falcon on the top of the high wall; he hits it:—-his every movement will be advantageous. The Master said:—‘ The falcon is a bird (of prey); the bow and arrow is a weapon (of war); the shooter is aman. The superior man keeps his weapon con- cealed about his person, and waits for the proper time to move;—doing this, how should his move- ment be other than successful? There is nothing to fetter or embarrass his movement; and hence, when he comes forth, he succeeds in his object.
CHAP. 5, APPENDIX III. 3901 The language speaks of movement when the instru- ment necessary to it is ready and perfect.’
37. The Master said:—‘ The small man is not. ashamed of what is not benevolent, nor does he fear to do what is not righteous. Without the prospect of gain he does not stimulate himself to what is good, nor does he correct himself without being moved. Self-correction, however, in what is small will make him careful in what would be of greater consequence;—and this is the happiness of the small man. It is said in the Yi, ‘His feet are in the stocks, and he is disabled in his toes:—there will be no (further) occasion for blame.”’
38. If acts of goodness be not accumulated, they are not sufficient to give its finish to one’s name; if acts of evil be not accumulated, they are not sufficient to destroy one’s life. The small man thinks that small acts of goodness are of no benefit, and does not do them; and that small deeds of evil do no harm, and does not abstain from them. Hence his wickedness becomes great till it cannot be covered, and his guilt becomes great till it cannot be par- doned. ‘This is what the Yi says, ‘He wears the cangue and his ears are destroyed:—there will be evil.’
39. The Master said:—‘ He who keeps danger in mind is he who will rest safe in his seat; he who keeps ruin in mind is he who will preserve his interests secure; he who sets the danger of disorder before him is he who will maintain the state of order. There- fore the superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come; when in a state of security, he does not forget the possibility of ruin; and when all is in a state of order, he does not 392 THE APPENDIXES. SECT. Il.
ee forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is kept safe, and his states and all their clans can be preserved. This is according to what the Yi says, “(Let him say), ‘Shall I perish? shall I perish?’ (so shall this state be firm, as if) bound to a clump of bushy mulberry trees.” ’ 40. The Master said:—‘ Virtue small and office high; wisdom small and plans great; strength small and burden heavy:—where such conditions exist, it is seldom that they do not end (in evil). As is said in the Yi, ‘The tripod’s feet are overthrown, and the ruler’s food is overturned. The body of him (who is thus indicated) is wet (with shame):— there will be evil.” ’