Classic Poem

I

'Tis said:

At the beginning of remote antiquity,
Who was there to transmit the tale?
When above and below had not yet taken shape,
By what means could they be examined?

When darkness and light were obscured,
Who could fathom them?
When primal matter was the only form,
How could it be recognized?

Brightness became bright and darkness dark;
What has caused them to be like this?
Yin and yang commingle;
What was basic, what transformed?

Round heaven with its nine layers,
Who managed and measured it?
What sort of achievement was this?
Who was the first to make it?

How was the Cord tied to the Hub?
How was the Heavenly Pole added to them?
What did the Eight Pillars hold up?
Why was there a gap in the southeast?

The borders of the ninefold heavens —
Where do they stretch: where do they join?
Many are their corners and angles —
Who knows their number?

Upon what are the heavens folded?
Where are the twelve stages divided?
How are the sun and moon attached?
How are the constellations arrayed?

The sun emerges from the morning vale,
It comes to rest on the crepuscular horizon.
From dawn until dusk,
How many miles does it travel?

What virtue hath the moon,
That it dies and then is reborn again?
What benefit is there
To harbor a bunny in its belly?

The goddess of fertility had no mate;
How did she get nine sons?
Where does the god of pestilence dwell?
Where does the benign wind breathe?

What closes and brings darkness?
What opens and brings light?
Before the Horn rises in the east,
Where does the numinous sunlight hide?

II

Kun was incapable of controlling the flood;
Why did the masses esteem him?
Everyone said, " There's no need to worry.
Why not let him try to carry it out? "

The linked hawk-turtles dragged along;
What did Kun learn from them?
He completed the work in accord with the will of the people;
Why did Deus punish him?

Eternally imprisoned at Feather Mountain,
Why did Kun's corpse not disintegrate after three years?
Lord Yü was born from the belly of Kun;
How did this transformation occur?

Taking up the thread of his predecessor,
Yü thereupon completed the dead father's work;
How did he continue the original enterprise,
Even though his plan was different?

The floody abyss was extremely deep —
How did he fill it in?
Nine were the regions of square earth —
How did he pile them up?

What did the respondent dragon draw on the ground?
Where were the lakes and rivers channeled off?

What was it that Kun had managed?
What was it that Yü completed?
When the tumultuous thunder rumbled,
Why did the earth tilt toward the southeast?

How were the nine continents laid out?
Where were the stream beds sunk?
They flow to the east but never fill the sea —
Who knows the reason why?

From east to west or from north to south,
Which length is greater?
The earth is elliptical from north to south —
What is its breadth?

The hanging gardens of K'un-lun,
Where does their base lie?
With nine layers of tiered walls,
How many tricents is its heights?

The gates of the four directions —
Who is it that passes through them?
When the northeast gate opens,
What air breezes through it?

Where does the sun not reach?
Where does the incandescent dragon not shine?

Before Hsi-ho, the solar charioteer, has risen,
Whence cometh the light of the Jo flower?

In what place is the winter warm?
In what place is the summer cold?
Where is the forest of stones?
What beast can speak?

Where is there a hornless dragonet,
That roams about carrying a bear on its back?

The horrible hydra with nine heads —
Where does it flit about so swiftly?
Where is the place of immortality?
What do the giants guard?

The spreading nine-stemmed nuphar,
And the cannabis flowers, where do they grow?
The snake that can swallow elephants —
How big must it be?

Black Waters, Dark Toes,
And Three Dangers — where are they?
The years extend without death;
What is the limit of longevity?

Where does the merman live?
Where does the monster bird dwell?
Why did Yi shoot down the suns?
Why did crow feathers fall from them?

III

Yü's energy was devoted to his work,
Having descended to inspect the land below.
How did he get that T'u mountain maid,
And unite with her midst the terraced mulberries?

Yearning for a consort, he mated with her,
From whose body was born a successor.
Why did he crave different tastes,
And feel satisfied with a morning's delight?

Ch'i replaced Yih as the lord,
But suddenly encountered troubles.
How did Ch'i suffer from sorrow,
And yet avert his predicament?

All returned to hunting and husbandry,
So that no harm came to his person.
Even though Yih made these reforms,
Why was it Yü's line that was passed down?

Ch'i paid court to Deus with lance dance and damsels,
Receiving from him the " Nine Disputations " and the " Nine Songs. "
Why did the diligent son slay his mother,
So that her stone corpse split upon the ground?

Deus sent down Yi of the East
To remove the troubles of the Hsia people;
Why did Yi shoot the god of the Yellow River
And take for wife the goddess of the Lo River?

With full-drawn pearl-inlaid bow and nimble thimble,
Yi shot the great wild boar;
When he presented the fat of the sacrificial meat,
Why was Lord Deus not pleased?

Cho married Sable Fox;
Deluded by his wife, he plotted against Yi.
How is it that Yi could shoot through leather,
Yet he was swallowed up by conspiracy?

Traveling westward on a perilous journey,
How did he cross the mountain cliffs?
When he was transformed into a yellow bear,
How did the magus bring him back to life?

Everyone sowed black millet,
And exploited the rushes and reeds;
For what reason did they scatter in all directions,
And why was the enmity against Kun so long-lasting?

With white rainbow skirts and cloudlike adornments,
What is she doing in this hall?
Where did he get the excellent medicine
That he could not hide securely?

Heaven's framework spans the vertical and the horizontal;
When the vital yang breath dissipates, death will ensue.
Why did the great bird call?
How did it lose its body?

The pluvial sprite causes rain to fall;
How does he bring it about?
The god of wind has a deer's head and a bird's body;
How did he receive it?

When giant turtles bearing islands on their backs stir,
How do they keep them steady?
If one launches a boat to cross the land,
By what means does it move?

When Ao stood before his sister-in-law's door,
What was he seeking from her?
Why did Shao-k'ang go in pursuit of him with hounds,
But end up decapitating her?

The woman Ch'i sewed his lower garment,
And he rested with her in the same house;
How did the wrong head fall by mistake,
When she herself met disaster?

Ao planned to reorganize his troops;
How did he strengthen them?
After he capsized the boats of Chen-hsün,
By what method was he taken?

IV

There were portents at the beginning;
By whom were they predicted?
A jade terrace ten stories tall;
By whom was it erected?

Fu-hsi was established as Deus;
By what principle was he raised up?
Woman Wa was embodied with a serpent's tail;
Who was it that created her?

Shun was tormented at home;
Why did his father let him remain a bachelor?
If Yao did not inform Shun's father,
How could he marry his two daughters to him?

Shun deferred to his younger stepbrother,
Who harmed him nonetheless.
How could the stepbrother unleash his brutish instincts,
But never be endangered himself?

Ngwa's heritage reaches into the past,
Having been founded among the southern peaks;
Who would have expected that, fleeing to this place,
Two princes Ngwa would gain?

V

When Chieh attacked Meng-shan,
What did he get thereby?
How was Mo-hsi dissipated?
Why did T'ang kill her?

From a tripod trimmed with swans and ornamented with jade,
Lord Deus was feted;
How did he receive the plans against Chieh of Hsia,
Who was finally destroyed?

When Deus descended to survey the world,
There below he encountered Yi Yin;
When Chieh was banished to Ming-t'iao for his crimes,
Why did the black-hairs rejoice so greatly?

VI

Chien Ti was on a tall terrace;
Why did K'u think that she was suitable?
A dark bird made a gift to her;
Why was the woman happy?

Hai inherited Chi's virtues,
For his father was a good man;
Why was he finally murdered in the freehold of Yee,
Where he pastured his cattle and sheep?

When he danced for her with his shield,
Why did she cherish him?
With his smooth loins and sleek skin,
How did he seduce her?

In the freehold of Yee there were herdsmen;
How did they encounter him?
They struck the bed, but he went out first;
Whose command were they following?

Heng inherited Chi's virtues;
How could he have retrieved their docile cattle?
Why was he concerned only with position and pay,
And did not even come back for them?

Meritorious Wei traced his father's footsteps,
And the freehold at Yee had no peace;
How numerous were his soldiers, like birds flocking to brambles,
When the responsible son gave vent to his emotions?

The deluded younger brothers were all profligate,
And threatened the older brother;
How did he transform them through deception,
So that their descendants met with lasting success?

T'ang the Achiever toured the east,
And reached the freehold at Hsin;
How is it that he requested a servant,
But instead got an auspicious wife?

From a tree by the water's edge,
They got the little boy,
Why, then, did they hate him,
And send him away as an escort for the lady from Shen?

T'ang was released from the Double Springs prison;
Now what was his crime?
He overcame his inhibitions and attacked the monarch;
Now who was it that incited him?

At first, Yi Yin was T'ang's servant,
But afterwards was accepted as councilor;
How was he T'ang's minister to the very end,
Later receiving offerings along with the ancestors of the Shang?

VII

To Yin was given all under heaven;
How was the throne bestowed upon Chou?
Yin had prospered but then was lost;
What was Chow's crime?

Though Chow was of kingly stature,
Who caused him to be foolish and deluded?
Why did he hate his close councilors,
While trusting in slanderers and flatterers?

How did Pi Kan offend,
So that he was suppressed?
How did Lei K'ai truckle,
So that he was enfeoffed?

How can sages who are of equal virtue
End up behaving so differently?
Chow made mincemeat of Mei Po for his directness,
Master Chi feigned madness to preserve his life.

They convened at dawn and swore fealty;
How was this face-to-face appointment actualized?
Like flocks of gray hawks they came flying;
Who was it that caused them to assemble?

They vied to mobilize their offensive weaponry;
How was this carried out?
They rushed forward together with their wings of attack,
How were the troops led?

When Chow's body was mutilated,
Why was Uncle Tan unhappy?
When Wu personally directed the operations,
Why were there sighs of admiration?

VIII

Lord Millet was the firstborn son;
Why did Deus detest him?
Thrown out upon the ice,
How did the birds keep him warm?

How was it that he, drawing his bow full and grasping his arrows,
Had the unique ability to be a general?
Since he had startled Deus and made him agitated,
Why did he encounter lasting success?

The Earl of the West gave orders while Yin declined;
He grasped a whip and acted as herdsman.
Who ordered the transfer of the altar to the earth to Ch'i,
To take over the mandate of the Yin state?

When the tribal elders moved to Ch'i,
What made the people willing to follow them?
In Yin there was a bewitching woman;
How did she cause him to be censured?

When Chow bestowed upon him the mincemeat of a vassal,
The Earl of the West reported it to Heaven above.
How did he personally deliver the punishment of Exalted Deus,
So that the mandate of Yin could not be saved?

When Preceptor Wang was in the butchery,
How did the Earl of the West recognize him?
He drummed with his knife and raised his voice in song;
Why was his lord so happy?

When King Wu set forth to kill Chow of the Yin,
What was it that made him so grieved?
Carrying a corpse, he assembled his warriors;
What was it that made him so hasty?

Kuan Shu hung himself in the arbor vitae grove;
What was the reason for that?
How was Heaven moved and the earth agitated?
Who was frightened by this?

When August Heaven bestowed the mandate,
What warning was given?
One may receive control of all under heaven,
Until another is caused to replace one.

Lord Chao embarked on a royal tour,
Journeying all the way to the southern land.
What benefit did he receive
By meeting that white pheasant?

King Mu was cunningly covetous;
What was his purpose in traveling all around?
When he made a circuit of all under heaven,
For what was he seeking?

A strange couple dragged along their wares;
What were they hawking in the market?
Who executed King Yu?
How did he obtain Pao Ssu?

IX

The mandate of Heaven shifts from side to side;
Whom does it punish, whom protect?
Duke Huan of Ch'i nine times convened his vassals,
Yet even he was murdered in the end.

Ho the Valiant was the grandson of Meng;
As a youth, he met with rejection.
How did he gain military might in his prime,
So that he could spread his prowess across the land?

Progenitor P'eng cooked a pheasant;
How did Deus partake of it?
He received lasting longevity;
How could he exist so long?

X

They pastured their livestock together in the center;
Why was the lord angry?
Their lives were slight as those of bees and ants;
How could their power persist?

The goddess was startled to see them picking ferns;
How did a deer protect them?
North they traveled to the bend in the river;
Why were they happy to congregate there?

The elder brother possessed Dog Mound;
Why did the younger brother desire it?
In exchange, he was offered a hundred chariots,
And ended up losing his entitlements.

XI

Midst evening thunder and lightning,
Why was he afraid to return?
His majesty could not be maintained;
What was Deus seeking?

He hid away in caves;
How can his predicament be described?
Illustrious Ch'u raised armies;
How did it take the lead?

Recognizing the errors of his predecessor, he corrected them;
What more can be said?
Ho Lü vied to conquer our state;
Long was he victorious over us.

She circled round the village gates and passed through the altars to the earth,
Till she reached the burial mounds.
She was licentious, she was wanton,
And consequently gave birth to Tzu-wen.

It was reported that Hsiung would not reign long;
How did Tzu-wen chasten his superior and renounce himself,
Thereby making his loyal name all the more illustrious?