Religion

The Ts‘éen

by Shi Jing (The Book of Songs) poems c. 1000–600 BC; compilation traditionally ascribed to Confucius

Translated by James Legge (1876) · From The She King (1876), Part IV, Book I

Religion

In Ts‘eih and Ts‘en, those streams of K‘e,
About the warrens fish abound.
Large swarms of various kinds we see.
The mudfish and the carp are found,

The thryssa and the yellow-jaws,
And sturgeons, large and lank, are there,
Which we, observant of the laws,
Offer in sacrifice, with prayer,
That Chow may hold its brightening way,
Nor o’er its fortunes come decay.

✦ ✦ ✦

Sung in the first month of winter, and in spring, when the king presented a fish in the ancestral temple.

MLA

Shi Jing (The Book of Songs). “The Ts‘éen.” Translated by James Legge. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/shi-jing/276/.

Chicago

Shi Jing (The Book of Songs). “The Ts‘éen.” Translated by James Legge. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/shi-jing/276/.

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