At a Royal Sacrifice

At Heaven's behest the dusky bird flew down,
And was the parent of the House of Shang, —
Which dwelt in Yin, and greatly multiplied.
And long ago God charged the warlike T'ang
To fix their boundaries on every side.

Then had the princes their commission given.
Anon they held the territories nine;
And he, the first in Shang to be the king,
The appointment held unthreatened with decline, —
Now vested in a scion of Wu-ting.
And Wu-ting's scion is a warrior-king,
And ne'er a task for him is too severe.
Ten chariots with his dragon-banners bring
Large store of sacrificial millet here.

His royal lands extend a thousand Zi,
And there his people's settled dwellings be, —
And thence his landmarks stretch to every sea.

From every sea men come, all hither bound;
They come, and here in multitudes are found,
Where flows the Ho (the hill of) King around.
Most meet it was that Yin received the Call,
Now bearing its great honours one and all.