Guo Feng (Airs of the States)

人之雲亡，邦國殄瘁。

The worthy are thus lost, and the state is in distress.

天之降罔，維其優矣。人之雲亡，心之憂矣。天之降罔，維其幾矣。

Heaven sends down nets, only because its generosity is rich. The worthy are thus lost, and the heart is sorrowful. Heaven sends down nets, only because it is urgent.

人之雲亡，心之悲矣。

The worthy are thus lost, and the heart is grieved.

觱沸檻泉，維其深矣。心之憂矣，寧自今矣？不自我先，不自我後。

The gushing spring only because it is deep. The sorrow in my heart, did it begin only today? It was not before me and not after me.

藐藐昊天，無不克鞏。無忝皇祖，式救爾後。

Vast and remote Heaven, there is nothing it cannot make firm. Do not disgrace your August ancestors, and save your descendants.

旻天疾威，天篤降喪。瘨我饑饉，民卒流亡。我居圉卒荒。

Heaven is swift and angry, and in great measure sends down ruin and disorder. It afflicts me with famine, and the people are finally in flight. The borders of my dwelling are finally laid waste.

天降罪罟，蟊賊內訌。昏椓靡共，潰潰回遹，實靖夷我邦。

Heaven sends down the net of crime, and pests and thieves fight within. In confusion and slander they do not respect their posts, collapsing in perversity, truly bent on destroying my state.

皋皋訿訿，曾不知其玷。兢兢業業，孔填不寧，我位孔貶。

Deceitful and slanderous, they do not even know their own stains. I am anxious and fearful, and for a long time have had no peace, and my position has been much lowered.

如彼歲旱，草不潰茂，如彼棲苴。我相此邦，無不潰止。

Like a drought year, grass cannot grow luxuriantly, like duckweed floating on water. As I look at this state, there is nothing that is not in collapse and disorder.

維昔之富不如時，維今之疚不如茲。彼疏斯粺，胡不自替？職兄斯引。

The wealth of the past was not like this time, and the ills of today are not like this. Those eating coarse food and those eating fine food, why do they not retire themselves? They only hold on longer.

池之竭矣，不雲自頻。泉之竭矣，不雲自中。溥斯害矣，職兄斯弘，不災我躬。

When a pond is drying up, does it not start from the edge? When a spring is drying up, does it not start from the middle? This harm is widespread and holds even more, and will it not reach me myself?

昔先王受命，有如召公，日闢國百里，今也日蹙國百里。於乎哀哉！維今之人，不尚有舊！

In the past when the former kings received the mandate, there were those like the Duke of Shao, who each day opened up a hundred li of land; now each day a hundred li of land is reduced. Alas, how sad! People of today, do you not still honor the old virtues!

於穆清廟，肅雍顯相。濟濟多士，秉文之德。對越在天，駿奔走在廟。不顯不承，無射於人斯。

Solemn and serene is the pure temple, with reverent and harmonious, eminent assistants at the sacrifice. Many dignified officers hold fast to the virtue of King Wen. They respond and extol the spirits in heaven, and hurry swiftly about in the temple. Is it not eminent, is it not continued? People never weary of it.

維天之命，於穆不已。於乎不顯，文王之德之純。假以溢我，我其收之。駿惠我文王，曾孫篤之。

The decree of Heaven is solemn and unceasing. Alas, how eminent is the purity of King Wen's virtue. Fine things come to add to me, and I come to receive them. Swiftly following our King Wen, his great-grandson makes it solid.

維清緝熙，文王之典。肇禋，迄用有成，維周之禎。

Clear and bright, continuing in radiance, are the statutes of King Wen. Beginning with the sacrifices of purification, until it was accomplished: this is the auspicious omen of Zhou.

烈文闢公，錫茲祉福。惠我無疆，子孫保之。無封靡於爾邦，維王其崇之。

The lords and dukes with merit and culture bestow these blessings. Show kindness to me without limit, and may descendants preserve it. Do not cause great harm in your state, and the king will honor you.

念茲戎功，繼序其皇之。無競維人，四方其訓之。不顯維德，百辟其刑之。於乎，前王不忘！

Think of this great merit, continue its order and magnify it. Nothing compares to having good men, and the four quarters take them as teaching. Is not virtue eminent, and the hundred lords take it as a model. Alas, the former kings cannot be forgotten!

天作高山，大王荒之。彼作矣，文王康之。彼徂矣，岐有夷之行。子孫保之。

Heaven made the high mountain, and the Great King enlarged it. They rose up, and King Wen gave it peace. They went there, and Mount Qi has a level road. May descendants preserve it.

昊天有成命，二後受之。成王不敢康，夙夜基命宥密。於緝熙！單厥心，四其靖之。

Vast Heaven has a settled mandate, which the two kings received. King Cheng did not dare to be at ease, and from morning to night he took Heaven's mandate as his foundation and was generous and careful. Continuing in radiance and brightness! He exhausted his heart, and so settled it. (The source text has a variant character for "so" here.)

我將我享，維羊維牛，維天其右之。儀式刑文王之典，日靖四方。

I offer my sacrifice, a sheep and an ox, and Heaven will protect it. Taking the statutes of King Wen as my model and norm, every day I bring peace to the four quarters.

伊嘏文王，既右饗之。我其夙夜，畏天之威，於時保之。

The great King Wen has already protected and received the offering. From morning to night I fear Heaven's might, and so I preserve it.

時邁其邦，昊天其子之，實右序有周。薄言震之，莫不震疊。懷柔百神，及河喬嶽，允王維後。

He makes timely tours of those states, and vast Heaven takes him as a son, truly protecting the line of Zhou. Go and awe them, and there is none who is not terrified. He comforts the hundred spirits, and the rivers and high mountains, and the trustworthy king is their lord.

明昭有周，式序在位。載戢干戈，載橐弓矢。我求懿德，四於時夏，允王保之。

The bright Zhou, the ordered men in their positions. Then they put away shields and spears, then they case bows and arrows. I seek fine virtue, and so spread it through China (the source text has a variant character for "so" here). The trustworthy king preserves it.

執競武王，無競維烈。不顯成康，上帝是皇。自彼成康，奄有四方，斤斤其明。

Holding fast, the mighty King Wu has no achievement to compare. Is it not eminent, King Cheng and King Kang, whom God above takes as lords? From those Cheng and Kang, they cover and possess the four quarters, scrupulously discerning.

鐘鼓喤喤，磬莞將將，降福穰穰。降福簡簡，威儀反反。既醉既飽，福祿來反。

Bells and drums resound, stone chimes and pipes ring out, and blessings descend in abundance. Blessings descend in great measure, and dignified bearing is repeated with care. Already drunk and already full, blessings and emoluments come back again and again.

思文后稷，克配彼天。立我烝民，莫菲爾極。貽我來牟，帝命率育，無此疆爾界。陳常於時夏。

Thoughtful and cultured Hou Ji, able to be paired with Heaven. He gave peace to our multitudes, and there was none who was not within your right measure. He left us wheat and barley, and the Lord's command is for universal nourishment, with no this boundary or that boundary. He spread the constant way throughout China.

嗟嗟臣工，敬爾在公。王釐爾成，來諮來茹。嗟嗟保介，維莫之春，亦又何求？如何新畲？

Alas, you ministers and officers, be careful in your public duties. The king gives you established rules, to consult and to measure by. Alas, you chariot guards, it is late spring; what more do you seek? How are the new fields and the two-year fields?

於皇來牟，將受厥明。明昭上帝，迄用康年。命我眾人：庤乃錢鎛，奄觀銍艾。

The fine wheat and barley will soon receive their harvest. Bright God above, may it lead to a bountiful year. He commands my people: prepare your hoes and sickles, and observe the harvest everywhere.

噫嘻成王，既昭假爾。率時農夫，播厥百穀。駿發爾私，終三十里。亦服爾耕，十千維耦。

Ah, King Cheng, has already shone his light on you. Lead these farmers to sow those hundred grains. Swiftly open up your private fields, for thirty li at last. Also attend to your plowing, ten thousand people paired in teams.

振鷺于飛，於彼西雍。我客戾止，亦有斯容。在彼無惡，在此無斁。庶幾夙夜，以永終譽。

The white egret in its flurry flies to the western pool. My guests have arrived, and they too have such dignified bearing. There is no hatred there and no weariness here. May it be from morning to night, so as to keep a lasting good name forever.

豐年多黍多稌，亦有高廩，萬億及秭。為酒為醴，烝畀祖妣。以洽百禮，降福孔皆。

In an abundant year there is much millet and rice, and there are also high granaries, with ten thousand, a hundred thousand, up to a million. Make wine and make sweet wine, and offer them to the ancestors, male and female, to accompany the hundred rites. The blessings sent down are very widespread.

有瞽有瞽，在周之庭。設業設虡，崇牙樹羽。應田縣鼓，鞉磬柷圉。既備

There are the blind musicians, there are the blind musicians, in the courtyard of Zhou. Set up the crossbar and set up the frame, with saw-tooth edges and raised feathers. The small drum and the great drum, the hanging drum, the rattle drum, the stone chime, the zhu, and the yu. All are ready,

乃奏，簫管備舉。喤喤厥聲，肅雍和鳴，先祖是聽。我客戾止，永觀厥成。

and then they play, flutes and pipes are raised together. The sound is resonant, solemn and in harmony, and the ancestors then listen. My guests have arrived, and long observe the success.

猗與漆沮，潛有多魚。有鱣有鮪，鰷鱨鰋鯉。以享以祀，以介景福。

How splendid are the Qi and Ju rivers, hiding many fish. There are sturgeon and wei, minnows, yellow-cheeked fish, catfish, and carp. They are offered up for sacrifice, to seek great blessings.

有來雝雝，至止肅肅。相維闢公，天子穆穆。於薦廣牡，相予四祀。假哉皇考！綏予孝子。

When they come, they are harmonious and amicable; when they arrive, solemn and respectful. Those who assist at the sacrifice are the lords and dukes, and the Son of Heaven is dignified and stately. They offer a great bull and help me carry out the sacrifice. (The source text has a variant character for "sacrifice" here.) How great is my august father! Comfort me, a filial son.

宣哲維人，文武維後。燕及皇天，克昌厥後。綏我眉壽，介以繁祉，既右烈考，亦右文母。

Perceptive and wise, he is a man; skilled in civil and martial affairs, he is a lord. His peace reaches august Heaven, and he is able to make his descendants prosper. Comfort me with long life, and grant many blessings; he has already protected my meritorious august father and also protected my mother of cultured virtue.

載見闢王，曰求厥章。龍旗陽陽，和鈴央央。鞗革有鶬，休有烈光。率見昭考，以孝以享。

Then they court the king, saying to seek his statutes. The dragon banners are bright and splendid, and the harmonious bells ring. The bridle is beautifully ornamented, and the beauty has great radiance. They lead the audience before the illustrious father, to fulfil filial duty and to make the offering.

以介眉壽，永言保之，思皇多祜。烈文闢公，綏以多福，俾緝熙於純嘏。

To seek long life, to preserve it forever, thinking of the many blessings of the august beauty. The lords and dukes with merit and culture, comfort them with many blessings, and let them continue in radiance in great blessing.

有客有客，亦白其馬。有萋有且，敦琢其旅。有客宿宿，有客信信。

There are guests, there are guests, and their horses are white. They are luxuriant and numerous, with carved attendants. The guest lodges one night, and again another night; the guest lodges two nights, and again two more.

言授之縶，以縶其馬。薄言追之，左右綏之。既有淫威，降福孔夷。

Give him ropes, to tether his horses. Go to see him off, and let those left and right comfort him. He already has great might, and the blessings sent down are easy.

於皇武王！無競維烈。允文文王，克開厥後。嗣武受之，勝殷遏劉，耆定爾功。

Great King Wu! There is no achievement to compare. The trustworthy and cultured King Wen was able to establish his descendants. He continued his martial achievement and received it, conquered Yin and stopped the killing, and fixed your achievement.

閔予小子，遭家不造，嬛嬛在疚。於乎皇考，永世克孝。

Take pity on me, a young one, who have met misfortune in my house, alone in worry and illness. Alas, august father, may I be able to fulfil filial duty for all ages.

念茲皇祖，陟降庭止。維予小子，夙夜敬止。於乎皇王，繼序思不忘。

I think of this august grandfather, ascending and descending in the court. I, the young one, from morning to night am reverent and careful. Alas, august king, I continue in succession and think of you without forgetting.

訪予落止，率時昭考。於乎悠哉，朕未有艾。將予就之，繼猶判渙。

I consult as I first take the throne, following this illustrious father. Alas, how distant it is, and I have not yet experienced it. Help me to go to it; I continue the plans yet they are still scattered.

維予小子，未堪家多難。紹庭上下，陟降厥家。休矣皇考，以保明其身。

I, the young one, cannot bear the many troubles of my house. I continue in court above and below, ascending and descending in his house. How fine, my august father, who comes to keep himself whole and make himself clear.

敬之敬之，天維顯思，命不易哉。無曰高高在上，陟降厥士，日監在茲。

Be reverent, be reverent; Heaven is manifest, and its mandate is not easy. Do not say it is high above; it ascends and descends among those officers, and watches daily over what is here.

維予小子，不聰敬止。日就月將，學有緝熙於光明。佛時仔肩，示我顯德行。

I, the young one, am not clever or reverent. Let each day bring accomplishment, and each month some advance; may learning continue in radiance until it is bright. Help me carry this burden and show me bright virtue.

予其懲，而毖後患。莫予荓蜂，自求辛螫。肇允彼桃蟲，拚飛維鳥。未堪家多難，予又集於蓼。

I will take warning, and be careful of troubles afterward. There was no one leading me by the hand to poke the hornets' nest; I sought that sting myself. I first trusted the little wren, but it flew up as a great bird. I cannot bear the many troubles of my house, and I gather again in hardship.

載芟載柞，其耕澤澤。千耦其耘，徂隰徂畛。侯主侯伯，侯亞侯旅，侯彊侯以。

They weed and fell the trees, and the ploughing is loose and crumbling. A thousand pairs are weeding, going to the low lands and to the ridges. There are the master and the eldest son, the second and younger sons and the many young men, the strong and the hired workers.

有嗿其饁，思媚其婦，有依其士。有略其耜，俶載南畝，播厥百穀。實函斯活，驛驛其達。

The meal-bearers are numerous, longing for and loving their wives, who lean on those men. The ploughshares are sharp, and they begin working the southern acres, sowing those hundred grains. The seeds hold life and push up out of the earth in a rush.

有厭其傑，厭厭其苗，綿綿其麃。載獲濟濟，有實其積，萬億及秭。為酒為醴，烝畀祖妣，不洽百禮。

The outstanding seedlings are plump, the seedlings are evenly lush, and the weeding is unceasing. The harvest is abundant and plentiful, heaped up and full, ten thousand, a hundred thousand, up to a million. Make wine and sweet wine, and offer them to the ancestors, male and female, to accompany the hundred rites. (The source text has a miswritten character for "to" in the phrase here.)

有飶其香。邦家之光。有椒其馨，胡考之寧。匪且有且，匪今斯今，振古如茲。

There is the fragrance of aroma. It is the glory of the state and the family. There is the fragrance of pepper, the peace of long life. It is not that only now there is this now, nor that only today is today; it has been so since ancient times.

畟畟良耜，俶載南畝。播厥百穀，實函斯活。或來瞻女，載筐及莒，其饟伊黍。

Sharp and keen are the good ploughshares, which begin working the southern acres. They sow those hundred grains, the seeds holding life. Someone comes to see you, carrying baskets round and square, and the meal brought is millet.

其笠伊糾，其鎛斯趙，以薅荼蓼。荼蓼朽止，黍稷茂止。獲之挃挃，積之慄慄。

The straw hats are bound together, and the hoes strike the ground to clear the weeds in the fields. The weeds rot, and the millet and sorghum grow lush. The sound of reaping is dense, and the heaps are piled up in great numbers.

其崇如墉，其比如櫛。以開百室，百室盈止，婦子寧止。殺時犉牡，有捄其角。以似以續，續古之人。

Tall as a wall, dense as a comb. They come to open the hundred storehouses, and when the hundred storehouses are full, wives and children are at peace. They slaughter this great bull, its horns curved. They come to continue and to succeed, succeeding the ancients.

絲衣其紑，載弁俅俅。自堂徂基，自羊徂牛，鼐鼎及鼒，兕觥其觩。旨酒思柔。不吳不敖，胡考之休。

The silk garments are bright and clean, the skin caps are worn with respectful bearing. From the hall to the threshold, from the sheep to the oxen, great cauldrons and small cauldrons, the rhinoceros-horn cups are curved. The fine wine is thought of as soft and mild. Not loud and not arrogant, it is the glory of long life.

於鑠王師，遵養時晦。時純熙矣，是用大介。我龍受之，蹻蹻王之造。載用有嗣，實維爾公允師。

The shining king's army follows and nourishes this dim time. At this time it is pure and bright, and so greatly bestowed. I glory in receiving it; vigorous and strong is the king's doing. Thereupon there is a successor, truly your public trust as an army.

綏萬邦，屢豐年。天命匪解，桓桓武王。保有厥士，於以四方，克定厥家。於昭於天，皇以間之。

Comforting the myriad states, with repeated bountiful years. Heaven's mandate is not slack, and the valiant King Wu. He holds his officers, uses them across the four quarters, and is able to bring peace to his house. Brightness in heaven; August Heaven took him in place of Yin.

文王既勤止，我應受之。敷時繹思，我徂維求定。時周之命，於繹思。

King Wen has already toiled, and I should receive it. I set forth these and ponder them; I go forward seeking only peace. This is the mandate of Zhou. Ah, ponder it.

於皇時周！陟其高山，嶞山喬嶽，允猶翕河。敷天之下，裒時之對。時周之命。

How great is this Zhou! Ascending those high mountains, the small hills and high peaks, sincerely following and joining at the river. All under heaven gather at this time to respond. This is the mandate of Zhou.