仪礼

Yi Li, whose name is also commonly associated with the book Yi Li (The Book of Etiquette and Ceremonial), has limited publicly available information; his birth and death years, nationality, and English name are unknown. The library holds six of his works, including Shaolao Kuishi Li, Shisang Li, Shiguan Li, Shihun Li, Shirong Lun, and Shiyu Li. Most of these center on specific ceremonial procedures in ancient ritual institutions, covering the norms and sequences for capping, marriage, mourning, and sacrificial occasions in life and worship. Such texts consist mainly of clearly organized accounts of ritual steps, with attention to names, objects, order, and details of conduct; the style is plain and concise, with little expansive discussion. The works are commonly classified under Eastern philosophy and documentary literature, suggesting that their content is regarded both as a resource for ritual studies and thought and, because it records actual ceremonial practice, as having the nature of documentary record. No existing introduction is available; readers may consult the individual texts to understand the basic character of his ritual records.