Extravagance and Luxury

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaNov 2020

4.2

Word count: 5.4K words
Chapters: 6

Summary

Someone asked: Are ancient times and present times the same? The answer: They are the same. Are the people the same or not? The answer: They are not the same. Can one participate in government and its punishments? In the time of Yao, the beauty of what was mixed in the world lay below. Its way was not only about coming and going. The mountains were not bare, yet their resources were sufficient; the marshes were not exhausted, yet their nourishment was enough. People cultivated to feed themselves and used the surplus to serve a good Son of Heaven, and so there was peace. The grazing of cattle and horses did not reach one another, and the customs of the people did not know one another; without going beyond a hundred li, supplies were sufficient. Therefore ministers did not govern, and there was stillness. In its prisons, one lame foot or one worn shoe could offset a death sentence. Now the Duke of Zhou has severed fingers until the tally is full, severed heads until the tally is full, severed feet until the tally is full, and yet the people do not submit. This is not human nature; it is exhaustion. The land is heavy and the people are burdened; decay and exhaustion leave nourishment insufficient. People engage in secondary pursuits and the people are stirred up by them; thus names are held low and substance is held high. The sage examines the root and roams in joys, great dusk, broad night.

Editor's review

Although the text collected in this book is not long, it concentrates the ancients' reflections on the relationship between “extravagance” and the art of governance. The text begins with a contrast between ancient and modern times, asking whether circumstances and the human heart are the same or different, and then unfolds from such levels as mountains, forests, marshes, and nourishment; farming, herding, and self-sufficiency; and litigation and punishment, sketching a picture in which an ideal order and real abuses mirror each other. Lines such as “The mountains were not bare, yet their resources were sufficient; the marshes were not exhausted, yet their nourishment was enough” are concise in language and rich in meaning, touching both on the restraint and use of economic resources and on the leniency or severity of political governance. This edition from Bashu Press makes it easy for general readers to approach this relatively obscure pre-Qin document and is suitable for appreciating its problematic in comparative reading. When reading, one may compare it with contemporary and later writings that discuss extravagance and frugality, root and branch, paying attention to the context in which “root” and “branch” are paired, and avoiding simple analogies with modern consumer concepts. For readers concerned with ancient political thought, economic ethics, or textual interpretation, this is a short piece of material worth careful reading.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers studying pre-Qin political thought and economic ethics
University students who need short classical Chinese texts for close-reading practice
General readers interested in ancient Chinese discussions of governance and customs

Not a good fit for

Readers hoping for a systematic general history or a complete framework of intellectual history
Beginners unfamiliar with classical Chinese who need sentence-by-sentence vernacular explanation

Reading tips

First read the original text twice, mark the key sentences contrasting ancient and modern and pairing root and branch, then consult the annotations.
It may be read alongside discussions related to the “Extravagance” chapter of the Guanzi, noting that the contexts of the various arguments differ and should not be conflated.
After reading, restate in your own words the author's judgments on “stillness” and “exhaustion” to test whether you have grasped the thread of the text.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
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FAQ

What is the core problematic of this text?

The text begins from whether circumstances and the human heart are the same in ancient and modern times, and discusses the relationships among the use of resources, the leniency or severity of punishments, and the choice between root and branch in governance. It does not offer a complete system but presents criticism of real abuses through contrast and judgment; readers need to grasp its argumentative direction in context.

Can I read it without a foundation in pre-Qin literature?

You can try, but you will need annotations and reference works. It is advisable first to grasp the general meaning without getting stuck on every character and word; when encountering keywords such as “root,” “branch,” and “stillness,” summarize their usage from the surrounding text and then gradually go deeper.

What is the most common misunderstanding when reading?

A common misunderstanding is to equate “extravagance” in the text directly with a critique of modern consumerism, or to apply the ancients' root-and-branch theory simplistically to current economic problems. One should return to the text's context, note the problems of governance and customs it addresses, and avoid excessive extension.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.