The Decade of the Pure Temple

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

4.2

Word count: 600 words
Chapters: 11

Summary

"Qingmiao zhi Shi" is one of the sacrificial sections in the Shi Jing (Classic of Poetry), among the sections known as feng, ya, and song. It contains 10 poems and is a collection of Han Chinese poetry from the pre-Qin era. The Shi Jing is the first collection of poetry in Han Chinese literary history. It had a profound influence on the development of later poetry and became the source of the realist tradition in classical Chinese literature.

Editor's review

"Qingmiao zhi Shi" is the first group of poems in the "Zhou Song" section of the Shi Jing (Classic of Poetry), ten poems in all, mostly used in ancestral temple sacrifices. Their tone is solemn and grave, clearly different from the folk character of the "Guofeng" airs. They show how early poetry was bound up with ritual and music, as sacrificial scenes, ancestral achievements, and feelings of reverence unfold layer by layer in brief lines. This group is indispensable for studying the overall structure of the Shi Jing, the ritual and musical culture of the Zhou dynasty, and the realist source of classical poetry. The 2024 Bashu Press edition makes direct reading of the original convenient. Read it alongside other parts of the "Zhou Song" and the "Ya" poems, noting the slow rhythm and archaic diction of the sacrificial songs. Beginners should use annotations and translations, first grasping the sacrificial theme and emotional tone, then examining the wording closely.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers studying the overall structure of the Shi Jing who need to fill in the sacrificial songs
Readers interested in Zhou dynasty ritual and musical culture and ancestral temple sacrifices
Teachers and students who need close reading of sacrificial songs in classical literature courses
Readers who enjoy solemn, archaic poetry and are willing to read the original slowly

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer lyrical folk songs and expect a light reading experience
Beginners with no grounding in classical Chinese who are unwilling to consult annotations
Readers who want only famous selected pieces and are not concerned with the sacrificial songs as a whole

Reading tips

Read all ten poems first and mark changes in the sacrificial recipients and scenes, then read the annotations poem by poem; avoid getting stuck in wording from the start.
Read alongside other groups in the "Zhou Song" and related pieces in the "Da Ya", comparing the tone and function of the sacrificial songs and the ya poems.
Read the whole group aloud to feel the slow, solemn rhythm of the sacrificial songs; this conveys the ritual and musical atmosphere better than silent reading.
After reading, summarize each poem's main point in your own words, checking whether you have distinguished sacrifice, praise of ancestors, and prayer.

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
清庙
维天之命
维清
烈文
天作
昊天有成命
我将
时迈
执竞
思文

FAQ

What is the difference between "Qingmiao zhi Shi" and the "Guofeng"?

"Qingmiao zhi Shi" belongs to the "Zhou Song" and is mainly used in ancestral temple sacrifices, with a solemn tone and slow rhythm; the "Guofeng" are mostly folk songs, closer to daily life in subject and more direct in emotional expression. The two differ clearly in function, language, and style.

Do I need to read other parts of the Shi Jing before "Qingmiao zhi Shi"?

You do not need to read the whole book first, but knowing the basic divisions of feng, ya, and song helps. It is best to read a brief introduction to understand the nature and use of the sacrificial songs, then move on to these ten poems; understanding will be smoother.

Are these poems suitable for memorization?

You can memorize selected ones, but there is no need to memorize them all. The sacrificial songs are archaic in diction and solemn in phrasing; memorizing after understanding the general meaning and sacrificial background works better. If the goal is learning ritual and musical culture, close reading is more meaningful than rote memorization.

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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.