The Intervening Traditions

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJul 2024

3.8

Word count: 869 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

Why is the zhan-cui mourning garment worn with a coarse hemp cap? The cap is of an ugly appearance, whereby the inward grief is first manifested outwardly. The countenance of one in zhan-cui should be as the coarse hemp; that of one in zi-cui as the male hemp; that of one in da-gong should be as if at rest; for the nine months' and three months' mourning the countenance may be ordinary. This is the grief that manifests itself in the countenance and body.

Editor's review

This passage comes from the Jian Zhuan type of literature and focuses on the correspondence between the five grades of mourning garments—zhan-cui, zi-cui, da-gong, xiao-gong, and si-ma—and the mourner's countenance and bodily bearing: coarse and ugly objects such as ju and xi are used to figure the depth of grief, while "as if at rest" and "the countenance may be ordinary" distinguish how grief of greater or lesser weight shows itself outwardly. Its strength lies in linking inner grief with outward bearing, offering a concrete and nuanced angle for understanding the traditional mourning-garment system; the writing is concise and dense with names and analogies. Read it within the context of ancient ritual institutions and mourning-garment studies, consult the commentaries to understand terms such as "ju" and "xi," and note the ritual-scholarship logic embodied in the summarizing line "This is the grief that manifests itself in the countenance and body." Readers interested in ritual studies, ancient social history, and the study of names and objects can use this passage as an entry point into the emotional-expressive logic of the mourning-garment system.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars specializing in ancient ritual institutions, mourning-garment systems, and ritual literature
History enthusiasts interested in ancient social customs and the names of things
University students in Chinese classical philology who need to engage with ritual texts

Not a good fit for

General readers looking for light stories or modern practical reading
Those with no interest in ancient ritual names and objects and unwilling to consult commentaries

Reading tips

First grasp the basic hierarchy of the five mourning grades from zhan-cui to si-ma, then read this description of countenance
Consult the commentaries for terms such as "ju," "xi," and "as if at rest," and keep notes on names and objects
Use "grief manifests itself in countenance and body" as a thread to sort out the correspondence between grief and outward appearance

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
间传第三十七

FAQ

What is this passage mainly about?

It mainly discusses the correspondence between the five grades of mourning garments and the mourner's countenance and bearing: one in zhan-cui has a countenance like coarse hemp, one in zi-cui like male hemp, one in da-gong as if at rest, and those in xiao-gong and si-ma may have an ordinary countenance—showing that grief is expressed through countenance and body.

What do "ju" and "xi" mean?

According to the explanation in the text, ju is an "ugly appearance," that is, a coarse and ugly look, used to describe how the zhan-cui mourner's countenance becomes coarse and ugly through extreme pain; xi, by contrast with ju, describes the countenance of one in zi-cui. Both use concrete objects as analogies for the depth of grief.

What background is needed to read this passage?

It is best first to understand the basic framework of the ancient five-grade mourning-garment system and to be accustomed to reading ritual commentaries. If concepts such as "zhan-cui" and "zi-cui" are entirely unfamiliar, it is advisable to read introductory material on ritual institutions before returning to the original text.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

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.