Daxue and Zhongyong: Bilingual Edition

Appendices

Appendices Appendix 1—The Origin of the Li ji 禮記 The standard edition of the Li ji is that included in the Shisanjing zhushu 十三經注疏 (SSJZS) prepared in the early nineteenth century by Ruan Yuan 阮元 (1764–1849) from Song editions and containing commentary material by Zheng Xuan 鄭玄 (127–200), Lu Deming 陸德明 (556–627) and Kong Yingda 孔穎達 (574–648). The 49 chapters are a miscellany both in subject matter and origin. Indeed, the precise authorship and origin of all of them are more or less uncertain although there is a group of four, which includes the Zhongyong 中庸, attributed to Kong Ji 孔伋 (Zisi 子思, c. 483–422 BCE) and another group of four, which includes the Daxue 大學, attributed to Zeng Shen 曾參 (Zengzi 曾子, c. 505–437 BCE). It is not clear how these relate to the material attributed to both Confucian disciples in the Han shu, “Yiwenzhi.”1 Not only is the origin of the individual chapters obscure; so too is the redaction of the li 禮 material from the pre-Qin period to create the three li 禮 texts, the Yi li 儀禮, the Zhou li 周禮, and the Li ji 禮記. When did these texts come to their present form and who was responsible? There are, then, unresolved issues about the the origin of each of the chapters of the Li ji, and there are issues about the time and mechanism of the compilation of the work as a whole. The traditional view is that the li 禮 material originated to a large extent from the state of Zhou 周 and dates back to the Duke of Zhou 周公 and to Confucius and his disciples. This material was thought to have suffered particularly during the Qin period and to have been in a sorry state at the start of the Han dynasty (206 BCE). Beginning during the Western Han, the body of li 禮 material recovered at that time was worked on by Gao Tang 高堂 (fl. 2nd century BCE) who produced a work, the Shi li 士禮, now lost. From this li 禮 material the three existing texts were fashioned, with the addition of an unknown amount of further material attributed to Han scholars. Work on all this li 禮 material was continued by the noted Han scholar, Hou Cang 后 1 Han shu 30, 6:1724. 496 Daxue and Zhongyong 蒼 (fl. 1st century BCE) and subsequently by two of Hou Cang’s students, Dai De 戴德 (fl. 1st century BCE) and Dai Sheng 戴聖 (fl. 1st century BCE), commonly referred to as “big Dai” (Da Dai 大戴) and “Little Dai” (Xiao Dai 小戴) respectively (they were, in fact, cousins). Work was also done on this material by Liu Xiang 劉向 (c. 79–6 BCE) and his son, Liu Xin 劉歆 (c. 46 BCE–23 CE), in whose catalogue were listed the Yi li, the Zhou li and 199 pian of li 禮 treatises. It is said that both Liu Xiang and Dai Sheng were present at the Stone Conduit Cloister assembly of scholars in 51 BCE, an important milestone in the restoration of Confucian texts. Ultimately, it is said, a work in 85 sections was created by Dai De (“Big Dai”) and was distilled down to 46 pian by Dai Sheng (“Little Dai”), this revision being the basis of what we now have as the Li ji (the Xiao Dai Li ji 小 戴禮記). Also extant is the Da Dai Li ji 大戴禮記, which probably comprises the material edited out by Dai Sheng. There was also a work in 12 pian by Dai Sheng entitled Discussion of the Doubts of Scholars about the Li ji—sadly no longer extant, although it was still in existence during the Sui dynasty. Three chapters were added to the 46 of the Xiao Dai Li ji, as indicated in the excerpt from the Sui shu 隋書 below, to create what has remained unchanged for close on two millennia as the Li ji. Two other notable scholars involved in the preparation of the classic were Ma Rong 馬融 (79–166) and his student, Zheng Xuan 鄭玄 (127–200) whose commentary is preserved in current editions of the Li ji and is included in the present translations. The relevant section in the Sui shu 隋書, which also offers a statement about commentaries available at the time, is as follows: At the beginning of the Han, King Xian 獻王 of Hejian 河間 also acquired what had been recorded by Confucius’ disciples and later scholars, a total of 131 pian, and submitted it, at the time there being no transmission of this. When it came to Liu Xiang, he examined and collated their works and reduced them to 130 pian...