| | 郊特牲: |
冠义：始冠之，缁布之冠也。大古冠布，齐则缁之。其緌也，孔子曰：“吾未之闻也。冠而敝之可也。” |
| Jiao Te Sheng: |
(As to) the meaning of (the ceremony of) capping: The cap used for the first act of the service was of black cloth, the cap of the highest antiquity. It was originally of (white) cloth, but the colour when it was used in fasting was dyed black. As to its strings, Confucius said, 'I have not heard anything about them.' This cap, after it had been once put upon (the young man), might be disused. |
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适子冠于阼，以著代也。醮于客位，加有成也。三加弥尊，喻其志也。冠而字之，敬其名也。 |
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The son by the wife proper was capped by the eastern stairs (appropriate to the use of the master), to show how he was in their line of succession to him. The father handed him a cup in the guests' place (without receiving one in return). The capping showed that he had reached maturity. The using of three caps was to give greater importance (to the ceremony), and show its object more clearly. The giving the name of maturity in connexion with the ceremony was to show the reverence due to that name. |
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委貌，周道也。章甫，殷道也。毋追，夏后氏之道也。周弁，殷冔，夏收。三王共皮弁素积。 |
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The wei-mao was the fashion of Zhou; the zhang-fu, that of Yin; and the mu-zhui, that of the sovereigns of Xia. Zhou used the bian; Yin, the xu; and Xia, the shou. The three dynasties all used the skin cap, with the skirt-of-white gathered up at the waist. |
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无大夫冠礼，而有其昏礼。古者，五十而后爵，何大夫冠礼之有？诸侯之有冠礼，夏之末造也。 |
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There were no observances peculiar to the capping (in the families) of Great officers, though there were (peculiar) marriage ceremonies. Anciently a man was fifty when he took the rank of a Great officer; how should there have been peculiar ceremonies at his cappings? The peculiar ceremonies at the cappings as used by the princes arose in the end of the Xia dynasty. |
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天子之元子，士也。天下无生而贵者也。继世以立诸侯，象贤也。以官爵人，德之杀也。死而谥，今也；古者生无爵，死无谥。 |
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The eldest son of the son of Heaven by his proper queen (was capped only as) an ordinary officer. There was nowhere such a thing as being born noble. Princes received their appointments on the hereditary principle, (to teach them) to imitate the virtue of their predecessors. Men received office and rank according to the degree of their virtue. There was the conferring of an honourable designation after death; but that is a modern institution. Anciently, there was no rank on birth, and no honorary title after death. |
| | 明堂位: |
鸾车，有虞氏之路也。钩车，夏后氏之路也。大路，殷路也。乘路，周路也。 |
| Ming Tang Wei: |
(The princes of Lu) had, as carriages, that of (Shun), the lord of Yu, furnished with bells; that of the sovereign of Xia, with its carved front; the Great carriage (of wood), or that of Yin; and the carriage (adorned with jade), or that of Zhou. |
| | 明堂位: |
泰，有虞氏之尊也。山罍，夏后氏之尊也。著，殷尊也。牺象，周尊也。 |
| Ming Tang Wei: |
Of jugs for liquor, they had the earthenware jug of the lord of Yu; the jug of Xia, with clouds and hills figured on it; the ko of Yin, with no base, which rested directly on the ground; and the jugs of Zhou, with a victim-bull or an elephant on them. |
| | 明堂位: |
米廪，有虞氏之庠也；序，夏后氏之序也；瞽宗，殷学也；頖宫，周学也。 |
| Ming Tang Wei: |
They had the xiang (school) of the lord of Yu, in connexion with which were kept the stores of (sacrificial) rice; the xu school of the sovereign of Xia; the school of Yin, in which the blind were honoured; and the college of Zhou, with its semicircle of water. |
