| Chinese Text Project |
| 曰： | He said, |
| 「嗚呼！ | 'Oh! |
| 古有夏先后， | of old the former kings of Xia |
| 方懋厥德， | cultivated earnestly their virtue, |
| 罔有天災。 | and then there were no calamities from Heaven. |
| 山川鬼神， | The spirits of the hills and rivers |
| 亦莫不寧， | likewise were all in tranquillity; |
| 暨鳥獸魚鱉咸若。 | and the birds and beasts, the fishes and tortoises, all enjoyed their existence according to their nature. |
| 于其子孫弗率， | But their descendant did not follow (their example), |
| 皇天降災， | and great Heaven sent down calamities, |
| 假手于我有命， | employing the agency of our (ruler) who was in possession of its favouring appointment. |
| 造攻自鳴條， | The attack (on Xia) may be traced to (the orgies in) Ming-tiao, |
| 朕哉自亳。 | but our (rise) began in Bo. |
| 惟我商王， | Our king of Shang |
| 布昭聖武， | brilliantly displayed his sagely prowess; |
| 代虐以寬， | for oppression he substituted his generous gentleness; |
| 兆民允懷。 | and the millions of the people gave him their hearts. |
| 今王嗣厥德， | Now your Majesty is entering on the inheritance of his virtue |
| 罔不在初， | - all depends on (how) you commence your reign. |
| 立愛惟親， | To set up love, it is for you to love (your relations); |
| 立敬惟長， | to set up respect, it is for you to respect (your elders). |
| 始于家邦， | The commencement is in the family and the state; |
| 終于四海。 | the consummation is in (all within) the four seas.' |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 曰 | 曰+0 | yuē ㄩㄝ | (1) 說。 Say, speak. | v2,p1482#02 | p.502#01 | p.648r3c03 | |
| 嗚 | 口+10 | 呜 | wū ㄨ | sound of crying, sobbing | v1,p0668#15 | p.203#01 | p.287r4c02 |
| 呼 | 口+5 | 謼 𠰗 戲 | hū xū ㄏㄨ ㄒㄩ | breathe sigh, exhale; call, shout | v1,p0605#02 | p.183#14 | p.266r2c01 |
| 古 | 口+2 | 𠖠 𡇣 | gǔ ㄍㄨˇ | old, classic, ancient | v1,p0568#03 | p.171#08 | p.240r1c02 |
| 有 | 月+2 | | yǒu ㄧㄡˇ | Have, possess. / Store, collect. / Occupy. / Hold on to, retain. / Have in abundance. / Good harvest. / Obtain. / Only. / Be, exist. / Occur, happen. / Make. / Particle used before a noun with no meaning. / Particle used before a monosyllabic adjective with no meaning. / Particle used before a verb with no meaning. / Still, yet. / Some people. / Region. | v3,p2041#05 | p.504#20 | p.656r5c01 |
| yòu ㄧㄡˋ | Help, assist. / Same as 「又(3)」 yòu ㄧㄡˋ: Moreover. | ||||||
| 夏 | 夊+7 | 𡔰 𠍺 昰 𡕾 | xià jiǎ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄐㄧㄚˇ | summer; great, grand, big | v2,p0869#10 | p.245#12 | p.335r1c08 |
| 先 | 儿+4 | xiān ㄒㄧㄢ | first, former, previous | v1,p0267#02 | p.124#05 | p.134r3c02 | |
| 后 | 口+3 | 后 後 | hòu ㄏㄡˋ | queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after | v1,p0580#01 | p.176#01 | p.255r4c01 |
| 方 | 方+0 | 𤙗 | fāng ㄈㄤ | Two boats in line. / Two boats travelling together. / Together, in a row. / Same, equivalent. / Comparison, metaphor. / Square. / Upright, honest. / Land, earth. / Vicinity, area around. / Place, area. / One side, one area. / Wooden board used for writing in ancient times. / (Medical) prescription. / Direction. / Convention. / Standard, rule. / The proper way. / Method, way. / Specialized techniques. / Occupy. / Disobey. / Preposition: just then. / Adverb: while. / Adverb: about to. / Adverb: just. / Criticism. | v3,p2172#01 | p.481#03 | p.619r4c01 |
| páng ㄆㄤˊ | Wide, universal. | ||||||
| 懋 | 心+13 | mào ㄇㄠˋ | splendid, grand, majestic | v4,p2358#02 | p.405#24 | p.547r1c01 | |
| 厥 | 厂+10 | 氒 〈 氏 下 可 〉 𨈑 𨈐 𣅞 | jué ㄐㄩㄝˊ | personal pronoun he, she, it | v1,p0076#13 | p.162#22 | p.231r1c03 |
| 德 | 彳+12 | 惪 悳 | dé ㄉㄜˊ | Morals, morality. / Good deeds. / Good fortune. / Reward kindness, thank. / Heart, feelings. / Same as 「得(1.1)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Get, obtain. | v2,p0841#17 | p.371#08 | p.518r3c01 |
| 罔 | 网+3 | 网 𡦽 𡧏 | wǎng wáng ㄨㄤˇ ㄨㄤˊ | net; deceive; libel; negative | v4,p2914#02 | p.946#30 | p.1064r4c05 |
| 天 | 大+1 | 𠀡 𠀘 𦴞 兲 靝 𠕹 | tiān ㄊㄧㄢ | sky, heaven; god, celestial | v1,p0522#01 | p.248#04 | p.358r4c01 |
| 災 | 火+3 | 烖 𤆎 𦸜 灾 菑 | zāi ㄗㄞ | calamity, disaster, catastrophe | v3,p2190#06 | p.666#18 | p.843r3c01 |
| 山 | 山+0 | shān ㄕㄢ | mountain, hill, peak | v1,p0759#11 | p.307#01 | p.452r2c03 | |
| 川 | 巛+0 | 巛 | chuān ㄔㄨㄢ | stream, river; flow; boil | v1,p0032#02 | p.323#23 | p.462r2c02 |
| 鬼 | 鬼+0 | 𩲡 𢇼 𣆠 | guǐ ㄍㄨㄟˇ | ghost; spirit of dead; devil | v7,p4427#01 | p.1460#30 | p.1521r5c03 |
| 神 | 示+5 | 神 𥛠 | shén shēn ㄕㄣˊ ㄕㄣ | spirit, god, supernatural being | v4,p2392#01 | p.842#03 | |
| 亦 | 亠+4 | 𠅃 | yì ㄧˋ | Original character for 腋. / Also. / Just, merely. / Again. / Modal particle at the beginning or middle of a sentence. / Accumulate. | v1,p0281#03 | p.88#09 | p.78r2c02 |
| 莫 | 艸+7 | 𦮅 䒬 𦱴 | mò mù ㄇㄛˋ ㄇㄨˋ | do not, is not, can not; negative | v5,p3217#15 | p.1035#13 | p.1141r3c03 |
| 不 | 一+3 | 不 𠀚 𠙐 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | Not have. / To not be. / Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation. / Negational adverb expressing prohibition: do not. / Negational adverb expressing rhetorical question: is not...? | v1,p0011#06 | p.76#15 | p.30r1c01 |
| fǒu ㄈㄡˇ | Same as 「否(1.2)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used together with an affirmative word, expressing its negative or opposite. / Same as 「否(1.3)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used at the end of a question to form a yes-no question. | ||||||
| fū ㄈㄨ | Sepal of a flower. | ||||||
| pī ㄆㄧ | Same as 「丕(1)」 pī ㄆㄧ: Large. | ||||||
| bǐ ㄅㄧˇ | Show disdain for. | ||||||
| 寧 | 宀+11 | 寍 𡨴 宁 | níng nìng zhù ㄋㄧㄥˊ ㄋㄧㄥˋ ㄓㄨˋ | repose, serenity, peace; peaceful | v2,p0949#05 | p.291#08 | p.428r6c01 |
| 暨 | 日+10 | 曁 | jì ㄐㄧˋ | and; attain, reach; confines | v2,p1531#07 | p.499#06 | |
| 鳥 | 鳥+0 | 鸟 | niǎo diǎo dǎo què ㄋㄧㄠˇ ㄉㄧㄠˇ ㄉㄠˇ ㄑㄩㄝˋ | bird; KangXi radical 196 | v7,p4613#01 | p.1480#52 | p.1533r1c02 |
| 獸 | 犬+15 | 兽 | shòu ㄕㄡˋ | beast, animal; bestial | v2,p1375#05 | p.721#03 | p.881r2c01 |
| 魚 | 魚+0 | 𤉯 鱼 | yú ㄩˊ | fish; surname; KangXi radical 195 | v7,p4674#01 | p.1465#01 | p.1524r2c06 |
| 鱉 | 魚+12 | 龞 鼈 鳖 | biē ㄅㄧㄝ | turtle | v7,p4710#05 | p.1477#31 | p.1532r1c01 |
| 咸 | 口+6 | 鹹 | xián ㄒㄧㄢˊ | together; all, completely; united | v2,p1404#02 | p.187#19 | p.269r4c06 |
| 若 | 艸+5 | 若 𦱡 𦱶 𧁇 | ruò ㄖㄨㄛˋ | Iris. / Same as 「北海若」 běi hǎi ruò ㄅㄟˇ ㄏㄞˇ ㄖㄨㄛˋ: Ruo, a god of the Northern Sea. / Go by, accord with. / Choose. / Like, similar to. / Identical, the same. / As good as, comparable to. / To, arrive at. / You, your. / This way, like this. / Regarding, as regards. / If, should it be the case. / Or, alternatively. / But, yet. / Adjectival suffix. | v5,p3187#07 | p.1023#12 | p.1130r1c03 |
| 于 | 二+1 | 扵 於 | yú ㄩˊ | Go to, go towards. / Take. / Rim of the mouth of a bell. / A type of plant. / [Onomatopoeia] / Same as 「於(3.1)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: in. / Same as 「於(3.2)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: from or to. / Same as 「於(3.3)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: compared to. / Same as 「於(3.4)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: to, for, towards. / Same as 「於(3.5)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: by (indicating passive tense). / Same as 「於(3.6)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: with, using. / Same as 「於(3.7)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: due to, because of. / Same as 「於(3.8)」 yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: by, according to. / Preposition: for, in place of. / Connective: and. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning. / Auxiliary word: used in at the end of a sentence to express questioning. | v1,p0004#05 | p.86#06 | p.63r3c02 |
| 其 | 八+6 | 丌 亓 | qí ㄑㄧˊ | Third-person possessive pronoun: his, her, its, their. / Demonstrative pronoun: that, those. / Adverb expressing estimation or guess. / Adverb expressing imperative. / Adverb expressing rhetorical question. / Adverb expressing future tense. / Connective expressing hypothesis: if, supposing. / Connective expressing choice: or. / Connective expressing concession: even if. / Particle used after an adjective. / Particle: of. / Particle used for emphasis after single-character adjectives or onomatopoeia. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to alter the tempo. | v1,p0245#01 | p.127#18 | p.162r5c01 |
| jì ㄐㄧˋ | Particle used after bi and he. | ||||||
| jī ㄐㄧ | Modal particle expressing interrogative tone. / A year. | ||||||
| 子 | 子+0 | 㜽 𢀈 𢀉 𡐫 𣕓 只 | zǐ ㄗˇ | Child, heir. Refers to both sons and daughters. / Love, charity. / Respectful term for a man. / People in general. / Fourth of the five levels of nobility. / First of the twelve earthly branches of the zodiac. | v2,p1006#06 | p.277#01 | p.395r1c01 |
| 孫 | 子+7 | 孙 | sūn xùn ㄙㄨㄣ ㄒㄩㄣˋ | grandchild, descendent; surname | v2,p1016#05 | p.279#23 | p.401r6c02 |
| 弗 | 弓+2 | fú ㄈㄨˊ | not, negative | v2,p0990#09 | p.356#16 | p.500r5c01 | |
| 率 | 玄+6 | 率 卛 | shuài ㄕㄨㄞˋ | Net for catching birds. / Along, in the same direction as. / Follow, go along with. / Command, lead. / Model. / Create a model for something. / Do, engage in. / Fast, quickly. / Frank, direct. / Because of, due to. / Similar. / Similar things. / Adverb: in general, mostly. / Adverb: all. / Same as 「帥(2.1)」 shuài ㄕㄨㄞˋ: Commander of an army. / Same as 「帥(2.2)」 shuài ㄕㄨㄞˋ: Thing which plays a leading role. | v1,p0289#03 | p.725#05 | p.884r3c03 |
| lǜ ㄌㄩˋ | A fixed standard or ratio. / Same as 「鋝」 lüè ㄌㄩㄝˋ: Unit of weight, approximately 6 liang. | ||||||
| 皇 | 白+4 | 𦤍 𦤐 𤽙 𤽚 𤽧 | huáng wǎng ㄏㄨㄤˊ ㄨㄤˇ | royal, imperial; ruler, superior | v4,p2645#01 | p.786#14 | p.735r5c02 |
| 降 | 阜+6 | 降 夅 | jiàng xiáng xiàng ㄐㄧㄤˋ ㄒㄧㄤˊ ㄒㄧㄤˋ | descend, fall, drop; lower, down | v6,p4126#18 | p.1349#12 | p.1421r2c02 |
| 假 | 人+9 | 仮 | jiǎ jià xiá ㄐㄧㄚˇ ㄐㄧㄚˋ ㄒㄧㄚˊ | falsehood, deception; vacation | v1,p0196#02 | p.110#03 | p.116r1c02 |
| 手 | 手+0 | 扌 𠂿 | shǒu ㄕㄡˇ | hand | v3,p1824#01 | p.416#28 | p.557r3c03 |
| 我 | 戈+3 | 𠨂 𢦓 𢦠 | wǒ ㄨㄛˇ | First-person pronoun: I. / One's own side in general. / Expresses closeness. / Egoism, self-involvement. | v2,p1401#02 | p.412#01 | p.552r1c01 |
| 命 | 口+5 | mìng ㄇㄧㄥˋ | Order, command. / Written order, commandment. / Send (on a mission), dispatch. / A (diplomatic) mission. / Force, make do. / Instruct, tell. / Gift given by a ruler to his ministers by rank. / Will of heaven. / Fate. / Life, lifespan. / Call, name, assign a name to. / Know for certain. | v1,p0604#11 | p.183#18 | p.266r6c01 | |
| 造 | 辵+7 | 艁 𨕡 | zào cào cāo ㄗㄠˋ ㄘㄠˋ ㄘㄠ | construct, build, make, begin; prepare | v6,p3841#06 | p.1258#12 | p.1319r4c01 |
| 攻 | 攴+3 | gōng ㄍㄨㄥ | attack, assault; criticize | v2,p1449#06 | p.468#16 | p.600r1c01 | |
| 自 | 自+0 | 𦣹 鼻 | zì ㄗˋ | Oneself. / Begin, beginning. / From. / Originally. / Natural, naturally. / Supposing, if. / Even, even if. | v5,p3046#01 | p.1000#07 | p.1108r3c01 |
| 鳴條 | 鳥+3 木+7 | 鸣 条 糶 | míng tiáo ㄇㄧㄥˊ ㄊㄧㄠˊ | [地名] [Name of a place] | v7,p4615#17 v1,p0176#02 | p.1482#18 p.529#14 | p.1535r5c01 p.700r3c01 |
| 朕 | 月+6 | 𦩎 | zhèn ㄓㄣˋ | First person pronoun: I, we. / From the era of Qin Shi Huang onwards, used by the emperor to refer to himself. / Sign, omen. | v3,p2071#05 | p.505#19 | p.659r6c01 |
| 哉 | 口+6 | 才 | zāi ㄗㄞ | Begin, start. / Modal particle expressing exclamation. / Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. | v1,p0611#07 | p.189#08 | p.270r2c01 |
| 亳 | 亠+8 | bó ㄅㄛˊ | name of district in Anhui; capital of Yin | v1,p0287#09 | p.89#09 | p.79r6c05 | |
| 惟 | 心+8 | 𢛧 | wéi ㄨㄟˊ | but, however, nevertheless; only | v4,p2316#03 | p.391#17 | p.534r6c02 |
| 商 | 口+8 | 𡅟 𠾃 𡂦 𠿧 𡃬 𡄚 𠹧 𧶜 | shāng ㄕㄤ | commerce, business, trade | v1,p0288#06 | p.194#32 | p.278r1c03 |
| 王 | 玉+0 | wáng ㄨㄤˊ | King, title of supreme ruler of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties. / Ruler of a vassal state in the warring states period. / Highest title in feudal China. / Meet with the emperor. / Respectful term for one's paternal grandparents. | v2,p1099#10 | p.727#02 | p.888r1c02 | |
| wàng ㄨㄤˋ | Rule as king, control all under heaven. / Enfeoff as king. / Flourish, abound. | ||||||
| wǎng ㄨㄤˇ | To, go to. | ||||||
| 布 | 巾+2 | 佈 㱛 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | cotton cloth, textiles, linen | v1,p0728#05 | p.328#06 | p.471r2c01 |
| 昭 | 日+5 | zhāo ㄓㄠ | bright, luminous; illustrious | v2,p1504#09 | p.493#22 | p.638r2c04 | |
| 聖 | 耳+7 | 堊 𦕡 𠄵 圣 | shèng ㄕㄥˋ | holy, sacred; sage | v4,p2789#06 | p.967#22 | p.1082r6c06 |
| 武 | 止+4 | wǔ ㄨˇ | Military, combative. / Powerful, formidable. / Moral principles to be honoured during warfare. / Military achievement. / Soldier. / Footprint, trail. / Successor. / Name of a piece of music comemmorating King Wu of Zhou. / A metal percussion instrument. / Unit of length equal to three chi, or half a pace. / Tie of a cap. / Dance. | v2,p1439#05 | p.575#09 | p.736r4c01 | |
| 代 | 人+3 | dài ㄉㄞˋ | replace, replacement (of person or generation); era, generation | v1,p0113#05 | p.93#11 | p.86r2c03 | |
| 虐 | 虍+3 | 乇 𧆱 𣑅 䖈 | nüè ㄋㄩㄝˋ | cruel, harsh, oppressive | v4,p2820#05 | p.1073#09 | p.1183r4c01 |
| 以 | 人+3 | 㠯 | yǐ ㄧˇ | Use. / Believe. / Command. / Lead. / Connect, implicate. / Have. / Cause, reason. / Preposition: because. / Preposition: from, in. / Preposition: at [some time]. / Preposition: using. / Preposition: in accordance with. / Preposition: relying upon. / Preposition: in the capacity of. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: indicates the following action is the objective of the preceding one. / Connective: used between adverbial clause and verb to express modification. / Connective: and. / Connective: but. / Connective: and so, thus. / Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time. / Modal particle. / Same as 「已(1)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Stop, discontinue. / Same as 「已(7.2)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: already. / Same as 「已(7.3)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: extremely. | v1,p0105#07 | p.94#01 | p.87r6c01 |
| 寬 | 宀+12 | 寛 完 宽 | kuān ㄎㄨㄢ | broad, wide; spacious, vast | v2,p0947#01 | p.292#06 | p.430r4c01 |
| 兆 | 儿+4 | zhào ㄓㄠˋ | omen; million; mega; also trillion. China = million; Japan and Taiwan = trillion | v1,p0268#02 | p.124#03 | p.134r2c03 | |
| 民 | 氏+1 | 𠘽 | mín ㄇㄧㄣˊ | people, subjects, citizens | v3,p2131#01 | p.598#01 | p.750r3c01 |
| 允 | 儿+2 | 㽙 | yǔn ㄩㄣˇ | to grant, to allow, to consent | v1,p0265#03 | p.123#03 | p.131r4c01 |
| 懷 | 心+16 | 怀 怌 褱 | huái ㄏㄨㄞˊ | bosom, breast; carry in bosom | v4,p2369#10 | p.408#17 | p.548r1c06 |
| 今 | 人+2 | jīn ㄐㄧㄣ | now, today, modern era | v1,p0105#05 | p.91#18 | p.83r5c02 | |
| 嗣 | 口+10 | 台 孠 | sì ㄙˋ | to connect, inherit; descendants, heirs | v1,p0667#11 | p.203#30 | p.287r6c03 |
| 在 | 土+3 | zài ㄗㄞˋ | Exist, be alive. / Be in a certain place. / Inquire after, pay one's respects to. / Preposition: due to, being that. / Preposition: specifies location or time of an action - in, at. | v1,p0418#07 | p.223#10 | p.312r2c07 | |
| 初 | 刀+5 | 䥚 | chū ㄔㄨ | Begin, start. / Originally, formerly. / Adverb: just, only just. | v1,p0327#22 | p.137#33 | p.178r4c05 |
| 立 | 立+0 | 立 | lì ㄌㄧˋ | Stand. / Erect, raise. / Establish, found. / Fix, set. / Determine, decide. / Become independent. / Exist. / Take office. / Become ruler, enthrone. / Stop, prevent from moving. / Immediately. | v4,p2706#01 | p.870#17 | p.1002r5c01 |
| 愛 | 心+9 | 𤔤 𢟪 𢛭 爱 | ài ㄞˋ | love, be fond of, like | v4,p2323#01 | p.395#13 | p.538r1c01 |
| 親 | 見+9 | 𢈥 寴 𡩁 亲 | qīn ㄑㄧㄣ | Parents. / Relatives. / Love, favour. / Close, intimate. / Contact, touch. / Personally. / Do oneself. | v6,p3671#12 | p.1136#12 | p.1230r5c04 |
| 敬 | 攴+9 | 𣀖 𢿩 | jìng ㄐㄧㄥˋ | respect, honor; respectfully | v2,p1466#02 | p.473#35 | p.606r5c02 |
| 長 | 長+0 | 镸 𨱗 𠤐 𠑷 𠔊 𠑻 𠑿 𡕣 长 | cháng zhǎng zhàng ㄔㄤˊ ㄓㄤˇ ㄓㄤˋ | long; length; excel in; leader | v6,p4050#01 | p.1328#07 | p.1399r3c04 |
| 始 | 女+5 | 𠃭 乨 兘 𠙉 | shǐ ㄕˇ | begin, start; then, only then | v2,p1041#12 | p.258#16 | p.381r1c02 |
| 家 | 宀+7 | 傢 宊 𠖔 𡩅 𡧚 | jiā jie gū ㄐㄧㄚ ㄐㄧㄝ· ㄍㄨ | house, home, residence; family | v2,p0930#15 | p.286#17 | p.420r1c02 |
| 邦 | 邑+4 | 𤰫 𨚚 邫 | bāng ㄅㄤ | nation, country, state | v6,p3756#14 | p.1269#05 | p.1336r4c01 |
| 終 | 糸+5 | 𣊂 𤽘 𣧩 𠔾 𡦿 𢍐 𣈩 𤽬 夊 终 | zhōng ㄓㄨㄥ | end; finally, in the end | v5,p3384#05 | p.921#01 | p.1039r4c06 |
| 四 | 囗+2 | 𦉭 肆 | sì ㄙˋ | four | v1,p0710#16 | p.216#22 | p.294r6c01 |
| 海 | 水+7 | hǎi ㄏㄞˇ | sea, ocean; maritime | v3,p1627#01 | p.625#14 | p.795r4c04 |
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