| Chinese Text Project |
| 昔高陽氏有才子八人， | In former days the Emperor Gaoyang had eight talented sons; |
| 世得其利， | the world benefited by them, |
| 謂之「八愷」。 | and they were called the eight benevolent ones. |
| 高辛氏有才子八人， | The Emperor Gaoxin had also eight talented sons, |
| 世謂之「八元」。 | and men called them the eight virtuous ones. |
| 此十六族者， | Of these sixteen men |
| 世濟其美， | after ages have acknowledged the excellence, |
| 不隕其名。 | and not let their names fall to the ground. |
| 至於堯， | In the time of Yao |
| 堯未能舉。 | he was not able to raise them to office, |
| 舜舉八愷， | but Shun raised the eight benevolent ones to office, |
| 使主后土， | and made them superintend the land department |
| 以揆百事， | and direct all matters, |
| 莫不時序。 | arranging them according to their seasons. |
| 舉八元， | He also raised the right virtuous ones to office, |
| 使布五教于四方， | employing them to spread throughout the country a knowledge of the duties pertaining to the five social relationships, |
| 父義， | for fathers became just, |
| 母慈， | mothers loving, |
| 兄友， | elder brothers sociable, |
| 弟恭， | younger ones respectful, |
| 子孝， | and children dutiful; |
| 內平外成。 | within the empire there was peace, and beyond it submission. |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 昔 | 日+4 | xī cuò xí ㄒㄧ ㄘㄨㄛˋ ㄒㄧˊ | formerly; ancient; in beginning | v2,p1488#11 | p.492#05 | p.634r5c01 | |
| 高 | 高+0 | 髙 | gāo gào ㄍㄠ ㄍㄠˋ | high, tall; lofty, elevated | v7,p4593#01 | p.1451#26 | p.1514r4c03 |
| 陽 | 阜+9 | 昜 阦 氜 阳 𨹈 𨼘 𨽐 𣆄 | yáng ㄧㄤˊ | 'male' principle; light; sun | v6,p4144#03 | p.1355#15 | p.1429r3c02 |
| 氏 | 氏+0 | 厥 | shì zhī jīng ㄕˋ ㄓ ㄐㄧㄥ | clan, family; mister | v3,p2130#01 | p.597#18 | p.750r2c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 才 | 手+0 | 哉 纔 財 | cái ㄘㄞˊ | talent, ability; just, only | v3,p1824#02 | p.416#30 | p.558r2c01 |
| 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 |
| 八 | 八+0 | 捌 | bā ㄅㄚ | eight; all around, all sides | v1,p0241#03 | p.126#26 | p.147r4c03 |
| 人 | 人+0 | 𠔽 亻 | rén ㄖㄣˊ | Man, person. / Others, other people. / The people, ordinary men. / Talent, material. / [A man's] character. / Affairs of men, world of man. / Benevolence. | v1,p0101#10 | p.91#01 | p.80r2c01 |
| 世 | 一+4 | 丗 卋 | shì ㄕˋ | generation; world; era | v1,p0014#06 | p.77#11 | p.35r1c02 |
| 得 | 彳+8 | 𢔶 䙷 𢔨 | dé ㄉㄜˊ | Get, obtain. / Plunder. / Covet. / Success. / Fitting, appropriate. / Compatible. / Satisfied, pleased. / Possible, can. / Same as 「德(1)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Morals, morality. / Same as 「德(3)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Reward kindness, thank. | v2,p0828#03 | p.367#31 | p.513r6c02 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 利 | 刀+5 | 利 𥝢 𥝤 | lì ㄌㄧˋ | Sharp. / Fast, speedy. / Favourable, lucky. / Convenient, useful. / Profits, benefits. / Beneficial to, good for. / Profit, interest. / Diarrhea. | v1,p0329#02 | p.138#19 | p.180r2c02 |
| 謂 | 言+9 | 谓 | wèi ㄨㄟˋ | To (when speaking to someone). / Say, speak. / Call, name. / Meaning, what is meant. / Discuss, comment on (a person). / How? / Same as 「為(21.3)」 wèi ㄨㄟˋ: Preposition: because of, due to. | v6,p3997#06 | p.1173#12 | p.1251r6c01 |
| wéi ㄨㄟˊ | Same as 「為(10)」 wéi ㄨㄟˊ: Count as, be considered as. | ||||||
| 之 | 丿+3 | 㞢 | zhī ㄓ | Towards; go to. / Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Third person pronoun: him, her, it. / Auxiliary word: of. / Auxiliary word: used between subject and predicate, cancels independence of a clause. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning. | v1,p0043#01 | p.82#04 | p.47r2c02 |
| 愷 | 心+10 | 恺 | kǎi ㄎㄞˇ | enjoy, be contented, joyful | v4,p2337#02 | p.396#38 | p.540r4c01 |
| 高辛 | 高+0 辛+0 | 髙 | gāo xīn ㄍㄠ ㄒㄧㄣ | Same as 「帝嚳」 dì kù ㄉㄧˋ ㄎㄨˋ: 五帝之一，姬姓，名俊，號高辛。 Emperor Ku. | v7,p4593#01 v6,p4036#01 | p.1451#26 p.1250#25 | p.1514r4c03 p.1308r3c07 |
| 元 | 儿+2 | yuán ㄩㄢˊ | first; dollar; origin; head | v1,p0264#06 | p.123#06 | p.131r4c02 | |
| 此 | 止+2 | cǐ ㄘˇ | This. / Like this. / Here. / Adverb: then. | v2,p1438#03 | p.574#10 | p.735r4c01 | |
| 十 | 十+0 | 拾 拾 | shí ㄕˊ | ten, tenth; complete; perfect | v1,p0058#09 | p.155#17 | p.207r5c02 |
| 六 | 八+2 | 六 陸 | liù lù ㄌㄧㄡˋ ㄌㄨˋ | number six | v1,p0241#09 | p.127#01 | p.154r5c01 |
| 族 | 方+7 | 㞺 𥎩 𥎼 𥏁 | zú zòu còu ㄗㄨˊ ㄗㄡˋ ㄘㄡˋ | a family clan, ethnic group, tribe | v3,p2181#01 | p.484#03 | p.625r2c01 |
| 者 | 老+4 | zhě ㄓㄜˇ | Pronoun used after verbs, adjectives, etc. in place of a person or thing. / Pronoun used after numbers in place of a thing. / Pronoun used after time or negation to express "when" or "if". / Expressive particle used in a declarative sentence after the subject. / Expressive particle used in a sentence after the subject to express cause or explanation. | v4,p2780#05 | p.961#01 | p.1080r1c01 | |
| zhuó ㄓㄨㄛˊ | In, located in. | ||||||
| 濟 | 水+14 | 泲 㴉 济 | jì jǐ qí ㄐㄧˋ ㄐㄧˇ ㄑㄧˊ | to help, aid, relieve; to ferry, cross | v3,p1771#12 | p.656#01 | p.836r1c01 |
| 美 | 羊+3 | 羙 | měi ㄇㄟˇ | beautiful, pretty; pleasing | v5,p3126#05 | p.951#10 | p.1069r5c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 隕 | 阜+10 | 殒 磒 陨 | yǔn yuán ㄩㄣˇ ㄩㄢˊ | fall, slip; let fall; die | v6,p4151#03 | p.1358#19 | p.1433r2c01 |
| 名 | 口+3 | míng ㄇㄧㄥˊ | Name. / Writing. / To name, give a name to. / Call, refer to as. / Title, name of. / Title, status. / Fame, recognition. / Famous, well-known. / Large. / Between the eyebrows and eyelashes. / The School of Names. | v1,p0582#06 | p.175#09 | p.254r2c01 | |
| 至 | 至+0 | 𦤳 𦤴 𦤵 𡊏 | zhì dié ㄓˋ ㄉㄧㄝˊ | reach, arrive; extremely, very | v4,p2814#01 | p.1001#11 | p.1111r3c04 |
| 於 | 方+4 | 烏 𣱏 𤕘 于 亏 扵 | yú ㄩˊ | Be (copula). / Be, exist. / Preposition: in. / Preposition: from or to. / Preposition: compared to. / Preposition: to, for, towards. / Preposition: by (indicating passive tense). / Preposition: with, using. / Preposition: due to, because of. / Preposition: by, according to. / Connective: just as. / Auxiliary word, no meaning. | v3,p2175#02 | p.481#11 | p.622r2c03 |
| 堯 | 土+9 | 𡋰 尧 | yáo ㄧㄠˊ | a legendary ancient emperor-sage | v1,p0459#14 | p.234#01 | p.324r3c02 |
| 未 | 木+1 | wèi ㄨㄟˋ | not yet; 8th terrestrial branch | v2,p1150#01 | p.509#05 | p.665r4c01 | |
| 能 | 肉+6 | néng ㄋㄥˊ | A type of bear. / Ability, talent. / Man of ability, man of talent. / Able to, competent. / Comply with, be friendly towards. / Encompass, obtain. / To, arrive at. / Then, thus. / Same as 「而(4.3)」 ér ㄦˊ: Connective: if, supposing. / Only, merely. / Even if. / Thus, in this way. / Three-legged turtle. | v3,p2074#01 | p.981#16 | p.1095r5c02 | |
| nài ㄋㄞˋ | Withstand, endure. | ||||||
| tái ㄊㄞˊ | Same as 「台(1.1)」 tái ㄊㄞˊ: Name of a celestial body. | ||||||
| tài ㄊㄞˋ | State, form. | ||||||
| 舉 | 臼+10 | 擧 㪯 举 | jǔ ㄐㄩˇ | raise, lift up; recommend | v5,p3041#08 | p.1005#15 | p.1114r3c01 |
| 舜 | 舛+6 | 𡐩 𡳈 𡳉 | shùn ㄕㄨㄣˋ | legendary ruler | v3,p2035#02 | p.1008#10 | p.1116r5c02 |
| 使 | 人+6 | 𡥐 𠭆 | shǐ ㄕˇ | Order, send (on a mission). / Cause, make. / Allocate, use. / Indulge in.. / Send as an envoy. / Envoy, messenger. / Connective: if, supposing. | v1,p0145#02 | p.101#05 | p.101r3c03 |
| 主 | 丶+4 | 丶 宔 | zhǔ ㄓㄨˇ | master, chief owner; host; lord | v1,p0044#03 | p.80#20 | p.45r2c01 |
| 后 | 口+3 | 后 後 | hòu ㄏㄡˋ | queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after | v1,p0580#01 | p.176#01 | p.255r4c01 |
| 土 | 土+0 | tǔ ㄊㄨˇ | soil, earth; items made of earth | v1,p0415#01 | p.223#01 | p.309r5c03 | |
| 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 |
| 揆 | 手+9 | kuí ㄎㄨㄟˊ | prime minister; to guess, estimate | v3,p1926#08 | p.441#04 | p.583r6c01 | |
| 百 | 白+1 | 佰 𦣻 | bǎi bó mò ㄅㄞˇ ㄅㄛˊ ㄇㄛˋ | one hundred; numerous, many | v4,p2643#01 | p.785#04 | p.932r4c01 |
| 事 | 亅+7 | 亊 叓 𠭏 | shì ㄕˋ | Office, duty. / Job, career. / Things, affairs. / Accident, incident. / Engage (in), pursue. / Serve. | v1,p0023#03 | p.85#24 | p.58r3c02 |
| 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 |
| 時 | 日+6 | 旹 时 | shí ㄕˊ | Season. / Unit of time equal to two hours. / [The passage of] time. / Time, times. / Age, period, epoch. / Occasion, opportune moment. / On time. / Then, at that time. / Always, constantly. / Same as 「伺(1)」 sì ㄙˋ: Wait until, wait for (a chance). | v2,p1505#05 | p.494#22 | p.639r3c04 |
| 序 | 广+4 | xù ㄒㄩˋ | series, serial order, sequence | v2,p0875#18 | p.343#35 | p.487r1c02 | |
| 布 | 巾+2 | 佈 㱛 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | cotton cloth, textiles, linen | v1,p0728#05 | p.328#06 | p.471r2c01 |
| 五 | 二+2 | 伍 𠄡 㐅 | wǔ ㄨˇ | five; surname | v1,p0011#03 | p.86#11 | p.64r3c01 |
| 教 | 攴+7 | 敎 | jiào jiāo ㄐㄧㄠˋ ㄐㄧㄠ | teach, class | v2,p1459#09 | p.472#05 | |
| 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 |
| 四 | 囗+2 | 𦉭 肆 | sì ㄙˋ | four | v1,p0710#16 | p.216#22 | p.294r6c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 父 | 父+0 | fù fǔ ㄈㄨˋ ㄈㄨˇ | father; KangXi radical 88 | v3,p2039#01 | p.690#01 | p.864r1c01 | |
| 義 | 羊+7 | 义 | yì ㄧˋ | right conduct, righteousness | v5,p3133#02 | p.952#32 | p.1071r3c01 |
| 母 | 毋+1 | mǔ mú wǔ wú ㄇㄨˇ ㄇㄨˊ ㄨˇ ㄨˊ | mother; female elders; female | v4,p2380#03 | p.588#25 | p.745r1c03 | |
| 慈 | 心+10 | 㤵 | cí ㄘˊ | kind, charitable, benevolent | v4,p2324#03 | p.397#25 | |
| 兄 | 儿+3 | xiōng ㄒㄩㄥ | elder brother | v1,p0266#04 | p.123#09 | p.133r5c02 | |
| 友 | 又+2 | 㕛 𠬺 𦐮 𦫹 𦐯 | yǒu ㄧㄡˇ | friend, companion; fraternity | v1,p0391#01 | p.165#06 | p.233r6c04 |
| 弟 | 弓+4 | 𠂖 𢦢 | dì ㄉㄧˋ | Sequence, order. / Younger brother. / Younger sister. / Late. / But, only. | v1,p0244#10 | p.357#17 | p.501r1c02 |
| tì ㄊㄧˋ | Respect one's elders. | ||||||
| tuí ㄊㄨㄟˊ | See 弟靡. | ||||||
| 恭 | 心+6 | gōng ㄍㄨㄥ | respectful, polite, reverent | v4,p2299#09 | p.385#15 | p.530r4c02 | |
| 孝 | 子+4 | xiào ㄒㄧㄠˋ | filial piety, obedience; mourning | v2,p1011#04 | p.278#11 | p.398r5c03 | |
| 內 | 入+2 | 𡗠 内 | nèi nà ㄋㄟˋ ㄋㄚˋ | inside, interior; domestic | v1,p0097#02 | p.125#35 | p.141r5c02 |
| 平 | 干+2 | 𤔁 𠀭 | píng ㄆㄧㄥˊ | flat, level, even; peaceful | v1,p0407#01 | p.339#03 | p.480r4c02 |
| 外 | 夕+2 | 𡖄 舀 | wài ㄨㄞˋ | out, outside, external; foreign | v2,p0860#01 | p.246#02 | p.336r4c02 |
| 成 | 戈+2 | 𢦩 | chéng ㄔㄥˊ | completed, finished, fixed | v2,p1399#01 | p.411#11 |
| Enjoy this site? Please help. | Site design and content copyright 2006-2024. When quoting or citing information from this site, please link to the corresponding page or to https://ctext.org. Please note that the use of automatic download software on this site is strictly prohibited, and that users of such software are automatically banned without warning to save bandwidth. 沪ICP备09015720号-3 | Comments? Suggestions? Please raise them here. |