| | 魯之母師: |
母師者，魯九子之寡母也。臘日休作者，歲祀禮事畢，悉召諸子，謂曰：「婦人之義，非有大故，不出夫家。然吾父母家多幼稚，歲時禮不理。吾從汝謁往監之。」諸子皆頓首許諾。又召諸婦曰：「婦人有三從之義，而無專制之行。少繫於父母，長繫於夫，老繫於子。今諸子許我歸視私家，雖踰正禮，願與少子俱，以備婦人出入之制。諸婦其慎房戶之守，吾夕而反。」 |
| | Mu Shi was the widow mother of Lu Jiuzi. On the day of La Ri, after completing all sacrificial rites for the year, she summoned all her sons and said to them: "The duty of a woman is not to leave her husband's home unless there is some great cause. Yet my parents' family has many young children, and the seasonal rites have not been properly observed. I will accompany you to visit and oversee them." All her sons knelt with their heads to the ground, agreeing. She also summoned all her daughters-in-law and said: "A woman has the duty of following three masters [father, husband, son], but she must not act with autocratic authority. When young, one is bound to her parents; when grown, to her husband; and in old age, to her son. Now that your brothers have agreed for me to return and visit my own family, although this may go beyond the proper rites, I wish to go with my youngest son so as to observe the proper conduct of a woman going in and out. All of you must be careful to guard your homes, for I shall return by nightfall."
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| | 魯之母師: |
於是使少子僕，歸辨家事。天陰還失早，至閭外而止，夕而入。 |
| | She then sent her youngest son as a servant to go back and attend to family affairs. Because the weather was overcast, they returned earlier than expected; upon reaching outside the village gate, they stopped and did not enter until nightfall.
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| | 魯之母師: |
魯大夫從臺上見而怪之。使人閒視其居處，禮節甚脩，家事甚理。使者還以狀對。於是大夫召母而問之曰：「一日從北方來，至閭而止，良久，夕乃入。吾不知其故，甚怪之，是以問也。」母對曰：「妾不幸，早失夫，獨與九子居。臘日，禮畢事間，從諸子謁歸視私家。與諸婦孺子期，夕而反。妾恐其酺醵醉飽，人情所有也。妾反太早，不敢復返，故止閭外，期盡而入。 |
| | Lu Daifu saw this from his platform and found it strange. He sent someone to secretly observe her residence, where the rites and etiquette were well observed, and family affairs were properly managed. The messenger returned with a report on what he had seen. Thus, the magistrate summoned Mu Shi and asked her: "One day you came from the north, stopped at the village gate, remained there for a long time, and did not enter until evening. I do not know why this was done; I found it very strange, hence my inquiry." The woman replied: "Alas, I have been unfortunate to lose my husband at an early age and live alone with my nine sons. On the La Ri festival, after completing the rites, I accompanied my sons to visit my family home. I had made an agreement with my daughters-in-law and grandchildren to return by evening. I was afraid that they might indulge in drinking and feasting, which is a natural human tendency. If I had returned too early, I would not have dared to go back out; therefore, we stopped outside the village gate and only entered when our time was up.
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| | 魯之母師: |
大夫美之，言於穆公，賜母尊號曰母師。使朝謁夫人，夫人諸姬皆師之。君子謂母師能以身教。夫禮，婦人未嫁，則以父母為天；既嫁，則以夫為天。其喪父母，則降服一等，無二天之義也。《》云：「出宿于濟，飲餞于禰，女子有行，遠父母兄弟。」 |
| | The magistrate praised her conduct, reported it to Duke Mu, who then bestowed upon her the honored title of "Mu Shi." He ordered that she be allowed to pay court visits to Lady Fu Ren, and all the duchess's concubines took her as their teacher. The gentlemen of virtue said that Mu Shi was able to teach by example. Rites dictate that an unmarried woman should regard her parents as her heaven; after marriage, she should regard her husband as her heaven. When a woman's parents die, she must lower the rank of mourning attire by one degree; this is because there can be no two heavens for her. The Book of Songs says: "She lodged by the Ji River, drank farewell wine at Ni; a woman who marries must go far from her parents and brothers."
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| | 魯之母師: |
頌曰：九子之母，誠知禮經，謁歸還反，不揜人情，德行既備，卒蒙其榮，魯君賢之，號以尊名。 |
| | Ode: The mother of the nine sons truly understood the rites; when she visited her family and returned, she did not conceal human feelings. With virtue and conduct fully cultivated, she was finally honored with distinction. Lord Lu esteemed her as virtuous and bestowed upon her a respectful title.
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