Background

The Shiji (chap. 85, p. 2510) biography of Lü Buwei has the earliest information about the Lüshi Chunqiu. Lü was a successful merchant from Handan who befriended King Zhuangxiang of Qin. The king's son Zheng (政, who the Shiji suggests was actually Lü's son) eventually became the first emperor Qin Shi Huang in 221 BC. When Zhuangxiang died in 247 BC, Lü Buwei was made regent for the 13-year-old Zheng. In order to establish Qin as the intellectual center of China, Lü "recruited scholars, treating them generously so that his retainers came to number three thousand" (tr. Knoblock and Riegel 2000:13). In 239 BC, he, in the words of the Shiji

According to Shiji, Lü exhibited the completed encyclopedic text at the city gate of Xianyang, capital of Qin, and above it was a notice offering a thousand measures of gold to any traveling scholar who could add or subtract even a single word.

The Hanshu Yiwenzhi lists the Lüshi Chunqiu as belonging to the Zajia (雜家/杂家 "Mixed School"), within the Philosophers' domain (諸子略), or Hundred Schools of Thought. Although this text is frequently characterized as "syncretic," "eclectic", or "miscellaneous", it was a cohesive summary of contemporary philosophical thought, including Legalism, Confucianism, Mohism, and Daoism.

Contents

The title uses chunqiu (春秋 lit. "spring and autumn") meaning "annals; chronicle" in a classical reference to the Confucianist chunqiu Spring and Autumn Annals, which chronicles the State of Lu history from 722–481 BC.

The Lüshi Chunqiu text comprises 26 juan (卷 "scrolls; books") in 160 pian (篇 "sections"), and is divided into three major parts; the Ji (紀, "The Almanacs"): Books 1-12 correspond to the months of the year, and list appropriate seasonal activities to ensure that the state runs smoothly. This part, which was copied as the Liji chapter Yueling, takes many passages from other texts, often without attribution. The Lan (覧, "The Examinations"): Books 13–20 each have 8 sections corresponding to the 64 Hexagrams in the Yijing. This is the longest and most eclectic part, giving quotations from many early texts, some no longer extant. The Lun (論, "The Discourses"): Books 21–26 mostly deal with rulership, excepting the final four sections about agriculture. This part resembles the Lan in composition.

Integrity of the text

Composition features, measure of completeness (i.e. veracity of the Shi ji account) and/or possible corruption of the original Annals have been subjects of scholarly attention. It has been mentioned that the Almanacs have much higher measure of integrity and thematic organization than the other two parts of the text.

The "Yu da" 諭大 chapter of the Examinations, for example, contains text almost identical to the "Wu da" 務大 chapter of the Discourses, though in the first case it is ascribed to "Jizi" 季子, and in the second to Confucius.

Reception

Liang Qichao (1873-1929): "This book, through the course of two thousand years, has had no deletions nor corruptions. Moreover, it has the excellent commentary of Gao You. Truly it is the most perfect and easily read work among the ancient books."

Liang's position, mildly criticized afterwards, was dictated by the lack of canonical status ascribed to the book.

Major positions

Admitting the difficulties of summarizing the Lüshi Chunqiu, John Knoblock and Jeffrey Riegel list 18 major points.

• Affirmation of self-cultivation and impartiality

• Rejection of hereditary ruler over the empire

• Stupidity as the cause of hereditary rule

• Need for government to honor the concerns of the people

• The central importance of learning and teachers

• Support and admiration for learning as the basis of rule

• Non-assertion on the part of the ruler

• Primary task for a ruler is to select his ministers

• Need for a ruler to trust the expertise of his advisers

• Need for a ruler to practice quiescence

• The attack on Qin practices

• Just warfare

• Respect for civil arts

• Emphasis on agriculture

• Facilitating trade and commerce

• Encouraging economy and conservation

• Lightening of taxes and duties

• Emphasis on filial piety and loyalty. (2000:46–54)

The Lüshi chunqiu is an invaluable compendium of early Chinese thought and civilization.