《冲虚至德真经释文(殷敬顺)》

Commentary on the True Classic of the Perfected Emptiness and Highest Virtue (with annotations by Yin Jingshun)

Commentary on the True Classic of the Perfected Emptiness and Highest Virtue was written by Duan Jingshun during the Tang dynasty. Chen Jingyuan supplemented its missing portions during the Song dynasty. It consists of two volumes. The base text comes from the Jade Instructions category of the Cavern of the Spirit section of the Zhengtong Daoist Canon.

Preface to the Commentary on the True Classic of the Perfected Emptiness and Highest Virtue

Before Zhuangzi was born, Liezi’s teachings were already vast and far-reaching, filled with emptiness yet without form or trace, and difficult to hear. Liezi therefore wrote books to expound the profound ideas of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi, and to investigate the roots of life and death. He freed the mind from its constraints and lifted its veils; like cutting away a wart or bursting a poisonous boil, he went straight to the heart of the matter. He spoke of following things as they naturally are, without deliberately asking why nature is as it is. He advocated Wuwei (non-action), allowing things to develop on their own according to their inherent nature.

Liezi’s writing and meaning range freely and widely, like dry leaves or empty husks drifting east and west on the wind, traveling between heaven and earth and reaching everywhere. Later, Zhuangzi often quoted Liezi and incorporated his words into his own discussions. Thus people speak of “Laozi and Zhuangzi,” but not “Laozi and Liezi.” This is because Zhuangzi brought diverse ideas together as one, making their principles flow into a coherent whole. He could also distinguish among the teachings of different schools while embracing both being and nonbeing.

In the past, Liezi lived in seclusion at Puyuan in the state of Zheng for forty years, unknown to the world. He concealed himself among the people, living in the state without being known even to its ruler. This is what is called “heavenly seclusion”—living in retreat in accord with one’s nature. If a person possesses virtue but receives no praise, does that mean the Way is shallow? If a book contains sound principles but is rarely praised by the world, does that mean it is crude? Liezi himself and his book are profound and vast, able to lead people back to the inherent nature of all things. Is this not truly remarkable?

Since childhood, I have loved reading this book. But because it lacked pronunciation notes and explanations, I was often troubled by passages I could not understand. As an adult, I traveled to Tongbai on Mount Tiantai and obtained two incomplete scrolls beneath Sima Wei’s water tent. The title was indistinct, but seemed to read Explanatory Notes to the Liezi. The paper and ink had deteriorated so badly that the scrolls could not be read, so I hurried to copy them down. Many passages had fallen out, been eaten by insects, worn away, or become illegible; roughly four or five parts out of ten were missing. A note at the end of the scroll read: “Compiled by Yin Jingshun, assistant magistrate of Dangtu County in the Tang dynasty; written by Mo Xizi of Mount Heng.” I copied the text and stored it in a chest.

Later, at Qianshan, I saw a handwritten copy of the Liezi by the Tang Daoist Xu Lingfu, as well as Lu Zhongxuan’s commentary. I then retrieved from my library an edition printed by the Imperial College during the Jingde era and compared the texts passage by passage, combining repeated material and distinguishing variant readings. My collation revealed 160 omissions, corruptions, or transposed characters in the text and commentary of the Imperial College edition. I gathered these errors and variant readings into one scroll and attached it after the Explanatory Notes. I also supplied the missing material, restoring the original divisions of the work.

I have tried to preserve whatever the earlier commentators explained best. For difficult passages in the ancient text, I have also included the views of learned scholars. There may still be omissions and gaps; I hope that those who study this work with me will correct and supplement it, and offer further insight.

On the ninth day of the ninth month in the second year of the Xining era, Bixuzi, his Daoist name, wrote this preface.

Explanatory Notes to the Liezi: The True Classic of the Chongxu and Zhide, Volume One.

Written by Yin Jingshun, assistant magistrate of Dangtu County during the Tang dynasty, with omissions supplied by Bixuzi Chen Jingyuan.

Contents of the New Book of the Liezi

Liezi’s surname was Lie and his given name was Yukou. Some sources write his name as Yu Kou. He lived before Zhuangzi, who therefore mentions him in his writings. In the early years of the Tianbao era under Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang, the court, by imperial decree, bestowed on Liezi the title “Perfected One of Chongxu” and retitled his book The True Classic of Chongxu, placing it first among the eight classics. The book originally consisted of twenty chapters. Later, Liu Xiang selected and combined them to compile the New Book.

In the fourth year of the Jingde era of the Great Song, the words “Zhide” were added to the title, which became The True Classic of Chongxu and Zhide.

Liu Xiang, a Han dynasty scholar whose courtesy name was Zizheng and who served as Left Director of Waterways, collated and settled this text. “Collation” means comparing two editions against each other. The character for “verification” is read the same as “comparison”; it refers to checking and correcting differences. The phrase “the sound of jiao” means that the character for “collate” is pronounced jiao. In the scripture, the character meaning “and” is often treated according to this reading.

“Chen can” is pronounced “qi nan.” In his Contents of the New Book of the Guanzi, Liu Xiang says that the books he collated numbered forty-one chapters.

“Chu fu” is pronounced “fu you.” “Yi jin” is pronounced “zi ren” and means “to reach the utmost”; the same applies below. “Zhan” is pronounced “jian” and refers to books damaged and broken by bookworms. It is also written “chan” or “qian,” both with the same pronunciation as “jian.” The “Jian clan” mentioned in the Rites of Zhou was responsible for removing the insects that damaged books.

“Removing the green” refers to scraping away the green outer skin of bamboo strips when making books. The name of Duke Mu of Zheng is pronounced “Mu.” He lived in the same period as Duke Ai of Lu.

“Yu” is pronounced “yu,” and “dan” is pronounced “tu han.” “Yu dan” describes speech that is far-fetched and untrue, or exaggerated. “Hui” is pronounced “kou hui,” and “gui” is pronounced “kong wei.” “Hui gui” refers to strange and exaggerated claims. “Tui fen” is pronounced “fu wen,” and “cheng bei” is pronounced “pei.”

The personal name of Emperor Jing of Han was Qi. “Yi po” is pronounced “pu ke,” and “ou yan” is pronounced “yu.”

Liu Xiang’s Bielu says that “speaking by proxy” means borrowing people’s names and having them converse with one another. In the Records of the Grand Historian, the word is written “entrust.” In liezhuan (“biographies”), the word zhuan, and in jing (“classic”), the word jing, are both read with the falling tone.

In “I risk death to submit this,” the word “submit” is pronounced shizhang. “Yongshi” was an era name of Emperor Cheng of Han.

In “Zhan heard of this,” “Zhan” refers to Zhang Zhan, courtesy name Chudu, who served as Guanglu Xun in the Eastern Jin and wrote a commentary on this True Classic. “Liu Zhengyu” is pronounced Liu Zhengyu and refers to Liu Tao, governor of Yangzhou under the Jin. “Fu Yinggen” refers to Fu Fu, a native of Beidi who served as a middle officer in the Chancellor’s staff under the Jin. In these names, the character “bing” is pronounced beizheng.

In “Shi Zhou’s surname was Wang,” Shi Zhou was Zhang Zhan’s maternal great-uncle. In “older cousin,” the character “cong” is pronounced jiyong. “Wang Hong of the Zhengzong branch” refers to Wang Hong, courtesy name Zhengzong, a native of Gaoping who served as a Minister under the Jin. “Wang Bi, courtesy name Fusi,” refers to Wang Bi, courtesy name Fusi, a native of Shanyang who served as a Gentleman of the Palace under Wei. In “all were fond of,” “fond” is pronounced hubao, “first” is pronounced xijian, as below, and “bing” is pronounced beizheng.

“Wang Chai, courtesy name Zhongxuan,” refers to Wang Chai, courtesy name Zhongxuan, a native of Shanyang who served as a Palace Attendant under Wei. In “nearly would,” “nearly” is pronounced qi and means “close to.”

“Total-corner” comes from the Classic of Poetry. It describes how boys wore their hair tied into two knots when they were young. In “when he came of age,” “age” is pronounced dingzhang; in “fleeing calamity,” “calamity” is pronounced naitan; in “each was called,” “called” is pronounced chizheng; in “bandits and captors,” “captors” is pronounced lu; in “all were complete,” “all” is pronounced z ren; “sort and assess” is pronounced liao and means to organize and evaluate; “only carrying” is pronounced ji.

A tradition about Zu Xuan, his father Xian, and his son Ji: Zu Xuan, courtesy name Xiuyi, was a native of Beidi. He wrote a hundred and twenty chapters of philosophical works and fifty rolls of collected writings. His father, Xian, courtesy name Changwei, had twenty rolls of collected writings. Both father and son served as Commandant of the Capital under the Jin and were enfeoffed as Marquis of Chungu. In “only a few,” “few” is pronounced jin and means “scarce”; in “amid the upheavals,” “amid” is pronounced bili; in “again present,” “again” is pronounced fuyou; in “things that take shape,” “take shape” is pronounced zhilüe; in “from loss,” “loss” is pronounced xilang; in “awakened in life,” “awakened” is pronounced jiao; and in “indulge freely,” “indulge” is pronounced erzhèn.

There are other usages and pronunciations of this kind; their meanings can be inferred from context. “Often consulted alongside Buddhist scriptures” means that some passages in the Liezi are frequently compared with Buddhist scriptures. This is a way for the author to present the wording in an interwoven manner.

In “linking phrases,” the word shu is read zhu and refers to linking passages together and setting them alongside one another for comparison. Some say that the Zhuangzi is often compared with Buddhist scriptures; others say that Buddhist scriptures are often compared with the Liezi. This means that, in writing, phrases and ideas can be set alongside one another and used to illuminate each other.

Zhuangzi’s personal name was Zhou and his courtesy name was Zixiu. He was from the state of Song and once served as an official in charge of a lacquer garden. He wrote fifty-two chapters, which Guo Xiang later edited into thirty-three chapters and annotated. In the early years of the Tianbao era under Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Zhuangzi was posthumously honored as the “Perfected Person of Nanhua,” and his work consequently came to be called the True Classic of Nanhua. The book often uses the title “Perfected Person of Chongxu.”

Shen Dao was from the state of Zhao and lived before Shen Buhai and Han Fei, both of whom praised him. He wrote forty-two chapters, and his teachings were rooted in the Way of Huang-Lao.

Han Fei was a prince of the state of Han. While on a diplomatic mission to Qin, he was framed by Li Si and died. He wrote fifty-five chapters, and his teachings were rooted in the Way of Huang-Lao.

Shi Zi’s personal name was Jiao, pronounced jiao with a falling-rising tone. He was from the state of Lu and once taught Shang Yang, who later became prime minister of Qin. After Shang Yang’s death, Shi Zi fled to Shu and wrote twenty chapters.

Liu An, King of Huainan, was a grandson of Emperor Wu of Han and the eldest son of Liu Chang, King Li of Huainan. He gathered guests and scholars to compile the twenty-one chapters of the Inner Book, which contains many teachings from Daoist classics. There was also an Outer Book in thirty-three chapters, which discusses works such as the New Sayings and the Profound Indications. In the Daoist tradition, Wang Gui wrote the forty-scroll Classic of Profound Indications. Han Zhi of Chenliu also wrote eight chapters titled Profound Indications, to expound and explain the Five Thousand Words (that is, the Dao De Jing).

The Guiding Meaning was written by Yan Zun in the Han dynasty. Yan Zun’s courtesy name was Junping. He wrote fourteen chapters of the Guiding Meaning to expound and explain the Five Thousand Words.

Heavenly Portents, Chapter One: This is the chapter title, meaning “auspicious signs revealed by Heaven.” It is the first chapter of the Liezi.

“Fu” is a sentence-opening particle that signals the start of a discussion; it is not annotated with a pronunciation again later. “Chuancuo” means disorder or confusion; “zhi fen” refers to the distinctions between things. Here, “Master Lie” adds “Master” to “Liezi,” indicating that he was once a teacher. “Zhengpu” refers to the gardens and marshlands of the state of Zheng, whose former site lay around present-day Zhongmu, in the Xingyang area of Henan. “Suo ye” means the person one visits. Some editions write “ren” as “wang”; the two are pronounced the same. “Zhi” is an ancient form of “shi,” meaning “to see.” Here, “xing” is read with a falling tone.

In his commentary on the Nanhua Zhenjing, Sima Biao says that Hu Qiuzilin was named Lin and was from the state of Zheng. Some editions write “chang yu” as “chang zhao”; “zhao” means to inform. “Bo” is read with a falling tone. Bohun Mouren is pronounced “Mo Hou”; later in the text, some also read “Bohun Wuren” as “Bohun Mouren.” “Nu” is interchangeable with “ru,” meaning “you.” “Kuairan” describes sitting alone in stillness. “Fu” is read with a falling tone. “Wangfu” is pronounced as written. Characters marked “not annotated again” are all entering-tone characters. “Dai” is pronounced “dai.”

The Yellow Emperor in the Huangdi Shu was surnamed Gongsun and named Xuanyuan. According to legend, he attained the Way of long life and ruled for a hundred years. The Han Shu: Yiwen Zhi records four chapters of the Huangdi Shu, one chapter of the Huangdi Junchen, and six chapters of the Huangdi Ming. These works are close in character to Daoist classics.

“Xuanpin” is pronounced “pi ren”; in “wu jing,” “jing” is pronounced “ying”; “mianmian” is pronounced “wu yan”; and “cun xie” is pronounced “yi zhe,” as it is later in the text. “Xiang Xiu” is pronounced “xiang”; his courtesy name was Ziqi. He was an attendant in the Jin dynasty and wrote a commentary on the Nanhua Zhenjing. “Zi zhi” is pronounced “zi zhi,” as it is later in the text. “Shanqun” is pronounced “shi yan”; “bu kui” is pronounced “kui.”

“He” is an interrogative word meaning “what.” “Dayi” is pronounced “taiyi.” “Wei jian” is pronounced “xian bian.” “Zhi cheng” is pronounced “chi zheng,” as it is later in the text. “Yi ji” is pronounced “hu ji”; “hun cheng” is pronounced “hu ben.” “Hun” is pronounced “hun,” and “lun” is pronounced “lun,” as they are later in the text. “Xiang li” is pronounced “li zhi” and means to depart; some also read it with a level tone. Separation at close range is called “li,” while parting over a greater distance is called “bie”; the context later in the text can guide the interpretation. “Bie ming” is pronounced “bi lie.” “Li san” means to separate and disperse.

Some characters should be read with the level tone. “Near” means separation, while “far” means distinction; their meaning should then be understood in context. “Separate” is pronounced “bi-lie,” and “scatter apart” is pronounced “xian-han.” These pronunciations are the same throughout this volume. “Follow” is pronounced “xun.”

In the phrase “the Changes have no visible form or boundary,” the Huainanzi writes “form and boundary,” meaning the first signs of things appearing; the Qian Zao Du writes “form and margin.” The character used here for “boundary” is a copying error introduced by later transcribers. “The changes transform into One, and from One proceed through Nine” describes the numerical principles of change and is related to the “number of the Great Expansion,” the system of numbers used in the Changes tradition to derive transformations. “Hū” is read as “hū,” and “huǎng” is pronounced “kuang-wang.” “By means of numbers” is pronounced “zhu-qie.” “Thereupon” is the same character as in “return to antiquity.” “Above” is pronounced “shi-zhang,” and “lean” is pronounced “yu-qi.” In “what Heaven and Earth obstruct,” “obstruct” is pronounced “pu-bi” and means blocked or closed off. “Create” is pronounced “qi-dao”; “obstruct” means “impede”; and “belong” is pronounced “zhu.” “Innate allotment” is pronounced “fu-wen”; the “allotment” in “name and allotment” below is pronounced the same way. “Cover and nurture” is pronounced “dao” and means to shelter and bring up. “Pure and steadfast” is pronounced “sui.” “Attached to” is pronounced “ji.” “Once” means “to present.” “Capable of being pungent” is pronounced “shi-lian.”

“Discourse on the Dao” is pronounced “lu-kun.” “Relying on nothing” is pronounced “shi.” “To name it” is pronounced “mi-zheng,” the same as “edict”; “echo” is pronounced “xu-liang.” “Light and appearance” means “light and shadow.” In “eat by the Dao,” Sima Biao explains “Dao” to mean the roadside; another version reads “follow.”

“Skull” is pronounced “du-lou.” “Gather” is pronounced “jian,” “weed” is pronounced “peng,” referring to mugwort, and “pluck” is pronounced “pi-ba.” “Excess nourishment” is pronounced “guo-wo”; “fruit” is pronounced “ding-lang”; “seed” is pronounced “zhang-yong”; and “almost” is pronounced “ju-qi.” “Frog” is pronounced “hu-gua”; it refers to frogs and toads. “Become a quail” is pronounced “chun.”

“Things appear” is pronounced “xian-bian.” The Mozi says that some things endure for a long time while others do not. When they have not yet taken on a stable form, change may occur: for example, a frog may turn into a chicken. Sima Biao explains “obtain water” as follows: although all things have already shown preliminary signs, they still need water’s nourishment for their vital breath to continue and for them then to grow.

“Water snail” is pronounced “bu-tian.” Sima Biao says that this creature’s root lies where water and soil meet, and that it is spread through the water. It cannot be seen by looking down from the surface, yet it can be retrieved when gathered, like cotton spread across the water. People in Chu call it “the garment of the water snail.”

“Ling tun” is pronounced “tun” and refers to an earthen mound. “Jie chu” is pronounced “chang ju qie”; the same applies below.

“Ling xi” is pronounced “xi” and is a kind of grass that grows in marshes. It grows by the water’s edge, where its location is hard to make out from the surface and it is difficult to gather, seeming like a wad of cotton floating in the water. People in Chu called it “ying pin zhi yi.” Ling xi is also called “ze xi,” and changes with the wetness or dryness of its surroundings.

“Yu qi” refers to dung or soil; “wu zu” is the name of a kind of grass. According to Guo Pu’s commentary on the Erya, “qi cao” is an insect that lives in wood. Although it is commonly called “xie” today, the name refers to different insects in different places.

“Hu die” is pronounced “die” and means “jia die,” or butterfly. According to the Shishuo, “xu” means “few”; here it refers to an insect that has only recently left. “Tuo” is pronounced “ta kuo qie.” Guo Pu’s commentary on the Erya says that “tuo” means to shed skin.

In “qian yu xu zhi mo,” “mo” is pronounced “mo.” The Nanhua zhenjing writes it as “gu.” Li Yi explains that “mei” means saliva in the mouth. “Si mi” is a kind of insect that feeds on vinegar, which is also called “ku jiu.” “Mie meng” is another kind of tiny insect, also called “xian ji.”

“Yi lu” is pronounced “yi lu.” “Huang kuang” is pronounced “kuang.” Yi lu and huang kuang are both names of insects. According to Li Yi, “jiu you” should have “jiu” written as “jiu,” meaning old age; “you” is the name of an insect. “Pie” is pronounced with the two sounds “mao” and “mou.” “Yin” is pronounced “rui” and refers to a small insect that likes to fly about.

“Fu” is pronounced “fu.” “Quan” is pronounced “quan,” though it is also pronounced “huan”; it is a yellow beetle found in melons. “Di gao” is pronounced “gao.” Gu Yin’s Han shu jijie says it resembles silt. “Fu lin” is written as “lin” in the Shuowen, and is also written as “lin”; it refers to ghost fire. The Huainanzi says that blood can turn into phosphorescent fire. “Lin” is pronounced “lin.”

“Yao” is pronounced “zhuo.” “Zhan” is pronounced “zhan.” “Bu gu” is also written “bu ke.” Lu Ji’s Maoshi niaoshou shu says that the crane resembles the zhan: both have yellow feathers, a chicken-like head, and a gray-blue body, and their appearances are similar.

It flies swiftly, preying on turtledoves, pigeons, swallows, and sparrows. The cuckoo is the jiaju, also called the shijiu, jigu, and chengjiu, as well as the “sparrow of mid-spring.” The sparrowhawk and the goshawk transform into a sparrowhawk. Here, “ju” is pronounced like “ju” in “juzi.”

Swallows transform into clams. “Ge” is pronounced like “he.” The Jiayu says that in winter, swallows and sparrows fly into the sea and transform into clams. The character for “swallow” is sometimes written as “sparrow.” The Zhoushu says that sparrows enter the great waters and transform into clams.

Field mice transform into quail. “Chun” is pronounced like “chun” in “chun,” and this transformation is the same as the transformation of frogs. The Shuowen says that a quail is a sparrowhawk. The Dadai Li says that in the third month, field mice transform into quail. The Zhoushu says that they transform into “jia.” Guo Pu’s commentary on the Erya says that “jia” also means quail. “An” is pronounced like “an” in “an,” and “jia” is pronounced approximately like “ru.”

[The writing or transcription here is unclear, so the original cannot be read with certainty.] “Wei wan” is pronounced like “guan.” Wan resembles rushes; its stems are round and can be woven into mats. It is the material used for mat weaving today. Yang Chengqing’s Zitong records its pronunciation as “e”; another written form is “xian,” pronounced approximately like “hou bian.” The discrepancy may be due to an error in copying or transcription.

“Lao yu” is pronounced like “yu” in “yu.” It refers to a ewe and also to a black sheep. It transforms into an ape; “yuan” is pronounced like “yuan” in “yuan.” “Fish eggs” is pronounced approximately like “duan qie.” In “Chanyuan,” the first character is pronounced like “chan,” and the second like “yuan.” “Mao” is pronounced like “mao” and refers to hanging hair. “Pin” is pronounced “pi ren” and means female; “mu” is pronounced like “mou” and means male.

“Yi” is pronounced like “li.” The Sancang says that this is a cangyi; Sima Biao says it is a fledgling. “Mouzi” is pronounced like “mou.” “Zhi” is an old form of “zhi,” meaning young.

“Feng” is pronounced like “feng.” Sima Biao says that among young bees, the slender-waisted bees carry silkworms back to their nests and pray for them to become their offspring; the silkworms then give rise to young bees. “Yun” is pronounced “yi zheng qie,” and “hao” is pronounced “hu bao qie.”

In “Hou Ji grew up,” “zhang” is pronounced “ding zhang qie,” as the commentary also states. “Jiu shui” is pronounced like “jiu.” “You Shen” is pronounced “shu zhen qie.” “Infant” is sometimes mistakenly written as “ying,” which is incorrect. “Tang’s minister” is pronounced “xi liang qie.”

According to Zengzi, guli is also called “juezhao.” A kind of insect often grows around it and cannot live without it. The Shishuo says that guli is a dragonfly. Qingling is pronounced “qingling”; it lives in damp places.

“Yinzheng” is pronounced “zheng.” “Xianji” refers to tiny insects of the miehao kind. In “yangxi,” the character “bi” is pronounced “pi”; in “hubu,” “sun” is pronounced “sun.”

The Nanhua Zhenjing joins the words from “yangxi” through “qingning” into a single sentence. Sima Biao says that yangxi is a kind of plant whose roots resemble yanjing. It grows alongside jiuzhu, though the two are different kinds of living things. Qingning is an insect.

As for the word “shengcheng,” the Shizi says that the Chinese call it a leopard, while the Yue people call it a tapir. According to the Erya, a leopard is the offspring of a bear or tiger. The Shanhaijing says that the southern mountains produce many mubao. Guo Pu’s commentary says that mo is a white leopard. Since a leopard born of a tiger belongs to a different kind, “cheng” is another name for the tapir. The tapir resembles a bear; its fur is yellowish black and glossy. “Mo” is pronounced “mo” with the tone of “mo” in “strange.”

The Soushenji records that during the reign of Duke Xiao of Qin, a horse once gave birth to a human. Liu Xiang considered this an ill omen brought by the horse. “Shengxiang” is pronounced “xuliang,” “xiangying” is pronounced “yuzheng,” “bufu” is pronounced “fuyou,” and “zhicheng” is pronounced “chizheng.” “Xiezhong” is pronounced “jie”; “liao” is pronounced “liao.” “Zhongjin” is pronounced “jin,” as is the same word below. “Xumo” is pronounced “mo,” “gudie” is pronounced “zhuan,” and “buj iu” is pronounced “you.” In “bushengzhe xianyou,” “you” is pronounced “xijian,” as is the same word below. “Hua” is pronounced “hucan” and means planning or strategy.

One book writes “jin” as “jiu.” In context, “jiu” does not fit. In “the spirit is the heaven’s jiu,” “jiu” should be read as “you”; this is because the seal-script forms of “you” and “jiu” are similar. According to Yang Yusun’s words quoted in the Hanshu, the spirit belongs to Heaven, while the bones belong to Earth. Another book also writes “jin,” but this reading does not flow well in context.

According to the Book of Han, Yang Yusun said, “The spirit belongs to Heaven; the bones belong to Earth.” Yang Yusun often read this classic. The edition printed by the Imperial Academy now has the character fen; another edition has jiao, pronounced “jue.”

In “youth and strength,” shao is pronounced “zhao”; in “old and decrepit,” mao is pronounced “bao.” In “Qi drifting,” piao is pronounced “piao.” In “Virtue flourishing,” yin is pronounced “zheng”; another edition has gu. In “contend with,” zheng is pronounced “zheng” (as in “remonstrate”). Jian is pronounced “xian” and means “to separate.”

In “Great Mountain,” da is pronounced “tai.” In “at Cheng,” Cheng is pronounced “cheng”; it is a place name in the state of Lu. In “belt of rope,” suo is pronounced “ge.” In “making music,” le is pronounced “luo,” as below. In “the distinction,” bie is pronounced “lie.” In “settling one’s allotted share,” fen is pronounced “wen.” In “therefore returning,” fu is pronounced “you.”

Qiang is pronounced “liang” and refers to a swaddling cloth, the fabric used to wrap an infant. The Bowuzhi says that a swaddling cloth was woven from silk thread, eight inches wide and one foot two inches long, and used to bind a child to someone’s back. In “Lin Lei,” lei is pronounced “lei”; some editions write ying, which is a mistaken reading. In “at the end of spring,” di is pronounced “li.” In “wearing a fur coat,” bei is pronounced “bei.” In “fallen ears of grain,” sui is pronounced “sui.” In “the old furrow,” qi is pronounced “xie.” Qun is pronounced “yun”; in “singing as they walk alongside,” bing is pronounced “lang,” as below, meaning to walk along the side of a field furrow. In “that old man,” sou is pronounced “kou.” In “go and ask him,” xun is pronounced “xin”; another edition omits you. In “at the ridge,” long is pronounced “zhong.”

In “never stopping,” zeng is pronounced “zeng bu”; chuo is pronounced “lie” and means “to stop.” Kou is pronounced “hou”; ying is pronounced “zheng.” In “the young do not,” shao is pronounced “zhao.” In “diligently practicing,” xing is pronounced “meng,” as below. In “the long-lived do not,” chang is pronounced “ding,” as below. In “what joy,” le is pronounced “luo.” In “able to live long,” shou is pronounced “shou.” E is pronounced “wu lu”; in “no better,” yu is pronounced “yu.” In “tell him,” gao is pronounced “wo,” as below. In “suddenly,” zu is pronounced “cang mo.” In “reaching the utmost,” zao is pronounced “qi dao.” Qu is pronounced “qiu lü.” In “where he lived,” chu is pronounced “chang ju.” In “in weariness,” yan is pronounced “yan.” In “his tomb,” kuang is pronounced “kuang” and refers to a burial pit.

Xunzi also has this passage. “Towering” is read as gao. “Like a chief minister” means resembling a zhongzai, an ancient official title. “Like a grave” means resembling a tomb. In “like a cauldron,” li is pronounced “li”; it has the shape of a ding vessel. It may also be pronounced “ge.” In Xunzi’s version, “lying there” is written as “resting there.” In “taking joy in Heaven,” le is pronounced “luo,” as below. Qu is pronounced “qiu lü”; li is pronounced “li zhi.”

“Mei” is pronounced “mei”; “bei” is pronounced “pu jie qie” and means tired; “yi” is pronounced “yi.” Yan Zi was the statesman Yan Ying of the state of Qi. “Le sheng” is pronounced “luo,” and “wu si” is pronounced “niao lu qie.” In “shen xing,” “xing” is pronounced “xia meng qie”; in “wu yan,” “yan” is pronounced “yi yan qie”; “jiao” is pronounced “jiao.” “Cai” is pronounced “zai,” as it is below. “Zhong xian shi” is pronounced “zhong xing.” In “ming yu,” “yu” is pronounced “yu ju qie.” “Kua” is pronounced “zhang kou qie” and means to open one’s mouth. “Zhi yi” is pronounced “yi”; in “suo qu,” “qu” is pronounced “qiu lü qie,” as it is in the commentary. “Wu” is pronounced “wu”; in “qu bi,” “qu” is also pronounced “qiu lü qie.”

“Xiong” is pronounced “you” and refers to Yu Xiong, traditionally said to have been the teacher of King Wen of Zhou. He was enfeoffed in Chu and is credited with twenty-two chapters of philosophical writings. In “wang yi,” “wang” is pronounced “wu”; “cao” is pronounced “qi dao qie”; “sui shi” is pronounced “sheng,” as it is below. “Sheng” is read with the rising tone; “jin” is pronounced “jin”; “suo zhu” is pronounced “zhu,” while another edition writes “zhan”; “zi shi” is pronounced “sheng.” “Qi” is pronounced “qi.” The Xiben records that Tang of Yin enfeoffed descendants of the Xia dynasty in Qi, and that the Zhou dynasty later enfeoffed them there again. Qi is now in Yongqiu County, Chenliu Commandery; during the Wude era of the Tang, Qi Prefecture was established there.

In “beng sui,” “sui” is pronounced “zhui”; in “xing xiu,” “xiu” is pronounced “xiu,” as it is below. “Sheng” is pronounced “sheng”; in “zhong shang,” “zhong” is pronounced “ding zhong qie”; “kuai” is pronounced “kou dui qie”; in “chong se,” “se” is pronounced “su ze qie.” “Chu” is pronounced “chu”; in “bu ci,” “ci” is pronounced “ci,” and “dao” is pronounced “tu dao qie.” These words all describe trampling. “She” is pronounced “shi,” as it is below.

The Records of the Grand Historian says that Chu had a man named Chang Luzi. The Book of Han records that Chang Luzi wrote nine works and belonged to the Daoist school. “Hong ni” is pronounced “hong ni”; “zui” is pronounced “zi wai qie”; in “da yuan,” “da” is pronounced “tai”; in “xie quan,” “xie” is pronounced “jie”; “jian” is pronounced “xian bian qie”; in “he chu,” “chu” is pronounced “chang ju qie.”

The “Book of Han” records that Changluzi wrote nine works and belonged to the Daoist school.

The text also gives the pronunciations and meanings of several words. “Hongni” is pronounced “hong ni”; in “dayuan,” “da” is pronounced “tai”; “jie quan” is read as “jie”; and “cheng” refers to an official who assists the ruler, such as a fu, bi, yi, or cheng. Another version reads “cheng” as “zheng.” “You fu” is pronounced “fu,” “zhong” is pronounced “yong,” and “tui” is pronounced “shui.” In “Xiang shi,” “xiang” is pronounced “xiang”; in “da rang,” “rang” is pronounced “zhang.” Some versions also write “fu” as “fu.” “Shi” is pronounced “yi zhi qie” and means to extend; in “wang bu,” “wang” means “without.” “Zang” is pronounced “zang,” and “xian” is pronounced “xi jian qie.” “Xi” is pronounced “xi” and is a sound of sorrowful sighing. The phrase “I steal the timely advantages of Heaven and Earth” should be punctuated after the word “advantages.” “Pang” is pronounced “pu lang qie,” “zhu” as “zhu,” “yuan” as “yuan,” “zhi” as “shi zhi qie,” “bie” as “bing lie qie,” “shi” as “shi zhi qie,” and “wang” as “wen liang qie.” In “crossing Dongguo,” “guo” is pronounced “ge”; another version reads “yu.” “Li” is pronounced “li zhi qie,” and “ren” as “er ren qie.” “Cheng” is pronounced “chi zheng qie,” “wei” as “yu wei qie,” “cang” as “cai lang qie,” in “daxu,” “da” is pronounced “tai,” “lin” as “liang ren qie,” and “cuo” as “cuo.”

The Yellow Emperor, Part Two

Maintain purity and integrity of mind and nature. “Jiaoran” describes a haggard appearance. Some editions write “skin color” as “complexion.” “Ganmei” refers to dark spots on the skin, like those that grow on wood after it becomes damp. “Mei” is an uncommon character in ancient books.

In “bu zhi,” the pronunciation is “zhi li qie”; the same pronunciation applies to “zhi” in “zhi zhi” below. The “zhi” in “jin zhi” is pronounced “jin.” “Zan” is pronounced “tan”; the “yin” in “guo yin” is pronounced “shen”; the “she” in “she gong” is pronounced “she”; “qu” is pronounced “qiu lu qie”; the “xian” in “zhong xian” is pronounced “xuan”; the “jian” in “jian ju” is pronounced “xian”; and the “qi” in “qi xin” is pronounced “zhai.” “Yan zhou” is pronounced “yan”; the “ji” in “ji qian” is pronounced “ju qi qie”; and the “shuai” in “wu shuai” is pronounced “suo lei qie.” Some editions write “shi” instead.

“Chang” is pronounced “ding wen qie.” “Shizhang” means the person who leads and presides. The “shi” in “shiyu” is pronounced “chang er qie”; the “yi” in “qin yi” is pronounced “ji”; and the “bei” in “zhi bei” is pronounced “pei.” “Zhuo ta” is pronounced “zhuo”; “ta” means to strike. “Zhi ti” is pronounced “ti” and means to scratch.

“Xiaoyang” refers to pain and itching. “Xiao” is pronounced “xiao.” The Rites of Zhou records that illnesses such as headaches occurred in spring, while ailments such as itching and scabies occurred in summer. Zheng Xuan explains that “xiao” means soreness. The Shuowen also says that it refers to soreness.

The “ai” in “bu ai” is pronounced “gai”; the “ting” in “leiting” is pronounced “ting”; the “hua” in “bu hua” is pronounced “gu”; and the “zhi” in “bu zhi” is pronounced “zhi.” The “yi” in “yiran” is pronounced “yu zhi,” and “da” is pronounced “tai.” The “ji” in “shanji” is pronounced “ji.” The Book of Han says that Dashan Ji was the Yellow Emperor’s teacher. The “xiang” in “di xiang” is pronounced “xi liang qie.”

“Pi er shui” should be punctuated after “pi.” Editions differ on the number of years: some read “twenty-eight years,” while another reads “thirty-eight years.” The “zhi” in “da zhi” is pronounced “zhi li qie”; the “ji” in “ji ruo” is pronounced “qi”; “jia” is pronounced “xia”; and the “hao” in “hao zhi” is pronounced “hu dao qie.”

“Lie Gushe” is pronounced “Lie Guye” and refers to a mountain in the sea. The Classic of Mountains and Seas says that the Gushe country lies in the sea, with the Cong country surrounding it to the southwest.

Travel one hundred li south to Mount Gushe; then travel another three hundred and eighty li southwest to Mount Gushe. Guo Pu says this is where the Yellow River flows across the sea. In other words, viewed from afar, several Mount Gushe peaks stand a hundred li apart, lined up between the sea and the river. According to the “Western Regions” account, the Yellow River flows east into Lake Puchang, disappears underground, and then emerges again in the Central Plains. Lake Puchang is also called the Salt Marsh and lies in Jiaohe Commandery.

Spiritual beings live on the mountain. This chapter is broadly similar in content to the Classic of Mountains and Seas. The spiritual beings breathe in the fresh wind, as though dwelling alone in stillness amid deep springs. Unburdened by the cares of the world, they sometimes vanish and sometimes appear. The Classic of Mountains and Seas says that people live in the water by the North Sea. “Wei” means to vanish or become indistinct.

The notes also explain several words and their pronunciations: “qian” means a fault; “zha” refers to death, as in the Zuo Tradition, which says, “People do not die young or fall to illness.” “Ci” means illness, while “li” refers to an epidemic or a discordant atmosphere. “Dui” means resentment. “Having regrets” means feeling regret in one’s heart, and “tuoran” describes feeling relieved and free of attachment.

“Woman” is read as “you.” “Sideways glance” has no specified pronunciation. “Release” is read as “let go,” as below. “Geng” is read as “renew”; its pronunciation is given as “ju xing qie.” It means to increase, as below. One edition has “already” instead of “in hiding.” “Dao accord” is pronounced “ku ji qie.” “Across” is read with the falling tone, as below. “Release” means to give free rein. “Not yet reached” is pronounced “qi dao qie.” “What it relies on” is pronounced “yu qi qie.” “Gan” is read as “dry.” “Shell” is pronounced “kou jiao qie.” “Once” is read as “layer.” “A period of time” is pronounced “zi xie qie.” “May be hoped for” is read as “hope.” “Deeply ashamed” is pronounced “zuo.”

“Screening the breath” means holding one’s breath, as if one had no breath at all. “Return” is pronounced “fu you qie.” Guanyin refers to Yin Xi, the guardian of the pass, whose courtesy name was Gongdu and who wrote a book in nine chapters. “Moving in concealment” appears in some editions as “gradually,” which is also read as “concealed.” One edition has “not obstructed” instead of “not empty”; “obstructed” means blocked. “To be an impediment” is read as “obstruct.” “Not trembling” is read as “trembling.” “List” is read as “example.” “Ji” is read as “reside.” “Fish” is read as “I.” “Speech” is pronounced “yu ju qie.” “Woman” is read as “you.” “Far apart” is pronounced “yu wan qie.” “To make” is read as “do,” pronounced “zang zuo qie”; the commentary uses the same pronunciation. “There” is pronounced “yu qian qie.” “Deep” is read as “excessive.” “See” is pronounced “xian bian qie.” One edition has “make his Qi genuine” instead of “nourish his Qi.” “Reach” is pronounced “qi dao qie” and means to arrive at, or extend to. “Without entanglement” means without obstruction. “Fall” is read as “fall.” “Ride” also has the pronunciation “shi ling qie.” “Encountering things” is read as “oppose,” meaning to meet or offend external things. One edition has an illegible character, explained as meaning that the heart is unwilling to see something, yet the eyes see it; this explanation, however, does not fit the context very well. The Zhuangzi also has an illegible character.

“Not break” is pronounced “zhi she qie.” “Not peer” is pronounced “qu sui qie.” “To be the elder” is pronounced “yu wei qie.” “No one” is pronounced “mo hou qie,” as below. “The end of the arrow” is read as “target.” “Set down the cup” is pronounced “bi hui qie.” “Elbow” is pronounced “zhu jiu qie.” “Take the arrow” is read as “target”; the original text has “arrowhead.” “Return” is pronounced “fu you qie.” “Dark” is read as “tread” and written with an illegible character. “Reside” is read as “encounter.” “Quick and nimble” is pronounced “ji ye qie.” “Human figure” refers to the form of a wooden puppet. “Hesitate” is pronounced “qi xun qie.” “Two parts hanging down” means that one fifth of each foot hangs over the edge.

“Zhi” is read as “zhong.” “Hui chi” is read as “chi.” Guo Xiang explains that “hui chi” means to let oneself go; it can also mean to strive vigorously and move swiftly. “Chu” is read as “chou lü qie.” “Xun mu” is read as “xun.” He Chengtian’s Zuan says that people in the Wu region call blinking “xun mu.” “Zhong” is read as “ding zhong qie.”

Some versions write “dai yi fu” as “shi yi fu.” “Pian” is read as “pi mei qie.” According to the Shuowen and the Zilin, this character is also written as “□” or “yi”; both forms mean “to destroy.” “Mou” is read as “mou” and means “equal.” “Chao” is read as “chao.” Some versions write “xiang ling” as “xiang ji.” “Jie yi” is read as “jie” and means “to assist” or “to be commensurate with.”

“Shang wai” is read as “gu ying qie.” “Tian sou” is read as “xi kou qie.” “Xian” is read as “xi jian qie.” “Jiong” is read as “qi yun qie” and means “to be in a difficult predicament.” “He” is read as “hu ke qie.” “Ben” is read as “ben”; “kui” means “basket.” “Kuo shi” is read as “kuo kuo qie” and means to see far and broadly.

“Ni” is read as “nu cao qie.” The Fangyan says that people around Yangzhou and Yue use “ni” to mean looking down on or insulting someone by calling them ignorant. The character can also mean not believing what another person’s eyes and ears have perceived. “Qi dai” is read as “dai.” The Fangyan says it means deceiving one another; some versions write “qi gei.”

“Dang” is read as “gu guang qie.” The Fangyan says that people in Jiangdong today also use “dang” to mean “push.” It is also read as “ken huang,” meaning “to strike.” “Tai” is read as “Y qie.” The Fangyan says that pushing and fighting one another is called “lian.” “Wu” is read as “hai qie” and means “to push.” “Shen” is read as “ding gan qie.” The Fangyan says it means striking someone on the back. Some versions write “kang,” meaning to resist or refuse.

“Wang suo” is read as “wu suo.” “Yun rong” is read as “yu wen qie.” “Ji” is read as “qu qi qie.” “Dan” is read as “dan” and means “to exhaust.” “Bei” is read as “yu pu jie qie” and means “weary.” Some versions write “ju sheng” as “ju cheng”; “cheng” means to ascend.

“Man yan” is read as “mo han qie” and means rambling words. “Chang bai” is read as “shang bai.” Some versions write “fei niao” as “fei fu.” “Yang” is read as “yu liang qie” and describes an object floating in the wind. “Wei gu” is read as “ji.” According to research, “wei” is an ancient form of “wei.” The Shuowen says that bones may be curved or straight. In light of the meaning here, that explanation does not seem quite suitable. “Yan” is read as “mo han qie” and means “scattered.”

“Chang” is read as “shang.” In one edition, “flying bird” is written “flying duck.” “Yang” is read as “liang” and means moving in the wind like an object being blown about. “Wei bone” is read as “ji.” Here, “wei” is an ancient form of the character “wei.” The Shuowen explains “bone” as “curved and straight,” but that interpretation does not fit smoothly here. The text at “tuan fu” is unclear; the current edition has “A E.” The following phrase, “ji huang jian sui xiao,” is also difficult to decipher. One edition has “cloud.” “Yin” is read “fu you qie.” “Zhi yin” is read “deep.” “Wei” is read “wu hui qie” and refers to a bend in a watercourse; one edition has “yu.” “Yong” is read “yong” and means moving underwater. “Water bottom” is read “du li qie.” “Zhong fang” is read “fen liang qie”; some editions write “fang.” “Nan se” is read “nai han qie.” “Ai bu man” should be punctuated as a sentence; one edition writes “huan” for “ai.” “Wu wang” is read “wu,” and “jin” has a departing tone. “Yu” is read “yu.”

“Wei kong cheng zhi zhi bu zhi, zhi zhi zhi bu xing, xing zhi zhi bu ji” means that one worries only that one’s sincerity is not yet deep enough, that the state one has reached cannot be put into practice, and that one’s practice then falls short of what is required. One edition omits the phrase “zhi zhi zhi bu xing.” “Da ran” is read “ding da qie” and describes a state of alarm. In “danger,” “xian” is read “xian.” “Shi zhi” is read “zhi.”

King Xuan of Zhou was named Jing and was the son of King Li of Zhou. “Mu zheng” means the official responsible for raising animals and birds. Liang Yang is read “yang.” “Wei” is read “yu wei qie.” “Shi” is read “si”; the same reading applies to “feeding the tiger” below. “Diao e” is read “diao e.” In “none failed to become gentle and tame,” “xun” is read “song lun qie” and means obedient; one edition omits “xun.” “Zi” is read “zi,” and may also be read “zi.” “Wei zi wei” refers to the reproduction of male and female animals: bearing offspring is called “zi,” and mating is called “wei.” “Bo shi” is read “bo shi.”

Mao Qiuyuan’s surname was Mao and his given name was Qiuyuan. One edition writes “yu,” read “yu lü qie.” One edition omits “shou” from “transmit and receive it.” “Wei qi” is read “yu wei qie”; the same applies below. One edition writes “jue zhi” for “smash it.” “Qi chai” is read “zhu jie qie.” Another edition writes “kuang” for “wide marsh.” “Cao” is read “qi dao qie”; the same applies below. Moving across the surface of the water is called “you.” “Shu neng” is read “se ju qie” and means ability or skill; the same reading applies to similar uses in the commentary. “Zhuo zhou” is read “zhi xiao qie”; one edition writes “ju,” possibly by mistake. The character “kong” may be erroneous. “Su” is read “suo liu qie”; the Zhuangzi writes “bian.” “Neng wu” is read “mu” and refers to a duck. One edition writes “jin,” possibly by mistake. “Yue [missing character]” is read “yi” and is equivalent to “[missing character],” an exclamation. “Wan” is read “qi wu guan qie” and means to be practiced or familiar with.

In “Dao yu,” the “yu” is pronounced “yu”; in “qie wei,” “wei” is pronounced “wei”; in “e wang,” “e” is pronounced “wu”; and “xian” is pronounced “xian.”

In “wa kou,” “kou” means to reach by hand for something hidden away; this is also called “cang kou.” The Fengtu ji records that after the winter-sun sacrifice, elders, women, and children would play a game of hiding hooks. The Sanqin ji records that Lady Gouyi of the Han dynasty often kept her hand clenched in a fist. People at the time imitated her, and the game of hiding hooks came into being. “Kou” is pronounced “kou hou.” In the Zhuangzi, it is written with the character “shu” and refers to a hook made of bronze or silver.

“Dan” is pronounced “dai han,” and “hun” is pronounced “hun.” The Fangyan says that “mi hun” describes a state of confusion and mental disorder. In “suo yao,” “yao” is pronounced “yu yao”; in “yu zhong,” “yu” is pronounced “yu” and means “even heavier.” Some editions write “zhuo” instead of “gong.”

Mount Lüliang lies in the area of today’s Pengcheng Commandery. The Erya says that a place in a river where rocks span and obstruct the current is called a “liang.” In “bing liu,” “bing” is pronounced “bang”; the Shiji and Hanshu write it as “bang,” as in “hai bang” and “he bang.” “Cheng” is pronounced “zheng.” The Fangyan says that bringing someone who has fallen into water up to the surface is called “cheng”; some commentaries write “zheng” or “cheng” directly. “Tang xing” is pronounced “tang xing,” as below. In “dao zhi,” “dao” is pronounced “dao” in the sense of “guide,” as below. Guo Pu’s commentary on the Mu Tianzi zhuan says that “dao” means “to follow.” “Cheng zi” is pronounced “zheng zi.”

In “yue wang,” “wang” is used for “wu,” meaning “not”; some editions omit this character. The Sima clan of Qi says that “Qi” refers to the Mi River, whose current swirls like a millstone. “Gu” in “gu hu” is pronounced “gu hu” and refers to surging waves. Guo Xiang says that when water swirls and sinks, then surges up again, this is called “gu.”

“Ju” is pronounced “yu yu,” and “lou” is pronounced “lü.” “Ju lou” refers to a condition in which the back is hunched. “Cheng chao” is pronounced “cheng tiao”; another edition writes “cheng tiao” using the character for cicada. “Tiao” means cicada. “Duo” is pronounced “duo kuo” and means “to pick up.” “Lei” is an old character. “Huan” is pronounced “wan”; Sima says this means stacking pellets one by one on the tip of a pole. “Zi zhu” is pronounced “zi shu.” “Tiao” is pronounced “tiao.”

Some editions write “wu shen ye” instead of “wu chu shen ye.” In “jue zhu ju,” some editions write “jue” with the character “jue,” pronounced “qi yue.”

The Shuowen Jiezi writes “jue” as “jue,” meaning the stump of a tree. Li Yi says that “jue” carries the sense of standing upright. “Zhuju” also means the stump of a dead tree; “ju” is pronounced like “ju.” Cui Zhuan pronounces it “quan.” He was from Qinghe, served as a Gentleman of Discussion in the Jin dynasty, and wrote commentaries on the twenty-seven inner and outer chapters of the Nanhua Zhenjing. “Gaomu” is pronounced “konghao qie.” In “yue ru,” “ru” is pronounced “ru.”

“Fengyi” appears in the “Ruxing” chapter of the Book of Rites: “When Confucius was young, he lived in the state of Lu and wore a wide robe; as an adult, he lived in the state of Song and wore a Zhangfu cap.” Zheng Xuan explains that “feng” means large, referring to clothing with wide sleeves. Xiang Xiu says this was the wide, long robe worn by Confucian scholars. In “you hao,” “hao” is pronounced “hu bao qie.” “Ou” is pronounced “ou” and refers to the gull, also called the water hawk. Today, the birds seen in flocks along the shores of rivers and lakes, resembling white doves in shape and color, are this bird. “Baizhu” is pronounced “shu.” Some editions write “ru qu lai” as “ke qu lai.”

“Qu” is pronounced “qiu lu qie”; “qi,” “zai yi qie”; “wu,” “wu”; and “hai,” “kai”; the same applies below. Zhao Xiangzi, whose personal name was Wuxu, was the son of Zhao Jianzi. In “shuai tu,” “shuai” is pronounced “suo lü qie.” “Tian” is pronounced “tian,” “jie” is pronounced “zai ye qie,” and “hua” is pronounced “er zhen qie”: something spread on the ground is called “jie,” while untrimmed grass is called “hua.” “Fan” is pronounced “fan” and means to burn; “jin” is pronounced “pi ren qie.” “Shangxia” is pronounced “shi zhang qie,” and “liu” is pronounced “li jiu qie”; here it means to stay overnight and observe. “Qiao” is pronounced “kou diao qie”; “xiang,” “xiang”; “ku,” “ku”; and “qu,” “qiu lu qie.”

Some editions write “you xia” as “you jia,” which is also pronounced “xia.” In “da yue,” “yue” is pronounced “yue”; “qiang,” “qi liang qie”; “zhuo,” “zhi lüe qie”; “gua,” “gua”; and some editions write “ai” as “ai.” “Dian” is pronounced “du nian qie” and means to fall; “pian” is pronounced “pian.”

A male shaman is called a “xi,” and a female shaman a “wu.” Yan Shigu says that “wuxi” can also be used collectively to mean shamans. Ji Xian’s surname was Ji and his given name was Xian; he was from the state of Zheng. Some editions write “bi” as “qi.”

“Xi” (pronounced xu ji) means joy. Huzi was Liezi’s teacher. “Guo” is pronounced ge. The character “wu” is written as “ji” in some editions, but this does not fit the meaning of the passage. In “Dao yu,” “yu” is pronounced yu. “Xi luan” is pronounced lai duan. Sima Biao says: “You have not yet mastered what you were taught, so you have not yet achieved anything. It is like a flock of female birds without a male: they will have no eggs.” The “you” mentioned here refers to Jixian, whose name was Xian and who was from the state of Zheng.

“Bi” is written as “qi” in one edition. “He” is pronounced hu wo; “kang” is pronounced kou lang, and is also written as “kang,” with the same pronunciation. “Xiang” is pronounced xi liang; “shi” is pronounced shi. “Xiang wu” is written as “yong wu” in one edition; the same applies below. “Xi” is pronounced xi.

Sima Biao explains “damp ash” as meaning that the breath is still and quiet, like damp ash. “Zui” is written as “meng” in some editions. “Zhen” is pronounced zhen. Cui Zhuan explains “not ceasing” as follows: “It does not tremble, yet does not stop, like something that moves and yet seems not to move.” Here, “liang” is pronounced liang, and “hui” is written as “quan” in some editions. “Gong” is pronounced xian bian.

“Mechanism released from the heel” means that the mechanism is set off from the heel. In his commentary on the Huainanzi, Xu Shen says: “The mechanism is set off before the heel has time to turn.” Here, “qi” is pronounced ce jie; the same applies below. “Da” is pronounced tai; “zhen” is pronounced zhi yin and means an omen.

“Ni” is pronounced ni; “huan” is pronounced hu guan and means to circle or revolve. One edition writes it as “xuan,” which also means to revolve. “Zhi pan” is pronounced pan; the original text writes it as “pan,” meaning that the water flows in winding circles. “Ke” is pronounced dong zhi ke. The commentary explains that the deep-water ni is a large fish, huan means circling, and pan means flowing in winding loops. The image is of a large fish circling in the water as currents swirl and gather, forming a deep pool. At this point, the Nanhua zhenjing has “shen.” Emperor Jianwen of Liang explains “pan” as gathering.

“Lan” is pronounced with the rising tone. The Erya says that lan means water surging forth. “Wo” is pronounced wu pu and refers to spring water flowing down from above. “Gui” is pronounced gui and refers to spring water bursting out from the side. “Yong” is pronounced yong and refers to river water that bursts through its banks and then returns to its channel. “Qian” is pronounced qian and refers to water that stagnates and does not flow.

“Feishui” is the source of Feishui; here, the character “yi” is explained as meaning “fat.” Hui is pronounced “hui”; yi, “chi”; she, “she”; dan, “tu lan”; and bo, “po.”

“Zi shi er zou” means to lose one’s composure and turn to flee. Yi is pronounced “yu wei”; “yiwei” describes a compliant, gentle manner. Fan is pronounced “fang jian”; in some editions of the Zhuangzi, “mao” is written “mao” and pronounced “tui.” In “mi cui zhuan shi,” “xunfu” means to yield and submit. Wei is pronounced “yu wei”; cuan, “qi wan”; and shi, “si,” as it is later in the passage. Xi is pronounced “xu qi”; people in the Chu region called pigs “xi.” Shi is pronounced “di.” Diao zhuo is pronounced “chi gun”; the original text has “zhuo.”

“Fenran” is pronounced “fen.” In one edition, “er feng zai” is written “rong” and pronounced “zai.” Ehu is pronounced “wu.” Kui is pronounced “qiu wei” and means to give or send food. Xiang refers to delivering a meal. “Jing ji” is pronounced “ji” and means to startle oneself, causing oneself to lose composure; the later “chu ji” is pronounced the same way. Bu jie is pronounced “xie.” Xiang Xiu said, “Not yet able to understand it fully and suddenly”; this means not yet to have a sudden, complete realization. Die is pronounced “die.” Bianpi is pronounced “bi yi” and describes someone skilled at ingratiating themselves with others. Zunzhang is pronounced “ding zhang.”

In “er H zi xi qie,” “er” is pronounced “zi xi.” Shi geng is pronounced “si” and refers to eating soup. In “wu duo yu zhi ying,” ying is pronounced “ying.” One edition omits the word “wu.” “Er zhi” is pronounced “zhi.” In “bao ru,” bao means to be attached to or close to someone. Ju is pronounced “jiu yu”; in the Guanzhong region, shoes are called “ju.” Dunzhang is pronounced “dun zhang”; cu is pronounced “zi liu”; and yi, “yi.” “You jian” means after a little while. In some editions, bin is written “bin,” pronounced “bi ren,” and means to guide or welcome.

Ti ju is pronounced “ti ju”; one edition writes “lü.” Tu xian is pronounced “xian dian” and means barefoot. Ji is pronounced “qi qi” and means to arrive at or reach. Dang is pronounced “ding lang”; bei, “pei”; yan, “yu qian”; and xian, “xi jian.” One edition has “yao er cai ben xing” instead of “yao er ben shen.” Yi is pronounced “chi”; jue, “jiao.” Yang Zhu’s explanation appears in chapter seven of the Chongxu Zhode Zhenjing. Pei is pronounced “bei”; yao is pronounced “yu xiao” and means to take by copying or to intercept.

“Zhongdao, Daozhong”: this can be understood as walking in the central and upright place of the Dao; it may also be the wording in the sentence used to explain “Dao” and “zhong.”

The “yang” in “yangtian” was originally written as “yin” and is also read as “yang”; the “nü” in “yi nü” is read as “ru”; the “qu” in “neng qu” is read as qiu-lü qie; the “kua” in “jinkua” is read as kou-gua qie; the “guan” in “jin guan” is read as “guan,” and the Zhuangzi writes it as the “guan” meaning to wash the hands; “shu” is read as “yu”; the “zhi” in “jin zhi” is read as zhuang-yi qie; the “lü” in “tuo lü” was originally written as “ju.”

“Xiang” is read as xiang; the “jian” in “bu jian” is read as “xian,” and the same applies below; the “sui” in “suisui” is read as xu-wei qie; the “xu” in “xuxu” is read as “xu.” The Shuowen says: “Xu” is the appearance of raising the eyes to look upward. The Cangjie pian says: “Xu” is the appearance of opening the eyes wide. Gao You, in his commentary on the Huainanzi, says that “suixu” refers to the appearance of watching and listening. “Cu” is read as zi-liu qie; “yang” is read as “yang.” Master Sima explains that warming oneself by fire is called “yang.” The Huainanzi says: “The rich wear fine brocade garments, while the poor warm themselves by the mouth of the stove.”

The “e” in “bu e” is read as wu-lu qie; the “guo” in “guo Song” is read as “ge”; the “qu” in “er qu” is read as qiu-lü qie; the “xing” in “zhi xing” is read as xia-meng qie; “yi” was originally written as the “yi” meaning “change” and is read as yi-zhi qie; “wang” is read as “wu”; “yu” was originally written as “zhou” and is read as yu-liu qie; “yi” is read as yu-qi qie; “qu” is read as zhang-qu; the “fu” in “fu yi” is read as “fu”; “pao” is read as “pao”; “xi” is read as xu-yi qie.

Paoxi and Nüwa were both ancient emperors. The “yi” in “yi xing” is read as “yi”; “man” is read as “wan”; “yan” is read as wu-ge qie and refers to the beak or nose of a bird; “han” is read as hu-gan qie; “xiang” is read as xi-liang qie; the “hu” in “hu bu” is read as “he”; the “yuan” in “yuan jian” is read as “yuan”; the “zhuo” in “ying zhuo” is read as xu-hui qie; “ji” is read as “yi”; “ban” is read as pu-ban qie.

The spring is in the upper valley. “Shuai” is read as “shuai”; the “pi” in “xiong pi” is read as “bei”; “chu” is read as chou-ju qie; “diaohe” is read as “diao-he,” and another edition writes it as “e”; the “zhi” in “qi zhi” is read as chi-zi. Xiong, pi, chu, diao, and he are all fierce and combative animals. In the original text’s phrase “er ren bu zhi jie zhi zhi Dao”—“yet people do not know the way of connecting with them”—one edition lacks the character “ren”; “xing” is read as hu-gang qie; the “da” in “da gu” is read as “tai”; “Jie shi” is read as “Jie”; “shuoshuo” is read as “shuo”; the “chu” in “liu chu” is read as xiu-you qie; “jie” is read as “xie,” and the same applies in the commentary; the “chang” in “zhi chang” is read as zhang-zhang qie.

Yuan is pronounced with the sound of “round,” and ruan, meaning an insect crawling slowly, with the sound of “soft.” Chi, a spirit creature of the mountains and forests, is pronounced like “foolish,” and mei, a ghost or demon, like “charming.” The Erya says that creatures with feet are called “insects,” while those without feet are called “moths”; another edition reads “insects and ants.”

Ju-gong, the man who kept monkeys, is pronounced “yu.” Hao-yang is pronounced “hu-bao”; jie, “xie”; xun, “chun”; and yu, “xu.” Here yu means acorns. One edition reads “zhi-bi xiang long” instead of “neng-bi xiang long”; another reads “ruo shi wei kui” instead of “ming shi wei kui.”

Ji Xiaoxiao’s surname was Ji and his personal name was Xiao. Suo is pronounced “jing,” and wei, “wei.” In ying-xiang, xiang is pronounced “sound.” Li Yi explains that this means calling out in response to a sound and moving along with a shadow. Xun is also pronounced “jun” or “xin”; another edition reads “su.”

Hui Ang is pronounced “A-lang”; jian, “xian-bian”; diezu, “die”; qing, “kou-ding”; and kai, “kai.” In suo shuo, shuo is pronounced “yue,” as it is below. Ci is pronounced “qi-yi.” In fu zhong, zhong is pronounced “ding-zhong,” as it is below. In huanran, huan is pronounced “huan.”

Mo Di, also known as Mozi, is pronounced “Di.” He was a senior official of the state of Song, lived after Confucius, and wrote seventy-one works. He upheld filial piety and reverence for spirits, advocated strengthening the foundations and economizing in expenditure, and also devoted himself to rescuing the world from peril. He was skilled in the arts of attack and defense. The repeated phrases ci zhi, fu zhong, and huanran below are pronounced the same way.

In wei chang, chang is pronounced “zhang-zhang.” Jing is pronounced “jing.” Shuo is read as written, but may also be pronounced “shui.” One edition reads “xiao guaren” instead of “fu guaren.”

The Third Chapter, King Mu of Zhou, also known as “The Origin of Transformation.”

The phrase fu yang is read as mian yang; zhi jue is read as jiao; shi shun is read as shun; and the two characters in huang hu are pronounced kuang and hu, respectively. King Mu of Zhou was named Man and was the son of King Zhao of Zhou. Hua huan is pronounced hu bian qie; guan is pronounced guan and means “to pass through”; sui is pronounced *zhui”; in bu ai, ai has its standard pronunciation; xing is pronounced xing, and lou is pronounced lou.

The phrase “the mole cricket smells foul; readers today should follow the Zhou Rites” means that mole crickets have an unpleasant smell, and that readers today should read this passage according to the account in the Zhou Rites. The “Zhou Rites,” in the “Offices of Heaven” section, records that among the raw foods used in inner banquets were items unfit to eat, such as horses with black backs or striped markings on their forelegs. Zheng Xuan explains that “ban bi” refers to natural markings in the coat. In old editions, the first character in lou gu (“mole cricket”) is sometimes written with the “woman” radical, as it is also in the Fangyan. The first character in xiang shi has another pronunciation, while ban is pronounced ban. In shan e, shan has its standard pronunciation.

Nai is pronounced as the ancient character nai was pronounced; wei zhi is read as wei. Zhe is pronounced zhe and means red; e is pronounced e and means white clay. The names and duties of the Five Storehouses are given in the Zhou Rites: the Grand Storehouse manages the various tribute goods and wealth; the Royal Storehouse manages gold, jade, and precious objects; the Inner Storehouse manages high-grade goods; the Outer Storehouse manages the coin reserves; and the Food Storehouse manages seasonal provisions.

Zhongnan is the name of a mountain in the Jingzhao region. E miao is pronounced mao: a beautiful woman with a graceful, light step is called an e. East of Hangu Pass, around the Yellow River and the region of Qi, such a woman is called a miao; some also call her a yao. Mi man is pronounced wan, and zheng e is pronounced e. Ji is pronounced ji and means a hairpin; er is pronounced er and means an earring. Huang refers to jade ornaments hanging from the ears, used to plug them. Suo is pronounced ta jian qie; yi, yu ji qie; xi gu, hu; and ye, yi.

The Fan Zi says that the Qi region produces fine white silk. Ji is pronounced ju qi qie; ye means to request; qu is pronounced xu; shang, shi zhang qie; and ji, jian qi qie. In guang yue, yue is pronounced yue, with the same pronunciation given in the annotation. In the name Qin Mugong, Miu is pronounced Mu; in shen le, le is pronounced luo. Lei kuai is pronounced kou dui qie; ji su means a pile of firewood; ren fu is pronounced fu you qie; zhi chu, chang ju qie; xuan, xian; dai, dai; zhi, zhi; and ying, niao ding qie, also pronounced jing.

The “zhao” in “Nine Shao” was originally written “Shao” and pronounced “shi zhao qie.” “Le” is pronounced “luo,” “she” as “shi,” “wang” as “wu,” “ji” as “qi ji qie,” “sang” as “xi lang qie,” and “yun” means to fall. “Xiang” is pronounced “xiang,” and “fei” as “fu gui qie.” The Fangyan says that “fei” means to dry something in the sun and is also pronounced “fei.”

Some versions read “three months and then return”; others read “three months and do not return.” “Jue” is pronounced “jiao,” and “nang” as “nai lang qie.” “Wang xian” is pronounced “wang xian.” The phrase “always exists because it is accustomed to maintaining its usual state” means that something endures because it is habituated to remain as it is. Some versions omit the word “you.” “Mo” is pronounced “mo,” “xu” as “si lü qie,” and “zhi luan” as “zhi li qie.”

“Jun” is pronounced “jun,” and “cheng” as “shi zheng qie”; the same applies below. “Si” is pronounced “hua,” and “liu” as “liu.” “Lü’er” are both names of horses among the Eight Steeds, the eight celebrated horses of King Mu of Zhou. “Can” is pronounced “qi nan qie,” “Chi Ji” as “yi,” and “Bai Xi” as “yi.”

The Records of the Grand Historian says that Zaofu, a skilled charioteer, obtained horses including Hualiu, Lü’er, Chiji, and Baixi for King Mu of Zhou. He drove the king on an excursion and inspection tour. Later, they met the Queen Mother of the West and, delighted by the feast, forgot to return. This account broadly matches the Tale of King Mu. Guo Pu’s commentary says that the horses were named for the colors of their coats. Later, Quhuang, Yuyu, Daoli, and Shanzi were added, making eight steeds in all.

“Zao” is pronounced “qi dao qie,” and “fu” as “fu.” On Zaofu driving for King Mu, the Records of the Grand Historian says that King Mu of Zhou rode Hualiu and Lü’er, with Zaofu driving the chariot; they could travel a thousand li in a day.

The text here has damaged characters and variant readings. In related editions, one character is written “tai,” while the seal script form is “yi”; the Stone Classics has “feng,” the Zilin gives “mian,” and the base text has “lian.” These variant readings, when joined together, make no sense. Regarding “serving as the right-hand charioteer,” the Huainanzi says that when Qian Qie and Tai Bing drove, they removed the reins and bits and cast aside the whip and driving switch. Gao You’s commentary says they were both ancient men who had attained the Dao and were skilled charioteers. “Qian” is pronounced “qi yan qie,” and “qie” as “zi yu qie.”

“Daoli” is pronounced “li yi qie.” Daoli is the same as the “Xianli” mentioned in the Xunzi. “Bai Yao” is pronounced “yu biao qie.” Guo Pu says that Bai Yao was a person’s name.

“Jusou” is pronounced “Qusou”; it is the name of a state of the Western Rong. In “to drink,” the character “drink” is pronounced “jin”; in “its thick liquid,” “thick liquid” is pronounced “zhuyong”; and in “to wash,” “wash” is pronounced “xianli.” In “two modes of conveyance,” “conveyance” is pronounced “shizheng”; “Kunlun” is pronounced “Kunlun.”

“By its foothills” refers to the area along the north bank of the Red River. The Classic of Mountains and Seas records: “On the shore of the shifting sands, beyond the Red River and before the Black River, there is a great mountain called Kunlun Mound. Someone lives there in a cave; she is named the Queen Mother of the West.” In “the mound,” the character “mound” is an ancient form of the character for “hill.”

“The Yellow Emperor’s palace” refers to the palace he built on Mount Kunlun. The New Discourses records that the Yellow Emperor traveled through the four quarters, ascended Mount Kunlun, and built a palace on the mountain from which to gaze into the distance. In “to bequeath,” “bequeath” is pronounced “yi” and means to pass something down to later generations. Thus, the Yellow Emperor was a guest of the Queen Mother of the West. The Jade Tablet of the River Chart says that the Queen Mother of the West lived on Mount Kunlun. The Annals of the Bamboo Books says that in the seventeenth year of King Mu of Zhou, during his western expedition, he met the Queen Mother of the West and stayed as a guest at Zhaogong Palace.

“Was” is pronounced “wei”; in “King He,” “He” is pronounced “huwo”; and “yan” is pronounced “yan.” In “ten thousand miles,” “miles” is pronounced “li”; “wuyu” is pronounced “wuhu” and is also written “hu.” In “question closely,” “closely” is pronounced “seju” and means to reproach or challenge; “King Qi” is pronounced “Wang Qi”; in “the joy of it,” “joy” is pronounced “luo”; and “distant” is pronounced “xia.”

One version gives the name “Lao Chengzi” instead of “Kao Chengzi.” He wrote eighteen books. In “room screen,” “screen” is pronounced “biying”; in “Lao Dan,” “Dan” is pronounced “tulan”; in “agitated and oppressed,” “oppressed” is pronounced “fangwen”; “again” is pronounced “fuyou”; in “excessive thoughts,” “thoughts” is pronounced “shen”; “turn over” is pronounced “fan”; and “examine” is pronounced “jiao.” Gu Yewang read “turning over and examining the four seasons” as “turning over the four seasons in exchange.” In “heated and melted,” “melted” is pronounced “shuo”; in “water and mercury,” “mercury” is pronounced “hong”; in “does not attach,” “attach” is pronounced “zhilü”; in “that is all,” “all” is pronounced “yi”; in “to do so,” “do” is pronounced “wei”; in “become aware,” “aware” is pronounced “jiao”; in “meaning is evident,” “evident” is pronounced “xianbian”; in “called loss,” “loss” is pronounced “xilang”; in “called joy,” “joy” is pronounced “luo”; “called bewilderment” is pronounced “e”; in “called awakening,” “awakening” is pronounced “wu”; in “what causes alarm,” “alarm” is pronounced “dingda”; in “difficult to fathom,” “fathom” is pronounced “jue”; and in “then it is moistened,” “moistened” is pronounced “ru.”

The character fan is pronounced with the reading fan. The phrase yu nou duan appears in the original text and may contain variant or corrupt characters. Some versions write jun as kang. Jie is pronounced ci ye qie; zao ji as qi dao qie; and ji as qi. Nan yu means the same as nan yu (“southern corner”). Gu mang is pronounced mo lang qie. Wang means “without”; the same applies below.

Kua he is pronounced ku hua qie; zhi fen as fu wen qie; fu luo as fu; chang yu as yu; xiang jie as ling; da zhi as chi; and qu yi as qu; the same applies below. Shen hu is pronounced shen yin; the same applies below. Hun bei is pronounced pu jie qie. Xi xi means “night after night.” You yan is pronounced yan; guan as gu luan qie; qi le as luo; and jue as jiao; the same applies below.

An is pronounced nan qie, and yi as yi. An yi means speaking while asleep; it is also called dream-talk. E yan is pronounced wu lu qie, and si lü as si. Shao jian means that the illness has improved somewhat. Xiang [missing character] is pronounced kua, and yu er as ya, meaning “to welcome.” Bi zhi is pronounced bi, and zhu huang as huang, referring to a dry moat. Yi jiao is pronounced yu qiao qie; bu sheng as sheng; and bu yan as qie, though it may also be pronounced yu yan qie. A shi shi was an official responsible for administering criminal prohibitions and laws. One version writes ren ren as er, pronounced ya and meaning “to welcome”; other versions write ren.

Yue xi is pronounced xi; jiang fu as fu you qie; guo xiang as xi liang qie; and xie zhi as si zhe qie. Some versions write xie zhen instead. Jin wang is pronounced wu. Qie xun is pronounced xun and means “trustworthy.” Hua zi is pronounced hu hua qie. Bing wang is pronounced wang and refers to memory loss caused by illness. He shi is pronounced hu la qie. In du zhi, du means “to suffer.” Shi gui is pronounced shi and refers to the milfoil stalks and tortoise shells used in divination. Qing ni is pronounced ni li qie; bo er as po; and jian as jian.

Zi zheng is pronounced zheng in the rising tone; the original text reads ji. Xing wu is pronounced xia meng qie; kuang pi as pi; jiu as jiu; and ke as e. Fu cang is pronounced cai lang qie; mai zhen as zhi ren qie; and qi chou as chou jiu qie. In ran wu zhi fang, fang connects with mi to form a phrase. Cong zhi is pronounced zong; jue si as si; cao ge as qi dao qie; wang shu as se zhu qie; ai le as luo; hao as hu bao qie; e as wu lu qie; ke fu as fu you qie; and miao dang as ding lang qie. One version writes shang instead. Feng shi is pronounced pang.

“Zi shao” is pronounced “shi zhao qie”; “mi wang” is pronounced “wen liang qie”; “guo chen” is pronounced “ge”; “xiang shi” is pronounced “xiang,” and may also be pronounced “hao hu bao qie”; “e” is pronounced “wu lu qie”; “ke fu” is pronounced “fu you qie”; “miao dang” is pronounced “ding lang qie,” while another edition writes “shang”; “Feng shi” is pronounced “pang.”

In “ai le,” “le” is pronounced “luo”; “zhi you” is pronounced “you”; “yan neng” is pronounced “yu qian qie”; “chuan gui” is pronounced “shi yuan qie”; “bian zheng” is pronounced “zheng”; “chang yu” is pronounced “zhang zhang qie”; “guo Jin” is pronounced “ge”; “kuang zhi” is pronounced “jiu kuang qie”; “qiao ran” is pronounced “qi xiao qie”; “kui ran” is pronounced “qiu kui qie”; “juan ran” is pronounced “xuan,” and may also be pronounced “hu quan qie” or “hu juan qie”; “zi jin” is pronounced “jin”; “ya ran” is pronounced “wu mo qie”; “ji ruo” is pronounced “dai,” meaning to deceive; “geng” means slightly or a little. “Zuo che” is a writing error.

Chapter Four, “Zhongni,” first section, titled “Supreme Wisdom.”

“Going beyond emotion” is pronounced “qiu lü qie”; another edition writes “forgetting.” Zhongni was from Qufu County in the state of Lu. Yan, his mother, once went to Mount Niqiu to pray, and later gave birth to Confucius. For this reason, Confucius was given the name “Zhongni.” Confucius was born in the gengxu year, the twenty-first year of King Ling of Zhou.

“Living at leisure” is pronounced “xian.” Zigong’s surname was Duanmu and his given name was Ci. He was from the state of Wei, courtesy name Zigong, and was skilled in speaking, with a quick tongue. Yan Hui was from the state of Lu, courtesy name Ziyuan. “Taking up the qin” is pronounced “yuan,” and “enjoying it alone” is pronounced “luo.” “Share” is pronounced “fu wen qie,” as it is below. “Looking sorrowful” refers to a sad expression; “after a while” means some time had passed; “his expression changed in dismay” means that his countenance changed.

“Intent narrowed” is pronounced “xia”; another edition writes “lost.” “Changes vanished” is pronounced “forgotten”; another edition writes “stopped.” “In former times, I” is pronounced “nai lang qie.” In “rites and music,” “music” is pronounced “yue,” as it is below. “What was left behind came” is pronounced “wei ji qie.” “Already governed” is pronounced “zhi li qie,” meaning governed or settled; the phrase “disorder and order” below uses the same pronunciation. “Not relinquished” is pronounced “she,” “without obstruction” is pronounced “ai,” “will become” is pronounced “gan wei qie,” “wished to discard” is pronounced “yuan,” “visited Lu” is pronounced “pi zheng qie,” “as if” is pronounced “fang wei qie,” “measure” is pronounced “liang,” and “what it is called” is pronounced “chi zheng qie,” as it is below. “Calmly” is pronounced “po,” as it is below.

Kangcangzi is pronounced “Gengsang”; his name was Chu. The Records of the Grand Historian writes his name as “Kangcangzi.” Jia Kui’s Yao Family’s Survey of Exemplars says that in Wu Commandery there was a clan surnamed Gengsang, which was regarded as part of the scholar-official class. “Transmit it” is pronounced “you zhuan qie,” “indeed” is pronounced “wei gui qie,” the “jie” in “eyebrows and eyelashes” is pronounced “jie,” “only vast” is pronounced “huo huo qie,” and “there is a share” is pronounced “fu wen qie.”

“Six viscera” is pronounced “cu lang qie.” The five viscera commonly named are the heart, lungs, liver, spleen, and kidneys. Here, six viscera are mentioned because the kidneys are divided into two: the left is called the kidney, and the right the Gate of Life. The Gate of Life is considered the dwelling place of spirits. In men it stores Jing and Qi; in women it is associated with the womb. Since the Qi of the Gate of Life connects with the kidneys, the text speaks of six viscera.

“Shang Da” is pronounced “tai.” “Minister Shang” was a name used for the state of Song; since its capital was in Shangqiu, it was also called Shang.

“Grand Steward” is the name of an official post. “Shi” is read as “xian”; the “pu” in “jian pu” is read “pian jiao qie.” “Bu zhi” is read “zhi li qie,” and the same reading applies to the character “zhi” below. “Qiang” is read “qi liang qie,” and “wei” is read “gan wei qie.” “De” is interchangeable with “bian,” and “bian” is interchangeable with “bian.” “Chong jue” is read “jiao wu qie”; the “mang” in “hao mang” is read “mang”; and the “hei” in “hei ran” is read “mo.” The “yu” in “wu yu” is read “yu ju qie”; “ne” is read “nu hu qie”; and the “xing” in “yi xing” is read “xia meng qie.” In “bu er,” “er” means doubt; the “yao” in “tong yao” is read “yi yao qie.” “Piao ren” is read “mo xia qie.” One edition has “fan ju” instead of “nai ju.” The “shu” in “yue shu” is read “se zhu qie”; the “liao” in “liao jian” is read “liao”; “wu ti” is read “ta li qie”; and “yue” is read “yue.”

“Qi po” is read “pian ge qie”; the dictionary writes it as “qi lei,” meaning an ugly appearance. “Lei” is read “pian ge qie”; the “sang” in “xing sang” is read “xi lang qie”; the “si” in “si lu” is read “yin si”; the “xing” in “wei xing” is read “hu lang qie”; and “kan kan” is read “kou han qie.” One edition has “cun xiong” instead of “zai xiong.” “Hai” is the same as “hai.” The “jin” in “jin zhi” is read “yin jin”; “li” in “neng li” is read “li zhi qie”; and “cheng” in “zhi cheng” is read “chi zheng qie.” The “mian” in “yi mian” is read “mian” and means to look sideways. “Cong xin” is read “zong heng,” with “xin” pronounced in the falling tone. The “jin” in “wai jin” is read “yin jin”; “zhong” in “yi zhong” is read “zhu yong qie”; and “hao” in “hao you” is read “hu bao qie,” as it is below. The “le” in “zhi le” is read “luo”; “cui” in “ling cui” is read “ji zui qie”; and “xian” in “zhe xian” is read “xi qian qie.”

One edition has “bu ru guan” instead of “bu zhi wu nei guan.” “Guan” is read “gu luan qie” here and below, and means to examine closely. The “wa” in “kou wa” is read “wu gua qie”; “zheng” in “wen zheng” is read “zheng”; “ni” in “zi ni” is read “ni li qie”; and “nan” in “zhe nan” is read “nai dan qie.” The “zhong” in “gu zhong” is read “zhu yong qie”; the “shi” in “suo shi” is read “yin shi.”

The “zhi” in “Wen Zhi” is read “zhi.” Wen Zhi lived during the Warring States period and once treated King Wei of Qi for an illness. Another account identifies him as a famous physician of the state of Song during the Spring and Autumn period, who cured King Wei by making him angry. The “ting” in “suo ting” is read with a level tone. One edition has “zhong shu” instead of “fan ci zhong ji”; the text considers “zhong shu” incorrect here. The “le” in “ai le” is read “luo”; the “bei” in “bei ming” is read “pei.” Wen Zhi later turned toward the light and gazed at it. Other editions insert the word “cong” after “Wen Zhi” and the two words “ji zi”; both changes are inappropriate. The “fen” in “zhi fen” is read “fu wen qie.”

In the phrase “To pass from death to life is unfortunate,” most transmitted editions lack the word “not.” Because the meaning is incomplete in context, the commentator deliberately supplied it.

In “losing the center,” “center” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling ding zhong. In “about to become faint,” “faint” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling shao. In “see first,” “see” is pronounced according to its usual reading. In “hearing a gnat,” “gnat” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling rui.

“Zi” is pronounced “yan,” and “Mian” is pronounced “cheng.” The Zi River rises in Laiwu County, Lu Commandery. The Mian River flows from the west, from the area around Qiansheng County, Beihai Commandery; it passes through Shouguang County, and the two streams meet. The “Explaining Words” chapter says, “The Zi and Mian rivers meet, and Yi Ya tasted them.” Here, “hard to distinguish” means difficult to tell apart; “distinguish” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling bi lie. In “about to stiffen,” “stiffen” is pronounced “jiang”; in “first, urgently,” “urgently” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling qu li. The Dialect says that “urgently” can mean “to bear” or “endure.”

“Benyi” is pronounced “benyi”; “fall” is pronounced “fu”; in “can be changed,” “changed” is pronounced “yu”; “hang” is the same as “resist.” In “to reach,” “reach” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling qi dao; in “return later,” “return” is pronounced “xuan.” “The garden marsh of Zheng” refers to Putian Marsh in the state of Zheng, in Zhongmou County. In “there is governance,” “governance” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling zhi li; in “pass by,” “pass” is pronounced “ge.” In “Deng Xi,” “Xi” is pronounced “xi”; in “to be like,” “be” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling yu wei; in “mock one another,” “mock” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling zhang jiao; “tease” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling tu diao.

In “what one wishes to know,” “know” is written as “be like” in another edition. In “yangyang,” the first character is pronounced with the fanqie spelling yu liang, while the second is read in its usual way. In “young and old,” “old” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling zhang zhang.

“Laojie” is written as “qian” in some editions; “qian” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling ze zhan. “Lao” refers to livestock, as well as to an enclosure for keeping livestock. “Qian” refers to fencing something in with bamboo or wood, and can also mean “to prick.” The Rites of Zhou: Turtle Catchers says that fish, turtles, and clams were caught with tools at the appropriate seasons. The Discourses of the States says “netting fish”; the Zhuangzi says “to approach the livestock pen.” Li Yi explains: “‘Lao’ is a pigsty; ‘fence’ is an enclosure made of wood.” Though these characters are written differently, their meanings are similar. “Ji” is pronounced “zha.”

“Kitchen” is pronounced “pao.” In “followers,” “follow” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling cai yong; in “without mutuality,” “mutuality” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling xi liang; in “and know,” “know” is pronounced “zhi.” The readings of the remaining characters can be inferred from the meaning. In “all become,” “become” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling yu wei; the rest can likewise be inferred from the meaning. In “without liking,” “liking” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling hu bao; in “without disliking,” “disliking” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling wu lu. In “Xun Can,” “Can” is pronounced with the fanqie spelling qi han; in “Fu Gu,” “Gu” is pronounced “jia.”

In “zhi ju,” the character ju is pronounced “qu zu qie.” Gong Yibo and Tangxi Gong were both worthy men of the Zhou dynasty; “Gongyi” and “Tangxi” are their clan names. In “ruo fu” (“coward”), ruo is pronounced “nai wan qie.” The character nu is read as ru, and the zhe in “neng zhe” is pronounced “she qie.”

The word chun is pronounced “qi han qie.” In Fu Gu’s name, gu is read as jia. In “chun li,” li is pronounced “zhong”; another interpretation holds that it refers to locusts. The character gu in “thigh” is read as gu. Some editions write “neng fen” (“can divide”) instead of “neng lie” (“can split”).

In “xi si,” si is pronounced “xu zi qie.” The character ye is read as yi, and the han in “you han” is pronounced “hu an qie.” In “bu kui,” kui is pronounced “qu sui qie.” In “suo yi,” yi is pronounced “yi chi qie,” and it has the same pronunciation below. In “yu xin” (“a cartload of firewood”), yu is read as yu. The zhuang in “zhuang zhong” (“striking a bell”) is pronounced “zhai hong qie.” The ting in “lei ting” (“thunder”) is read as ting. One edition writes “lei dao” in place of “lei ting,” but this does not fit the context well.

In “zi mou,” mou is pronounced “mo hou qie.” In “hao yu,” hao is pronounced “hu bao qie.” In “bu xu,” xu is pronounced “sui lü qie.” In “zi yu,” yu is read as yu. In “xing wu,” xing is pronounced “xia meng qie.” In “bu zhong,” zhong is pronounced “ding zhong qie.” Man is read as wan, and yan is pronounced “yi zhan qie.”

Han Tan’s name is pronounced according to “bu an qie.” In “yi zhi,” yi is pronounced “ge er qie” and means to practice. In “Huan Tuan,” tuan is pronounced “da duan qie.” In “zhi you,” you is read as you. In “zhi yi,” yi is read as dai and means to deceive; the same applies below.

In “hou zu,” zu is pronounced “zuo mu qie.” Zhong is pronounced “ding zhong qie,” as it is below and in the annotations. In “xiang zhu,” zhu is read as zhu, as it is in the annotations. In “shi zao,” zao is pronounced “qi dao qie.” The character zhuo is pronounced “zhi lüe qie,” and has the same pronunciation below. Peng is read as peng. Fu is pronounced “fu you qie,” and has the same pronunciation below. In “suo cou,” cou is pronounced “qi dou qie.” In Feng Meng’s name, meng is pronounced “bo jiang qie.” In “Wu Hao,” hao is pronounced “hu gao qie.”

In “Qi Wei,” qi is read as qi. The Records of the Grand Historian says that the state of Qi produced abundant bamboo; according to Jin Zhuo, the parks of the state of Wei contained many bamboo arrows. The character she is pronounced “shi yi qie.” One edition writes “shi lai” in place of “shi mo.” In “mou zi,” mou is pronounced “mo hou qie,” and kuang is read as kuang. Some editions write “w” in place of “bu jie”; it means that the eyes blink. “W” is pronounced “qie xia qie,” and has the same pronunciation below. In “shi sui,” sui is read as zhui. In “qiang nu,” nu is pronounced “qi liang qie.” Some editions write “neng chuan” in place of “neng sa.” In “Lu gao,” gao is pronounced “gu lao qie.” Yu is read as yu; the zhi in “ren zhi” is pronounced “zhi zhi qie,” and the fen in “zhi fen” is pronounced “fu wen qie.”

Here, “qie” refers to the ancient fanqie system of pronunciation notation: the initial consonant of the first character is combined with the final and tone of the second character to indicate the pronunciation.

“Chadie” is read as “cuodie,” meaning to lose one’s footing and fall. “Yu” is read as “yujie,” “yan” as “yujian,” “gujie” as “yiqie,” “xianzai” as “xianbian,” “gudu” as “du,” “shengyan” as “sheng,” and “kejie” as “xie.” The phonetic annotations of the same kind below should be read in the same way.

Gongsun Long was a retainer of Lord Pingyuan. His courtesy name was Zibing, and he was from the state of Zhao. The wording concerning “Gongsun Long on the horse” varies among editions: some read “Gongsun Long on the horse,” with a marginal note saying “no different from a cry”; other editions read “no different from a horse.” “Horse” refers to the meaning of the “White Horse” treatise; “cry” merely refers to calling out and does not explain the reasoning involved. The phrase “adopting mistaken standards makes things drag on” means that when one uses incorrect criteria, matters are delayed.

“Yuqiao” is read as “koudiao” and refers to an aperture. “Yuri” is read as “renzhi.” “Yao governed the world” forms one sentence. In “wishing to govern,” “govern” is read as “zhili”; the word has the same pronunciation in “govern, then?”, “the name of governance,” and “the Way of governance.” Some editions write “the Way accords” as “the Way combines.” In “the outer court,” “court” is read as “chao,” and “abdicate” as “zhan.” The character □ is an archaic form of “chou,” read as “zhiliu,” meaning “who.”

“Fanfan” is read as “fangjian,” “unattached” as “ji,” “its response” as “ying,” and “the Way is lost” as “wu.” Some editions write “the Way does not go against things” for “go against things”; some write “forgetting feelings” for “without feelings”; and some write “discarding ignorance” for “bringing forth ignorance.” The phrase “making use of what is discarded and what is incapable” below is also an edition variant. Some editions omit the character “action” in the sentence “Although there is Wuwei, it is not in accord with principle.”

This concludes the upper scroll of Explanatory Notes to the True Scripture of the Perfect Emptiness and Supreme Virtue. The lower scroll begins here. The work was written by Yin Jingshun, county deputy of Dangtu during the Tang dynasty, with lost passages supplemented by Chen Jingyuan, Master Bixu. The fifth chapter is “Questions of Tang.”

“Qi” is read as “navel” and means something small. “Yin Tang,” surnamed Zi, was also called Lü and had the courtesy name Tianyi; he was a ruler of the Shang dynasty. In “Xia Ji,” “Ji” is pronounced “thorn.” Xia Ji, courtesy name Ziji, once served as a minister in Yang. In “Hun Mang,” “Mang” is pronounced “busy.” In “What now,” “what” is pronounced “crow,” as below. In “must return,” “return” is pronounced “again,” as below. In “therefore weighty,” “weighty” is pronounced “pillar,” as below. “Huoran” is pronounced “gain”; another edition writes “exhausted.”

The Erya says that “Qizhou” refers to the center of the world. South from Qizhou, the region around Daikou is called Danxue; north, as far as the area around Daidouji, it is called Kongtong. “Ju” means to reach, and “Qi” means center. Eastward, one passes through Yingzhou, around what is now Liucheng, and continues to the coast; westward lies Bin, with “Bin” and “Bin” written as the same character.

“The Four Seas” refers to remote regions in the four directions. The Erya records that the Nine Yi, Eight Di, Seven Rong, and Six Man together are called “the Four Seas”; the lands of Guzhu, Beihu, and the Queen Mother of the West are called “the Four Wilds”; and Dongqin, Yuanci, Jiaoguo, Nanpu, Yanci, Zhu, and Li, among other places, are called “the Four Extremes.” “Yi” is pronounced “xian bian qie.”

In “Great Void,” “Void” is pronounced “great,” as below. In “enveloping cover,” “cover” is pronounced “zhi xiao qie”; in “also there,” “there” is pronounced “yu qian qie,” as below. Another edition writes “reach” instead of “know and reach”; the commentator suspects this is a character error. In “open view,” “open” is pronounced “hu kuo qie.” In “without bounds,” “bounds” is pronounced “silver,” as below; another edition writes “limit.” In “all are confined,” “confined” is pronounced “together.” “Stocks and fetters” is pronounced “zhi gu” and refers to instruments of punishment that restrain the hands and feet; in “free oneself,” “free” is pronounced “crab.” “Cut open and chop” is pronounced “wither” and means to split open and hack away; in “boastful and grand,” “boastful” is pronounced “kou hua qie.”

“Dan” is pronounced “ta gan qie” and is Laozi’s personal name; “Zhou” is Zhuangzi’s personal name. In “Nüwa,” “Wa” is pronounced “melon”; she was an ancient ruler surnamed Feng. “Cutting off the Ao” is pronounced “short invite”; see below for details. “Gong” is pronounced “respect.” “Gongshi” was an ancient ruler; “Zhuanxu” is pronounced “zhuan xu”; “Fuxi” is pronounced “Fuxi,” with “Xi” pronounced “xu yi qie.” In “floodwaters,” “flood” is pronounced “old.” The note identifies “Bohai” with present-day Lean Commandery. The “Great Abyss” appears in the Classic of Mountains and Seas: beyond the Eastern Sea there is a great abyss. Another edition writes “Returning Ruins” as “Returning Pond.” In “eight directions,” “directions” is pronounced “vast.” In “Daiyu,” “Yu” is pronounced “surplus.”

Guixu is also written “Guitang.” “Baxian” is pronounced “Hong.” Daiyu is pronounced “Yu.” Yuanjiao is pronounced “Qu Miao Qie.” “The mountains are sharp and tall” means that their peaks are steep and lofty. Fanghu is also called Fangzhang. Yingzhou is pronounced “Ying.”

The Records of the Grand Historian says that the three sacred mountains—Fangzhang, Yingzhou, and Penglai—lie in the Bohai Sea, and that some people are said to have reached them. Immortals and medicines for eternal life are found on the mountains. Before one draws near, they look like clouds from afar; when one tries to approach, they drift away, so they can never be reached.

“Zhoufan” is written in another edition as “Fanwei,” and in yet another as “Zhouxuan.” “Chun” is pronounced “Chun.” “Gao” is pronounced “Gu Lao Qie.” “Zhugan” is pronounced “Gan.” “Keshu” is pronounced “Se Zhu Qie,” as it is below. “Lianzhe” is pronounced “Zhi Lüe Qie.” “Boshang” is pronounced “Shi Zhang Qie.” “Zanzhi” is pronounced “Zhi Li Qie.”

In the phrase “the immortals and sages poison people,” “poison” means to make someone ill. Yuxiang is also written “Yuxiang.” The Biographies of the Immortals says that the god of the north was named Yuxiang and bore the title Xuanmingzi. The Classic of Mountains and Seas says that in the Great Wilderness there was a god with a human face and a bird’s body, named Yuxiang. The Tongwen says that he was a sea god.

The Biographies of the Immortals says that a giant ao turtle carried Mount Penglai on its back as it swam through the vast sea. The Record of Mysteries Within the Dark says that this giant ao was none other than Mingzi. “Sanfan” is pronounced “Fan” and means taking turns in succession. “Yingshu” is pronounced “Se Zhu Qie.” Another edition writes “Bu” as “Qian.” Another writes “Diao” as “Gou.” “Erqu” is pronounced “Qu.” “Zhuoqi” is pronounced “Zhuo.” “Yishu” is pronounced “Suo Ju Qie” and means to calculate; it is also pronounced “Zuan Niu Guan Qie.”

Kunpeng is pronounced “Kun Peng.” Wenrui is pronounced “Wen Rui.” Zaoshi is pronounced “Zao Se.” “Difeng” is pronounced “Fen.” “Jinjian” is pronounced “Zi Jin Qie”; another edition writes “Qin.” “Shie” is pronounced “Wu Mai Qie.”

The Jiaoyao kingdom, pronounced “Jiao Yao,” was a land of diminutive people. The Records of the Grand Historian says that the Jiaoyao people were three chi tall and were the smallest people of all. Wei Zhao says that the Jiaoyao were one branch of the southwestern tribes. The Gazetteer of the Lands records that their country lay northwest of Daqin. By the time of Fuxi and Shennong, the people of this country were still several thousand zhang tall; another edition says several dozen zhang.

“Shi jian xian pian qie” indicates the pronunciation and the chapter: this character occurs in the “Xian” chapter and is pronounced with the sound indicated by “qie.” The same applies below. “Zheng ren” is pronounced like “zheng” meaning “to contend.”

The Classic of Mountains and Seas says that beyond the Eastern Sea there are small people, and that there is also a country of small people northwest of Qin. It is said that in the time of Fuxi and Shennong, the people there were still several thousand zhang tall; another version says several dozen zhang. “Zheng ren” is pronounced like “zheng” meaning “to contend.” The Classic of Mountains and Seas records that beyond the Eastern Sea there is a kind of small person called a “zheng ren.”

Mingling is a tree that grows south of the Yangtze River. When its leaves sprout, it is spring; when they fall, it is autumn. Dachun is also the name of a tree. “Chun” is pronounced “chou lun qie”; it is also called “shun.” Junzhi is pronounced “qi yin qie.” Cui Zhuan says that junzhi grows in dung and dies by evening after sprouting in the morning. The Jian text says that it suddenly springs up.

Meng is pronounced “mo kong qie,” and rui is pronounced “rui.” These refer to tiny midges and mosquitoes, both small flying insects. Another version reads “north of Zhongbei” instead of “north of Zhongfa.” The Records of the Ten Isles says that the sea is called the “Dark Sea” when its water is black.

In “guang shu,” “guang” is pronounced “kuang” and “shu” is pronounced “se.” “Chang cheng” is pronounced “chi zheng qie”; the same applies below. Kun is a great fish, and Peng is a great bird. In “sui yu,” “yu” is pronounced “yu.” “Ming zhi” is pronounced “mi zheng qie,” like “ming,” meaning to record it.

“Yao” is pronounced “wang guo qie” and means small. The Dictionary says that “yao” means small. Jiao ming is pronounced “jiao ming,” and wen jie is pronounced “wen jie.” “Shi” is pronounced “shi,” and “zi” is pronounced “zai yi qie,” referring to the corner of the eye. “Wan” is pronounced “yi qie.”

Yu and Shi Kuang were both figures of ancient times renowned for their keen hearing. “Ti er” is pronounced “ti,” and “mian shou” is pronounced “mian.” According to the Records of the Grand Historian, the Yellow Emperor once went to the river and climbed Mount Kongtong. Here, Kongtong is said to be in what is now Liquan Commandery.

“Peng ran” is pronounced “pu geng qie,” and “lei ting” is pronounced “ting.” “You” is pronounced “you.” The Classic of Mountains and Seas says that Jing Mountain has many tangerines and pomelos. A pomelo resembles a tangerine but is larger, with thick skin and a sour taste.

“Si fen” is pronounced “fang wen qie.” “Jue zhi ji” refers to a disorder of the breath, that is, a condition marked by rapid breathing. The Rites of Zhou says that when tangerine trees cross the Huai River and grow in the north, they turn into trifoliate orange trees. “Qu yu” is pronounced “di yu.”

“Starlings cannot cross the Ji River, and raccoon dogs—a foxlike animal known for sleeping—die when they cross the Wen River.” The Rites of Zhou records this saying too, explaining it as the result of differences in the vital energy of water and soil.

Deng Yuan writes in the Classic of Waterways that the Ji River rises in the Wangwu Mountains and flows east through Wen, where it is called the Ji River. After running for a stretch into the Yellow River, it separates from it again, passes through places including Rongze and Jiyin, and eventually empties into the sea. Zheng Xuan held that the Wen River lies north of the city of Lu. Earlier scholars followed this view and took every mention of the Wen River here to mean the river in Lu. That is a mistake. According to the Records of the Grand Historian, “Wen” here is pronounced “Wujin” and refers to the Min River, not the Wen River of Lu, pronounced “Wen.”

The Classic of Mountains and Seas says that the Yangtze River rises in Mount Min. Guo Pu’s commentary says that the river flows southeast through Shu Commandery, then northeast through Badong and Jiangxia, and finally reaches Guangling, where it empties into the sea. The Han Shi waizhuan also says that the Yangtze rises in Mount Min, where its first trickle is barely enough to float a wine cup. The Songs of Chu likewise mentions the clear river at Mount Min. These accounts all support the identification of the Min River as the source of the Yangtze.

The Liezi and the Rites of Zhou both describe how differences in the nature of water and soil can harm living creatures when they migrate, and cite four great rivers as examples. The Wen River in Lu is now only a few dozen paces wide, and its source extends less than two hundred li. People can all cross it and return in moments. How could a brief crossing immediately bring life and death between foxes and raccoon dogs? The Shuowen Jiezi says that raccoon dogs belong to the fox family and live in hilly, dry places. People living by the Yangtze now say, “Catch it, but don’t let it cross the river.” This means that the animal must not be allowed to cross the river: crossing a great body of water harms its nature and may even cause it to die.

In the phrase “xing jun yi,” the word “yi” should be punctuated here. Another version reads “qingxing jun yi.” “Fen” is pronounced “Fuwen.”

In “great form,” “form” is pronounced like “tai”; the same applies below. In “eastern wall,” “wall” is pronounced like “yuan.” According to the Han Shi Waizhuan, in the term “Cheng Mountain,” “cheng” means “bitter.” In “its winding course,” “winding” is pronounced like “yu”; the same applies below. “Varied and mixed” is pronounced “qi he”; the same applies below. In “still unanimous,” “unanimous” is pronounced “qi lian.”

In “bringing their temperaments into equal measure,” “measure” is pronounced “fu wen.” In “bringing hardship,” “hardship” is pronounced “nai dan”; in “never once,” “once” is pronounced like “ceng”; the same applies below.

In the Huainanzi, “Kui Father” is written “Kui Mound” and refers to a small hill like a pile of earth. In “and there,” “there” is pronounced “yu qian.” “Carry” is pronounced “hu ke,” and “shoulder pole” is pronounced “ding gan.” “Knock” means to strike. In “digging the soil,” “digging” is pronounced “ku hen” and means to turn over earth. In “baskets,” “basket” is pronounced “ben” and refers to a bamboo basket for carrying soil. In “the widow,” “widow” is pronounced “shuang.”

In “when he first lost his baby teeth,” “lost his baby teeth” is pronounced “chu ren.” According to the Han Shi Waizhuan, boys and girls sometimes shed their milk teeth at age seven; this is called “losing their baby teeth.” In “leaped away,” “leaped” is pronounced “tiao” and means to jump; one edition writes it as “tiao,” which is an error. In “could be drained,” “drained” is pronounced “chou lie.” One edition writes “how is it?” as “what is it like?”

In “grasping snakes,” “grasping” is pronounced “qi dao.” One edition writes “the high peak fell and became a deep valley” as “the high bank gradually became a deep valley.” In “abandoned house,” “house” is pronounced “she.” “Whetstone” is pronounced “zhi ce.” One edition writes “the Kua’e clan” as “the Kua-yi clan”; “Kua” is pronounced “kou hua.” In “set down in one place,” “set down” is pronounced like “cuo.”

In “market monopoly,” “monopoly” is pronounced “li zhong.” In “and the widow,” “widow” is pronounced “li,” with the note “to laugh at.” “Mock” is pronounced “chi zhi.” In “observe and give,” “give” is pronounced “yu.”

In “Kua Father,” “father” is pronounced “fu.” The Classic of the Great Wilderness records a person with two yellow snakes hanging from his ears and two more held in his hands, named Kua Father. In “what was submerged,” “submerged” is pronounced “zi jin.” “Essential” is pronounced “qie,” with the additional note “yi yao.”

In “Great Year,” “great” is pronounced “tai.” In “their share,” “share” is pronounced “fu wen.” “Silk” is pronounced “si ling,” “floss” is pronounced “kuang,” and in “boats and carts,” “cart” is pronounced “ju.” In “equal limits,” “equal” is pronounced “zi xi.”

The Erya explains the term “high and ascending” by saying that “high” describes something lofty and curved; it also says, “Three mountains rise one upon another.” Guo Pu explains this as overlapping mountain ridges. “Earthen jar” is pronounced “ding gan,” and “water jar” is pronounced “zhi wei.”

The various editions read “□mu,” which is incorrect. In “eldest son,” the character “chang” is pronounced “zhang.”

In “when born, they were fresh, and people ate them,” Du Yu’s commentary on the Zuo Tradition says that someone who does not die of old age is called “fresh”; here it means young. In “devour people,” “devour” is pronounced with a falling tone and was originally written “yan.” In “zhen xun ju bei qian,” “qian” is pronounced “gua” and means to strip meat from the bone; it is also read “xiu.” In “then it came to be,” “then” is an archaic character. In “Yi Qu,” “Yi” is pronounced “peng.” “Chai” is read as “chai.” The Shuowen Jiezi explains: “Chai” means burning firewood and performing a fire sacrifice to worship the heavenly gods; it is also sometimes written “chai.” “Ji” is pronounced “zi zhi qie” and means to gather. “Xun” is pronounced “xun.” In “smoke rises,” “rises” is pronounced “shi zhang qie.”

In “debating,” “debating” is pronounced “du dou qie.” In “cold and shivering,” “shivering” is pronounced “chu liang qie”; another edition writes it as “cang.” The Book of Zhou says, “Between Heaven and Earth there are cold and heat; one who is skilled in applying the Dao will never be exhausted.” Kong Chao’s commentary explains that “shivering” means cold. Huan Tan’s New Discourses also records the story, writing “cold and chilly.” “Chao” is pronounced “chao.” The Zilin says that “liang” means slightly cold.

In “not do,” “do” is pronounced “yu wei qie,” as it is below. In “linked together,” “together” is pronounced “zhu,” as it is below. In “slightly brittle,” “brittle” is pronounced “qi sui qie.” In “settled evenly,” “settled” is pronounced “chang ju qie.” In “Zhan He,” “Zhan” is pronounced “zhan.” In “single cocoon,” “cocoon” is pronounced “gu dian qie.” In “fine needle,” “fine” is pronounced “wang,” and “needle” is pronounced “zhen.” Some editions write “jing xiao” as “jing tiao.”

“Po” is pronounced “kou qie.” “Grain” is pronounced “li.” In “rushing flow,” “rushing” is pronounced “gu wu qie” and means to flow rapidly. In “does not bend,” “bend” is pronounced “nai xiao qie” and refers to curved wood. In “barbed bait,” “bait” is pronounced “reng er qie.” In “hang delicately,” “hang” is pronounced “gua.” In “give and relinquish,” “relinquish” is pronounced “she.” In “ascending and descending,” the first character is pronounced “hu jie qie” and the second “hu lang qie.”

In “Pu Qie,” “Qie” is pronounced “zi yu qie.” In “fine silk line,” “line” is pronounced “zhuo.” In “pair of wild geese,” “wild goose” is pronounced “cang.” In “released and then,” “released” is pronounced “liang qie.” In “gathered foam,” “foam” is pronounced “mo.” In “Lu Gong Hu,” “Hu” is pronounced “hu.” In “Bian Que,” “Bian” is pronounced “pu dian qie.” The Records of the Grand Historian says that Bian Que was from Bohai Commandery, with the surname Qin and the personal name Yueren. He excelled at medicine, was able to diagnose illness, and could clearly discern disorders in the five viscera. In “Ru Xiang,” “Xiang” is pronounced “nai lang qie.” In “storehouse,” “storehouse” is pronounced “cu lang qie,” as it is below. In “grew together,” “grew” is pronounced “zhang zhang qie.” In “now do,” “do” is pronounced “yu wei qie.” In “at the cut,” “cut” is pronounced “ding guan qie,” as it is below. In “then drank,” “drank” is pronounced “yu jin qie.”

In “cutting open the chest,” the character transcribed as po is pronounced qie; hua is pronounced hua. In “opening the bowels,” ku is pronounced ku, jian is pronounced qian, and xi is pronounced li. In “thinking and discussing,” yi is a pronunciation guide; in “making a subjective judgment,” yi is pronounced yi.

In “Hu Ba,” hu is pronounced hu. One edition writes “pillar finger” as “supporting finger.” Jun is pronounced jun; in “setting aside the qin,” she means “to abandon.” In “does not respond,” ying is pronounced yu; in “later harmonizes,” he is pronounced wo. In “not long,” ji is pronounced qi; in “what further,” fu is pronounced fu.

Kou is pronounced kou. One edition gives “a cool breeze suddenly came” as “a cool breeze always came”; this is a copying error. Ji is pronounced ji. In “Jiazhong,” jia is pronounced qia; in “striking the Yu note,” Yu is pronounced wangyu. Bao is pronounced baobao, hu is pronounced hugu, zheng is pronounced zhili, and Ruibin is pronounced rujia. In “fiercely blazing,” chi is pronounced chizhi; in “sweet spring,” Li is pronounced li.

In “serving Jin,” wei is pronounced yuwei; Zou is pronounced ceyou, and Yan is pronounced yizhan. Yan was a man of Qi who once served as tutor to King Zhao of Yan. He lived at Jixia and was known as “Yan who discoursed on Heaven.” He wrote a book in forty-nine chapters, as well as a separate work, “The End and the Beginning,” in fifty-six chapters. Wang is pronounced wu; in “about to take up,” xie is pronounced xie.

In “learning to sing,” ou means singing and is pronounced ou; in “the skill of it,” ji is pronounced quqi; in “the sound halted,” e is pronounced wuge; and in “grain passed,” guo is pronounced ge. In “Yongmen,” yong is pronounced yi; it is a place name. Du Yu says it was a gate in the capital of Qi. In “singing for a living,” yu is pronounced yu; in “roof beams,” li is pronounced li and refers to the beams of a house. “Singing in a drawn-out voice” means prolonging the notes. One edition writes “one li” as “ten li.”

In “weeping,” ti is pronounced ti and means tears; in “daily tears,” zhi is pronounced ti. In “again became,” fu is pronounced fuyou; in “leaping and clapping,” bian is pronounced bian; in “unable to restrain oneself,” jin is pronounced jin. In “Fang E,” e is pronounced fenliang; in “lofty,” e is pronounced e. In “suddenly encountered,” zu is read with a checked tone; in “soaked by rain,” lin is pronounced lin.

In “the melody,” cao is pronounced qidao; in “then set aside,” she means “to abandon”; in “the man’s resolve,” fu is pronounced fu. Yan is pronounced yan and refers to a mountain, the place where the sun sets. In “the king recommends,” jian is pronounced jin according to the Guangya; the same applies below. One edition writes “the following day” as “the next day.”

“Paying a visit”: “ye” is pronounced by combining “xian” and “qie”; the same applies below. “Chang” is pronounced “chang.” “Pa you” is pronounced by combining “bu” and “jie”; “qu” is pronounced “qu”; in “qiao fu,” “fu” is pronounced “fu.” In “qin qu,” “qu” is pronounced by combining “qie” and “qu”; it means bending the chin, and can also be pronounced by combining “wu” and “gan.” “Ling” means shaking the head; “yi” is pronounced “yi”; “shun” is pronounced “shun”; in “da she,” “she” is pronounced by combining “er” and “she.”

In “jie fu,” “fu” is pronounced “fu”; “di” is pronounced by combining “du” and “ji”; “liao” is pronounced by combining “li” and “diao”; “gan” is pronounced “gan”; in “dan,” “dan” is pronounced by combining “ding” and “gan”; in “xin fei,” “fei” is pronounced by combining “fang” and “fei”; “pi” is pronounced “pi”; “shen” is pronounced with the rising tone; “jin” is pronounced “jin”; in “hui fu,” “fu” is pronounced by combining “fu” and “you,” though it may also be read in its usual pronunciation. One edition reads “gu tan” instead of “er tan.” In “ji hu,” “ji” is pronounced by combining “yin” and “zhe”; in “yun ti,” “ti” is pronounced by combining “ta” and “xi”; in “Mo Di,” “Di” is pronounced “Di”; in “fei yuan,” “yuan” is pronounced “yuan.” Qin Guli, pronounced “gu li,” was a disciple of Mo Di. In “gan shu,” “shu” is pronounced “shuo”; in “Gan Ying,” “Ying” is pronounced by combining “yu” and “ling”; “ke gong” is pronounced “gou” and means drawing a bow; “geng” has the falling tone; “Ying” is pronounced “ying”; in “qian ting,” “ting” is pronounced by combining “tu” and “ding”; in “ji nie,” “nie” is pronounced by combining “nü” and “zhe”; in “zhui mo,” “mo” is pronounced “jia”; “dao” is pronounced by combining “du” and “dao”; “zi” is pronounced by combining “zai” and “yi”; in “ya xue,” “ya” is pronounced by combining “niao” and “jia,” and means inferior or secondary. Another edition writes “bi xue,” which is incorrect; “mao” is pronounced “mao”; in “xuan shi,” “shi” is pronounced by combining “suo” and “yi”; in “jin da,” “jin” is pronounced by combining “zi” and “jin.”

“Wu cheng” is pronounced by combining “chi” and “zheng”; in “yan jiao,” “yan” is pronounced “yan”; in “zhi hu,” “hu” is pronounced “hu”; in “zhi gan,” “gan” is pronounced “gan”; in “she zhi,” “she” has the falling tone; in “yi qiang,” “qiang” is pronounced by combining “liang” and “qie”; “fu ying” is pronounced “fu ying”; in “shi feng,” “feng” is pronounced “feng”; another edition reads “dui” instead of “zhui”; in “han zhi,” “han” is pronounced “han.”

The Huainanzi records: “People in the Central States pierce the skin to draw blood, while the Yue people cut the arm to draw blood; the two practices amount to the same thing.” Xu Shen explains that “ke bi” means piercing the arm to make it bleed. “Sha” is pronounced by combining “suo” and “jia.” “Zao” is pronounced by combining “qi” and “dao”; “fu” is pronounced “fu”; in “suo yi,” “yi” is pronounced by combining “yi” and “chi”; in “wu qu,” “qu” is pronounced “qu,” and the same applies below; in “liu pei,” “pei” is pronounced “mi.”

“Jin” is pronounced “jin.” “Shu gai” is pronounced “ji chou.” In “wu die,” “die” is pronounced “tu.” In “jie hu,” “jie” is pronounced “ji ye qie.” In “qi ji,” “ji” is pronounced “ji.” The Shuowen Jiezi says that “ji” refers to a carriage. The phrase “at the point of the reins and bit” means that Zaofu, a skilled charioteer, could keep a team of horses orderly; the key lay in the reins and bit. This serves as a metaphor: when a ruler wins the people’s trust, the state can be at peace.

In “chun wen,” “wen” is pronounced “wu fen qie”; in “xiong yi,” “yi” is pronounced “yi”; in “zhong gui,” “gui” is pronounced “ding zhong qie,” as it is later in the text. “Mu zhi” is pronounced “mu shi”; another version reads “shi.” In “shi zhi,” “shi” is pronounced “zhi”; in “yi ni,” “ni” is pronounced “ni zhi qie”; in “Qiu Bing,” “Bing” is pronounced “bi yong qie”; and in “neng cheng,” “cheng” is pronounced “chi zheng qie.”

In “ti lei,” “lei” is pronounced “li wei qie”; in “han zhi,” “han” is pronounced “han”; “mang e” is pronounced “wang yue”; “hen” is pronounced “hu en qie”; “ta” is pronounced “ta da qie”; and “chu” is pronounced “ju qie.”

“Gu” is pronounced “kou.” A bird that has just hatched and still needs to be fed is called “gu”; one that can find its own food is called “chu.” In “Jia Tuo,” “Tuo” is pronounced “tuo”; another pronunciation is “bao,” and another edition also reads “bao.” In “zhi yi,” “yi” is pronounced “yi shi qie”; in “wei wo,” “wei” is pronounced “yu wei qie”; “tong zi” is read as “tong zi”; in “min ran,” “min” is pronounced “wang ren qie”; and “dan dan” is pronounced “yan.”

“Huo” is pronounced “hu mai qie” and describes the sound of something splitting apart. In “chuan zhi,” “chuan” is pronounced “zhang zhuan qie”; “xia” has the same meaning as “xia” (a box or case). In “zhi yao,” “yao” is pronounced “yu xiao qie,” as it is later in the text; in “qu er,” “qu” is pronounced “qu.” Another edition reads “san nian” as “san nian”; “nian” is pronounced “nu xiang qie” and means to pick something up with the fingers. It is also pronounced “dian.” In “wo yi,” “yi” is pronounced “yi” and refers to the upper part of the throat. In “zhi qiang,” “qiang” is pronounced “qi liang qie”; in “qi yan,” “yan” is pronounced “yu ran qie.” Another version writes “ya,” pronounced “wu xia qie.”

In “the sword of Kunwu,” “Kunwu” is pronounced “Kunwu” and refers to a treasured sword. The Hetu says that Yingzhou has many deposits of stone called Kunwu, which can be used to forge swords. The Shizi says that a Kunwu sword can cut through jade. In “huo huan,” “huan” is pronounced “huan.”

The Records of Strange Things states: In Xin Tiao State there was a land of fire, where a kind of tree grew and a kind of mouse lived. People took the mouse skins and tree fibers and wove them into cloth, called “fire-washed” cloth—said to be washable by fire. Zhi was an ancient unit of length, equal to eight cun. Lian gang (“tempering steel”) is pronounced gang; haoran (“bright and pure”) is pronounced gao, and is also written hao, pronounced hu lao; zhang duan (“chapter break”) is pronounced da guan.

“Strength and Fate,” Chapter Six

Fen is pronounced fu wen; yao, yu zhao; xi is pronounced like ji; and xing is pronounced xia meng. Jizha was a descendant of Wu Taibo. He was wise and modest, and once yielded the throne. Zhi was an ancient unit of length, equal to eight cun. Lian gang (“tempering steel”) is pronounced gang; haoran (“bright and pure”) is pronounced gao, and is also written hao, pronounced hu lao; zhang duan (“chapter break”) is pronounced da guan.

“Strength and Fate,” Chapter Six

“Fu” is read as “fen,” meaning to distinguish or verify; “yao” is read as “zhao”; “xi” as “ji”; “xing” as “Meng”; and “shi” as “de.” “Xun,” also written “xun” in some versions, means to seek or obtain. “Kou” is read as “kou”; “bing” as “Meng”; “shu” as “shu,” and “he” as “he”; “zi” as “ji,” and “li” as “lingda”; “xi” as “yi”; “chao” as “chao”; “e” as “e”; “aozhen” as “ao”; and “yuyu” as “qiupeng.” “She” is read as “she”; “yu” as “yujü”; “shifu” as “fu”; “fu” as “fuyou”; “yiqi” as “yuji”; “huhe” as “huhe”; “rongshu” as “rongshu”; and “bi” as “bili.”

Jizha was a descendant of Taibo of the state of Wu. A man of virtue, he declined the throne, left his household to farm, and was later enfeoffed at Yanling. He was therefore known as “Jizi of Yanling.” “Aiewu” is read as “wulu”; in “luanshi,” “shi” is read as “de.”

“Shuhe” refers to a short, coarse-cloth garment, and can also mean worn or ragged cloth clothing. The Dialect Dictionary says that “shu” was a short, lined garment. Xu Shen’s commentary on the Huainanzi says that in the state of Chu, a robe was called “shu.” The Shuowen Jiezi defines it as coarse clothing or a worn, short garment of cloth, and also says that a short version of the “chanyu” (a straight-hemmed, single-layer robe) was called “shuyu.” Some versions write “duanhe,” but this is an error. The Xunzi uses “shuhe”; Yang Jing explained it as coarse clothing worn by servants, but this explanation is not quite accurate.

“Zi” refers to a cake made from rice, while “li” means coarse rice. “He” is rice that has not been milled. The Records of the Grand Historian recounts that Chen Ping ate bran and uncrushed grains of rice; Meng Kang explains that these were the unground parts of the wheat bran. The food described here was probably cakes made from coarsely pounded millet and wheat.

“Lianli” means roof beams. “Xiran” describes a cheerful, laughing manner, while “eran” describes a stern and upright manner. “Yuyu,” also written “jüjü” in some versions, describes someone walking alone at a distance from others. “Rongshu” is another name for “renshu,” or broad beans; Zheng Xuan understood it to mean soybeans. The Guanzi records that Duke Huan of Qi traveled north to Mount Dai, gathered winter onions and rongshu, and introduced them throughout the land.

“Bi” is pronounced like “bi”; “lu” is pronounced like “lu.” The Zuo Tradition says that a “lu” was a cart made of firewood. “You” is pronounced like “you” and describes a relaxed, contented manner. The pronunciation is the same in the “Yang Zhu” chapter. “Gai” is pronounced “gu-dai-qie,” and “hu” is pronounced “wu.” “Yi” is pronounced “chi-qie,” and “da” is pronounced “dang-ge-qie.” Some write it as “wu,” but that is incorrect.

Guan Yiwu (that is, Guan Zhong) and Bao Shuya were both from Yingshang. Bao Shuya was a high official of Qi, and his tomb is in Yingzhou. In the name of Prince Jiu, “Jiu” is pronounced “gui-you-qie”; in “legitimate and illegitimate heirs,” “di” is pronounced “di.” In the name of Duke Xi of Qi, “Xi” is pronounced “xu-qi-qie”; some also write it as “li.” Shao Hu was originally written as “Shao Hu.” In “fled to Ju,” “Ju” is pronounced “ju.” “Chu” is pronounced “chu,” or “shi-hu-qie”; in “rank and dress,” “zhi” is pronounced “zhi.” Prince Jiu was later killed in Yingzhou. “She” is pronounced “shi-yi-qie,” “zhong” is pronounced “ding-zhong-qie,” and “la” is pronounced “lu”; it is also written as “xie.” “Govern the state” is pronounced “zhi-li-qie,” “be capable of” as “yu-wei-qie,” “hegemon” as “yu-kuang-qie,” and “must give up” as “shi.”

“Tangfu” is pronounced “tang-fu.” Jia Kui says Tangfu was on the northern border of Lu; Du Yu says it belonged to Dongguan in Qi. “See the worthy” is pronounced “bian-qie,” and “lower oneself” as “xia-jia-qie.” In “Father Zhong,” “fu” is pronounced “fu”; in “Shu Jia,” “Jia” is pronounced “gu.” “Once served as” is pronounced “yu-wei-qie,” “again tabooed” as “fu-you-qie,” and in “where would it be,” “e” is pronounced “niao.” In “subject state,” “shu” is pronounced “zhu,” and in “would you,” “yu” is pronounced “yu.” “Xu Lian” is pronounced “jie”; in “discard flaws,” “xia” is pronounced “xia”; in “Xi Peng,” “Xi” is pronounced “xi.” “Worthy and humble” is pronounced “xia-jia-qie”; in “not blind,” “gu” is pronounced “gu”; and in “therefore barely,” “jin” is pronounced “jin.”

In Deng Xi’s name, “Xi” is pronounced “xi.” Deng Xi was from Zheng, wrote two books, and was a contemporary of Zichan. Liezi and Xun Qing both say that Zichan killed Deng Xi. But according to the Zuo Tradition, Zichan died in the twentieth year of Duke Zhao of Lu. In the ninth year of Duke Ding of Lu, Si Chuan killed Deng Xi and adopted his “bamboo code”—laws written on bamboo slips—so Deng Xi did not die at Zichan’s hands. “Cao” is pronounced “qi-dao-qie,” “shu” as “shuo,” and “nan” as “nai-dan-qie.” In “put him to death,” “lu” is pronounced “liu”; some also write it as “dao.” In Si Chuan’s name, “Chuan” is pronounced “chuan,” and in “Chan died,” “zu” is pronounced “zi-lü-qie.”

In “zhi xing,” xing is pronounced “xia meng qie”; in “er zhong,” zhong is pronounced “zhu yong qie.” In “wu fen,” fen is pronounced “fu wen qie,” and the pronunciation is the same in the commentary. Some editions write “gui mei” as “gui mei” with the second character meaning “apparition.” In “yi sang,” sang is pronounced “xi lang qie”; in “bu wei,” wei is pronounced “yu wei qie.” In “fu yin,” yin is pronounced “lie qie”; in “bu jie,” jie is pronounced “yin xie.”

In “jiao shi,” jiao is pronounced “ju yao qie”; in “zhen qi,” zhen is pronounced “zhi ren qie” and refers to examining the pulse. In “ru han,” ru is pronounced “ru,” as it is below. “Ji” is pronounced “yin hui.” In “bing zhi,” bing is read with the falling-rising tone and means “to remove.” In “ru dong,” dong is pronounced “zhu yong qie” and refers to milk. In “qie si,” si is pronounced “yin si.”

In “zhi fen,” fen is pronounced “fu wen qie”; in “zhong kuang,” kuang is pronounced “yin kuang.” In “zi chou,” chou is pronounced “yin chou”; “yu” is pronounced “yin yu.” In “xiong yu,” yu is pronounced “yu ju qie,” as it is below. In “suan zhi,” suan is pronounced “xian wan qie.” In “suo wang,” wang is pronounced “yin wu.” “Dan” is pronounced “ta gan qie.” In “suo wu,” wu is pronounced “wu lu qie.”

In “chuai li,” chuai is pronounced “chu wei qie”; in “liao yi,” liao is pronounced “yin liao.” In “you ren yu ci nian xiong di ye,” zi is pronounced “ji yi qie.” It should be written as “zi,” meaning property; another edition writes “yan.” In “shi zhi,” shi is pronounced “yin zhi.” In “mei mei,” mei is pronounced “yin hui.” In “wang shou yao,” wang is pronounced “yin yuan,” as it is below. In “que yi,” que is pronounced “kou jue qie.” In “xi le,” le is pronounced “yin luo.” In “dong ruo xie,” xie is pronounced “hu jie qie”; another edition writes “jie.” In “bu wei,” wei is pronounced “yu wei qie,” as in the commentary; in “ai zhi,” ai is pronounced “yin ai.”

“Mo chi” is a term describing a person. The Fangyan says that in the Jiang and Huai regions such a person was called “wu lai,” meaning a scoundrel; the Guangya explains that “mo” is pronounced “mu” and “chi” is pronounced “qi.” From this point, the twenty people described differ in wisdom, skill, talent, and character, yet can live together harmoniously throughout their lives because each follows their own nature.

“Dan” is pronounced “zhan” and describes reaching the height of trembling excitement. “Tan” is pronounced “chi ran qie,” or “ta dan qie”; “xuan” is pronounced “yin xuan,” or “hu yuan qie.” Zheng Xuan’s commentary on the Liji says that “xuan” describes a relaxed and open state. The Shuowen says that “xuan” describes a broad, relaxed, and tranquil heart.

“Bie” is pronounced “pian mie qie”; “fu” is pronounced “yin fu.” The Fangyan says that “fu” is also written “fu,” pronounced “yin fu,” and refers to an impatient temperament. “Xu” is pronounced “xiang ju qie” and means “one another.” “Ru” carries the meaning of following, referring to each person following their own inclinations. “Qiao ning” means glib, crafty, and obsequious; “yu zhi” means simple and upright. “An” is read with the falling-rising tone; “zhuo” is pronounced “yin zhuo.” “An zhuo” refers to steep cliffs like those where a visitor would stop.

The Zilin says that “an” means orderly and also describes the appearance of remaining silent for a long time. “Bianfang” is pronounced “lianqie,” and “bibi” is pronounced “yiqie.” “Bianpi” refers to being excessively deferential. “Bu jie” is pronounced “xie.” “Xiang yu” is pronounced “yujueqie.” “…” is pronounced “koujiaoqie.”

“Qianxu yi xiao H xiao xu” says these characters describe the expressions shown when someone is frightened or astonished. “Kong” is pronounced “koujiaoqie.” “Qing lu wu suo yinbi” means that one’s feelings are revealed, with nothing concealed. “□” is pronounced “jian,” and “ji” is pronounced “ji” (as in “thorn”).

The Zilin says “ji” refers to stammering. The Fangyan also connects it with stuttering and says it can mean urgency. Here it describes speaking too hastily, so that one stammers and speaks haltingly; it can also mean acting swiftly, being impatient by nature, and going against others. Writing it as “ji” (with the sense of “execute”) or “ji” (with the sense of “limit”) is incorrect. In “junsui,” “jun” is pronounced “xun,” with a departing tone. “Junsui” means enjoying bullying and insulting others. The Shuowen says “sui” means to reprimand or rebuke, and is pronounced “julüqie.” “Ne” is pronounced “nuhu qie,” and “se” is pronounced “suoliqie.” “Shi mian” is read with a rising tone. “Ting” is pronounced “tian.” The Fangyan says “shi ting” is an expression for treating someone with contempt; Guo Pu explains that it means belittling and mocking others in speech, and can also describe being obtuse.

“Zhui” is pronounced “zhishuiqie.” “Wei” is pronounced “kouhuiqie,” and is also pronounced “ruweiqie”; it means slow and halting. The Erya says “zhuiwei” means entrusting a matter to someone else. Guo Pu explains that it means handing a matter over for someone else to handle, and can also refer to something cumbersome or burdensome.

“Yonggan” means brave and decisive; “qieyi” means timid and cautious, hesitant and indecisive. In “bu xiang zhe,” “zhe” is pronounced “zhigeqie.” “Fa zhe” means bringing another person’s faults to light; “fa” means exposing their misdeeds. In “yi xing,” “xing” is pronounced “xiamengqie.” “Wu li” means not going against others. “Duo’ou” means often joining with others and living in harmony; the Guangya says “ou” means harmony. “Zizhuan” means making decisions on one’s own without consulting others or following the group. “Chengquan” means relying on and exercising authority. “Zhili” means standing alone. “Mian” is pronounced “mian.” “Zhongtai” is pronounced “ta’aiqie.” “Guigui” is pronounced “guweiqie” and describes something that seems on the verge of happening. “Qiao” is the same as “xiao.” In “you ji,” “ji” is pronounced “qi”; it has the same pronunciation below. “Qiao zhi ji” should be read together as “meiran weiju.” In “bu hai,” “hai” is the same as “hai” meaning startled. In “qi zu,” “zu” is pronounced “cun,” with a level tone. “Yanmu” is pronounced “yan.”

At “one face backed by the city wall,” one version reads “one face backed by the city wall.” In “the many appearances,” the word “appearance” is pronounced as in “aiqie.” “Guigui” is pronounced as in “guweiqie” and describes something about to happen, or something that is almost so. “Qiao” is the same as “xiao”; it is sometimes pronounced as in “qi,” as below. After “at the moment of qiao,” the sentence should be broken at “in obscurity.” “Hai” is the same character as “hai” meaning “to be startled”; “zu” is pronounced with the initial of “cun.”

“Covering the eyes” is pronounced as in “yan.” One version has “slope” for “city wall.” “Not falling” is pronounced as “zhui” and means not to fall; “pu” is pronounced as in “fu.” One version reads “poverty and hardship come in their own time” as “wealth and honor come in their own time.” “Dying young” is pronounced as in “shefan.” “Liaoxu” is pronounced as “liao,” and “du ren” as in “tuluoqie,” as below. “Zhong” is pronounced as in “zhichongqie” and means “half,” as below. Some pronounce it as in “zhizhongfan,” but that is incorrect. In “whole yet lost,” “lost” is pronounced as “wu”; “sang” is pronounced as in “xilangqie,” as below. In “knowing wholeness,” “knowing” is pronounced as “wisdom,” as is “knowing loss” below. “Not acting” is pronounced as in “xiamengqie.”

Mount Niu lies in the area of present-day Linzi County, Beihai Commandery. In “lush and flourishing,” “flourishing” is pronounced as “qian.” The Guangya says that “yuyu” describes plants growing thickly. One version reads “surging” for “like the river’s steady flow”; both are pronounced as in “pulangqie” and describe water rushing turbulently. “Aikong” is pronounced as in “wugaiqie”; one version reads “shikong.” “Kneel” should be “coarse food,” pronounced as “si.” The Han Shi waizhuan also records this passage in full, saying that “coarse food and inferior meat” can be understood as eating coarse grains, vegetables, and poor-quality meat.

“An inferior horse” is pronounced as “nu.” In “leng cart,” “leng” should be “zhan.” Works such as the Yanzi Chunqiu all write “zhan cart,” referring to a cart made by weaving wooden strips together. “Zhan” is pronounced as in “shixianqie.” Yan Ying was from Yiwei in Lai. At “Today, my excursion,” “sorrow” should be read together with what follows as one sentence. “Several lords” is pronounced as in “zhuqie”; “wearing a rain cape” as in “xianheqie”; “xingjia” as “he xia”; and “die” as “zhi.” “Alone” is pronounced as in “yuweiqie,” as below. “Flattery” is pronounced as “yu”; “xiang” as in “xiliangqie”; “xiang” as “direction”; “shangqu” as “qu”; and “encountering fortune or misfortune” as in “pubiqie.”

This is chapter seven of Yang Zhu. Another view holds that it is part of the chapter “Understanding Life.”

Yang Zhu, a thinker of the Warring States period, whom some say was styled Ziju, debated Qin Guli. His doctrine centered on cherishing oneself: he would not pluck a single hair to benefit all under Heaven. This was the opposite of Mozi’s position. Lu Deming wrote, “Yang Rong was styled Ziju.” But Ziju was probably not Yang Zhu.

The text includes many pronunciation notes and glosses. “To like” is pronounced “hu bao qie,” and “to hate” “wu ta qie.” “Fu” is pronounced “fu you qie”; in “to make a lapel,” “lapel” is pronounced “jin”; and in “withered,” “withered” is pronounced “kou lao qie.” In “To seek wealth, rank, or death—what is the point of seeking them?”, “to seek” is pronounced “yu wei qie.” In “without satiety,” “satiety” is pronounced “yi yan qie.” “Jiao” is pronounced “jiao.” In “this difficulty,” “difficulty” is pronounced “nai dan qie”; and in “make them equal,” “equal” is pronounced “xi liang qie.” “The ruler’s gathering” means the ruler’s collection of wealth. In “what has already been given,” “given” is pronounced “shi chi qie”; in “truly gone,” “gone” is pronounced “wu”; and in “what it saves,” “saves” is pronounced “si jing qie.” In “the limit reached,” “limit” is read with the departing tone and means a boundary. “Ji” is pronounced “qi”; in “what is quelled,” “quelled” is pronounced “mian bi qie”; and in “waking by day,” “waking” is pronounced “jiao.” “Jie” is pronounced “jie” and means to show respect. In “what joy is there?”, “joy” is pronounced “luo.” In “to make beautiful” and “ample repetition,” “to make” and “repetition” are pronounced “yu wei qie” and “fu you qie,” respectively. One version writes “constant satiety” as “constant fullness”; the pronunciation is the same. “Yu-yu” is pronounced “qiu yu qie.” One version writes “heed the ear” as “follow the ear.” In “imprisoned and burdened,” “burdened” is pronounced “lei.” “Gu” is pronounced “gu wo qie” and refers to an instrument of punishment such as handcuffs.

In “How does it differ?”, “differ” is an archaic form. In “Great Antiquity,” “great” is pronounced “tai.” In “suddenly,” “suddenly” is pronounced “qi hu qie”; and in “follow the heart,” “follow” is pronounced “zong.” “What one likes” is pronounced “hu bao qie,” and “what one leaves behind” “qiu lü qie.” One version writes “urge” as “observe.” In “does not approach,” “approach” is read with the departing tone. “Not subject to punishment” means not harmed by penal sanctions. In “stinking and rotten,” “rotten” is pronounced “fu.” In the passage after Boyi, “not gone,” “gone” is pronounced “wu”; the phrase should be read continuously as “not gone,” with “desire” beginning the next clause. In “the release of one who is pure,” “release” is pronounced “you.” The Erya says that “you” means a fault. The Gongyang Commentary, cited in “to be banished and die of hunger,” says, “One who dies in exile is not established.”

Liu Zhao’s commentary explains: fang means “to arrive”; guazong refers to a clan branch with few members. In Yuan Xian, xian is read qiè; in zhi lei, lei is read in the departing tone; in yan zai, yan is read qián. Xiang sun should be read as xiang juan; bu han as bu han (regret); wu yong as yong. In wu e, e is read ge, same character as e (to restrain); in xiang qi, qi is read liang; fu is read you; in de xiu, xiu is read xiu. In e chan, e is the same character as shan (mutton smell), read yan. Fei nüe means to ruin and harm; in qu fei, qu is read lü; in xi xi, xi is read qi, meaning indulgence in desire; ju is read ju; she is read she; yi is read li; in yi xin, yi is read ji; in gun wen, gun is read ben; in jian se, se is read se, and another version has sheng (frugal). In zhi fen, fen is read wen; in er ren jin, jin is read jin.

Zichan was a minister of Zheng, named Gongsun Qiao. He once cast the penal code on a tripod, as in the sixth year of Duke Zhao of Lu. In xiang Zheng, xiang is read liang; in yi zhi and in bi zhi zhi zhi, zhi is read zhi. Gongsun Chao is read by the usual character values; in chao hao, hao is read bao. One version has ji qu instead of ji qu (ferment mash); in wang men, wang is read wang; in li jiang, li is read zao, and another version has zao (dregs). In you wang, wang is read wu; in ai le, le is read luo; in bi fang, bi is read mi; wo is read guo, tuo is read zuo; one version has zhen yu instead of dan yu, with zhen read nan; ping is read in the rising tone; in qin ni, ni is read zhi; in zu ye, zu means “to add”; in wei qie, qie is read die; e is read e; jiao is read jiao—the Guangya glosses it as “beautiful.”

In bi hui, hui is read wei; tiao is read yao—the Cangjiepian glosses it as “to call”; the Shuowen writes tiao with the meaning “to entice,” read liao. One version has zao instead of mi su, read zao; xi is read xi; in yin xian, xian is read xian; in shi xing, xing is read meng; in suo hao, hao is read bao; one version has si instead of si yi; yi ji and the same character below are read yi; in kua ren, kua is read hua, same below, and one version has kua (boast); in zan le, le is read luo, same below; in li bei, bei is read jie; one version has wei ci instead of shuo ci.

“Bie zhi” is pronounced “bi lie qie”; the pronunciation is the same in the commentary. “Mang ran” is pronounced “mang,” “jing ting” is pronounced “ting,” “yi kang” is pronounced “ku lang qie,” and “yu qu” is pronounced “qiu lü qie.” The word “lei” in “zhi lei” is read with the falling tone. “Xian zi” is pronounced “zi,” as it is below. “Li bei” is pronounced “pi jie qie.” One version reads “shuo ci” as “wei ci.”

“Suo hao” is pronounced “hu bao qie,” as it is below. “You fan” is pronounced “fu yuan qie.” “Ju” has the same meaning as “zu,” and “xian” has the same meaning as “xian.” “Xing zhi” is pronounced “zhi.” “Bai zhu” is pronounced “se zhu qie”; another version reads “wang.” “Bao chu” is pronounced “pu jiao qie”; another version reads “pao.” The “wu” in “tang wu” is pronounced “wu,” and the “cang” in “ku cang” is pronounced “cu lang qie.” “Qie ying” is pronounced “yi zheng qie,” “bu wei” is pronounced “yu wei qie,” and “zhi shi” is pronounced “shi chi qie,” as it is below.

“Qin Queli” is pronounced “gu li”; he was a disciple of Mozi. “De guo” is pronounced “ge,” and “yi qi” is pronounced “qi.” In “hao e,” “e” is read with the falling tone, as in the commentary. The “le” in “ku le” is pronounced “luo,” as it is below. The “zhi” in “luan zhi” is pronounced “zhi li qie,” “geng” in “ji geng” is pronounced “geng,” “zhong” in “ze zhong” is pronounced “zhu yong qie,” and “fu” in “suo fu” is pronounced “fu you qie.” The “feng” in “jian feng” is pronounced “feng”; some versions read “jian” as “dao.” “She guo” is pronounced “she.” One version reads “bu yi yi shen zi li” as “bu yi yi shen li wu.” The “zhi” in “zhi yi” is pronounced “zhi li qie,” the “qu” in “qu zi” is pronounced “qiu lü qie,” and “guo” in “da guo” is pronounced “tai.”

“Chu yu” is pronounced “yu ju qie,” “you duan” is pronounced “yin ji,” “sheng yi” is pronounced “xi jing qie,” and “yan dang” is pronounced “ding lang qie.” “Mo Di” is pronounced “di.” Shun once farmed in Heyang and made pottery at Leize; according to the Records of the Grand Historian, Shun farmed at Lishan and made pottery by the riverbank. Leize County is now part of Puyang. “Bu gao” is pronounced “gu wo qie.” Reporting information to a superior is called “gao”; issuing orders to subordinates is called “jie.”

“Si zhang” is pronounced “zhang zhang qie,” “Shang Jun” is pronounced “jun,” and “Gun” is pronounced “gu ben qie.” He was Yu’s father; one version gives his name as “Hai.” “Yu zuan” is pronounced “zuan,” “guo men” is pronounced “ge,” “pian” is pronounced “bu qian qie,” and “g” is pronounced “ding ni qie.” “Shan” is pronounced “shan.” “Bi” is pronounced “bi,” and may also be pronounced “bei.” “Fu mian” is pronounced “fu mian,” “jin mian” is pronounced “jin,” “yu zhu” is pronounced “zhu,” and “kuai” is pronounced “kou dui qie.”

In “follow desire,” “follow” is read as “indulge”; the same applies below. In “exhaust pride,” “exhaust” is read as “endure.” In “never satisfied,” “satisfied” is read as “salt.” In “first content,” “content” is read as “fit.” In “take pleasure in,” “pleasure” is read as “fall.” In “as if aware,” “aware” is read as “teach.” “Not know” is read as written throughout the following passage; it may also be read as “aim.” In “want to die,” “want” is read as “distant.” In “people’s charm,” “charm” is read as “smile”; some versions write “xiao.” In “defend oneself,” “defend” is read as “sweat.” “Control” is read “yu bi qie”; in “not leave,” “leave” is read “qiu lü qie”; in “hurry away,” “hurry” is read “pursue”; in “this is excess,” “excess” is read with the falling tone. The same applies below.

The passage from “Could it be only the sage?” through “Could it be the perfected person?” should be joined as a single paragraph. The pronunciation notes for “defend oneself,” “control,” “not leave,” “hurry away,” and “this is excess” are as above. In “to be four things,” “be” is read as “false”; the same applies below. In “called escape,” “escape” is read as “dull.” In “do not want,” “want” is read as “distant.” In “Zhou proverb,” “proverb” is read as “Yan,” meaning a saying from the land of Zhou. It says: