Comprehensive Reflections to Aid in Governance
By Sima Guang
Translated by Yiming Yang
Annals of Zhou Book 1 Scroll 1
Duration 35 years
The 23rd year of King Weilie (403 B.C.)
The city where the nine cauldrons were preserved had an earthquake. Earlier this year, the King of the Zhou dynasty granted status of aristocrats to three officials of Jin (a vassal state of Zhou): Wei Si, Zhao Ji and Han Qian.
Sima Guang’s comments: I hear that an emperor’s greatest responsibility lies in upholding propriety. Within the realm of etiquette, social standings hold great importance, and entitlements such as dukes, marquises, nobles, and officials represent the highest positions in society. As an emperor oversees the lives of billions of people, it is paramount that they make every effort to establish propriety as the foundation of laws and rules. To achieve this, the emperor oversees three dukes who lead the aristocrats, who in turn supervise the officials responsible for managing the people. The royals manage the subjects, while the subjects in turn support the royals. It is through this hierarchy that the superior directs the inferior, just as our minds guide our hands and feet, or roots control the branches and leaves. When each individual within this hierarchy fulfills their role with propriety, we can ensure that people of different social standings can work together and that the state is orderly. Therefore, I believe that the emperor’s responsibility for maintaining propriety is of utmost importance.
King Wen of Zhou placed the universe at the top in his preface to the Book of Changes. Confucius said when espousing the Book of Changes: “The heaven is high and the earth is low; the universe sets up as is. There are distinct positions for the inferior and superior, and the noble and the poor.” Confucius said that the positions of kings and its subject were not interchangeable, similar to the relationship between heaven and earth. When compiling the book Spring and Autumn Annals, Confucius reduced the importance of the vassal princes and elevated the King of Zhou, emphasizing the importance of maintaining the order of hierarchies. He ranked King of Zhou above the vassal princes even when the power of King of Zhou trended downward. The saint was very careful in dealing with hierarchies, and unless it was predestined by the will of the people and the selection of heaven, the distinction between rulers and subjects must be held with loyalty until death. The benevolent rulers of King Tang of Shang and King Wu of Zhou replacing the tyrannies of the king Jie of Xia and the king Zhou of Shang was an exception to this rule. If Weizi had replaced king Zhou of Shang or Jili had taken over Kingdom Wu, King Tang of Shang‘s dynasty would have lasted forever and Taibo‘s bloodline would have continued. However, these two princes refused to break the hereditary rules and chose to let their kingdoms perish. They believed that propriety was an inviolable moral principle. Therefore, social hierarchies represent the ultimate propriety, as there is no bigger responsibility than maintaining the order of hierarchies.
The concept of propriety guides us in distinguishing social standings, affiliations, and disputes, as well as in navigating daily interactions. It emphasizes the importance of entitlements and bronzeware for those who hold public positions and royal titles. Titles and bronzeware are bestowed, not assumed, and their presence establishes a clear social order. Without them, can the principle of propriety still exist?
In the past, Zhongshu Yuxi rendered great service to the Lord of State Wey. He initially requested for emblems as a reward, but Confucius suggested that more land would be a better reward. The titles and corresponding emblems are not things to exchange, but rather exclusive possessions of the lord. When a government collapses, the state will follow suit. When the lord of the State Wey asked Confucius to be in charge of the government, Confucius wanted to start with entitlements, because without entitlements, people do not know how to conduct themselves. When a government collapses, the state will inevitably follow. When the Lord of State Wey appointed him to govern, Confucius stressed the importance of establishing proper entitlements, for without them, people cannot conduct themselves appropriately. Confuciuspaid attention even to small details, such as emblems, and prioritized less significant tasks like entitlements, as the disruption of these symbols can lead to social hierarchy collapse. There is nothing significant that does not come from minutiae. Saints think in the long term and work on problems when they are small, while near-sighted individuals only act when a crisis looms large. Managing a small task only needs a little effort leading to significant effects; salvaging a disaster is beyond us even if we exert all our strength. “Frost on shoes leads to hard ice”, says the Book of Changes. “Managing ten thousand items in one day,” says the Book of Documents. These sayings are about this topic. Therefore, I assert that nothing is more significant in the social hierarchy than entitlements.
Alas! King You and King Li of Zhou lost their moral values, leading to the weakening of the Zhou Dynasty day by day. The social fabric was torn apart; the higher echelon bullied the lower and the lower usurped the higher echelon, suzerains levied undue taxes; officials abused their power. The body of propriety was destroyed seventy to eighty percent. Nonetheless, the worship of King Wen and King Wu of Zhou persisted as their descendants safeguarded their hierarchies and entitlements.
Here is another story that supports my assertion. Duke Wen of Jin had significant contributions to the Zhou court. When he requested permission from King Xiang of Zhou to construct an emperor-like tomb, the latter did not grant it. He replied: “The law of Zhou is clear, my uncle. I would have opposed the idea of having two emperors coexisting solely for the sake of honoring your virtues. On the other hand, the land belongs to you; why do you ask for permissions?” The Duke Wen of Jin became fearful and withdrew his request.
Although the territory governed by the Court of Zhou was smaller than that of the States of Cao and Teng, and it governed fewer people than the States of Zhu and Lv, it maintained its sovereignty over the world for several hundred years. This was due to the Court of Zhou‘s unwavering protection of entitlements. Even the powerful suzerain states of Jin, Chu, Qi, and Qin dared not overstep their bounds. Many individuals, such as the Jisun family in the State of Lu, Tian Changin the State of Qi, Duke Bai Sheng in the State of Chu, and Zhi Bo in the State of Jin, had enough influence to take over their respective states, yet they never dared to make such a move. They feared the repercussions of breaking propriety and entitlements, which would have led to attacks from the entire country. Were they not strong enough, or was it too great a burden on their conscience? They understood the importance of upholding the social order and the consequences of failing to do so.
The officials of Jin had overthrown their lords and divided the state among themselves. Shockingly, the emperor not only refrained from punishing them but also granted them aristocratic peerage titles. This abandonment of the protection of entitlements by the emperor resulted in the loss of our ancestor’s propriety. However, it would be erroneous to suggest that the court of Zhou was too weak, and the three families in Jin were too strong to be stopped. This argument overlooks the fact that these families would not have petitioned the court of Zhou for titles if they were not afraid of the opposition from around the country when they crossed the lines of propriety. The families knew that if they declared their own peerage without permission, they would have become usurpers. In the past, there were royal figures like Duke Huan of Qi or Duke Wen of Jin who would have attacked the usurpers in the name of propriety and justice. The emperor granted the peerage when the officials petitioned, who was going to attack them? The officials got their wish to become royals, not because of their overstepping propriety, but because the emperor himself overstepped propriety.
Alas! With the breakdown of the traditional relationship between rulers and subjects, the world is now dominated by those with intelligence and strength. As a result, even the descendants of saints and sages who become feudal lords may lead to the destruction of their estate and the suffering, even death of the people. How pitiful it is!
Reflection by Rio Grande 