The Book of Songs (Shi Jing), the earliest anthology of Chinese poetry and the foundational work of ancient Chinese verse, compiles 311 poems dating from the early Western Zhou dynasty to the mid-Spring and Autumn period (11th–6th century BCE). Among these, six pieces—Nan Gai, Bai Hua, Hua Shu, You Geng, Chong Qiu, and You Yi—are termed "Flute Songs," preserved only as titles without surviving content. This collection offers a vivid portrayal of societal life across five centuries of Zhou-era China.
The authors of the Book of Songs remain largely anonymous, though tradition credits the Zhou official Yin Jifu with compiling its earliest layers and Confucius with its final editorial arrangement. During the pre-Qin era, it was known simply as Poems (Shi) or Three Hundred Poems (Shi San Bai). By the Western Han dynasty, it was canonized as a Confucian classic under its current title and included among the Five Classics.
The anthology is divided into three sections by content:
Airs (Feng): Folk songs from various Zhou states;
Odes (Ya): Formal court music, subdivided into Minor Odes (Xiao Ya) and Major Odes (Da Ya);
Hymns (Song): Ritual chants for royal and aristocratic ancestral worship, categorized as Zhou Hymns, Lu Hymns, and Shang Hymns.
Stylistically, the poems employ three techniques: Narration (Fu), Comparison (Bi), and Evocation (Xing). Confucius famously praised the anthology: "One may be inspired by the Poems," and remarked, "The three hundred poems can be summed up in a single phrase: 'Thoughts are free from depravity.'"
The Book of Songs exerted profound influence across pre-Qin philosophical texts, frequently cited by thinkers such as Mencius, Xunzi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, and Han Feizi to bolster arguments. Historical works like the Zuo Zhuan also drew extensively from its verses. By the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, its status as a Confucian cornerstone solidified, shaping Chinese literary and intellectual traditions for millennia.
The Book of Songs was compiled around the mid-Spring and Autumn period and originally titled simply Poems (Shi). Confucius frequently referenced this name, stating: "The three hundred poems can be summed up in a single phrase: 'Thoughts are free from depravity,'" and "If one recites the three hundred poems yet fails in governance or diplomacy, of what use is such knowledge?"
Sima Qian also recorded this title in his Records of the Grand Historian: "The three hundred poems were largely composed by sages and worthies in moments of impassioned resolve."
The anthology later became colloquially known as Three Hundred Poems (Shi San Bai) due to its surviving collection of 311 works—a rounded number used for convenience. The formal renaming to Book of Songs (Shi Jing) emerged during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han (141–87 BCE), who elevated it to canonical status as one of the Five Classics alongside the Book of Documents, Book of Rites, Book of Changes, and Spring and Autumn Annals. This imperial endorsement solidified its enduring title and cultural authority.
The Book of Songs stands as China’s earliest poetry anthology, with its earliest works dating to the early Western Zhou dynasty and its latest compositions emerging during the Spring and Autumn period, spanning approximately five to six centuries. Geographically, its poems originated primarily within the Yellow River basin, extending south to the northern banks of the Yangtze River, across regions corresponding to modern-day Shaanxi, Gansu, Shanxi, Shandong, Hebei, Henan, Anhui, and Hubei.
Scholars of literature and history have determined that the anthology’s contents were created after King Wu of Zhou’s overthrow of the Shang dynasty (c. 1066 BCE).
Hymns of Zhou (Zhou Song): The oldest section, composed in the early Western Zhou dynasty, features works by aristocratic scholars. These include temple hymns and divine praises, with some poems depicting agricultural practices.
Major Odes (Da Ya): Produced during the zenith of the Zhou dynasty, these thirty-one pieces represent the sole surviving epic poetry of ancient China. Debates persist over their exact dates: scholars like Zheng Xuan attribute the Wen Wang group to the reigns of Kings Wen and Wu, while the Sheng Min to Juan A cluster is linked to the era of the Duke of Zhou and King Cheng. Zhu Xi argued that the "orthodox Major Odes" were largely finalized by the Duke of Zhou during his reforms. All agree, however, that the core Da Ya originated in the early Western Zhou.
Minor Odes (Xiao Ya): These emerged from the late Western Zhou to the post-relocation era (after the Zhou court’s eastward move).
Hymns of Lu (Lu Song) and Hymns of Shang (Shang Song): Both sections were composed after the Zhou court’s eastward relocation (770 BCE).
Tradition holds that the Zhou dynasty established official "poetry collectors" who, each spring, ventured into communities with wooden bells (duo) to gather folk songs. These anonymous works—reflecting the joys and hardships of common people—were curated and presented to the Grand Master (the royal music director) to be set to melodies. Performed for the Zhou king, they served as governance references. These anonymous folk works, constituting the majority of the anthology—such as the Airs of the Fifteen States—reflect grassroots perspectives through themes of love, labor, and social critique.
Another stratum of the Book of Songs comprises compositions by Zhou aristocrats and literati. The Book of Documents attributes Owl from the Bin Airs to the Duke of Zhou (Zhou Gongdan), brother of King Wu. In 2008, a collection of Warring States-period bamboo slips (known as the Tsinghua Bamboo Slips) acquired by Tsinghua University included the Qi Ye chapter, which describes a post-victory banquet after the conquest of the Li state. It records a poem titled Cricket, improvised by the Duke of Zhou during the celebration. This text bears striking parallels to the extant Cricket poem in the Tang Airs section of the Book of Songs, suggesting either variant authorship or shared cultural motifs. Such discoveries underscore the interplay between elite literary creation and oral folk traditions in shaping China’s earliest poetic canon.
The Book of Songs stands as the first milestone in Chinese realist literature, distinguished by its grounding in reality and expression of raw emotions ignited by lived experiences. This creative ethos imbues it with profound artistic resonance. The Airs of the States section, in particular, marks the genesis of Chinese realist poetry.
In July, readers confront the blood-stained existence of enslaved laborers, while Felling the Sandalwood captures the awakening class consciousness of the exploited. The poem’s indignant laborers boldly challenge the parasitic ruling class:
“You who never sow nor reap—how dare you claim three hundred sheaves?
You who neither trap nor hunt—why do your courtyards hang with game?”
Some verses even depict direct resistance against oppressors to secure survival rights. Among these, Great Rat resonates with visceral power, likening剥削者 (exploiters) to ravenous rodents and voicing the people’s resolve to flee tyranny in search of a “land of joy.”
Through unflinching portrayals of agrarian toil, marital strife, and social injustice, the Book of Songs transcends mere lyrical beauty. It mirrors the Zhou dynasty’s societal fractures while pioneering techniques like metaphor (bi) and evocative imagery (xing), laying the foundation for China’s enduring poetic tradition. These works not only document history but also immortalize the timeless human struggle for dignity and equity.
From a historical perspective, the Book of Songs comprehensively documents the Western Zhou and Spring and Autumn periods, offering a multifaceted record of societal development, political systems, economic activities, military campaigns, folk customs, and cultural practices. Later historians extensively relied on its accounts when reconstructing this era. For instance, epic poems in the Major Odes, such as Sheng Min (Birth of the People), function as ancestral hymns tracing the Zhou lineage from the late matriarchal clan society to the dynasty’s founding after overthrowing the Shang. These works glorify the achievements of figures like Hou Ji (the agrarian deity), Gong Liu, Tai Wang, Wang Ji, King Wen, and King Wu, while chronicling pivotal events—migrations, wars, and state-building—that shaped Zhou’s rise. Though interwoven with myth, these narratives preserve invaluable historical data on Zhou’s governance, economy, military strategies, and folk traditions.
The anthology’s folkloric value is equally profound, particularly in its depictions of courtship rituals, marital customs, and sacrificial practices. Jing Nu (Quiet Maiden) from the Bei Airs portrays aristocratic lovers exchanging tokens, while Zhong Feng (Enduring Winds) captures flirtatious banter among commoners. Chu Qi Dong Men (East Gate) from the Zheng Airs reflects male fidelity in love. Collectively, these poems illuminate regional marital practices and gender dynamics, serving as critical resources for understanding ancient Chinese matrimonial traditions.
Sacrificial rites, central to Zhou spirituality, are vividly detailed in hymns like Jian Xi (Elegant Dancer) from the Bei Airs, which describes the "Wan Dance"—a ritual performance blending shamanic movements with courtly choreography. The Hymns section, notably Tian Zuo (Heaven’s Creation) and Hao Tian You Cheng Ming (Mandate of Heaven), formalizes ceremonies such as the worship of Mount Qi by King Cheng and suburban sacrifices to heaven and earth. These texts reveal the Zhou people’s reverence for ancestors, deities, and cosmic order, embodying their spiritual yearnings and societal ethos. Through its ritual poetry, the Book of Songs preserves the psychological landscape and folk beliefs of antiquity, offering unparalleled insights into early Chinese cosmology and communal life.
Confucius: “The three hundred poems may be summed up in a single phrase: ‘Thoughts are free from depravity.’” “Without studying the Poems, one cannot speak with propriety.”
Mencius: “To recite a poem or read a text without understanding its author is inadequate. Thus, one must examine the historical context.”
Xunzi: “Begin with reciting the classics; culminate in mastering ritual.”
Sima Qian: “The Rites regulate conduct, the Music harmonizes spirits, the Documents narrate events, the Poems express sentiments, the Changes reveal cosmic principles, and the Spring and Autumn Annals illuminate righteousness. To restore order from chaos, none surpass the Spring and Autumn Annals.”
Dong Zhongshu: “It is said: ‘The Poems defy fixed interpretation; the Changes defy rigid divination; the Spring and Autumn Annals defy inflexible phrasing. Follow their fluidity and moral essence, unified in service to humanity.’”
He Xiu: “Men and women sing of grievances; laborers chant their toils; the hungry lament their hunger.”
Zhu Xi: “The Airs (Feng) largely originate from folk ballads—songs exchanged between men and women to voice their passions.” Zhu Xi pioneered the theory that the Book of Songs derived from folk traditions, while controversially labeling many Zheng Airs as “immoral poetry.”
Liang Qichao: “Among surviving pre-Qin texts, few are untainted by forgery. The Book of Songs stands as the first work of pure gold, its every word trustworthy.”
Hu Shi: “The Book of Songs is not a canonical scripture but an anthology of ancient folk songs.”
Lu Xun: “The Book of Songs is China’s oldest poetry collection. By nature: the Airs (Feng) are love songs of the common folk; the Odes (Ya) are courtly hymns; the Hymns (Song) are temple rituals.”
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