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THE

CHINESE REPOSITORY.

VOL. XVII.-APRIL. 1818.-No. 4.

ART. I. An inquiry into the proper mode of rendering the word

God in translating the sacred Scriptures into the Chinese language. By W. H. MEDHURST.

IV. The Theen ming, divine decrees are ascribed to

帝 Te or 上帝 Shang-te.

The T'heen ming, divine decree, according to the Chinese, is the decree or will of Heaven. This may mean, in certain cases, the irreversible decree of fate, spoken of by western writers. But in the quotations which will now be presented, it rather signifies the special command, or appointment of the Supreme, regulating the affairs of nations and their rulers. By this decree kings were set up and dynasties appointed; when the decree of Heaven was supposed to be settled in favour of any particular family, the people yielded them implicit obedience; but when it was thought to be removed, opposition to them was no longer considered as rebellion. Hence the frequent recurrence of the phrases, that the decree of Heaven is not invariably fixed in one family, and that no reliance is to be placed upon its being perpetuated, any longer than the rulers of the respective dynasties obeyed and pleased the Ruling Power above. On this account monarchs are exhorted not to depend too much upon it, because when the Supreme Ruler is angry with the reigning sovereign he cuts off the decree established in his favour, and sets up another family. From all this it will appear, that the decision in question belongs to one, by whom kings reign and princes decree justice.

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Thus Wăn-wang, when he thought he had ascertained the decree to be in his favour, did not dare to set it aside, but without hesitation went to war with the tyrannical monarch of the former dynasty, who he thought was deposed by the Supreme. Even in the present day, the reigning family are under the impression that they were appointed by Heaven to rule, and only so long as they can secure the tavour of the Supreme, do they expect to be able to retain the throne. Here we may observe, that this decree is not the ordinance of one, whom the Chinese consider as merely the tutelary deity of the empire, and thus peculiar to China, but the decree of Heaven, whose ruler like its canopy overspreads the whole world. We may further observe, that this decree is not supposed by the Chinese to be established by Shin, because the Chinese never ascribe the settlement of the empire to any one Shin or spirit, irrespective of the being to whom such spirit belongs, or of whom it is descriptive.*

Having premised these observations, we proceed to adduce quotations on the subject of the t'heen ming, divine decrees being ascribed to Te, or Shang-te.

In the Shoo-king 6th book, 4th section, it is said that "Wan and Woo were able to receive the correct decree from Shang-te while

* We are aware that the Taou-tih-king contains a passage, sect. 25, intimating that "the empire is a shin k'he, implement with which spiritual beings have some concern," upon which the Commentator says, that

神 Zyew shin sze che, there are spiritual beings who have charge of it.

The word "charge," however, means management under the control of a principal, to whom an account must be given; and is used for officers of government who are subject to the emperor. Kang-he explains it as of

chin sze szé yu wae, a minister attending to affairs abroad, or transacting business at a distance from the court: hence the character is formed of how, a prince or king reversed. It is evident, therefore, that the spirits here referred to cannot have the supreme control of the empire. The Kwei Shins, or presiding spirits of the stars and planets, hills and rivers, are represented in the Tso-chuen, as leih, appointing, or by some sign indicating the appointment, of the subornate princes of the different states of the empire; but these states are of inferior dimensions, and their princes aresubject to the emperor as their liege lord; the spirits above referred to, are also regarded as inferior to, or at most only on a level with the emperor; as such, they are supposed to have a certain influence over the various states, just as the ancestral spirits have an influence over particular households, but they cannot, according to the Chinese theory pass a decree appointing the emperor to sit on the throne of universal dominion. Only Shang-te, Heaven and earth with the imperial ancestors rank above the reigning monarch: all other objects of worship are on a level with, or inferior to him, they could not therefore appoint him to the throne.

high Heaven accorded with their principles and conferred upon them universal rule." The paraphrast calls the decree above referred to the “correct decree of High Heaven."

In the Ta-yay section of the Book Odes, the decree of Te is said to be rightly timed in the case of Wan-wang; upon which the Commentator remarks, that "the decree here mentioned is the decree of Heaven."

In the next sentence but two, the poet says, "Shang-te having passed his decrec in favour of Chow, all are bound in obedience to that dynasty." This decree is called by the paraphrast "the decree of Heaven."

In the Shoo-king, 4th book, section 9. "The eleven men who aided Woo-wang were able to trace out and understand the decree of Shang-te," which decree is called by the Commentator "the decree of Heaven."

In the same work, book 5. section 5. Chow-kung says, that “he did not presume to rest too confidently on the decree of Shang-te, lest he should become regardless of the anticipated inflictions of Heaven, or imagine that the people may not at some time murmur and rebel." This decree is called by the Commentator "the decree of Heaven."

In the same work, book 5, section 1. "The Shang-te of Imperial Heaven is said to have changed the decree once passed in favour of his chief son the sovereign of the Yin dynasty;" upon which the Commentator remarks, "that the chief son could not be changed, but Heaven changed him.”

In the same work, book 1, section 5. Yu, in addressing Shun, said, "Act thus, in order luminously to receive (the decree of) Shang-te; and then, should Heaven issue any new decree, it would be of an excellent kind (in your favor.)"

In the Le-ke, vol 9, page 19, a quotation is made from one of the odes regarding obedience to the commands of Te, saying, that "the decree of Te did not reject the family spoken of, until the time of Ching-t'hang, when this decree was settled upon him. Ching-t'hang was humble, and yet active; his sage-like and respectful qualities daily advanced; slowly but luminously expanding he reverenced Shang-te, and Te constituted him monarch of the nine provinces of China. Here Te, Shang-te, and T'heen, are used interchangeably in such a manner, as to show that they refer to the same being. We meet with the same expression in the

Chang-fo see

tion of the Book of Odes, which says, that "Te's decree was not reversed, until Ching-t'hang appeared; his birth was opportune, and his sacred feeling of respect daily mounted higher and higher, until it reached to Heaven, and became permanent; towards Shang-te he was respectful, and Te directed him to become a pattern to the nine provinces."

In the Shoo-king, book 5, section 8, "Ching-t'hang is said to have been advanced to promote in an eminent degree the glorious will of Shang-te" which the paraphrast calls "the resplendent will of Shang-te, which is gloriously manifested throughout the empire." In the same work, book 3, section 5, Ching-t'hang addressing the heir apparent says, "The decree of Shang-te is not invariably fixed in favour of one individual; if you do good, he will send down a hundred blessings, if you do evil, he will sent down a hundred curses." The paraphrast says, that Heaven will send down these blessings or curses.

"The

In the Ta-heo, page 11, the paraphrast says, decree appointing any one to be emperor rests with Heaven, and the inclination of Heaven follows that of the people; when a monarch therefore obtains the hearts of the people, Shang-te favours him; but when he loses the hearts of the people, Shang-te is angry with him, and he loses the throne."

In the Hwang-e section of the Book of Odes, we read that, "Shang-te observing that the two former dynasties, Heá and Shang, had failed in the practice of government, brought forward the family of Chow, and enlarged their borders." The paraphrast says that, "Shang-te, though dwelling on high, condescends to regard this lower world, and gloriously displays his bright designs. His purpose is to seek the peaceful settlement of the people; but though this be High Heaven's main design, the most important means of promoting it is the selection of a proper prince. The Hëá and Shang dynasties having failed in the matter of government, Shang-te looked abroad among the surrounding states, to see who was best calculated for tranquilizing the people, and be the one whom He would wish to promote, whereupon he enlarged the borders of the house of Chow, that they might have some foundation on which to rest the fortunes of their family."

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In the Shoo-king, book 5, sect. 5, Shang-te is said to have " off the Yin dynasty, and to have concentrated the decree upon the person of Wău-wang."

In Máng-tsze, sect. 4, page 6, the text speaks of “Shangte's having decreed that the descendants of Yin should be in subjection to the Chow dynasty," the commentator ascribes this to the decree of Heaven: shewing the identity of Shang-te's decree with that of Heaven, a mode of expresssion never used with regard to the Kwei

Shins.

In the Chow-sung section of the book of Odes, Shang-te is said to have "constituted Woo-wang and his successors sovereigns of the empire."

In the Shoo-king, book 4, sect. 9, Ching-wang, the son of Woowang, said that he did not dare to set aside the command of Shangte, and Heaven's intelligent decree being thus awful, he calls upon his people to aid him. Upon which the commentator remarks, "that having discovered, by means of prognostications, that it was the will of Shang-te that he should go on a certain expedition, he did not dare contravene the commands of the Highest Potentate." The paraphrast also says, "that the divination is that by means of which we connect ourselves with the intelligence of Heaven, and the prognostications being all favourable, the expedition against the rebels was really what Shang-te had commanded."

In the same work, 4th book, 5th section, Woo-wang says, that "he ventured respectfully to receive (the decree of) Shang-te, in order to suppress rebellious counsels."

In the

Yù ché wăn tseih, a collection of essays

ascribed to the monarch of the present dynasty, sect. 23, page 1, a te nyu, divine female (called in the

米糖

Tung hwa luh, a t'heen nyu, celestial female) is said to have miraculously brought forth a holy son, to whom Te gave the surname of Ghioro (which act, in the work above alluded to is ascribed to Heaven).

On the 19th page, Shang-te is said to have " adopted the first ancestor of the present imperial family as his son, until Shun-che, obeying the will of Heaven, ascended the throne; having ascertained that the decree of Te, no longer favouring the Ming dynasty, had regarded with complacency the Tartar race." In the 52nd section, page 29, the emperor is addressed saying, "looking up with veneration to the glorious canopy of Heaven, remember that your holding the sceptre depends on the protection of Te."

Prefixed to the

Yew heo is an historical poem, in which the writer, speaking of the present dynasty, says, "The mind of Te

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