Section 535 The significance of the salute
Jie must sit facing east, as he has to act as a communication between the guest and the host. The master must sit in the east, because the east is the position of spring, and spring means sprouting, which produces all things. The reason why the host is in the position of the East is that all the food and drink that is served to the guests is also provided by the host. Three days after the New Moon, the dark part of the moon returns to light, and it takes three months to become a season, so the guests and hosts have the gift of humbling each other three times, and the founding of the country must also set up three thrones. This is also the meaning of the establishment of three guests for the township drinking ceremony. This is the foundation of politics and religion, and it is also an important basis for the system of rituals.
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(46) Shooting
There are four types of salutes. The first is the big shooting, which is the shooting ceremony held by the Son of Heaven and the princes who choose to participate in the sacrifice before the sacrifice; the second is the guest shooting, which is the shooting salute held when the princes meet the Son of Heaven or the princes; the third is the swallow shooting, which is usually held on the day of the swallow's rest; the fourth is the township shooting, which is the shooting salute held by the magistrate to recommend the virtuous and virtuous; Before and after the shooting ceremony, there is often a swallow drink, and the township shooting ceremony is often held at the same time as the village drinking ceremony. Before the big shooting, the swallow drink is in accordance with the swallow ceremony, and the guests, the guests, the entertainment and the music and singing entertain the guests, and then the shooting salute is carried out after the banquet is completed.
The priest in charge of the ceremony of the big archery bared his left arm, took the bow and arrow to the front of the stairs to ask for the salute to begin, and the priest presented the bow and arrow to the king, and set up a neutralization plan to calculate the results, and a servant to punish the violators. In the middle is a tool for holding a calculation chip, carved into the shape of a beast kneeling. According to the regulations, the king used bark in the tree, in the lu, and in the tiger. The doctor uses 兕 (sì) zhong, and the scholar uses the deer.
In ancient times, when the princes held a shooting salute, they must first hold a Yan salute; High officer. Doctors and scholars must first hold a village drinking ceremony when they hold a shooting ceremony. The reason why the Yan Ceremony was held first was to clarify the status of the monarch and the minister; The reason why the village drinking ceremony was held first was to clarify the order of the elder and youngest. Therefore, the archer, whether he is moving forward or backward, turning left or right, must follow the rules. Inside, calm and calm; Outwardly, the body is straight; Then you can hold the bow and arrow tightly and aim it accurately. Hold the bow and arrow tightly and aim it accurately, and then you can expect to shoot. Therefore, a person's inner virtue can be seen from the external archery action.
The beat of archery: when the Son of Heaven shoots arrows, he takes "Su Yu" as the beat; When the princes shoot, take "Tanuki Head" as the beat; When Dr. Qing was a doctor, he used "Picking Apples" as the beat; When shooting, take "Cai Fan" as the beat. The poem "Su Yu" is a praise for the complete number of officials in the imperial court; The poem "Tanuki Head" is a tribute to the princes who pay tribute and pay taxes according to the time; The poem "Picking Apples" is a praise for Dr. Qing for following the law; The poem "Picking Flowers" is the dedication of the praisers. Therefore, the Son of Heaven used the song of praising all the officials as the beat, the princes used the song of praising the king on time as the beat, the prince used the song of praising the observance of the law as the beat, and the scholar used the song of praising the dedication of duty as the beat.
Therefore, they understand the meaning of their respective accompanying songs, so as to do their own work well, in order to achieve meritorious achievements and establish virtues. Once virtue is established, there will be no misdeeds such as killing people and doing evil; If the achievements are achieved, the country will be stable. Therefore, from the matter of archery, we can see how virtuous people are. Therefore, in ancient times, the Son of Heaven used archery competitions to select princes, doctors, and scholars who were qualified to participate in the sacrifice. Archery, this is a man's business, so it is decorated with liturgical music. Therefore, among all things, the one that is to be found to be both a ritual and a pleasure that can be performed regularly and thus establish virtue is archery, so the Holy King attaches great importance to it.
Therefore, the ancient Son of Heaven made a rule: the princes must report to the Son of Heaven every year on the principles and plans for governing the country, contribute to the materials, and recommend talents to the Son of Heaven, and the Son of Heaven will test their archery skills in the archery palace. His appearance and posture meet the requirements of etiquette, his archery rhythm is in line with the beat of the music, and he is qualified to participate in the sacrifice of the Son of Heaven. If his appearance and posture do not meet the requirements of etiquette, and his archery rhythm does not conform to the beat of the music, he is not eligible to participate in the sacrifice of the Son of Heaven. The more times he was allowed to participate in the sacrifice, the Son of Heaven was rewarded; If the number of times he was allowed to participate in the sacrifice was less, the Son of Heaven was to be rebuked.
The more times he is rewarded, the more his fief is increased, and the more times he is blamed, his fief is reduced. Therefore, the matter of archery competition is related to the honor and disgrace of the princes. Therefore, the princes and ministers are very attentive to archery, and they are also very attentive to the etiquette of practicing archery and the music of practicing archery. It is impossible for the princes and ministers to be exiled and destroyed by such dedication to the practice of ritual music. Therefore, there is a poem that says: As the princes of the clan, when the Yanli is carried out to the fourth degree of the official dedication, the virtuous gentlemen, from the doctor to the scholars, whether the officials are big or small, do not stay in the official office, but go to the monarch to wait. Participate in both the Yan Ceremony and the Archery Ceremony. It has not only won national security, but also gained reputation.
The meaning of the poem is that the monarchs and ministers were very dedicated to archery, and they were also very dedicated to the etiquette and music required to practice archery, so they not only gained national security, but also gained reputation. Therefore, the Son of Heaven formulated the shooting salute, and the princes practiced it seriously. This is why the Son of Heaven was able to control the princes without using force, and let the princes manage themselves well.