Page:An analysis of religious belief (1877).djvu/564

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change for you'" (C. C., vol. iii. p. 460.—Shoo King, part 5, b. 14, ii. 1-18).

But it was not only by interested parties that this doctrine was proclaimed in China. The She King, a sacred book corresponding in character to the Psalms, distinctly adopts it, and thus gives it the highest sanction. This is the language of one of the Odes:—

"Great is God,

Beholding this lower world in majesty.
He surveyed the four quarters [of the kingdom],
Seeking for some one to give settlement to the people.
Those two [earlier] dynasties
Had failed to satisfy him with their government;
So throughout the various States
He sought and considered
For one on which he might confer the rule.
Hating all the great [States],
He turned his kind regards on the west,
And there gave a settlement [to king T'æ]. . . .
God having brought about the removal thither of this Intelligent ruler,
The Kwan hordes fled away; . . .
God, who had raised the State, raised up a proper ruler for it. . . .
This King Ke
Was gifted by God with the power of judgment,
So that the fame of his virtue silently grew.
His virtue was highly intelligent,
Highly intelligent and of rare discrimination;
Able to lead; able to rule,—
To rule over this great country;
Rendering a cordial submission, effecting a cordial union.
When the sway came to King W[)a]n,
His virtue left nothing to be dissatisfied with.
He received the blessing of God,
And it was extended to his descendants."

The Ode proceeds to relate how completely victorious this virtuous king was over his enemies, and how perfect was the