魯宣繆姜

列女傳

Scanned original

繆姜者，齊侯之女，魯宣公之夫人，成公母也。
Mu Jiang was a daughter of the marquis of Qi, the wife of Duke Xuan of Lu, and the mother of Duke Cheng.

聰慧而行亂，故謚曰繆。
She was intelligent but stirred up trouble, therefore her posthumous title is Mu (majestic).

初，成公幼，繆姜通於叔孫宣伯，名喬如。
Earlier, when Duke Cheng was young, Mu Jiang talked to Shusun Xuanbo, who was named Qiaoru.

喬如與繆姜謀去季孟而擅魯國。
Qiaoru and Mu Jiang plotted to expel Ji and Meng, and take power in the state of Lu.

晉楚戰于鄢陵，公出佐晉。
Jin and Chu fought at Yanling, and the duke went to support Jin.

將行，姜告公必逐季孟，是背君也，
When he was about to leave, Jiang told the duke to make sure to pursue Li and Meng, since they were disloyal to their ruler.

公辭以晉難，請反聽命。
The duke declined, due to troubles with Jin, and requested that he would be able to heed her command after his return.

又貨晉大夫，使執季孫行父而止之，
Then they bribed an officer of Jin, to order the capture and detention of Lisun Hangfu.

許殺仲孫蔑，以魯士晉為內臣。
The promised to kill Zhongsun Mie, and make the knights of Lu into minor officials of Jin.

魯人不順喬如，明而逐之，喬如奔齊，魯遂擯繆姜於東宮。
The people of Lu did not follow Qiaoru, when they found out about this they chased him out, and Qiaoru fled to Qi. Lu then exiled Mu Jiang to the eastern palace.

始往，繆姜使筮之，遇艮之六。
When beginning her journey, Mu Jiang ordered a milfoil divination performed. The result was the sixth of the gen trigram.

Note: in the following discussion on the Zhou Yi, I am using Legge's translation, since this entire dialogue is taken directly from the Zuo Zhuan.

史曰：「是謂艮之隨。隨其出也，君必速出。」
The diviner said: "This is what remains when gen becomes sui. Sui is the symbol of getting out, my lady will certainly be able to leave soon."

姜曰：「亡。是於周易曰『隨，元亨利貞，无咎。』
Jiang said: "No. Of this the Zhou Yi says: 'Sui indicates being great, penetrating, beneficial, firmly correct, without blame.'

元，善之長也；亨，嘉之會也；
Now that greatness is the lofty distinction of the person; that penetration is the assemblage of excellences;

利，義之和也；貞，事之幹也。
that beneficialness is the harmony of all righteousness; that firm correctness is the stem of all affairs.

終故不可誣也，是以雖隨无咎。
But these things must not be in semblance merely. It is only thus that sui could bring the assurance of blamelessness.

我婦人而與於亂，固在下位，
Now I, a woman, and associated with disorder, am here in the place of inferior rank.

而有不仁，不可謂元；
不靖國家，不可謂亨；
作而害身，不可謂利；
棄位而放，不可謂貞。
Chargeable moreover with a want of virtue, greatness cannot be predicated of me.
Not having contributed to the quiet of the State, penetration cannot be predicated of me.
Having brought harm to myself by my doings, beneficialness cannot be predicated of me.
Having left my proper place for a bad intrigue, firm correctness cannot be predicated of me.

有四德者，隨而咎，我皆無之，豈隨也哉！
To one who has those four virtues of the diagram sui belongs;---what have I to do with it, to whom none of them belongs?

我則取惡，能無咎乎！必死於此，不得出矣。」
Having chosen evil, how can I be without blame? I shall die here; I shall never get out of this."

卒薨於東宮。君子曰：「惜哉繆姜！
She died at the eastern palace. The superior man may say: "Pitiable is Mu Jiang!

雖有聰慧之質，終不得掩其淫亂之罪。」
Although she was gifted with intelligence, in the end she could not cover her evil and disorderly misdeeds.

詩曰：「士之耽兮，猶可說也，女之耽兮，不可說也。」此之謂也。
The ode says: "That a gentleman takes pleasure can still be excused; but that a girl takes pleasure, cannot be excused." This applies here.
Note: from Bernhard Karlgren's translation of 氓 (ode 58).

春秋

襄公九年

五月，辛酉，夫人姜氏薨。
In the fifth month, on xinyou, duke Xuan's wife, Jiang, died.

秋，八月，癸未，葬我小君穆姜。
In autumn, in the eight month, on guiwei, we buried our duchess Mu Jiang.

左傳

成公十一年

Note: this entry only briefly mentions Mu Jiang, but I it's a horrifying story, so I include it here.

聲伯之母不聘，穆姜曰，吾不以妾為姒，生聲伯而出之，嫁於齊管于奚，生二子而寡，以歸聲伯，聲伯以其外弟為大夫，而嫁其外妹於施孝叔，郤犨來聘，求婦於聲伯，聲伯奪施氏婦以與之，婦人曰，鳥獸猶不失儷，子將若何，曰，吾不能死亡，婦人遂行，生二子於郤氏，郤氏亡，晉人歸之施氏，施氏逆諸河，沈其二子，婦人怒曰，已不能庇其伉儷而亡之，又不能字人之孤而殺之，將何以終，遂誓施氏。

The mother of Shengbo had been without betrothal; and Mu Jiang said, "I will not acknowledge a concubine as my sister-in-law." After the birth of Shengbo, his father sent away the mother, who was afterwards married to Guan Yuxi of Qi. She bore him two children, and was then left a widow, when she came back with the children to Shengbo. He got his half-brother made a great officer, and married his half-sister to Shi Xiaoshu. When Xi Chou came on his friendly mission, he applied for a wife to Shengbo, who took this half-sister from Shi Xiaoshu, and gave her to him. She said, "Ever birds and beasts do not consent to lose their mates; what do you propose to do?" He said, "I am not able to die for you." On this she went [to Jin], where she bore two children to Xi. After his death, they sent her back from Jin to Shi, who met her at the He [Yellow river], and drowned in it her two children. She was angry, and said to him, "You could not protect me when I was your wife, and let me go away from you, and now you are not able to cherish another man's orphans and have killed them;---what death do you expect to die?" She then swore that she would not live again with him.

成公十六年

戰之日，齊國佐，高無咎，至于師，衛侯出于衛，公出于壞隤，宣伯通於穆姜，欲去季孟，而取其室，將行，穆姜送公，而使逐二子，公以晉難告，曰，請反而聽命，姜怒，公子偃，公子鉏，趨過指之曰，女不可，是皆君也，公待於壞隤，申宮儆備，設守而後行，是以後，使孟獻子守于公宮。

On the day of the battle, Guo Zuo and Gao Wujiu of Qi reached the army; the marquis of Wei commenced his march from his capital; and the duke proceeded from Huaitui. Xuanbo had an intrigue with Mu Jiang, and wanted to make away with Ji and Meng and appropriate their property. When the duke was commencing his march, Mu Jiang escorted him, and urged him to drive out those two ministers; but he represented to her his difficulties with Jin, and begged till his return, when he would hear her commands. She was angry; and the duke's two half brothers Yan and Chu hurrying past, she pointed to them, and said, "If you refuse, either of these may be our ruler." The duke waited at Huaitiu, renewing his orders for a careful watch to be maintained in the palace, and appointed officers to guard. After this he marched, but the delay made him too late. He had appointed Meng Xianzi to keep guard at the palace.

秋，會干沙隨，謀伐鄭也，宣伯使告郤犨曰，魯侯待于壞隤，以待勝者，郤犨將新軍，且為公族大夫，以主東諸侯，取貨于宣伯，而訴公于晉侯，晉侯不見公。

The meeting in autumn at Shasui was to take measures for the invasion of Zheng. Xuanbo sent information to Xi Chou that the duke had waited in Huaitui, till he should see which side conquered. Xi Chou commanded the new army, and was president of the ducal relatives, with the management of the States of the east. He took bribes from Xuanbo, and accused the duke to the marquis of Jin, who consequently refused to see him.

襄公九年

穆姜薨於東宮，始往而筮之，遇艮之八，史曰，是謂艮之隨，隨其出也，君必速出，姜曰，亡，是於周易，曰，隨元亨利貞，無咎，元，體之長也，亨，嘉之會也，利，義之和也，貞，事之幹也，體仁足以長人，嘉德足以合禮，利物足以和義，貞固足以幹事，然故不可誣也，是以雖隨無咎，今我婦人而與於亂，固在下位，而有不仁，不可謂元，不靖國家，不可謂亨，作而害身，不可謂利，棄位而姣，不可謂貞，有四德者，隨而無咎，我皆無之，豈隨也哉，我則取惡，能無咎乎，必死於此，弗得出矣。

Mu Jiang died in the eastern palace. When you first went into it, she consulted the milfoil, and got the second line of the hexagram gen. The diviner said, "This is what remains when gen becomes sui. Sui is the symbol of getting out; your ladyship will soon get out from this." She replied, "No. Of this diagram it is said in the Zhou Yi, 'Sui indicates being great, penetrating, beneficial, firmly correct, without blame.' Now that greatness is the lofty distinction of the person; that penetration is the assemblage of excellences; that beneficialness is the harmony of all righteousness; that firm correctness is the stem of all affairs. The person who is entirely virtuous is sufficient to take the presidency of others; admirable virtue is sufficient to secure an agreement with all propriety. Beneficialness to things is sufficient to effect a harmony of all righteousness. Firm correctness is sufficient to manage all affairs. But these things must not be in semblance merely. It is only thus that sui could bring the assurance of blamelessness. Now I, a woman, and associated with disorder, am here in the place of inferior rank. Chargeable moreover with a want of virtue, greatness cannot be predicated of me. Not having contributed to the quiet of the State, penetration cannot be predicated of me. Having brought harm to myself by my doings, beneficialness cannot be predicated of me. Having left my proper place for a bad intrigue, firm correctness cannot be predicated of me. To one who has those four virtues of the diagram sui belongs;---what have I to do with it, to whom none of them belongs? Having chosen evil, how can I be without blame? I shall die here; I shall never get out of this."

Vocabulary