A Study Of Lost Poems In Tsinghua Bamboo Slips And The Historical Culture Of The Western Zhou Dynasty

The Tsinghua University collection of Warring States bamboo slips(hereafter referred to as“Tsinghua Bamboo Slips”)contains several historical and classical texts,among which are three related to lost poems: “Qi Ye”,“Zhou Gong Zhi Qin Wu(Zhou Gong’s Zither Dance)” and “Rui Liang Fu Bi”.These poems reflect the intellectual culture and social customs of the Warring States period.They also provide vivid information for understanding the humanistic spirit and social changes of this period.“Qi Ye” is a collection of five lost poems in Tsinghua Bamboo Slips,namely Yue Yue zhi jiu”,“Mingming God”,“Bibi”,“You Cheng” and “Cricket”.It records the event of King Wu holding a drinking ceremony at King Wen’s temple after defeating Qi.“Qi Ye” not only shows us the thoughts conveyed by Zhou Gong’s poems,but also gives us a glimpse of some aspects of the ritual and music system of the Zhou dynasty.“Zhou Gong Zhi Qin Wu” consists of ten lost poems with the background of Duke Zhou returning power to King Cheng.The content of this piece is mostly about ritual and music education.Among the nine poems composed by King Cheng,the tone is different,so it is inferred that each poem has a different “author”.This poem not only reflects the uniqueness of the structure of “Qi” and “Luan”,but also shows the diversity,flexibility and multiplicity of the content,form and purpose of ritual and music in Western Zhou.“Rui Liang Fu Bi” belongs to the category of “Bi” poems in poetic literature,with an admonishing nature.This poem provides us with information about the internal and external troubles faced by King Li,and also provides us with clues for exploring the causes of Western Zhou’s demise.The lost poems in Tsinghua Bamboo Slips provide important information and precious materials for studying the politics,military,society and ritual and music system of the early Western Zhou dynasty,as well as new clues and perspectives for studying the compilation,transmission and formation and development of the poems in The Book of Songs.