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132 J. Yuan

Although Li Zehou did not use the term “being mild and gentle, sincere and
broadminded” here, his analysis of how The Book of Songs has influenced affec-
tions and artistic imagery of later generations and is fully consistent with the
connotations ensuing from the concept of being mild and gentle, sincere and
broadminded. He stated that, “They embody the national characteristics of Chi-
nese aesthetics in terms of specific works of art.” (Li, 2009, p. 58) As this idea
evolved, it came to accumulate the inner meaning of Chinese aesthetics and
became the Chinese aesthetic psyche.
Of course, it was Confucius who laid the groundwork for understanding the
intellectual implications of the term “being mild and gentle, sincere and broad-
minded.” Confucius appraised the ode “Cooing and Wooing” in The Book of
)
Songs (《诗经·关雎》as follows: “It is enjoyment without indulgence and grief
without excessive distress.” (Liu, 1990, p. 116) In other words, the ode “Cooing
and Wooing” expresses the enjoyment of love without being indulgent; it
expresses the grief of unfulfilled love without excessive distress. It appropriately
expresses the beauty of harmony. Confucius went on to argue that The Book of
Songs embodies this beauty in accordance with propriety: “In The Book of Songs
there are three hundred poems, but they can all be summed up in one sentence
‘have no depraved thoughts’” (Liu, 1990, p. 39). Confucius believed that only this
beauty of harmony could cultivate an ideal personality and noble sentiments, and
that all folk and vulgar music that did not conform to this aesthetic standard was
abhorrent. Sima Qian (司马迁 ca.145–?）stated that: “The ancients passed down
more than 3000 poems. Confucius ignored the duplicated ones and compiled a
collection of those that could be used to teach rituals. The oldest poems were
written to praise Qi (契) and Houji (后稷). Next were the poems that describe the
prosperity of the Shang and Zhou dynasties, followed by the poems that criticize
the moral decay of the kings Li (周幽王 ?–828 B.C.E.) and You (周幽王 ?–771 B.C.E.)
of the Zhou Dynasty. In terms of order, the collection began with the relationship
between husband and wife. So it is said that, ‘Cooing and Wooing’ (《诗经 · 国风 · 鹿
鸣》is the beginning of the section of the Ballads from the States; ‘To Guests’ (《诗
)
经 · 小雅 · 鹿鸣》is the beginning of the section of Court Hymn; ‘Heavens Decree’
)
)
( 《诗经 · 大雅 · 文王》is the beginning of the section of Greater Court Hymn; and
‘Tranquil Ancetral Temple’ (《诗经 · 周颂 · 清庙》is the beginning of the section of
)
Eulogy. Confucius turned all the 305 poems in the collection into songs to the tune
)
)
of “Shao,” (《韶》“Wu,” (《武》court hymns, or eulogies. Only then was ritual music
restored and sung. This marked the completion of the kingly way and of Confucius’
completion of the Six Arts” (Sima, 1982, pp. 1936–1937). Sima Qian emphasized
that Confucius’ cultural contribution lies in the fact that he adapted The Book of
Songs to the teaching of ritual music and made it an important part of the Six Arts.