Page:Sacred Books of the East - Volume 27.djvu/334

 19. The son of Heaven prays for (a blessing on) the coming year to the Honoured ones of heaven; sacrifices with an ox, a ram, and a boar at the public altar to the spirits of the land, and at the gates of towns and villages; offers the sacrifice three days after the winter solstice with the spoils of the chase to all ancestors, and at the five (household) sacrifices;—thus cheering the husbandmen and helping them to rest from their toils.

20. The son of Heaven orders his leaders and commanders to give instruction on military