Page:The Chinese Repository - Volume 01.djvu/302

 breath; for in the first place, the breath stinks; and in the second place, it shews want of respect; you must not study books of divination, of physiognomy, of medicine, of drawing lots, of astronomy, of geography, of charms, of alchemy, or any magic arts; you must not study poetry; you must not take hold of sacred books with dirty hands; before sacred books you must consider yourself in the presence of Budha, and not joke or laugh.

Such is a specimen of this religion of reason, and the rules of a Shaman Monastery. We will not conduct our readers to the bath, and some other places alluded to above, in the heads of chapters.

Prof. N. has, in general, given the sense of the original; we have observed a few places, however, where he has mistaken it. As for example, in page 109, on hearing the law, the original reads, Puh tih we hwuy, ching hwuy; juh urh chuh kow, "you must not when you don't understand, say you do understand; and what enters the ear, (instantly) utter with the mouth." This Mr. N. translates, thus, "All that enters into your ear, shall not indiscriminately pass out of your mouth; you shall not say what should not be stated before the congregation." Here the sense of the whole paragraph is lost, and he has introduced "a congregation;" whereas there is properly no such thing as a congregation in the whole system. The persons present are all priests and pupils. Mr. N. has taken a sense of hwuy which does not apply here. Morrison 4560 defines it "to unite; to assemble; an association;" thus far congregation would do. But he gives below what shews that hwuy also means to unite thoughts; to associate ideas; to understand. One of Morrison's examples is, hwuy tso, to know or understand how to do a thing.

In page 147 also, the Prof, has quite mistaken the sense. The original reads, yuen lung, yaou kea leang pang—"When travelling to a distance, you must avail yourself of the company of a virtuous friend; Koo jin sin te we tung, puh yuen tseen le kew sze, the "ancients, when the ground of the heart did not understand; did not regard a thousand le, (miles) as too great a distance to go and seek for a teacher." Of this, Mr. N. gives the following version. "With regard to travelling; for visiting a friend who lives far distant, our fore-fathers formed different opinions;—but this is certain, you should not ask the master for permission if your friends or parents live farther off than a thousand le." This is blundering with a vengeance. The phrase, "puh yuen tseen le," seems to have puzzled the Professor; verbally "not distance thousand le,"—but the word distance is used as a verb, or to consider as distant. Mencius has the same expression. The king said to the philosopher, Sow, puh yuen tseen le urh lae—Venerable Sir, you having not thought a thousand miles too great a distance to come hither, &c.

We shall notice only one more place in which the translator misleads his readers. See page