Archery Metaphor and Ritual in Early Confucian Texts

133 Pages·2020·1.94 MB·English

by  Rina Marie Camus

Archery Metaphor and
Ritual in Early
Confucian Texts

Archery Metaphor and
Ritual in Early
Confucian Texts
R. M. Camus

LEXINGTON BOOKS

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Camus, Rina Marie, 1974- author.
Title: Archery metaphor and ritual in early Confucian texts / Rina Marie Camus.
Description: Lanham : Lexington Books, 2020. | Includes bibliographical references and
index. | Summary: “This book explores the significance of archery as ritual practice
and literary metaphor in classical Confucian texts. Archery passages in the Analects,
Mencius, and Xunzi are discussed in the light of Zhou culture and the troubled historical
circumstances of early followers of the ruist master Confucius”—Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020033348 (print) | LCCN 2020033349 (ebook) | ISBN

9781498597203 (cloth) | ISBN 9781498597210 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Si shu. | Archery in literature. | Archery—China—History—To 1500. |
Philosophy, Confucian.
Classification: LCC PL2463.Z9 A733 2020 (print) | LCC PL2463.Z9 (ebook) | DDC
181/.112—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020033348
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American

National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library
Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
To my family,
especially my parents, Nando & Lousell:
with gratitude for 99%, and so much more.

Contents
Abbreviations and Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
1 Bow-Wielding Aristocrats of Early Zhou 11
2 Ritual Archers in the Analects 27
3 Sharp Shooters in Mencius 49
4 Fine Bows and Distant Targets in Xunzi 69
Concluding Remarks 89
Bibliography 99
Index 105
About the Author 109

vii

Abbreviations and Illustrations
ABBREVIATIONS
An The Analects of Confucius
CHAC Cambridge History of Ancient China: From the Origins of Civilization to
221 B.C., edited by Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy (Cam-
bridge University Press, 1999).
ECT Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide, edited by Michael Loewe
(Society for the Study of Early China: Institute of East Asian Studies,
University of California, Berkeley, 1993).
M The Book of Mencius
REC RoutledgeCurzon Encyclopedia of Confucianism, edited by Yao, Xinzhong
(RoutledgeCurzon, 2003).
ILLUSTRATIONS
Figures 1.1–1.6. Zhou arrowhead samples
Figures 2.1–2.2. Archery ritual setting

Figure 3.1. Traditional Chinese bows

Figure 3.2. Qin dynasty crossbow
Figure 3.3. Qing dynasty archer wielding traditional bow
Figures 4.1–4.3. Hunting scenes on Han dynasty tomb slabs

ix