Tuesday, 14 May 2019

Lost grains = Salary

Cai Mao (24 BC to 47 AD), otherwise known as Zili, was from Haui County in Henei.  In the Han Dynasty (202 BC to 220 AD), Henei was located in what is now parts of Henan and Shandong. This region lies at the origin of the Chinese Han civilisation in the Yellow River Delta. The Han Period is thought of by Han Chinese (who are the major ethnic group of modern China) as the golden period of their history, and it is the period in which Confucianism began to be adopted as a political and philosophical system.

It was  Guanghan, located in modern Sichuan, west of his hometown, where he first dreamed of sitting in the big hall; where at the top there were three ears of grain. He went to take them and got the middle ear of grain. But then, immediately, he lost them in the sides of a chariot that day. He took this matter to the assistant magistrate Guo He.

And Guo He said: "In regards to your dream, the big hall is a sign of government office. To sit at the top of the hall and have ears of grain is the greatest prosperity of the people and officials. The ones that you take will be the sign of your rank. In the word “salary” is “grain” and “loss.” Even though one says they lose the grain, that fact that they took it is the priority. By establishing a position in the palace, the lords recover their grain.

After a period of months, Mao was summoned therein.

蔡茂字子禮,[Han] [Cai Mao] [cognomen] [Zi] [Li]
河內懷人也。[Henei] [Huai] [person] [he is]

 Cai Mao of Han, cognomen Zili, was a native of Huai in Henei.

初在廣漢,[originally] [in] [Guanghan]
夢坐大殿,[dreamt] [sit] [big] [hall]
極上有禾三穗。[extremely] [at the top] [there were] [grains] [three] [ears of]


When originally in Guanghan, he dreamt that he sat in the big hall and at the far end of the hall there were three ears of rice.

茂取之,[Mao] [took] [them]
得其中穗,[gained] [their] [middle] [ear]
輒復失之。[sides of the chariot] [repeatedly] [lost] [them]


Mao took them, getting the middle ear, and then lost it in the sides of a chariot.

以問主簿郭賀。[take] [ask] [assistant magistrate] [Guo He]

He took it to ask the assistant magistrate Guo He.
賀曰:「大殿者,[He] [said] [the big hall]
官府之形象也。[official] [office] ['s] [shape] [sign] [it is]

He said: "The main hall is the shape and form of the official quarters.

極而有禾,[extremely] [and] [have] [rice grains]
人臣之上祿也。[people] [servants] ['s] [on top] [prosperity] [it is]

 An extreme amount of rice grains is the best prosperity of all people and servants.

取中穗,[take] [among] [ears]
是中台之象也。[this] [middle] [one] ['s] [sign]

 He took the middle sign out of these ears.

於字,『禾』『失』為『秩』,[in] [the words] [rice grain] [loss] [is] [order/salary/decade]
雖曰失之,[even] [say] [lose] [it]
乃所以祿也。[but] [what is taken] [priority] [it is]

 In the words "rice grain" and "loss" is the word "salary," and even though a person says they have lost it, what they have taken is the priority.

兗職中闕,[establish] [office] [in palace]
君其補之。」[lords] [they] [restore] [it]

 By establishing an office in the palace, lords replenish (their income).

旬月,[period of time] [month]
徵焉。  [then] [Mao] [summoned him] [there]

After a period of months Mao was summoned there.

Notes
  • 蔡茂:
    • 蔡茂(公元前24年―公元47年6月19日),字子礼,河内怀县人也。Cai Mao (24 BC to 47); cognomen Zili, was a native of Huai County in Henei. 
    • 汉哀帝、汉平帝年间以儒学闻名,征召试为博士,对策陈述灾异,以优异被擢拜为议郎,迁侍中。In the periods of Emperor Ai of Han and Emperor Ping of Han he was famous for Confucianism; enlisted as a court academicians; in resolved disasters and was eventually appointed.
    • 王莽居摄,蔡茂以有病自动免职,不肯在王莽下面做官。When he came across Wang Mang, Cai Mao was taken to have an illness and voluntarily stepped down from his positition; he pretended to be sick and did not consent to serve Wang Mang. [1]
  • 河內:河内郡,是漢代畿、名郡,位於今日河南北部、河北南部和山東西部,今河南省,即洛陽開封一帶。Henei county was a territorial county in the Han Dynasty; the name of the county; situated in modern Heibu (Henan), Nanbu (Henan) and Xibu (Shandong); now Henan Province is the region of Luoyang and Kaifang.
    中國古以黃河以北為河內。戰國時河內為魏國領土。Ancient China took the Yellow River to be Henei. In the Warring States period it was the territory of the state of Wu.
    秦末民变司馬卬項羽封為殷王,都城在河內。In the popular uprising that ended the Qin Dynasty (207 BC), Sima Ang was conferred the title of flourishing king by Xiang Yu (232-202 BC), and the capital city was in Heinei.
    漢高祖即位時設置殷國,次年改名為河内郡,位於太行山東南與黃河以北。與河東郡河南郡合稱三河,领十六:汲县、共县、林虑县、获嘉县、修武县、野王县、州县、怀县(郡治)、平皋县、河阳县、沁水县、轵县、山阳县、温县、朝歌县、武德县。When it was the succession of Gaozu of Han he established a prosperous state, and in the subsequent years changed the name to Heinei county situated in the Taihang Mountains to the south-east and the Yellow River to the north. With Hedong county and Henan county as the general term for the three rivers, there were 16 counties: Ji, Gong, Linhu, Huojia, Xiuwu, Yewang, Zhou, Huai, Pinggao, Heyang, Qinshui, Zhi, Shanyang, Wen, Zhaoge and Wude.
    漢武帝時,河內郡守王溫舒“令郡具私馬五十疋為驛,自河內至長安”[1],可知河內當時有大量養殖牲畜。In the time of Emperor Wu of Han, The Commandery Governer Wang Wenshu commanded the county coffers of private horses numbering 50 for the relay station; from Henei to Changan; could know at that time there were a great number of domestic animals being raised.
     西漢官員在河內推動了許多防洪工程。Western Han Dynasty officials in Henei pushed for many engineering projects to avoid flooding.
    西漢末期,中國的經濟重心和基本經濟區,已從關中轉移到河內一帶。In the end of the Western Han Dynasty, the centre of China's economy and fundamental economic regions already followed a shift in focus from Guanzhong to Henei.
    漢光武帝劉秀起兵,把河內委托給最信賴的部下寇恂,令他準備和轉運軍糧。 Han Guang Wu Di Liu Xiu raised an army; Henei was entrusted to the most reliable subordinate, Kou Xun, and ordered him to prepare and forward goods and army provisions.[2]
  • 主簿:主簿中國古代官職名称,属于文官。The official registrar is the name of a bureaucratic job in ancient China; categorized under the subdivision of secretarial.
    此官职大概开始于漢朝,主管文書簿籍印鑑,即起草一些文件、管理档案、以及各种印章等,大致相当于现代的秘书主任秘書一职。This official position started in the Han Dynasty; the official registrar secretarial records and duplicate making prompted the rise of various documents and management archives as well as all kinds of seals and so on; it is approximately equivalent to the role of a modern secretary or executive secretary.
  • 郭賀:郭贺(1世纪-63年),字乔卿,广汉郡雒县(今四川省广汉市)人,中国東漢官员。 Guo He (1-63), cognomen Qiaoqing, was a native of Luo County in Guanghan (modern Guanghan City in Sichuan Province); he was an official in China's Dong Han.

    祖父郭坚伯,父亲郭游君,都有气节,不出仕王莽。His grandfather was Guo Jianbo and his father was Guo Youjun; all of whom were unflinchingly righteous and did not take any official posts to serve Wang Mang.

    郭贺通晓法律,初为广汉主簿,广汉郡太守蔡茂梦见坐在大屋子里,房梁上有三株谷穗,蔡茂跳起来拿,得到中间的一棵,马上就弄丢了。Guo He was proficient in the law, and at first was the assistant magistrate of Guanghan; the lord protector of Guanghan Cai Mao dreamt that he sat in the great hall, and on the roofbeams there were three ears of grain; Cai Mao jumped up to grab them, getting the middle grain, and immediately lost it.

    他问主簿郭贺,郭贺离席庆贺:“大屋是宫府的形象。He asked the assistent magistrate Guo He; Guo He left a banquet to congratulate He: "The great hall is the form that government takes.

    房梁上有禾穗,是人臣的上禄征兆。The ears of grain on the roof beams are the sign of an increased official's salary.

    得到中间的一棵,是中台之位。Getting the middle grain is a sign that one will gain the middle position.

    文字上禾失为秩,虽说是丢失,实际是得到禄秩。In writing the 禾 (grain) on the 失 (loss) is 秩 (order); even though it is a loss, the reality is that he has gained official rank and pay.

    三公有空缺(衮职有阙[1]),府君会补任的。” The three ducal ministers had vacencies (the imperial offices had watchtowers); the prefecture lords could fill them in.

    不满一月,汉光武帝徵蔡茂为司徒,蔡茂辟郭贺为司徒。Before a month had passed, Emperor Guanwu of Han invited Cai Mao to become the minister of history; Cai Mao enlisted Guo He to become the minister of education/history official.

    建武年间,郭贺累官为尚书令,在任六年,通晓原来的行政惯例,对时政多有匡益。In the time of Jianwu, Guo He accumulated officials as government ministers; in his 6th year of serving he was proficient in the original procedurial processes; in regards to the procedures of the time he had many improvements.

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