Xiang Cheng, Volume 15: Incense Matters IV · Burning Incense While Reading the Yi
Burning Incense While Reading the Yi — Original text (compiled and edited), with vernacular translation and annotations.
Volume 15 · Incense Matters IV · Burning Incense While Reading the Yi
Original Text (Compiled and Edited)
The ancients recorded: When scholars read, they must burn a stick of incense to clear the mind and dispel worries. This is what is meant by "burning incense and sitting in silence, to dispel worldly cares."
Vernacular Translation and Annotations
Scholars would burn a stick of incense whenever they read, to clear the mind and dispel worries. Incense and books have been an elegant pairing since the Song dynasty; burning incense while reading and while practicing calligraphy were both common practices.
Annotations
- Sitting in silence: sitting quietly
- Worldly cares: worldly thoughts
- Clearing the mind and dispel worries: calming the spirit
Editorial Notes · Editions and Compilation Notes
Edition basis:The transmitted text of Xiang Cheng takes the Ming Chongzhen-era printed edition as its ancestor; extant versions include the Wenyuan Ge Siku Quanshu edition, the Siku Huiyao edition, and various Qing manuscript copies. This compilation uses the commonly circulated collated edition as its base text, with reference to the Siku edition.
Collation for this volume:Records the elegant affair and poems of literati burning incense while reading the Yi; the imagery frequently appears in Tang and Song poetry and prose.
Facsimile comparison:The "original text" on this page is a compiled transcription (punctuated and paragraphed according to modern conventions), not a facsimile of the original book; for character-by-character collation, please consult authoritative public-domain editions:Wikisource full text of Xiang Cheng (28 volumes), Siku Quanshu edition、Wikimedia Commons facsimile scans of Xiang Cheng (National Library of China holdings and other PDFs). This site does not fabricate ancient book layouts, so it substitutes links to authoritative public-domain facsimiles.