The Meaning of Zhousong: The Zhou’s Propaganda and Tradition
Abstract
Zhousong (周頌, the Hymns of the Zhou) is an important part of Shijing, with 31 poems in the compilation, and these poems were played in the Zhou’s ancestral temple for ritual purposes. The character “Song” (頌) has a structure that can be interpreted as a man praising with a gesture of respect, so it has acquired the meaning of countenance. That’s why Zhousong means the countenance of the Zhou. The kings of the Zhou used Zhousong as propaganda that magnified the virtue of themselves, for they claimed to receive mandate from High Heaven because of their virtues. That propaganda not only played an important role in the Zhou’s rule, but also gradually became a tradition in Chinese culture after the Zhou Dynasty with the transmission and re-interpretations of Zhousong. Thus, Zhousong, which can be regarded as a part of Cultural Memory of China, has left a profound impact on Chinese civilization. How people interpret Zhousong and the historical studies of Zhousong today is related to the understanding of Chinese civilization.
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