We have already encountered the words 無 wú and 亡 wú as negative predicatives (see 14.4). In the Early Preclassical language, they could also serve as definitive pronouns. Positioned after the subject, such a pronoun indicates that none of the objects or persons expressed by the subject performs the actions indicated by the predicate: 文王孫亡克兢厥烈 wén wáng sūn wú kè jìng jué liè "None of the descendants of King Wen could rival his exploits."
When the subject is known, the subject can be omitted: 無敢酣 wú gǎn hān "No one dared to get drunk."
The pronouns 無 wú and 亡 wú can also be used in a negative sentence: 文王孫亡弗帥型 wén wáng sūn wú fú shuài xíng "Among the descendants of King Wen, there was no one who did not follow the example of their ancestors."
In the latter case, after the definitive pronoun 無 wú or 亡 wú, the function word 咸 xián or 率 shuài may appear immediately before the predicate: 父身三年靜東國，亡不咸斁天威 fù shēn sān nián jìng dōng guó, wú bù xián yì tiān wēi "Father pacified the eastern countries for three years, and there was not a single one among them that did not submit to the will of Heaven" (or: "... they all submitted").
The word 故 gù is used in pre-classical languages with the notional meaning "cause." It can also function as a conjunction indicating a cause-and-effect relationship between a subordinate clause and the main clause (equivalent to the English "therefore," "for this reason").
The conjunction 故 gù introduces the main clause, so it can serve as a guide for dividing the text—determining the end of a subordinate clause: 殷正百辟率肆于酒, 故喪純祀 yīn zhèng bǎi pì shuài sì yú jiǔ, gù sāng chún sì "All the Yin officials and local rulers became mired in drunkenness, so they lost the right to perform sacred sacrifices."
腥味在上, 故天降喪于殷 xīng wèi zài shàng, gù tiān jiàng sāng yú yīn "The foul odor spread upward, and so Heaven sent down destruction upon Yin."
The cornerstone of the socio-political views that prevailed during the Zhou era was the idea of the divine origin of the supreme ruler's power.
The rise of the Zhou tribe, which overthrew the Yin king and took his place, was explained and justified by the concept of a "command," "order," or "mandate," supposedly bestowed upon the Zhou leader by Heaven. The Yin ruler, who had previously enjoyed this mandate, proved unworthy of it. Therefore, Heaven chose a new deputy, an earthly ruler.
What explains this change in Heaven's will?
The rationale for this point of the "Mandate of Heaven" concept was paramount in justifying the Zhou conquest, which could otherwise be viewed as an act of violence and blasphemy. This rationale, advanced by the Zhou, rests on moral and ethical categories.
The State of Yin had once been the chosen one of Heaven, but the last Yin kings were immoral, and Heaven turned against them.
In contrast, the ruler of Zhou, who received the Mandate of Heaven and the order to carry out Heaven's will, possessed all the virtues necessary for a ruler of the Celestial Empire.
Here is how King Wen's victory in "Shijing" is explained:
This King Wen is our Enlightened King, and he
He was attentive and full of care in his heart.
He served the Supreme Lord of Heaven with glory,
He received many blessings and bounties from Heaven.
He is virtuous and virtuous beyond reproach!
He ascended to the throne of the world, and with him his family.
One of the many accusations leveled post-factum by the Zhou people against the last Yin king, Di Xin, was that he indulged in unbridled extravagance, and that in his palace "animal carcasses piled up like a forest, and wine flowed like a river."
Perhaps the underlying reason for Di Xin's condemnation was quite prosaic. As is well known, the Zhou people were inferior to the Yin in terms of socioeconomic development. Yin agriculture, in particular, was much more advanced, so the Zhou people simply could not afford the luxury of using large quantities of grain to make wine (wine in ancient China was made from various varieties of millet).
During the Zhou Dynasty, a standard (旂 qí) was a distinctive mark of an aristocrat that indicated his location during battle. Such a standard was also used for hunting. It was a piece of cloth depicting a sacred animal. It was attached to a wooden handle and was equipped with metal bells.
At first glance, it may not be entirely clear why the king would give Yu his grandfather's standard. Other inscriptions contain even stranger references to the ruler giving his subordinates... the loincloths of their ancestors.
This is explained by the fact that during the Zhou period, clothing, weapons, chariots, standards, etc., served as indicators of a member's social status. The color and cut of clothing could be used to accurately determine a person's social status.
Therefore, by gifting an aristocrat with clothing or weapons of the type corresponding to a certain social rank, the ruler officially recognized their rights.
If we consider that the son occupied the same position in society as his father (and therefore his grandfather), it becomes clear that the granting of his grandfather's standard to Yu meant: