Chinese and Arabian Literature - E. Wilson - The Search For Mecca

I40
THE SHI-KING
Each thing of the King, and the fate of the State,
On me come more and more.
And when, sad and worn, I come back forlorn,
They thrust me from the door.
So let it be ! 'tis Heaven's decree.
What can I say—a poor fellow like me ?
The Complaint of a Neglected Wife
When the upper robe is green,
With a yellow lining seen.
There we have a certain token,
Right is wronged and order broken.
How can sorrow from my heart
In a case like this depart ?
Color green the robe displays
Lower garment yellow's blaze.
Thus it is that favorite mean
In the place of wife is seen.
Vain the conflict with my grief
Memory denies relief.
; ;
Yes, 'twas you the green who dyed,
You who fed the favorite's pride.
Anger rises in my heart.
Pierces it as with a dart.
But on ancient rules lean I,
Lest to wrong my thoughts should f!y.
Fine or coarse, if thin the dress.
Cold winds always cause distress.
Hard my lot, my sorrow deep,
But my thoughts in check I keep.
Ancient story brings to mind
Sufferers who were resigned.
[Note.—Yellow is one of the five " correct " colors of the Chinese,
while green is one of the " intermediate " colors that are less esteemed.
Here we have the yellow used merely as a lining to the green, or employed
in the lower, or less honorable, part of the dress ;—an inversion
of propriety, and intimating how a favorite had usurped the place of
the rightful wife and thrust her down.]