Collected Illustrations of the Three Realms, Volume 73

Human Affairs: Volume Nine

Correcting the dance positions to order the entry and exit of the dancers, and having the Music Officials inspect the musical instruments—why is this done? At the gathering of the Six Types of Music original: "Liu Yue" (六樂); the six great ritual dances of ancient China representing different dynasties, the Civil and Military dances are harmonized through sound.

The Civil Dance, using the Feather and Fluteoriginal: "Yu Yue" (羽籥); the flute is held in one hand and pheasant feathers in the other, symbolizing the refinement of culture., reaches its completion in nine sections. The Military Dance, using the Shield and Battle-axeoriginal: "Gan Qi" (干戚); symbolizing the martial strength used to establish a dynasty., reaches its completion in six sections. When the rows and columns are aligned correctly without error, this is what is meant by "correcting the dance positions."

The act of exiting symbolizes the execution of justice original: "Zhu" (誅); referring to the military aspect of clearing away disorder, while entering symbolizes bowing and yielding in refinement. When the sequence of before and after is regulated and free of chaos, this is what is meant by "ordering the entry and exit of the dance."

The Music Officials rank and organize those they have instructed to evaluate the refinement or coarseness of their artistic skill. Regarding the musical instruments, they inspect the tools to be used to examine whether the sounds they produce are perfect or flawed. When both the performers and the instruments are of excellent quality, the integrity of the music and dance can be assured.

The Little Supervisororiginal: "Xiao Xu" (小胥); a junior official responsible for the physical arrangement of the ritual space. patrols the dance ranks and uses a lash to punish those who are idle or disrespectful. He also corrects the positioning of the hanging instruments original: "Yue Xuan" (樂縣); the elaborate frames from which bronze bells and stone chimes were suspended. When the ranks of dancers and the hanging instruments correspond perfectly to one another, the harmony of the sound and the dignity of the appearance are made manifest.

As for the four markers of the dance positions, although the Civil and Military dances share the same layout, the dance costumes differ:

• For the Civil Dance, the performers wear the Deerskin Caporiginal: "Pi Bian" (皮弁); a high-status cap made of white deerskin joined by ivory studs..
• They hold the flute in the left hand and grasp the pheasant feathers in the right.
• They are divided into Eight Rowsoriginal: "Ba Yi" (八佾); a formation of 8x8 dancers (64 total), which was the highest ritual honor, reserved for the Emperor..

In front of the southern markers, two musicians hold banners to lead the way; their robes and caps match those of the dancers. When the dancers stand correctly in their fixed positions, the Hall Leader original: "Tang Zhang" (堂長); the lead singer or director situated on the ritual platform begins the chant to sing the...