What inspires the lyrics behind Zy the Way's music?

The lyrics of ZY THE WAY are inspired by the ancient poems of the Shijing (詩經), also known as the Classic of Poetry or Book of Songs. Dating back to over 3,000 years, the Shijing is the oldest known collection of Chinese poetry. The archaic nature of the poems means that for over a billion modern Mandarin speakers, reading these poems presents a challenge akin to an English speaker tackling Latin or Old English texts. ZY THE WAY breathes new life into these ancient verses, transforming them into a vibrant, contemporary experience that unveils their timeless meanings for today’s listeners.

Where did the Classic of Poetry Come from?

Legend has it that back in the Zhou dynasty (1046-256 BCE), the King would send royal scribes to all his vassal states to collect folk songs on the second month of each year. This way, the King could keep abreast of any popular sentiments and complaints his subjects may have and assess the merits and faults of his feudal lords accordingly.

These songs, having originated from different localities, were reworked by court musicians so that the rhymes conform to a standard dialect and can be set to music and performed to the King. Known as the “mores” of the states (literally “wind”風), they were carefully preserved and recited along with songs performed during court ceremonies (“elegance” 雅), and those performed during state rituals (“eulogies” 頌). Even when the power of the Zhou King had wanned; and its vassal states were constantly fighting for domination, it was still customary for diplomats from these states to exchange quotations from the songs before turning to the business of dividing territories. Those failing to recognize an allusion from the songs were mocked and ridiculed during the process.

Despite the lack of evidence, many believed that it was Confucius (551-479BCE) who selected and edited these songs from over 3000 to the received version of 305, known as the “three hundred” songs. It is evident from the Analects 論語 that the sage himself placed great importance on the study of these songs. Once passing by his son in the courtyard, Confucius inquired whether his son has studied the songs, when the answer was negative, the sage replied, “if you don’t study the songs, you will have nothing to express yourself with”. On another occasion, Confucius told his students that with these ancient songs, “one can inspire, observe, unite, and express resentment” as well as learn “in great numbers the names of fish, birds, beasts, plants, and trees”. (footnote 1.)

When Confucianism became the dominant state ideology four centuries after Confucius’ death, the Book of Songs was elevated into one of the five Confucian Classics. Since then until the beginning of the 20th century, the Book of Songs had survived in two parallel traditions: one of learned Confucian commentary, and the other of poetic memory and allusion. (footnote 2.) Thus, for over two millennia, the Book of Songs existed and spoke in multiple voices. This delightful ambiguity, to quote Martin Kern, a scholar at Princeton university, means that ‘in short, it was never about what the songs – all of them anonymous – originally meant, or where they came from. It was always about something else: how can you make them mean something new?’ (footnote 3.)

1. Martin Kern, “Early Chinese Literature, Beginnings through Western Han” in The Cambridge History of Chinese Literature Volume 1, eds. Kang-i Sun Chang and Stephen Owen, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), p.19.

2. Martin Kern, “The Book of Songs: Poems that helped shape Chinese thought”, BBC, 30 May 2018, online at: https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20180525-the-book-of-songs-poems-that-helped-shape-chinese-thought.

3. Ibid.

Written by Dr. Annie Luman Ren 任路漫

Dr. Annie Luman Ren is a literary scholar and award-winning translator specializing in classical Chinese literature. Annie is currently a postdoctoral fellow at The Australian Centre on China in the World, The Australian National University, Canberra.