| | 祭義: |
古者天子、諸侯必有養獸之官，及歲時，齊戒沐浴而躬朝之。犧牷祭牲，必於是取之，敬之至也。君召牛，納而視之，擇其毛而卜之，吉，然後養之。君皮弁素積，朔月，月半，君巡牲，所以致力，孝之至也。 |
| Ji Yi: |
Anciently, the son of Heaven and the feudal lords had their officers who attended to their animals; and at the proper seasons, after vigil and fasting, they washed their heads, bathed, and visited them in person, taking from them for victims those which were spotless and perfect - it was a great expression of their reverence. The ruler ordered the oxen to be brought before him, and inspected them; he chose them by their hair, divined whether it would be fortunate to use them, and if the response were favourable, he had them cared for. In his skin cap, and the white skirt gathered up at the waist, on the first day and at the middle of the month, he inspected them. Thus did he do his utmost - it was the height of filial piety. |
| | 祭義: |
古者天子、諸侯必有公桑、蠶室，近川而為之。筑宮仞有三尺，棘墻而外閉之。及大昕之朝，君皮弁素積，卜三宮之夫人世婦之吉者，使入蠶于蠶室，奉種浴于川；桑於公桑，風戾以食之。歲既殫矣，世婦卒蠶，奉繭以示于君，遂獻繭于夫人。夫人曰：「此所以為君服與？」遂副褘而受之，因少牢以禮之。古之獻繭者，其率用此與！及良日，夫人繅，三盆手，遂布于三宮夫人世婦之吉者使繅；遂朱綠之，玄黃之，以為黼黻文章。服既成，君服以祀先王先公，敬之至也。 |
| Ji Yi: |
Anciently, the son of Heaven and the feudal lords had their own mulberry trees and silkworms' house; the latter built near a river, ten cubits in height, the surrounding walls being topped with thorns, and the gates closed on the outside. In the early morning of a very bright day, the ruler, in his skin cap and the white skirt, divined for the most auspicious of the honourable ladies in the three palaces of his wife, who were then employed to take the silkworms into the house. They washed the seeds in the stream, gathered the leaves from the mulberry trees, and dried them in the wind to feed the worms. When the (silkworm) year was ended, the honourable ladies had finished their work with the insects, and carried the cocoons to show them to the ruler. They then presented them to his wife, who said, 'Will not these supply the materials for the ruler's robes?' She forthwith received them, wearing her head-dress and the robe with pheasants on it, and afterwards caused a sheep and a pig to be killed and cooked to treat (the ladies). This probably was the ancient custom at the presentation of the cocoons. Afterwards, on a good day, the wife rinsed some of them thrice in a vessel, beginning to unwind them, and then distributed them to the auspicious and honourable ladies of her three palaces to (complete) the unwinding. They then dyed the thread red and green, azure and yellow, to make the variously coloured figures on robes. When the robes were finished, the ruler wore them in sacrificing to the former kings and dukes; all displayed the greatest reverence. |
