137。
廿 |
二 |
史, |
全 |
在 |
茲。 |
niàn |
èr |
shǐ |
quán |
zài |
zī |
(twenty |
two |
histories, |
complete |
exist |
now) |
All the historical records are now contained in the 22+
official
histories.
138。
載 |
治 |
亂, |
知 |
興 |
衰。 |
zài |
zhì |
luàn |
zhī |
xìng |
shuāi |
(record |
govern |
disorder, |
know |
prosper |
decline) |
They record examples of good and bad government; study them to learn
what causes prosperity and decay.
139。
讀 |
史 |
書, |
考 |
實 |
錄。 |
dú |
shǐ |
shū |
kǎo |
shí |
lù |
(read |
history |
books, |
examine |
reality |
record) |
If you want to know history, read the official annals.
140。
通 |
古 |
今, |
若 |
親 |
目。 |
tōng |
gǔ |
jīn |
ruò |
qīn |
mù |
(connect |
ancient, |
modern, |
as if |
personal |
eye) |
Use the past to learn about the present; using the official records you
will understand as if you had personally observed.
+
Another question of number:
By the end of the Ming dynasty, there were 21 official histories, to
which were added three more, those of the Later Jin, Song and Qing. In
Phen, the line is rewritten to the effect of "if you want to know about
the dynasties, the place to look is in the official histories.",
thereby avoiding the difficulty of counting them.
In the original work, the line here refers to the seventeen official
histories that existed at the time.