When King Wu attacked the tyrant Chou, as he came to Hsing-ch’iu, the yoke on his chariot horses broke into three pieces, and rain fell for three days without stopping. King Wu was afraid and summoned T’ai-kung, to whom he said, "It seems to me that the time has not yet come when Chou can be attacked."
T’ai-kung replied, "Not so. That the carriage yoke broke into three pieces means our army should be divided into three. The three days' rain without a stop was intended to wash our weapons."
King Wu said, "In that case, what shall we do?"
T’ai-kung said, "Love for a person reaches to the crows on his roof; hate for a person includes the very walls of his village. Let us slay all our enemies, so that none will be left over."
King Wu said, "Ah, the empire is not yet established!"
The Duke of Chou hastened forward and said, "Not so. Let each regulate his own home and till his own fields. Without regard for old or new, befriend only good men. If the people commit a fault, let it be my sole responsibility."
King Wu said, "Ah, the empire has been established."
Thereupon he put his troops in order and checked their advance at Ning. He changed the name of Hsing-ch’iu to Huai; Ning he called Hsiu-wu. He marched to defeat the tyrant Chou in the Plain of Mu. The Ode says,
The wilderness of Mu spread out extensive;
Bright shone the chariots of sandal;
The teams of bays, black-maned and white-bellied, galloped along;
The grand-master Shang-fu
Was like an eagle on the wing.
Bright was King Wu,
Who at one onset smote the great Shang.
The morning of the encounter was clear and bright.
After he had gone to the capital of Shang, before descending from his chariot he enfeoffed the descendants of Huang-ti in Chi, the descendants of the Emperor Yao in Chu, and the descendants of Shun in Ch’ên. After descending from his chariot, he enfeoffed the descendants of the Hsia imperial family in Ch’i, and the descendants of Yin in Sung. He raised a mound over the grave of Pi-kan, released Chi-tzŭ from prison, and marked out the village gate of Shang-jung.
Crossing the River, he went to the west and released the warhorses south of Mt. Hua to show that they would not again be mounted. The oxen he turned loose in the plain around T’ao-lin to show that they would not again be yoked to carts. War chariots and armour he had consecrated with blood and stored away in depots to show they would not again be used.
After that he disbanded his army and held archery practice in the suburbs. On the left they shot their arrows to the song li-shou, and on the right to the song tsou-yü. Thereafter the empire knew that King Wu would not again employ troops. When he sacrificed in the ancestral temple, the people learned about filial piety. He held open court and from that the feudal lords learned about respect. He seated the three outstanding old men in the Great School, and he, the Son of Heaven, respectfully served them with sauce and gave them cups to rinse out their mouths. In this manner he taught the feudal lords the behaviour proper to a younger brother. These four acts constitute the great teachings of the empire. Now was it not fitting that King Wu was long on the throne? The Ode says,
You vanquished Yin, put a stop to its cruelties,
And effected the firm establishment of your merit.
It says that when Wu attacked the tyrant Chou, Yin was lost.
武王伐纣，到于邢丘，楯折为三，天雨，三日不休。武王心惧，召太公而问曰：“意者，纣未可伐乎？”太公对曰：“不然。楯折为三者，军当分为三也。天雨、三日不休，欲洒吾兵也。”武王曰：“然何若矣？”太公曰：“爱其人，及屋上乌；恶其人者，憎其骨馀。咸刘厥敌，靡使有馀。”武王曰：“于戏！天下未定也！”周公趋而进曰：“不然。使各度其宅，而佃其田，无获旧新。百姓有过，在予一人。”武王曰：“于戏！天下已定矣。”乃修武勒兵于甯，更名邢丘曰怀，甯曰修武，行克纣于牧之野。
《诗》曰：
既反商，及下车，封黄帝之后于蒯，封帝尧之后于祝，封舜之后于陈。下车而封夏后氏之后于杞，封殷之后于宋，封比干之墓，释箕子之囚，表商容之闾。济河而西，马放华山之阳，示不复乘；牛放桃林之野，示不复服也；车甲衅而藏之于府库，示不复用也。于是废军而郊射，左射狸首，右射驺虞，然后天下知武王不复用兵也。祀乎明堂，而民知孝；朝觐，然后诸侯知以敬；坐三老于大学，天子执酱而馈，执爵而酳，所以教诸侯之悌也。此四者，天下之大教也。夫武之久，不亦宜乎！
《诗》曰：
T’ai-kung replied, "Not so. That the carriage yoke broke into three pieces means our army should be divided into three. The three days' rain without a stop was intended to wash our weapons."
King Wu said, "In that case, what shall we do?"
T’ai-kung said, "Love for a person reaches to the crows on his roof; hate for a person includes the very walls of his village. Let us slay all our enemies, so that none will be left over."
King Wu said, "Ah, the empire is not yet established!"
The Duke of Chou hastened forward and said, "Not so. Let each regulate his own home and till his own fields. Without regard for old or new, befriend only good men. If the people commit a fault, let it be my sole responsibility."
King Wu said, "Ah, the empire has been established."
Thereupon he put his troops in order and checked their advance at Ning. He changed the name of Hsing-ch’iu to Huai; Ning he called Hsiu-wu. He marched to defeat the tyrant Chou in the Plain of Mu. The Ode says,
The wilderness of Mu spread out extensive;
Bright shone the chariots of sandal;
The teams of bays, black-maned and white-bellied, galloped along;
The grand-master Shang-fu
Was like an eagle on the wing.
Bright was King Wu,
Who at one onset smote the great Shang.
The morning of the encounter was clear and bright.
After he had gone to the capital of Shang, before descending from his chariot he enfeoffed the descendants of Huang-ti in Chi, the descendants of the Emperor Yao in Chu, and the descendants of Shun in Ch’ên. After descending from his chariot, he enfeoffed the descendants of the Hsia imperial family in Ch’i, and the descendants of Yin in Sung. He raised a mound over the grave of Pi-kan, released Chi-tzŭ from prison, and marked out the village gate of Shang-jung.
Crossing the River, he went to the west and released the warhorses south of Mt. Hua to show that they would not again be mounted. The oxen he turned loose in the plain around T’ao-lin to show that they would not again be yoked to carts. War chariots and armour he had consecrated with blood and stored away in depots to show they would not again be used.
After that he disbanded his army and held archery practice in the suburbs. On the left they shot their arrows to the song li-shou, and on the right to the song tsou-yü. Thereafter the empire knew that King Wu would not again employ troops. When he sacrificed in the ancestral temple, the people learned about filial piety. He held open court and from that the feudal lords learned about respect. He seated the three outstanding old men in the Great School, and he, the Son of Heaven, respectfully served them with sauce and gave them cups to rinse out their mouths. In this manner he taught the feudal lords the behaviour proper to a younger brother. These four acts constitute the great teachings of the empire. Now was it not fitting that King Wu was long on the throne? The Ode says,
You vanquished Yin, put a stop to its cruelties,
And effected the firm establishment of your merit.
It says that when Wu attacked the tyrant Chou, Yin was lost.
武王伐纣，到于邢丘，楯折为三，天雨，三日不休。武王心惧，召太公而问曰：“意者，纣未可伐乎？”太公对曰：“不然。楯折为三者，军当分为三也。天雨、三日不休，欲洒吾兵也。”武王曰：“然何若矣？”太公曰：“爱其人，及屋上乌；恶其人者，憎其骨馀。咸刘厥敌，靡使有馀。”武王曰：“于戏！天下未定也！”周公趋而进曰：“不然。使各度其宅，而佃其田，无获旧新。百姓有过，在予一人。”武王曰：“于戏！天下已定矣。”乃修武勒兵于甯，更名邢丘曰怀，甯曰修武，行克纣于牧之野。
《诗》曰：
“牧野洋洋，
檀车皇皇，
驷騵彭彭，
维师尚父，
时维鹰扬，
凉彼武王，
肆伐大商，
会朝清明。”
既反商，及下车，封黄帝之后于蒯，封帝尧之后于祝，封舜之后于陈。下车而封夏后氏之后于杞，封殷之后于宋，封比干之墓，释箕子之囚，表商容之闾。济河而西，马放华山之阳，示不复乘；牛放桃林之野，示不复服也；车甲衅而藏之于府库，示不复用也。于是废军而郊射，左射狸首，右射驺虞，然后天下知武王不复用兵也。祀乎明堂，而民知孝；朝觐，然后诸侯知以敬；坐三老于大学，天子执酱而馈，执爵而酳，所以教诸侯之悌也。此四者，天下之大教也。夫武之久，不亦宜乎！
《诗》曰：
“胜殷遏刘，耆定尔功。”言伐纣而殷亡武也。
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