IV. Sacrifice and the Honoring of the Root: Returning to the Origin of Things

4.1 Honoring the Root: Why Set Out Plain Water and Raw Fish First at a Sumptuous Feast$17

In the "Discourse on Ritual Propriety," Master Xun devotes considerable space to the details of sacrificial ritual. To modern readers unfamiliar with the sacrificial institutions of ancient China, these discussions may seem foreign, even tedious. Yet behind these details lies a profoundly deep principle — honoring the root (gui ben).

Let us first see what Master Xun says:

Thus the king pairs Heaven with the Great Ancestor in sacrifice; the feudal lords dare not do away with their own ancestral temples; the great officers and knights have their fixed lineage-temples — all so as to distinguish the honoring of the beginning. To honor the beginning is to attain the root.

— Xunzi, "Discourse on Ritual Propriety," Passage 6

The Son of Heaven pairs Heaven with the Great Ancestor in sacrifice; the feudal lords dare not abolish their respective ancestral temples; the great officers and knights each have a fixed lineage-temple — all of this exists for the purpose of "honoring the beginning" (gui shi), that is, respecting and cherishing origins. "Honoring the beginning" is precisely "attaining the root of things."

Master Xun goes on to describe concretely how "honoring the root" is expressed within sacrificial ritual:

In the feast, though dark wine is exalted, wine and sweet liquor are also used; though millet and grain come first, rice and fine grain are served as the meal. In sacrifice, though the great unseasoned broth is set out, the many fine dishes satisfy hunger. This is to honor the root while drawing near to use. To honor the root is called pattern (wen); to draw near to use is called reason (li). When the two are joined, pattern is achieved, and all returns to the Great Unity — this is called the Great Exaltation.

— Xunzi, "Discourse on Ritual Propriety," Passage 10

In the feast-rite (xiang, the rite of banqueting), although fine wine (jiu li) is provided, dark wine — that is, plain water, or an extremely weak brew — must first be set out. Although the food served is fine rice and grain, millet — the ancient, coarser grain — must first be offered. In sacrifice, although various delicacies (shu xiu) are present, the great broth — pure meat broth with no seasoning whatsoever — must first be set out.

Why act in this way$18 Because these simple foods — plain water, raw fish, unseasoned broth — represent the original condition of things, representing the earliest manner of eating and drinking among the ancient forebears. To set them out first, before proceeding to fine foods, is to express respect for the root, the origin.

4.2 Pattern and Reason: Honoring the Root While Drawing Near to Practical Use

Master Xun here introduces two important concepts:

• Wen (文, "pattern" or "form"): in this context, wen refers to "form" or "outward expression." "To honor the root is called wen" — the honoring of the root is wen. Here wen does not mean "writing" but rather "an ornamented expression," "a form given refined shape."
• Li (理, "reason" or "principle," not to be confused with 礼 "li, ritual propriety" — a different character pronounced the same way): in this context, li (理) refers to "substance," to "the actual reasoning or practical use of a thing." "To draw near to use is called li (理)" — attending to practical need is li (理).

"When the two are joined, pattern is achieved, and all returns to the Great Unity" — when wen (the formal honoring of the root) and li 理 (attention to practical need) are joined together, the "Great Unity" (da yi) — the highest unification — is attained. This is called the "Great Exaltation" (da long) — the most solemn form of li.

This idea is profound indeed. It shows that li is neither a purely symbolic act nor a purely utilitarian one, but rather the unity of symbol and utility. In sacrifice, the sequence of first setting out plain water and only then serving fine wine is itself an expression of meaning: it expresses that even as we enjoy fine and refined food, we do not forget the fundamental origin of things.

This spirit of "honoring the root" finds parallels in modern life as well. Consider, for instance, a family that, having moved into a new home, still keeps some old object inherited from an ancestor — not because the object has great practical value, but because it carries the memory of "the root." Or consider how, in many cultures, festival celebrations retain certain ancient elements that seem "out of step with the times" — the function of these elements is not practical, but is precisely that of "honoring the root."

4.3 "It Is All One": The Logic of Unity Amid Multiplicity

Throughout Master Xun's detailed description of sacrificial institutions, one phrase recurs again and again — "yi ye" (一也), "it is all one," meaning that the underlying principle is consistent.

Whether it is the exalting of dark wine among the wines, or the setting out of raw fish upon the sacrificial stand, or the placing of the great broth first among the dishes — "it is all one": the underlying principle is the same throughout.

Whether it is that the cup of felicitation is not offered as a pledge-drink, or that the meat of the completed sacrifice is not tasted, or that the food offered thrice to the spirits is not eaten by the living — "it is all one": the underlying principle is the same throughout.

This recurring phrase "it is all one" reveals an important characteristic of li: unity. Although the concrete manifestations of li differ enormously — spanning food and drink, dress, dwelling, music, mourning, sacrifice, and every other domain — the principle behind them is unified. It is much like the unified field theory of physics: although nature exhibits many different forces (gravity, electromagnetism, the strong force, the weak force), physicists believe there may be a single unifying principle behind them all.

The unifying principle that Master Xun reveals here is: honoring the root while drawing near to practical use. All instances of li, however different their outward forms, are enacting this one and the same principle.