KING AND COURT 593
Yu also traced evidence of observance of these ceremonies in the Han dynasty,
the Northern Wei in the late fifth century, and the Later Chou in the mid-sixth
century. Yu described the conduct of the rite in the Later Chou as an attempt to
replicate Chou practice, particularly the care taken by the emperor to demon-
strate his own humility and respect for the aged by cutting their meat for them,
presenting them their wine cups, and asking their advice.'x
Yu conceded that it might not be possible to hold this rite every year, but he
urged that the king at least could order the Ministry of Rites to grant food to the
elderly. At present an annual banquet for the elderly (yangnoyon) was held to
honor all men over the age of eighty no matter what their status, and elderly
women were feted in a banquet in the queen's inner quarters. Yu thought that
these ceremonies were inappropriate because they were less formal and serious
than the august ritual of Chou times. Furthermore, there were too many elderly
people in the country to entertain all of them. It would be hetter to invite only
those of them who were virtuous.
The purpose behind the ritual was not simply to provide food to the elderly,
but for the king to demonstrate by his conduct his respect and deference to the
elderly much as a child would behave toward an elder. By this means the king
would encourage people to be filial toward their parents and respectful toward
their elder brothers, and to refrain from using their own strength to oppress the
weak.^19
THE KING AS CHIEF EXECUTIVESamgong: Three Moral Advisers to the KingWhen the Chou dynasty was founded at the end of the second millennium B.c.,
a fully articulated modcl of government was supposedly established, although
its description in the Book of History and Rites of Chou do not match each other
exactly. According to the Book of History, the ruler was assisted first of all by
three advisers, the San-kung, chosen for their virtue and skill in understanding
yin and yang (the complementary negative and positive forces of the cosmos)
and the transformations of nature so that they could regulate the laws and help
the ruler govern the empire. They in turn were assisted by three subordinates,
the San-ku. Since the Rites o.fChou, however, did not mention these six officials
but did include in its table of organization a couple of officials with similar titles
who were subordinates of one of the lesser ministers, a Sung dynasty commen-
tator, Ts'ai Ch'en, believed that the Rites of Chou must have been compiled by
a sage and was entitled to as much respect as the Book otHis{ory. The Rites o.f
Chou supposedly represented the regulations for officials that the duke planned
to install, but he died before he could set pen to paper.2()
The six ministers decrihed in the Book of History included a prime minister
(Ch'ung-tsai) in charge of all other officials, and ministers of education (Ssu-