Book of Songs

魏风·硕鼠

Wèi fēng · Shuò shǔ

佚名

Yì míng

Shuò shǔ shuò shǔ, wú shí wǒ shǔ! Sān suì guàn rǔ, mò wǒ kěn gù. Shì jiāng qù rǔ, shì bǐ lè tǔ. Lè tǔ lè tǔ, yuán dé wǒ suǒ.

硕鼠硕鼠，无食我黍！三岁贯女，莫我肯顾。逝将去女，适彼乐土。乐土乐土，爰得我所。

Shuò shǔ shuò shǔ, wú shí wǒ mài! Sān suì guàn rǔ, mò wǒ kěn dé. Shì jiāng qù rǔ, shì bǐ lè guó. Lè guó lè guó, yuán dé wǒ zhí.

硕鼠硕鼠，无食我麦！三岁贯女，莫我肯德。逝将去女，适彼乐国。乐国乐国，爰得我直。

Shuò shǔ shuò shǔ, wú shí wǒ miáo! Sān suì guàn rǔ, mò wǒ kěn láo. Shì jiāng qù rǔ, shì bǐ lè jiāo. Lè jiāo lè jiāo, shuí zhī yǒng háo?

硕鼠硕鼠，无食我苗！三岁贯女，莫我肯劳。逝将去女，适彼乐郊。乐郊乐郊，谁之永号？

Translation

Great rat, great rat—do not eat my millet! For years I have served and fed you, yet you have never cared for me. I am going to leave you and go to that happy land. Happy land, happy land—there I shall find my place. Great rat, great rat—do not eat my wheat! For years I have supported you, yet you have shown me no kindness. I am going to leave you and go to that happy state. Happy state, happy state—there I shall receive what is just. Great rat, great rat—do not eat my young grain! For years I have supported you, yet you have never comforted me. I am going to leave you and go to that happy countryside. Happy countryside, happy countryside—who then will cry out forever?

Analysis

“The Great Rat” is one of the most famous poems of protest in the Book of Songs. The “great rat” is a blunt and powerful image for a greedy ruler or exploiter. It eats the people’s millet, wheat, and young grain—an image of repeated seizure of labor’s fruits. The phrase “for three years” suggests long endurance and accumulated resentment. Yet the poem does not stop at complaint. The speaker declares a decision to leave: “I shall go away from you.” The “happy land,” “happy state,” and “happy countryside” may not be literal places; they are imagined spaces of justice and rest. The poem moves from anger to departure, from accusation to the hope of another life.

About the Author

The airs in the Book of Songs were largely drawn from regional songs of the Zhou world, and their individual authors are unknown. They are therefore traditionally attributed to “Anonymous.” These poems preserve voices from folk singing, ritual occasions, labor, love, marriage, complaint, longing, and public life. Their language is simple yet highly shaped by repetition, rhythm, and image. Because they are not tied to a single named poet, they carry a broader collective memory of early Chinese society and form one of the deepest sources of the Chinese poetic tradition.