The Book of Rites

About this book

The Book of Rites (simplified 礼记; traditional 禮記; Lǐjì), literally the Record of Rites, is a collection of texts describing the social forms, administration, and ceremonial rites of the Zhou Dynasty as they were understood in the Warring States and the early Han periods. The Book of Rites, along with the Rites of Zhou (Zhouli) and the Book of Etiquette and Rites (Yili), which are together known as the "Three Li (San li)," constitute the ritual (li) section of the Five Classics which lay at the core of the traditional Confucian canon (Each of the "five" classics is a group of works rather than a single text). As a core text of the Confucian canon, it is also known as the Classic of Rites (simplified 礼经; traditional 禮經; Lǐjīng), which some scholars believe this was the original title before it was changed by Dai Sheng.