3.2
The Three Families used the Yong Song during the removal of the sacrificial vessels. Confucius said,
“‘By rulers and lords attended,
The Son of Heaven, mysterious….’
What possible application can such words have in the hall of the Three Families?”
三家者以雍徹。子曰：「『相維辟公，天子穆穆』，奚取於三家之堂？」
Notes
The “Three Houses” or “Three Families” refer to the three powerful aristocratic clans of Lu: Mengsun, Shusun, and Jisun. Descendants of Duke Huan of Lu, they long controlled the state’s real power, even overshadowing the ruling duke. Historically known as the “Three Huan Clans.”
Yong refers to the “Yong” chapter in the Odes of Zhou section of the Classic of Poetry (Book of Poetry), a solemn sacrificial ode. This poem depicts sacrificial rites reserved exclusively for the Son of Heaven (Emperor), symbolizing imperial dignity and ritual sanctity.
According to Zhou ritual protocols, the Yong ode could only accompany the removal of offerings during ancestral sacrifices performed by the Zhou emperor.
Though the Zhou Dynasty maintained strict patriarchal rites, by the late Spring and Autumn period, the Zhou emperor’s authority had eroded. Lords disregarded the royal house, while ministers sidelined their rulers — leading to the “collapse of rites and music”. The Three Huan Clans, having long dominated Lu’s governance, even mimicked imperial rituals like sacrifices, blatantly violating the hierarchy of status.
Their use of imperial music was not mere “protocol error” but a direct assault on the political order.
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