Mao Commentary

Zheng Xuan wrote a jian 箋 ("annotation") on the basis of the Mao commentary, a sub-commentary.

[1] Proponents of the Mao Poetry said that its text was descended from the first generation of Confucius' students, and as such should be the authoritative version.

[1] Xu Shen's influential dictionary Shuowen Jiezi, written in the 2nd century AD, quotes almost exclusively from the Mao Poetry.

[1] By the 5th century, the Lu, Qi and Han traditions had died out, leaving only the Mao Poetry, which has become the received text in use today.

[3] Only isolated fragments of the Lu text survive, among the remains of the Xiping Stone Classics.