JapSin II, 23
Xixue fan 西學凡.
By Ai Rulüe 艾儒略 (Giulio Aleni).
One juan. Bamboo paper bound in one volume, European style. Reprinted by the Qinyitang 欽一堂, the Catholic church in Fuzhou (Fujian). No date of publication.

There is a label with the title on the cover. The Latin inscription reads: “De Scientiis Europaeis | et de modo studiendi.”

Aleni wrote this book at the request of some of his friends who were interested in European knowledge and scholarship. It is an outline of studies then given at European universities, namely: rhetorica 勒鐸理加, philosophia 斐錄所費亞, medicina 默第濟納, leges 勒義斯 (law), canones 加諾搦斯 (canon law) and theologia 陡祿日亞. The text of the Nestorian inscription of 781 is given at the end.

The book received an unfavorable criticism from the editors of the Siku quanshu 四庫全書. Their comments, based on irrelevant information, show misapplied erudition. The fact that they took Nestorianism as identical with Zoroastrianism shows great ignorance on their part (cf. SKTY 3:1630–31).
At the end of his book Aleni revealed an ambitious project which he had in mind, namely, to gather together a number of scholars who would devote their time to the translation of books into Chinese. It might take ten-odd years for these books to be published, but he was confident that they would come out successfully. Yang Tingyun in his preface gave full support to Aleni’s project. He stressed emphatically that one should not let slip the knowledge which Aleni had introduced in his book. “Give me a decade and with the help of scores of hands we shall bring our work to its completion.” He spoke of the 7,000-odd volumes that were being sent from Europe to China through the efforts of Nicolas Trigault. Unfortunately both Yang Tingyun and Aleni died before their great project could be realized; it remained only an aspiration.

He Qiaoyuan (zi 稚孝, hao 匪莪) was a native of Jinjiang 晉江 (Fujian). He obtained his jinshi degree in 1586 (Wanli 14). During the Chongzhen period he served as vice-minister at the Ministry of Works. He was a man of erudition, with deep interest in his native province and in the history and literature of the dynasty he served. He is known for his Mingshan cang 名山藏 (a history of the Ming dynasty), Minshu 閩書 (a gazetteer of Fujian) and Huang Ming wenzheng 皇明文徵. He was a friend of the missioners and seems to have taken great interest in foreign things, about which one can find much in his opera omnia, the Jingshan quanji 鏡山全集 (seventy-two plus five juan; preface dated 1641).
Xu Xuchen was native of Qiantang (Zhejiang). This is all the editors of the Siku tiyao knew about him, next to the two books he wrote: Yugong guanglan 禹貢廣覽 and Gaizai tuxian 蓋載圖憲. According to the editors, the latter book derived from Adam Schall, which indicates that he was a friend of Schall or perhaps a disciple of his (cf. SKTY 3:2222). In his preface Yang Tingyun tells us that Xu Xuchen, Xiong Shiqi, and Yuan Zisheng 袁子升 were all his friends and with their collaboration he expected to translate European books into Chinese. Xu’s introduction to the Xixue fan gives no hint that he was a Christian, but there is no doubt that he was a friend of the missioners and an admirer of Western studies. According to D’Elia he was a Christian (FR, II, p. 494, n. 2).

Cf. Pfister, p. 135, no. 21; Feng 1938, p. 160; Hsü 1949, pp. 289–294; JWC 1:195; DMB 1:2–6 (Aleni), 507–509 (He Qiaoyuan).
Source: Albert Chan, S.J., Chinese Books and Documents in the Jesuit Archives in Rome, pp. 303-304.

JapSin II, 23 D
Xixuefan 西學凡.
By Ai Rulüe 艾儒略 (Giulio Aleni).

This is an exact copy of Jap-Sin II, 23.
Source: Albert Chan, S.J., Chinese Books and Documents in the Jesuit Archives in Rome, p. 304.

For full bibliographic and textual citation see: Ad Dudink & Nicolas Standaert, Chinese Christian Texts Database (CCT-Database).
Local access dig.pdf. [Yulan Xifang yaoji.pdf]

JapSin II, 158
Yulan Xifang yaoji 御覽西方要紀.
By Lodovico Buglio, Gabriel de Magalhães, and Ferdinand Verbiest.
One juan, bamboo paper in one ce with a paper case. 1669. No place of publication.

The inside of the cover bears a label with a Latin inscription: “Si fang yao ki | Occidentalium (rerum) | compendium | a PP. Buglio | de Magalhaens | et Verbiest | 1669 scriptum | V. Sommervogel v^o Buglio.” There is a note by D’Elia that reads: “Supplica offerta da questi | 3 Padri all’Imperatore nel 1669 | in favore dell’innocenza dei | Missionari (e di Schall) | cf Pfister I, 242, 14.”

Mémoire sur l’Occident présenté à l’Empereur. Cet opuscule, daté de 1669, contient un rapport des trois Pères alors présents à la capitale, Magalhaens, Buglio, Verbiest. En voici l’origine. Kang-Hi venait de prendre en mains les rênes du gouvernement. Après des expériences repétées, Verbiest avait convaincu toute la Cour de l’ignorance du Musulman Ou Ming-Hiuen [吳明烜]. L’Empereur dès lors donne aux Pères des témoignages de bienveillance extraordinaires. Il les appelle au Palais, s’entretient familièrement avec eux, offre goûters et friandises, les questionne sur les sciences et les gouvernements de l’Europe, et se montre enchanté des instruments d’horlogerie, appareils de physique amusante moitié enfantains, moitié serieux qu’ils lui font parvenir. Pour satisfaire sa curiosité, et réprondre plus amplement aux questions posées par l’Empereur encore tout jeune (en 1669 Kang-Hi n’avait que 14 ans), les trois Pères s’entendirent pour composer cette relation sur les choses d’Europe. (Van Hée 1913, pp. 28–29)

Ensuitte, ils luy presenterent une brieve relacion des choses d’Europe en langue chinoise, pour satisfaire plainement a sa curiosité, et respondre a diverses questions, qu’il leur avoit faict quelques jours auparavant. Et dans cette relation ils ensererent deux points de grande importance: le 1^r quelle loy ou relligion on suivoit en Europe, et le 2^d quels estoient les predicateurs de cette loy. Et bien que l’Empereur entende et parle fort bien la langue chinoise, il vo(u)lut neanmoins que cette relation fust traduitte en langue tartare” (pp. 41–42).

If there are no direct proofs against the violator of the law, even if the judge witnessed the violation of the law, he is not to impose a heavy penalty on the violator (folio 8r, on legal systems).
Generally speaking, Europeans esteem highly [the virtues of] loyalty and faithfulness. To be unfaithful would be considered as a great disgrace. Hence to call somebody disloyal and a liar would be intolerable (folio 8v, on business transactions).
They like to be frank, and would not dream of cheating others. They maintain as a principle the love of one’s neighbor as oneself and they try to share their fortune with others . . . . In dealing with others they lay stress on humbleness. As a result, it is rare to find in the country people who are not being looked after. They are especially courteous to foreign visitors (folio 10r, on the temperament of the people).
[They set up institutions] for orphans and abandoned children, considering that the poor cannot raise their many children and that it would be a crime to have their children drowned (folio 10v, on works of charity).
Marriage between man and woman, in general, takes place at the age of about twenty, when they are fully grown up, and the engagement takes place at an opportune time. It is done by mutual consent. The property of the wife [is so protected that] the husband cannot dispose of it at will. If the husband happens to commit a crime or if he is in debt, the judge can make him pay from his own property; but he cannot make use of the property of his wife (folio 12r, on marriage).
The Western countries profess only Catholicism and for the past sixteen centuries there has been great peace. The morality and the customs of the peoples are in great harmony. They live in abundance and are happy, each with his own work without quarrels or greed for other peoples’ property (folio 12v, on religion).
The religious enter an order when they are young, and they take the vows not to marry or to seek government honors . . . . They have to pass their examinations with distinction before they are allowed to preach in foreign lands, and they are not allowed to return again to their home lands. Thus, though their origin is in the West, nevertheless they spend their lives in places where they happen to be (folio 13r, on religion).

Source: Albert Chan, S.J., Chinese Books and Documents in the Jesuit Archives in Rome, pp. 442-444.

Full text online at Galllica.

御覽西方要紀Yu lan xi fang yao ji.Mémoire sur l'Occident présenté à l'Empereur.
Source: gallica.bnf.fr