Beauty herb - bijin kousou (English spelling) měi rén xiāng cǎo

Japanese: 美人香草 - びじんこうそう（英語表記）měi rén xiāng cǎo

Rhetoric in the ancient Chinese song and song, Chu Ci. In particular, the beautiful women seen in the Li Sao chapter are said to be metaphors for the lord, and the fragrant herbs for loyal subjects. In the preface to the Li Sao chapter of the Chu Ci Zhangju, Wang Yi writes that the good birds and fragrant herbs are metaphors for loyal subjects, the bad birds and stinking things are metaphors for slanderers, the beautiful women who cultivate the spirit are metaphors for the lord, the goddesses are metaphors for wise subjects, the dragons and phoenixes are metaphors for gentlemen, and the wind and clouds are metaphors for small people. If we assign them mechanically like Wang Yi does, we may misinterpret them, but these metaphorical systems have their roots in the ritual literature from which the Chu Ci grew, and an accurate understanding of them is essential to understanding the literature of the Chu Ci.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

中国の古代歌謡《楚辞》の修辞法。とくに離騒篇中に見える美人は主君を，香草は忠臣を比喩したものとされる。王逸は《楚辞章句》離騒篇の序において，善鳥香草は忠貞の臣を，悪禽臭物は讒侫（ざんねい）者を，霊修美人は主君を，神女たちは賢臣を，竜や鳳は君子を，風や雲は小人を比喩しているのだという。王逸のように機械的に割り当てると解釈を誤るところも出るが，これらの比喩体系は《楚辞》が成長してきた祭祀文芸にその根源をもつもので，その正確な把握は《楚辞》文学の理解のために不可欠である。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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