Where did the Classic of Mountains and Seas originate? Where was the original text found?

The Classic of Mountains and Seas is an ancient Chinese book describing ancient Zhiwei, which was generally written by the Chu or Bashu people from the middle and late Warring States period to the early and middle Han Dynasty. It is also an absurd and strange book, and the author did not leave his name.

Regarding the discovery of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas", the earliest textual record comes from Sima Qian's "Historical Records: The Biography of Dawan", and Ban Gu's "Hanshu Yiwenzhi" also records its 18 articles, but the content has long been scattered and cannot be verified. The "Classic of Mountains and Seas", which is now recognized as being handed down, is divided into two parts: "The Classic of Mountains" and "The Classic of the Sea", with a total of 18 articles. Among them, the "Classic of Mountains" includes five parts: "The Classic of the South Mountain", "The Classic of the North Mountain", "The Classic of the East Mountain", "The Classic of the West Mountain", and "The Classic of the Middle Mountain", which mainly records the mountains and rivers, products, medicines, sacrifices, witch doctors, etc.

The Classic of the Sea includes 8 parts: "Overseas South Longitude", "Overseas West Longitude", "Overseas North Longitude", "Overseas East Longitude", "South Longitude of the Sea", "West Longitude of the Sea", "North Longitude of the Sea", and "East Longitude of the Sea", which mainly record overseas geography, domestic geography, mythology, ethnicity, etc.

The content of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" is very extensive, from folk customs, historical events, legends of people, animals and plants, the genealogy of emperors to myths and legends. It has an important influence on ancient Chinese culture, geography, history, medicine, etc., and is known as the "encyclopedia" of ancient Chinese books.

It should be noted that because the content of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" is relatively messy, many records do not match the actual situation, so we need to be cautious when reading the content.

The original Classic of Mountains and Seas appeared for the first timeSima Qian"The Biography of the Historical Records of Dawan", but the author is not stated.

The name "Classic of Mountains and Seas" first appeared in Sima Qian's "Historical Records of Dawan Liebiography", but the author was not stated. Liu Xin of the Han Dynasty.

The first one explicitly proposes the "Classic of Mountains and Seas".

Who is the author, he is in the cloud in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas": "Yu farewell to the horses prepare for Kyushu, let the soil be a tribute, and benefit and other things such as good and evil, written "The Classic of Mountains and Seas". ”

Liu Xin believed that Yi was the author of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" until the Song Dynasty, Zhu Xi.

It is proposed that "The Feast of the Mountains and the Destruction of the Sea" is only narrated according to pictures, which denies the possibility that the author is Yu and Yi.

There are different opinions about who the author of "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" is, but the general theory is that it was made by southerners, and it is not the work of one person. To go into detail, the most representative ones are the views of historian Meng Wentong, mythologists Yuan Ke, and Sun Zhizhong. Montessori believes that the "Hainei Jing" is the ancient Shu Kingdom.

The following are the works of Pakistan, and the "Mountain Classic" and "Overseas Classic" are forbidden works.

Yuan Ke identified the author as a native of Chu in "Examination of the Time, Place and Articles of the Writing of the Classic of Mountains and Seas". Sun Zhizhong believes that the earliest compiler was the Western Zhou Dynasty.

of the Relic Sorcerer.

Introduction to the Classic of Mountains and Seas

The Classic of Mountains and Seas, a strange book, is only 30,000 auspicious wisdom and more than 1,000 words, but it contains ancient geography, history, mythology, astronomy, calendar, meteorology, animals, plants, minerals, medicine, religion, archaeology, anthropology, ethnology, oceanography and history of science and technology, and many other aspects, which is an important document for the study of ancient society.

1. "The Classic of Mountains and Seas".

It is an important ancient book of pre-Qin China, and it is also the oldest strange book rich in myths and legends. The author of the book is unknown, and modern scholars believe that it was not written at one time, and the author is not alone.

2. The version of "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" is complex, with a total of 18 volumes, including 5 volumes of "The Book of Mountains" and 13 volumes of "The Book of the Sea", and the age of each volume is inconclusive, of which 14 volumes are works of the Warring States Period and 4 volumes are works of the early years of the Western Han Dynasty. It can be seen that the earliest version is Jin Guopu's "The Legend of Mountains and Seas".

But the title of the book "Classic of Mountains and Seas" is "Historical Records".

It is mentioned that the earliest purpose of the book included was "Hanshu Art and Literature Chronicles".

As for its real author, the predecessors believed that it was Yu and Boyi, and it was edited by Liu Xiang and Liu Xin in the Western Han Dynasty to form a hand-me-down book.

3. The content of the Classic of Mountains and Seas is mainly the geographical knowledge in folklore, including mountains and rivers, geography, ethnicity, products, medicines, sacrifices, witch doctors, etc. It has preserved many well-known ancient myths, legends and fables, including Kuafu's day-by-day, Jingwei reclamation, Dayu's water control and other related contents.

4. The Classic of Mountains and Seas has extraordinary documentary value, and has references for the study of ancient Chinese history, geography, culture, Chinese and foreign transportation, folk customs, mythology, etc. The mineral record is the earliest relevant document in the world.

5. The Classic of Mountains and Seas has a great influence and is also highly valued by the international sinology community, and ancient and modern scholars have different understandings of its content and nature, such as Sima Qian.

bluntly said that its content "Yu dare not speak", such as Lu Xun.

It is considered "the book of witches and monks". Most scholars now believe that the Classic of Mountains and Seas is an early and valuable work of geography.

The "Classic of Mountains and Seas" that is circulating now

It was discovered by Liu Xiu (i.e. Liu Xin) in the sixth year of Liu Xin Jianping, Emperor of the Han Dynasty (6 BC), who inherited his father's position as a "secretary" and reviewed the secret books treasured by the court. Liu Xiu spoke highly of this book, and presented the "Thirty-two Chapters of the Classic of Mountains and Seas, and now it is eighteen" to the imperial court. Since then, there have been manuscripts circulating in the world, a total of 18 volumes, divided into five volumes of the "Book of Mountains", eight volumes of the "Book of the Sea" and five volumes of the "Book of the Great Wilderness".

The extant version of the Classic of Mountains and Seas is not the earliest version that was created, and what we see now is made up by later generations based on impressions, and the most primitive edition of the Warring States period is not exactly the same, and the Book of Mountains and Seas is not written by one person, it is a strange book pieced together by many people's manuscripts.

The Classic of Mountains and Seas records 550 mountains and 300 rivers in about 40 countries, among which there are about 100 related historical figures, and more than 400 gods and monsters, with a total of 31,000 words. The Book of Mountains and Seas has created a precedent for China's ** narrative, in ancient times, because the text printing was not as convenient as it is today, so most of the ancient books are illustrated and written, in 1,000 years ago, the famous poet Tao Yuanming once praised the best of the Book of Mountains and Seas, but the real book of mountains and seas with pictures and truth has not been handed down, and the content of the original Book of Mountains and Seas has ceased to exist, and now many of the contents of the Book of Mountains and Seas have been changed beyond recognition, and it is difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

Most of the Classics of Mountains and Seas we see today were added after the Qing Dynasty, and the content is not the same as the Classics of Mountains and Seas before the Song Dynasty, and the ** part is also much less. There are also some scholars who specialize in the study of the Classic of Mountains and Seas believe that in fact, the Classic of Mountains and Seas was originally a geography book, first there was a map, the map is a map, and now it represents the path on the ground, mainly recording the appearance of the Kunlun area, and the three very common geographical phenomena recorded in it are very similar to the geography of the ancient period in Yunnan today, so according to experts, in fact, these monsters are the symbols of the map.

The existing Classic of Mountains and Seas in China is not the original, and there is a big difference between it and the Classic of Mountains and Seas in the Warring States Period. There are a total of 18 volumes of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas", including 5 volumes of "The Classic of Mountains" and 13 volumes of "The Book of the Sea", and the age of each volume is uncertain, of which 14 volumes are works of the Warring States period and 4 volumes are works of the early years of the Western Han Dynasty.

The existing Classic of Mountains and Seas in China is not the original, and the earliest Classic of Mountains and Seas has the Classic of Mountains and the Book of the Sea, but they have long been lost.

The Classic of Mountains and Seas is not the original, the earliest Classic of Mountains and Seas appeared in the pre-Qin period, and the Classic of Mountains and Seas was not written at one time, but was constantly revised in various dynasties.