The Code of Shan Hai Jing

Michael Du and Julie Oyang are currently engaged in a thrilling competition to explore the most important works of Chinese literature and the most important treasures of Chinese culture and… other fields. Julie Oyang is a cultural and art critic, Chinese cultural critic, and visual philosopher living in Europe. She is a visiting professor at the University of São José in Macau and a collaborator of Via do Meio. Du Ming is an expert on ancient Chinese culture and owns the world’s largest collection of Hongshan civilization. Founder of Haikou Kevin International Art and Culture Co., Ltd.

Both authors are closely involved in the Guangcai Cultural Innovation and Entrepreneurship Valley, a cutting-edge international academic and educational exchange program supported by the Chinese government, which is currently preparing for a press conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, and an art project auction house in Yantai, Shandong Province.

The Portuguese version of the Classic of Mountains and Seas is said to have been written by Dayu, the first emperor of the Xia dynasty, and a scholar named Boyi, suggesting that the book’s origins date back to the second millennium BC. Plants and alien creatures, often referred to as monsters, roam the now unknown space.

Zhongdao: The Classic of Mountains and Seas may be one of the oldest manuscripts in the world. What is it?

Julie Oyang: Shan Hai Jing literally means “Classic of Mountains and Seas”. The text describes the culture and geography of China before the Qin Dynasty, which was the first Chinese empire in the 3rd century BC. It also contains mythological elements. In total, there are more than 550 mountains and more than 300 seas in the book. The book is about 31,000 words long and is divided into 18 parts. Shan Hai Jing is most likely a compendium of works written by many authors since the Western Han Dynasty in a language similar to Chinese, and later compiled by several Chinese scholars based on their interpretation of “difficult to read” and puzzling texts. The collection includes a series of myths, stories of creation and the origin of mankind. The book is said to be at least 2,200 years old. But we guess that Shan Hai Jing dates back much earlier.

Michael Du: But when we get older we want to know. I can confidently say that some of these stories date back at least 6,000 years to the Hongshan civilization, which is my area of ​​interest. I would even suggest that this rare book tells us about an ancient civilization before the Great Flood, an event that occurred on a global scale – and apparently in all ancient cultures. I have dedicated my life to collecting and studying Hongshan artifacts, not just because of their increasing market value: I firmly believe that myths should not be taken for granted. The Classic of Mountains and Seas is not a given. It is through reliable references to existing artifacts that we can now give a face to a “faceless” ancient text. A face that approaches shocking historical truths that would otherwise be lost forever.

Via do Meio: A shocking historical truth?

Du Wei: As Julie said, the Classic of Mountains and Seas records more than 40 countries, more than 550 mountains, more than 300 rivers, etc., with ancient creatures, monsters and mythical geography. The encyclopedic description of people’s worldview has become a source of inspiration for popular culture, cross-cultural communication and comparative studies. In our own writing process, we compared the Classic of Mountains and Seas with the Histories by the ancient Greek historian Herodotus. The stories record geography, people, natural resources, different customs, birds and animals. In particular, some of the oriental monsters described by Herodotus are quite similar to the monsters in the Classic of Mountains and Seas. On some medieval European maps, areas near India are often painted with monsters, and corresponding monsters can be found in the Classic of Mountains and Seas. The star monster of the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Zouwu, made his global debut in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald in 2018. Zouwu is shaped like a tiger, with gorgeous fur and a tail longer than his body. It is an auspicious creature that only appears during the Lunar New Year. The rule of a benevolent ruler. Zuo Wu does not kill to feed himself. It can be seen that the spread of ancient knowledge in the Classic of Mountains and Seas since ancient times is an interesting academic topic. But before starting to compile the Classic of Mountains and Seas, we asked ourselves the first question: In which region are these countries, mountains and rivers recorded in the Chinese text? This is a very important question that has never been asked before. We believe that this Chinese text is not only related to Chinese civilization: The Classic of Mountains and Seas is related to world civilization.

Via do Meio: This is a very surprising conclusion, isn’t it? So, do you intend to write a new Chinese version of world history through “The Code of Classic of Mountains and Seas”?

Julie Oyang: I can answer that question. And I must say that the entire Shan Hai Jing looks like something written by an ancient alchemist. The journey between myth and reality is a common human experience we find in the world’s great literature, from Dante’s Divine Comedy to Borges’s The Forking Garden. Of course, real alchemists don’t turn lead into gold; they turn lead into gold. They transform the world into words, each of which is a labyrinthine puzzle that needs to be solved in time. Hegel, in his Philosophy of History, argued that the essence of civilization and its progress is freedom. However, Chinese history contrasts and even refutes Hegel’s vision of freedom and progress. Chinese civilization is deeply rooted in the diversity of “taking in the world”. It can be said that since Shan Hai Jing, the Chinese version of world history has been presented as a grand unified narrative, or in the words of British historian Arnold Toynbee, a “cosmopolitan narrative”. Freedom means conflict, and great unity means the cessation of conflict. Chinese universalism advocates that individuals or small countries must give up some of their freedom in order to achieve global social harmony and harmony among all countries. Shan Hai Jing tells us that the Chinese in the ancient world advocated and practiced a harmonious universal order of nations. The ideal goal of this cosmopolitan narrative was to “mix and unify the oceans, mountains, and the world” through successful governance based on trade. Shan Hai Jing is the mapping of the oldest trading network! If we believe Plato’s Atlantis – yes, it’s crazy! But Michael Du’s Hongshan Collection really opened my eyes and mind. So if Plato is right, we can say that the civilization before the flood was a spiritual civilization, while the Western version of world history is a manifestation of material civilization. Chinese civilization is a unique and typical intermediate civilization, a bridge between the two.

Zhongdao: Atlantis? Hongshan? Bridge?

Michael Du: The Classic of Mountains and Seas describes many magical animals. They have features such as three heads, six arms, multiple wings, etc. This reminds us that highly developed genetic engineering and cloning technologies existed in the distant past. The rich artifacts unearthed at Hongshan confirm this hypothesis. In my opinion, Hongshan is not Atlantis, but a memory of it! Hongshan retains the unique mystery and symbolism of the ancient pre-flood civilization and spread around the world again at the end of the last ice age. The oldest civilization was called Atlantis by Plato in his dialogues. Like the creatures in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, the Atlanteans had magical powers and communicated through telepathy. Some Atlanteans were fish-like creatures, just like the Hongshan mermaid! Nowadays, it is difficult for us to understand these things if we don’t have an open mind. In fact, some researchers believe that Hongshan is an alien laboratory. Youyang Zazu is a book written by Duan Chengshi of the Tang Dynasty in the 9th century AD. It focuses on Chinese and foreign legends and rumors, accounts of natural phenomena, short anecdotes and stories of the marvelous and the mundane, as well as notes on topics such as herbal medicine and… tattoos. The book chronicles the encounter of an alien astronaut who tells the pair that the moon is made of seven alloys (Qibao) and that it is actually a sphere covered with mountains, not a flat disk as previously believed. He tells them that the moon is home to eighty-two thousand maintenance workers, one of whom he is, and then shows them his tools, including an axe and a chisel. Finally, he shares some lunar food that looks like crystal rice balls. All of these fascinating details about the moon were recorded in the ninth century! Isn’t that exciting? In some ways, Youyang is a stranger book than Shanhaijing. But I digress. My point is: who are we to judge and reject?

Via do Meio: Can you share with our readers some of the unique mysteries and symbolism of the ancient pre-Flood civilization that Red Mountain has preserved to this day?

Michael Du / Julie Oyang: Read our book and find out.