The Classic of Regions Within the Seas of the South (海內南經 Hǎinèi nánjīng) is the tenth book of the Classic of Mountains and Seas and the first of the four "Classics of Regions Within the Seas" (海內經). It transitions from the edges of the world to more familiar lands: southern peoples (Ou, Min, Xiongnu), the tombs of emperors Shun and Danzhu, and famous creatures such as the orangutan Xingxing who knows human names, the man-eating Yayu, the towering Jianmu tree, and the Ba serpent that swallows elephants. The Chinese text is presented with its pinyin transcription, followed by French translation and notes.
海內南經 — Regions Within the Seas of the South
海內東南陬以西者。
The regions within the seas, from the southeast corner westward.
甌居海中. 閩在海中, 其西北有山. 一曰閩中山在海中.
Ou (甌) is located in the middle of the sea. Min (閩) is in the middle of the sea, and to the northwest there is a mountain. Another account says that Mount Minzhong (閩中山) is in the middle of the sea.
天子鄣山在閩西海北. 一曰在海中.
Mount Tianzizhang (天子鄣山) is west of Min and north of the sea. Another account places it in the middle of the sea.
桂林八樹在番隅東.
The eight cinnamon trees (桂林八樹) are east of Panyu (番隅).
伯慮國, 離耳國, 彫題國, 北朐國皆在鬱水南. 鬱水出湘陵, 南山. 一曰相慮.
The countries of Bolü (伯慮國), Lier (離耳國), Diaoti (彫題國), and Beiqu (北朐國) are all south of the Yu River (鬱水). The Yu River flows from Xiangling (湘陵) and Mount Nan (南山). Another account writes Xianglü (相慮).
梟陽國在北朐之西, 其為人人面長唇, 黑身有毛, 反踵, 見人笑亦笑, 左手操管.
The country of Xiaoyang (梟陽國) is west of Beiqu; its people have human faces with long lips, black hairy bodies, and reversed heels; when they see a person laugh, they laugh too, and in their left hands they hold a tube (of bamboo).
兕在舜葬東, 湘水南, 其狀如牛, 蒼黑, 一角.
The Si (兕, a rhinoceros) is east of the tomb of Shun and south of the Xiang River; it resembles an ox, is dark gray, and has a single horn.
蒼梧之山, 帝舜葬于陽, 帝丹朱葬于陰.
At Mount Cangwu (蒼梧之山), Emperor Shun (舜) was buried on the sunny side, and Emperor Danzhu (丹朱) on the shady side.
氾林方三百里, 在狌狌東.
The Fanlin Forest (氾林), three hundred li on each side, is east of the Xingxing (狌狌, orangutans).
狌狌知人名, 其為獸如豕而人面, 在舜葬西.
The Xingxing (狌狌) knows human names; it is a beast resembling a pig but with a human face, west of the tomb of Shun.
狌狌西北有犀牛, 其狀如牛而黑.
Northwest of the Xingxing is the black rhinoceros (犀牛); it resembles an ox and is black.
夏后啟之臣曰孟涂, 是司神于巴, 人請訟于孟涂之所, 其衣有血者乃執之, 是請生. 居山上, 在丹山西. 丹山在丹陽南, 丹陽居屬也.
Qi, a minister of the Xia (夏后啟), was named Mengtu (孟涂); he presided over divine matters in the land of Ba (巴). When people came to Mengtu to settle disputes, those whose clothes were stained with blood were arrested—thus sparing lives. He dwelt on the summit of a mountain, west of Mount Dan (丹山). Mount Dan is south of Danyang (丹陽), which belongs to Ba.
窫窳龍首, 居弱水中, 在狌狌知人名之西, 其狀如龍首, 食人.
The Yayu (窫窳) has a dragon’s head and dwells in the Ruo River (弱水); it is west of the Xingxing that knows human names; it resembles a dragon’s head and devours humans.
有木, 其狀如牛, 引之有皮, 若纓, 黃蛇. 其葉如羅, 其實如欒, 其木若蓲, 其名曰建木, 在窫窳西弱水上.
There is a tree that resembles an ox; when pulled, its bark comes off like a sash or a yellow serpent. Its leaves are like a net, its fruit like a koelreuteria (欒), and its wood like the Ou (蓲). It is called the Jianmu (建木, “Towering Tree”) and is located west of the Yayu, on the banks of the Ruo River.
氐人國在建木西, 其為人人面而魚身, 無足.
The country of the Di people (氐人國) is west of the Jianmu; its inhabitants have human faces and fish bodies, with no feet.
巴蛇食象, 三歲而出其骨, 君子服之, 無心腹之疾. 其為蛇青黃赤黑. 一曰黑蛇青首, 在犀牛西.
The Ba serpent (巴蛇) devours elephants; after three years it regurgitates their bones. A noble man who consumes it is spared heart and stomach ailments. This serpent is green, yellow, red, and black. Another account describes it as a black serpent with a green head, located west of the rhinoceros.
旄馬, 其狀如馬, 四節有毛. 在巴蛇西北, 高山南.
The Maoma horse (旄馬) resembles a horse, with hair on its four joints. It is northwest of the Ba serpent and south of a high mountain.
匈奴, 開題之國, 列人之國並在西北.
The Xiongnu (匈奴), the country of Kaiti (開題國), and the country of Lieren (列人國) are all in the northwest.
Notes
The "Classics of Regions Within the Seas" (海內經). Unlike the previous books, they describe lands within the four seas, closer to the Han world: historical peoples (the Min and Ou of the Southeast, the Xiongnu of the Northwest) are mixed with marvels. The orientation remains cardinal (here the South), but the geographical thread is looser.
Xingxing (狌狌). The orangutan "who knows human names" is one of the most famous beasts in the book: with a human face, capable of speech, it serves as an emblem of the boundary between human and animal.
Jianmu (建木), the Cosmic Tree. The "Towering Tree" that rises at the center of the world, where spirits ascend and descend, is an axis mundi of Chinese mythology, linked to the kingdom of Ba and the Ruo River (弱水).
The Ba serpent (巴蛇). The serpent that swallows an elephant and does not regurgitate its bones until three years later is the origin of the proverb "the Ba serpent swallows the elephant" (人心不足蛇吞象), an image of boundless greed.
Imperial tombs. Mount Cangwu (蒼梧), where Emperor Shun is buried, is a sacred site in southern geography; the text associates it with his son Danzhu (丹朱).
Uncertain identifications. Many names of peoples, animals (兕, 窫窳…), and places have no secure equivalent; they are transcribed in pinyin with characters, and French renderings follow traditional glosses (Guo Pu, Hao Yixing).
Chinese text from the Chinese Text Project (ctext.org). Translation and notes: Chine-culture.com.
