CHAPTER 16 · 50 passages
The Great Wilderness: West
大荒西經
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English
Beyond the northwestern sea, in a corner of the Great Wilderness, stands a mountain whose parts do not meet, named Bùzhōu [不周]. Two yellow beasts guard it. There are waters called Hánshǔ [寒暑]; west of them stands Mount Shī [濕], and east of them Mount Mù [幕]. There is the mountain where Yǔ [禹] attacked the country of Gònggōng [共工].
English
English
There are ten divine beings named Nǚ Wā's Intestines, which transformed into deities. They dwell in the wild of Lìguǎng [栗廣], lying across the road.
English
There is one named Shí Yí [石夷]; the wind that comes is called Wéi [韋]. He dwells in the northwestern corner and governs the length of the sun's and moon's courses.
English
There is a crested bird of five colours named the Kuáng Niǎo [狂].
English
There is Mount Cháng [長] of the Great Marsh, and a country of Báimín [白民].
English
Beyond the northwestern sea, east of the Chì [赤] River, is a country of Chángjìng [長脛].
English
There is a country of Xī Zhōu [西周]. Its people bear the surname Jī [姬] and eat grain. There is a man ploughing, named Shū Jūn [叔均]. Dìjùn [帝俊] begot Hòujì [后稷], and Jì [稷] descended with all the grains. Jì [稷]'s younger brother, Tái Xǐ [台璽], begot Shū Jūn [叔均]. Shū Jūn [叔均] took the place of his father and Jì [稷] in sowing all the grains, and first practised ploughing. There is a country of Chì [赤], of the clan Qī [妻]. There is a Mount Shuāng [雙].
Translator’s note
The final phrase 赤國妻氏 is terse and its division uncertain.
English
Beyond the western sea, in the Great Wilderness, stands Mount Fāng [方]. Upon it is a blue-green tree named the pine of Jǔgé [柜格]; this is where the sun and moon rise and set.
English
Beyond the northwestern sea, west of the Chì [赤] River, is a country of Xiān Mín [天民]. Its people eat grain and command four birds.
English
There is a country of Běi Dí [北狄]. Huáng Dì [黃帝]'s grandson was called Shǐjūn [始均], and Shǐjūn [始均] begot Běidí [北狄].
English
There are Mount Máng [芒], Mount Guì [桂], and Mount Yáo [榣]. Upon the last is a person called Tài Zǐ Cháng Qín. Zhuānxū [顓頊] begot Lǎotóng [老童], Lǎotóng [老童] begot Zhù Róng [祝融], and Zhù Róng [祝融] begot Tài Zǐ Cháng Qín. He dwelt on Mount Yáo [榣] and first made musical airs.
English
There are Wǔ Sè Niǎo bearing three names: the Huáng Niǎo [皇], the Luán Niǎo [鸞], and the Fèng Niǎo [鳳].
English
There is a creature shaped like a hare. Behind its breast it is bare and unseen; it is blue-green and has the shape of an Yuán.
Translator’s note
The description is difficult and perhaps corrupt: 胷以後者裸不見 cannot be interpreted confidently. Its conflicting comparisons are retained.
English
In the Great Wilderness stands a mountain named Fēngjǔyùmén [豐沮玉門], where the sun and moon set.
English
There is a Mount Líng [靈]. Ten shamans—Wū Xián – Shaman [巫咸], Wū Jí – Shaman [巫即], Wū Bān – Shaman [巫朌], Wū Péng – Shaman [巫彭], Wū Gū – Shaman [巫姑], Wū Zhēn – Shaman [巫真], Wū Lǐ – Shaman [巫禮], Wū Dǐ – Shaman [巫抵], Wū Xiè – Shaman [巫謝], and Wū Luó – Shaman [巫羅]—ascend and descend from here. All the medicinal plants are found here.
English
In the west are Mount Wángmǔ [王母], Mount Hè [壑], and Mount Hǎi [海]. There is a country of Wòmín [沃民], where the people of Wò [沃] dwell. In the wild of Wò [沃], they eat the eggs of the Fèng Niǎo [鳳] and drink sweet dew. Whatever they desire, every flavour is there. Here are Gānhuá [甘華], Gānzhā [甘柤], white willows, Shì Ròu [視肉], Sān Zhuī [騅], Xuánguī [璇瑰], Yáobì [瑶碧], white trees, Lánggān [琅玕], white cinnabar, and blue-green cinnabar, with much silver and iron. The Luán Niǎo [鸞] sings of itself, and the Fèng Niǎo [鳳] dances of itself. Here all the beasts gather in herds to dwell. This is called the wild of Wò [沃].
Translator’s note
璇瑰 and 瑶碧 denote precious stones or jades; 琅玕 is a lustrous, jade-like stone. “White cinnabar” and “blue-green cinnabar” retain the source's old mineral terminology, without assigning modern chemical identities.
English
There are Sān Qīng Niǎo with red heads and black eyes. One is named Dàlí [大鵹], one Shǎolí [少鵹], and one Qīng Niǎo [青鳥].
English
There is a Xuān Yuán Mound. Archers dare not face west, for fear of the Xuān Yuán Mound.
English
In the Great Wilderness stands Mount Lóng [龍], where the sun and moon set.
English
There are three marsh waters, named the Three Nào [淖]; from them Kūnwú [昆吾] draws sustenance.
English
There is a person dressed in blue-green, covering her face with her sleeve, named the corpse of Nǚ Chǒu [女丑].
English
There is a country of Nǚzǐ [女子].
English
There are Mount Táo [桃], Mount Mǎng [䖟], Mount Guì [桂], and Mount Yútǔ [于土].
English
There is a country of Zhàng Fū [丈夫].
English
There is a Mount Yǎnzhōu [弇州]. A bird of five colours looks up to heaven; it is named the Míng Niǎo [鳴]. Here are the airs of every music, song, and dance.
English
There is a country of Xuān Yuán [軒轅]. To dwell south of the river and mountain is auspicious. Even those who are not long-lived reach 800 years.
Translator’s note
江山 may refer generally to river and mountain, or contain a place-name; the wording does not settle the matter.
English
Among the islets of the western sea is a deity with a human face and a bird's body. He wears two blue-green Shé through his ears and treads upon two red Shé. His name is Yǎn Zī [弇茲].
English
In the Great Wilderness stands a mountain named Rìyuè [日月], the pivot of heaven. There is the Heavenly Gate of Wújù [吳姖], where the sun and moon set. There is a deity with a human face and no arms; his two feet bend back and join above his head. His name is Xū [嘘]. Zhuānxū [顓頊] begot Lǎotóng [老童], and Lǎotóng [老童] begot Zhòng & Lí. The emperor ordered Chóng [重] to raise heaven above and Lí [黎] to press the earth below. Below, Yē [噎] was born; he dwells at the western extremity to govern the ordered courses of the sun, moon, and stars.
Translator’s note
The verbs 獻 and 印 and the phrase 下地是生噎 are difficult. This follows the traditional reading of separating heaven and earth; the final clause does not unambiguously identify a parent for 噎.
English
There is a person with backward-turned arms, named Tiān Yú [天虞].
English
There is a woman bathing the moons. Cháng Xī [常羲], wife of Dìjùn [帝俊], gave birth to twelve moons and first began to bathe them.
English
There is a Mount Xuándān [玄丹]. There are Wǔ Sè Niǎo with human faces and hair. Here are Qīng Wén [青鴍], Huáng Áo [黃鷔], Qīng Niǎo, and Huáng Niǎo; wherever they gather, that country perishes.
English
There is a pool named the Pool of Mèngyì [孟翼]'s Attack upon Zhuānxū [顓頊].
English
In the Great Wilderness stands a mountain named Áo'àojù [鏖鏊鉅], where the sun and moon set.
English
There is a beast with a head on either side, named Píng Péng [屏蓬].
English
There are Mount Wū [巫], Mount Hè [壑], and Mount Jīnmén [金門]. There is a person named the corpse of Huángjù [黃姖]. There are Bǐ Yì Niǎo. There is a white bird with blue-green wings, a yellow tail, and a black beak. There is a red dog named the Tiān Quǎn; wherever it descends, warfare comes.
English
South of the western sea, on the edge of Liúshā [流沙], behind the Chì [赤] River and before the Hēi [黑] River, stands a great mountain named Kūnlún [崑崙] Hill. A deity dwells there, with a human face and a tiger's body, markings, and a tail, all white. Below it, the Pool of the Ruò [弱] River encircles it; beyond lies a mountain of blazing fire, where anything cast in at once burns. There is a being who wears a sheng headdress, has tiger's teeth and a leopard's tail, and dwells in a cave. Her name is Xī Wáng Mǔ [西王母]. This mountain contains all things.
Translator’s note
勝, sheng, is an ancient headdress or hair ornament; its precise form here is not described.
English
In the Great Wilderness stands a mountain named Chángyáng [常陽], where the sun and moon set.
English
There is a country of Hánhuāng [寒荒]. There are two people, Nǚjì [女祭] and Nǚmiè [女薎].
English
There is a country of Shòumá [壽麻]. Nányuè [南嶽] married a woman of Mount Zhōu [州], named Nǚqián [女虔]. Nǚqián [女虔] bore Jìgé [季格], and Jìgé [季格] begot Shòu Má [壽麻]. In Shòu Má [壽麻], one stands upright without a shadow and cries loudly without an echo. There is great heat here, and one cannot go there.
English
There is a headless person standing with a Dagger-Axe and shield, named Xià Gēng Zhī Shī. Formerly, Chéngtāng [成湯] attacked Jié [桀] of Xià [夏] at Mount Zhāng [章] and defeated him, beheading Gēng [耕] before him. Gēng [耕] then stood up, headless, and fled his calamity, descending to Mount Wū [巫].
English
There is a person named Wú Huí [吳回], with only his left arm; he has no right arm.
English
There is a country of Gàishān [蓋山]. There is a tree with red bark, branches, and trunk, and blue-green leaves, named the Zhū [朱] tree.
English
There are the people of Yī Bì [一臂].
English
In the Great Wilderness stands a mountain named Dàhuāng [大荒], where the sun and moon set. There is a person with three faces, a son of Zhuānxū [顓頊]; he has three faces and one arm. The three-faced people do not die. This is called the wild of Dàhuāng [大荒].
English
Beyond the southwestern sea, south of the Chì [赤] River and west of Liúshā [流沙], is a person wearing two blue-green Shé through his ears and riding two dragons. His name is Kāi [開], lord of Xià [夏]. Kāi [開] ascended three times as a guest to heaven and brought down the Jiǔbiàn [九辯] and the Jiǔgē [九歌]. This is the wild of Tiānmù [天穆], 2,000 ren high, where Kāi [開] first began to sing the Jiǔsháo [九招].
Translator’s note
The source gives 開, a name commonly associated with 啟 in this tradition. 三嬪 is read here as three visits as a guest; the wording is disputed. 九辯, 九歌, and 九招 are names of musical works.
English
There is a country of Dī Rén [氐人]. Yándì [炎帝]'s grandson was named Língjiá [靈恝], and Língjiá [靈恝] begot the Dīrén [氐人], who can ascend to heaven and descend from it.
English
There is a fish with one side withered, named Yú Fù [魚婦]. Zhuānxū [顓頊] dies and returns to life. The wind comes along its course from the north; heaven then sends a great outpouring of water, and the Shé changes into a fish. This is called Yú Fù [魚婦]. Zhuānxū [顓頊] dies and returns to life.
Translator’s note
The relationship between 顓頊 and the transforming creature is obscure. The repeated final sentence is present in the original.
English
There is a Qīng Niǎo with a yellow body, red feet, and six heads, named the Zhǔ Niǎo [𪇆].
English
There is a Mount Dàwū [大巫], and a Mount Jīn [金]. To the southwest, in a corner of the Great Wilderness, are Mount Piānjù [偏句] and Mount Chángyáng [常羊].