Refer to Chapter XX of The Sinitic Civilization Book II for a discourse on Jiu-jiang (nine rivers), San-jiang (three rivers), Shan Hai Jing (Legends of Mountains & Seas), & Yu Gong (Lord Yu’s Tributes)
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Yu Gong (Lord Yu’s Tributes; Tribute of Yu), which talked about Lord Yu’s flood control and zoning of the nine prefectures, was the cornerstone on which the Sinitic nation, with the three successive dynasties of Xia, Shang and Zhou from the same big family, was founded, and the blueprint according to which the imperial administrative layout was mapped throughout the past millennia. Yu Gong was purportedly a chapter among Xia Shu (book of the Xia dynasty) in the post-Confucius Confucian Classic Shang-shu (remotely ancient history; book of documents), that was seen in Sima Qian’s Shi-ji (historian’s records; historic records). It was taken to be a pseudepigrapha, i.e., written by Lord Yu (r. ? 2207-2198 BC per Lu Jinggui; ? 1989-1982 per the forgery bamboo annals) and his assistant Bo-yi during the era of flood-control, i.e., about 2200-2300 B.C.E. The book could be used to debunk myths in mythogeography. While Kunlun, or Ji-shi (piled-up rocks), was not seen in The Spring & Autumn Annals, Sinitic China long ago talked about Lord Yu’s footsteps across the land and the accomplishments of flood control that averted the fate of people becoming fish on a grand scale, and on a micro scale talked about the nine ancient prefectures that were the mountain area south of the West-to-East flowing Yellow River –which implied that the Xia people had origin there before embarking on a nation-wide flood control work. The central place of Mount Kunlun, i.e., what Richard E. Strassberg claimed as axis mundi or pillar of the sky, had a much older denotation in Yu Gong as a tribe, not a mountain, and was not taken to be the center of world or the paramount sky-propping pillar of the earth till the Han-Jinn dynasties. |
禹貢:
禹別九州，隨山濬川，任土作貢。
禹敷土，隨山刊木，奠高山大川。
冀州：既載壺口，治樑及岐。既修太原，至於岳陽；覃懷砥績，至於衡漳。厥土惟白壤，厥賦惟上上錯，厥田惟中中。恆、衛既從，大陸既作。島夷皮服，夾右碣石入於河。
濟河惟兗州。九河既道，雷夏既澤，灉、沮會同。桑土既蠶，是降丘宅土。厥土黑墳，厥草惟繇，厥木惟條。厥田惟中下，厥賦貞，作十有三載乃同。厥貢漆絲，厥篚織文。浮於濟、漯，達於河。
海岱惟青州。嵎夷既略，濰、淄其道。厥土白墳，海濱廣斥。厥田惟上下，厥賦中上。厥貢鹽絺，海物惟錯。岱畎絲、枲、鉛、松、怪石。萊夷作牧。厥篚檿絲。浮於汶，達於濟。
海、岱及淮惟徐州。淮、沂其乂，蒙、羽其藝，大野既豬，東原砥平。厥土赤埴墳，草木漸包。厥田惟上中，厥賦中中。厥貢惟土五色，羽畎夏翟，嶧陽孤桐，泗濱浮磬，淮夷蠙珠暨魚。厥篚玄纖、縞。浮於淮、泗，達於河。
淮海惟揚州。彭蠡既豬，陽鳥攸居。三江既入，震澤砥定。筱、簜既敷，厥草惟夭，厥木惟喬。厥土惟塗泥。厥田唯下下，厥賦下上，上錯。厥貢惟金三品，瑤、琨、筱、簜、齒、革、羽、毛惟木。鳥夷卉服。厥篚織貝，厥包橘柚，錫貢。沿於江、海，達於淮、泗。
荊及衡陽惟荊州。江、漢朝宗於海，九江孔殷，沱、潛既道，雲土、夢作乂。厥土惟塗泥，厥田惟下中，厥賦上下。厥貢羽、毛、齒、革惟金三品，杶、幹、栝、柏，礪、砥、砮、丹，惟菌、簵、楛；三邦砥貢厥名。包匭菁茅，厥篚玄纁璣組，九江納錫大龜。浮於江、沱、潛、漢，逾於洛，至於南河。
荊河惟豫州。伊、洛、瀍、澗既入於河，滎波既豬。導菏澤，被孟豬。厥土惟壤，下土墳壚。厥田惟中上，厥賦錯上中。厥貢漆、枲，絺、紵，厥篚纖、纊，錫貢磬錯。浮於洛，達於河。
華陽、黑水惟梁州。岷、嶓既藝，沱、潛既道。蔡、蒙旅平，和夷砥績。厥土青黎，厥田惟下上，厥賦下中，三錯。厥貢璆、鐵、銀、鏤、砮磬、熊、羆、狐、狸、織皮，西傾因桓是來，浮於潛，逾於沔，入於渭，亂於河。
黑水、西河惟雍州。弱水既西，涇屬渭汭，漆沮既從，灃水攸同。荊、岐既旅，終南、敦物，至於鳥鼠。原隰砥績，至於豬野。三危既宅，三苗丕敘。厥土惟黃壤，厥田惟上上，厥賦中下。厥貢惟球、琳、琅玕。浮於積石，至於龍門、西河，會於渭汭。織皮崐崘、析支、渠搜，西戎即敘。
導岍及岐，至於荊山，逾於河；壺口、雷首至於太岳；砥柱、析城至於王屋；太行、恆山至於碣石，入於海。
西傾、朱圉、鳥鼠至於太華；熊耳、外方、桐柏至於陪尾。
導嶓塚，至於荊山；內方，至於大別。
岷山之陽，至於衡山，過九江，至於敷淺原。
導弱水，至於合黎，馀波入於流沙。導黑水，至於三危，入於南海。
導河、積石，至於龍門；南至於華陰，東至於砥柱，又東至於孟津，東過洛汭，至於大伾；北過降水，至於大陸；又北，播為九河，同為逆河，入於海。
嶓塚導漾，東流為漢，又東，為滄浪之水，過三澨，至於大別，南入於江。東，匯澤為彭蠡，東，為北江，入於海。
岷山導江，東別為沱，又東至於澧；過九江，至於東陵，東迤北，會於匯；東為中江，入於海。
導沇水，東流為濟，入於河，溢為滎；東出於陶丘北，又東至於菏，又東北，會於汶，又北，東入於海。
導淮自桐柏，東會於泗、沂，東入於海。
導渭自鳥鼠同穴，東會於灃，又東會於涇，又東過漆沮，入於河。
導洛自熊耳，東北，會於澗、瀍；又東，會於伊，又東北，入於河。
九州攸同，四隩既宅，九山刊旅，九川滌源，九澤既陂，四海會同。六府孔修，庶土交正，砥慎財賦，咸則三壤成賦。中邦錫土、姓，祗台德先，不距朕行。
五百里甸服：百里賦納總，二百里納銍，三百里納秸服，四百里粟，五百里米。
五百里侯服：百里採，二百里男邦，三百里諸侯。
五百里綏服：三百里揆文教，二百里奮武衛。
五百里要服：三百里夷，二百里蔡。
五百里荒服：三百里蠻，二百里流。
東漸於海，西被於流沙，朔南暨聲教訖於四海。禹錫玄圭，告厥成功。