At least nearly a thousand years apart.
Shan Hai Jing is a work of Shennong period.
Wild Classics is a work after entering the Xia Dynasty.
Shan Hai Jing and Huang Da Jing have different cultural backgrounds.
We say that the classic of mountains and seas is a continuous mountain, which means that the mountains are connected and continuous. Shennongjia is also called Lieshanjia. The meaning of Lieshan is similar to that of Lianshan, which means mountains are lined up.
The description of mountains in Shan Hai Jing, the description of the distribution of mountains, and the detailed description of the status, products and state of mountain gods all belong to the behavior of listing mountains. As a verb, "Lieshan" refers to the social activities of Shennong. Therefore, Shan Hai Jing is a work of Shennong period, which can be confirmed by its name. Shennong period belongs to the period of forest culture. Fuxi and Nu Wa experienced a flood. In order to avoid floods, people fled to the highlands and mountainous areas to survive, and had more contact and deeper understanding of mountains, trees, birds and animals. According to legend, the invention of drugs by Shennong was directly related to people's day and night life in the mountains during Shennong period. Shennong God is fully recognized in Shan Hai Jing. In Shan Hai Jing, gods are everywhere. In Shan Hai Jing, there are two expressions of God, God and corpse. God and corpse are what we call idols, gods and images today. God refers to the living person, the commander and possessor of the mountain forest; The corpse refers to the idol of the gods. Today's place name Yanshi, called corpse town in ancient times, is the remains of ancient Shennong culture.
Today, some people think that the Chinese nation is a nation that does not produce religion. Buddhism was born in India and Christianity was born in the West. Although Confucianism is also called religion, it is humanistic and does not belong to authentic religion. Taoism is a later religion, transformed from Taoism and formed by imitating Buddhism. These understandings are all wrong. It is not that religion was not born in China, but it was born too early, as early as what we call the primitive society Shennong period today. The social and political structure in Shennong period was a complete unity of politics and religion. All power belongs to God, and all regions belong to God. The social hierarchy is strict and the difference is huge. The social stratum model is naturally constructed by high and low mountains, and the highest is supreme, like a mountain; The smallest person is humble, just like a valley in a mountain. When the gods appear, respect for them is a rule in people's daily life, and it is also the beginning of the prominent sacrificial culture and ritual culture in China culture. The supreme ruler and God are what we call Ren Huang Shennong. This is the cultural background of Shennong period, and it is also the cultural background in Shan Hai Jing.
The classic name of Shan Hai Jing comes from this. Mountain refers to the high mountain, and sea refers to the flood in the lower part. The sea does not refer to the ocean in people's concept today. The name of Shan Hai Jing has another meaning. Shan Hai Jing is called Jing. Which classic is it? Shan Hai Jing has never been a Confucian classic, nor will it be regarded as a classic by Confucianism. Shan Hai Jing does not belong to Taoism, nor does it belong to Taoist classics. Although many immortals in The Classic of Mountains and Seas were copied from Taoist immortal genealogy, Taoism never dared to list The Classic of Mountains and Seas as its own classic. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, almost no one listed The Classic of Mountains and Seas as a family heirloom. Then, why is Shan Hai Jing called Jing, when is it called Classic, and which one is it imitated?