一切經音義 18.153

18.153

The Vast Dark Ocean (溟海: the first character has the fanqie m[ì] + [p]íng; the Shizhou ji says: "Mount Penglai faces the northeast coast of the great sea. The mountain circumference is five thousand li. Outside the mountain there is separately a circular sea surrounding it. The water of the circular sea is pitch-black, and it is called the Minghai." Both the Chongxu zhenjing and the Nanhua zhenjing state: "In the farthest north of the north, there is the Vast Dark Ocean, which is the Heavenly Lake. There is a bird named the Peng, whose wings are like clouds suspended from the heavens, and whose back is like a great mountain; it whirls upon a whirlwind ascending ninety thousand li, and only then sets its course for the south").