This invaluable book provides a reflective analysis on European civilization through a Chinese cultural perspective, along with the author's diplomatic experiences in Brussels on the Chinese Mission to the European Union.The book has three main focuses: maritime civilization, human civilization, and the relations between Chinese (East) and European (West) civilization. It aims to stimulate discussion to rethink the East-West relations in terms of globalization and its contributions to a new post-maritime human civilization.Hai Shang (??) means elegy of the sea.He Shang (??) means elegy of the river.