all under heaven

Tianxia (Chinese: 天下; pinyin: Tiānxià; lit. '[everything] under Heaven'), in historical Chinese cultural understanding, is either the entire geographical world or the metaphysical realm of mortals. In ancient China and imperial China, tianxia denoted the lands, space, and area divinely appointed to the Chinese sovereign by universal and well-defined principles of order. The center of this land was directly apportioned to the Chinese court, forming the center of a world view that centered on the Chinese court and went concentrically outward to major and minor officials and then the common subjects, tributary states, and finally ending with fringe barbarians. The larger concept of tianxia is closely associated with civilization and order in classical Chinese philosophy. Some contemporary Chinese scholars have attempted to apply the concept in the 21st century.