Communication | Exploring the "Way" of Integrating Eastern and Western Civilizations on the Ancient Silk Road
2024-04-01
In 126 BC, a middle-aged man who had experienced many hardships returned to his hometown of Chang'an. He was ragged and haggard in appearance. It has been 13 years since he left here. He is Zhang Qian, a diplomat who went on a mission to the Western Regions with a cane in 139 BC. Looking back on his journey back, the great Silk Road extended westward from the depths of his eyes. Afterwards, on this main road connecting China and the West, business and tourism continued on the way, and envoys met on the road. Diverse civilizations flow with the crowd, intersecting and washing out brilliant ripples on the ancient road. Gansu Province is located on the golden section of the ancient Silk Road. Starting from the provincial capital Lanzhou and heading west, it can be seen that ancient cities such as Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan, and Dunhuang are distributed in a bead like pattern along the ancient Silk Road. Entering the various museums in these ancient cities, the rich collection of cultural relics utilizes modern sound and light technology to vividly reproduce the prosperity of the Silk Road. Among the displayed ancient documents, not only are there Han bamboo slips and classics, but also ancient Tibetan, Uyghur, Khotan, Sogdian, Sanskrit, and Western Xia documents; Among the exhibits are not only silk from the Central Plains region, but also spices from India, brocades from Persia, glassware from Rome, as well as "money" from Eastern Rome and "silver coins" from Sassanid Persia; In the displayed sculptures and brick paintings, not only people from the Central Plains, but also many prominent Sogdians, Persians, Greeks... The Mogao Grottoes, a world cultural heritage site located in Dunhuang, are undoubtedly the culmination of the fusion of Eastern and Western civilizations. From the 4th century to the 14th century AD, cave construction continued for thousands of years. There are currently 735 caves, 45000 square meters of murals, and over 2000 colorful sculptures, showcasing the diversity of civilization. The 285th cave of the Mogao Grottoes, built during the Western Wei Dynasty, is the earliest recorded cave of the Mogao Grottoes and also a "temple of gods". In the murals, there are flying celestial beings from India, Fuxi and N ü wa from Chinese mythology, and Zhuque and Xuanwu from Taoism. The image of the sun god in the murals can be interpreted from various perspectives, such as the ancient Greek sun god Apollo, the Buddhist sun god Bodhisattva, and the Brahmin sun god. Amanbayeva, Chief Researcher of the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyzstan, said that the historical height of Dunhuang Buddhist culture is fascinating. Buddhism was introduced from China to the northern region of Kyrgyzstan in the early Middle Ages, as evidenced by the excavation of two Buddhist temple ruins at the Chaye Ancient City site in Chuhe Prefecture. "Exchange and mutual learning help to enhance mutual understanding among different civilizations, promote harmonious coexistence among different ethnic groups, and are an important driving force for promoting world peace and development," said Zhao Shengliang, Secretary of the Party Committee of the Dunhuang Research Institute. Civilization is colorful through communication, and enriched through mutual learning. It is precisely with the ancient Silk Road that the East and the West embrace and open up to each other, which has created the magnificent scenery of a multicultural garden of flowers. At present, China's initiative of jointly building the "the Belt and Road" is advancing in the new era. The "way" of integration, which has lasted for thousands of years, is bringing far-reaching and positive impacts on trade exchanges and people to people connections between countries and regions along the "the Belt and Road". In mid October 2023, Russian businessman Agyev, who has been engaged in flower trade for over a decade, brought fresh cut roses from Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu Province back to Russia for the first time by land transportation. His rose order was transported by cold chain truck and passed through Alashankou to Hasa
Edit：Yi Jing Responsible editor：Li Nian
Source：XinhuaNet
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