Jishan Jian Shui Xiu Wen Hua - Decoding the Cultural Confidence Sample of Shaoxing, a Water Town Ancient City
2024-09-20
Shaoxing, Zhejiang, formerly known as Kuaiji. On the map of Chinese culture, Kuaiji Mountain and Jianhu Lake are distinct cultural symbols in the writings of literati. This is the hometown of literati who are full of knowledge and have a broad vision for the world, the poetry and painting water town of old streets and small bridges, green mountains and beautiful waters, or the modern Jiangnan that adapts to the layout of emerging industries. Old Shaoxing is even more prosperous now. With firm cultural confidence and the continuation of historical context, Shaoxing, a historic and cultural city, is shining brightly in the new era. A "museum without walls" stands on the top of Kuaiji Mountain in the southeast of Shaoxing City, with a bronze sculpture up to 20 meters high. Da Yu, holding a hoe in his hand, had a burning gaze and stood tall with a humble posture, overlooking the water. During the Grain Rain season, Shaoxing holds a grand ceremony at the Dayu Mausoleum Sacrificial Square, beating drums and bells, offering wine as a tribute to this Chinese ancestor who left behind many legends and spiritual strength in the local area. Since the founding of the state of Yue here in 490 BC, the city site of Shaoxing has remained unchanged. For over 2500 years, the gathering of talented individuals has filled this place with a thriving cultural vitality. In the third month of the lunar calendar in the ninth year of Yonghe of Emperor Mu of Eastern Jin, at the Lanting in the mountains of Kuaiji, Wang Xizhi spontaneously wrote the "Preface to the Lanting Collection," which is known as the "number one cursive script in the world." This grand ceremony of sacrificial rites has been recorded in history. Famous scholar Xie Anyin resides on Dongshan Mountain in Kuaiji; Wang Yangming's Neo Confucianism sprouted and spread in the ancient city of Shaoxing; Lu You, Xu Wei, Lu Xun, Cai Yuanpei, Zhu Kezhen, and others grew up here... On the banks of the White Horse Lake and at the foot of Elephant Mountain, the sound of books from Chunhui Middle School resounds. Li Shutong, Feng Zikai, Zhu Ziqing, Zhu Guangqian and others have given lectures here... The literary stars are brilliant, and a large number of celebrities and sages have left cultural imprints in Shaoxing, engraving historical context into the urban fabric. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that "urban historical and cultural relics are the accumulation of wisdom from predecessors and an important symbol of urban connotation, quality, and characteristics." "We must properly handle the relationship between protection and development, and pay attention to continuing the historical context of the city. For many years, Shaoxing has been committed to protecting ancient buildings and residences, preserving cultural memories, and preserving and inheriting this' museum without walls'. Cangqiao Zhijie is located in the center of Shaoxing city and is a historical block characterized by the ancient city style and traditional urban living culture. With the passage of time, by the beginning of this century, the old houses in this neighborhood were dilapidated and the facilities were outdated. In 2003, the Cangqiao Straight Street block was renovated, and more than 800 households and 43 important platform buildings were preserved. In September of that year, Cangqiao Zhijie was awarded the UNESCO Asia Pacific Cultural Heritage Protection Excellence Award. Zhong Huahua, former director of the Shaoxing City Urban Construction Commission, recalled: "At that time, Shaoxing proposed that the original residents of the old street should not move out unless necessary, in order to improve people's livelihoods while protecting the historical style of the old street, and to inherit the roots and soul of the old block in a lively way. Today, there are 167 museums of various types in Shaoxing, and people can 'follow the textbooks to visit Shaoxing'. In recent years, Shaoxing has launched cultural and tourism consumption brand activities such as "Four Seasons of Good Scenery in Rural Areas", and created ten classic study tour routes in the "Museum City". In 2023, the city's reception of tourists and total tourism revenue both reached a historic high. As the saying goes, 'Those who are not new every day must retire every day.' Continuing cultural heritage requires passing on the torch from generation to generation, as well as adapting to the times and innovating. The "dialogue" between Lu Xun and world-renowned literary giants such as Hugo, Tolstoy, Tagore, Dante, etc. across time and space has attracted widespread attention from literary youth at home and abroad, affecting an audience of about one million people. Since 2014, the "Master Dialogue" event organized by Shaoxing Innovation Organization has been held for eleven sessions. Literature is a universal language, and through this bridge, we can better inherit and promote the culture and spirit of Lu Xun Ding Ruxing, member of the Standing Committee of the Shaoxing Municipal Party Committee and Minister of the Propaganda Department, said. In Shengzhou, Shaoxing, known as the "hometown of Yue opera", almost everyone can sing a few segments of Yue opera. At present, there are 117 locally registered private Yue opera troupes with over 8000 employees. By building theaters and organizing competitions, Shengzhou continuously creates conditions to support the inheritance and innovation of Yue Opera culture, and its integration into the daily lives of the people. Strengthen protection and consciously inherit due to identification. Entering a new era, cultural elements such as Shaoxing opera, calligraphy, and Song Dynasty architecture have shown new vitality, demonstrating the subtle and silent power of moistening things. A Grand Canal that nourishes all industries "connects peaks and rivers." On the ancient canal in eastern Zhejiang, tourists can enjoy the scenery of the ancient city and feel the beauty of the fusion of history and modernity by rowing boats. In September 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized during his inspection of the Zhejiang East Canal Cultural Park that efforts should be made to protect, inherit, and utilize the ancient Grand Canal, so as to give it a new look of the times. The Zhedong Canal originated from the Shanyin Ancient Waterway during the Spring and Autumn Period, and entered its heyday of providing assistance to the world during the Tang and Song Dynasties. As a passage between the Beijing Hangzhou Grand Canal and the Maritime Silk Road, the Zhejiang East Canal flows eastward into the sea, nourishing Shaoxing and Ningbo along the way. Using water systems as a medium, Shaoxing's commercial and cultural heritage has lasted for thousands of years. Nowadays, Shaoxing's commerce has reached the world. Keqiao, known as the "International Textile Capital," is a global textile distribution center with an annual textile export value exceeding 100 billion yuan and trade covering more than 190 countries and regions worldwide; Zhuji Datang Town produces 25 billion pairs of socks annually, accounting for over 70% of the national output and one-third of the global output... Silk is a clothing fabric and also a cultural carrier. In Shaoxing, the textile industry continues to deepen its cultivation and expand upstream and downstream. In ancient times, there were seasons for sericulture farmers and no idle people in the fields. Nowadays, in Mosang High tech Co., Ltd. in Shengzhou, the sericulture digital agriculture factory operates 24/7, with an annual production capacity of over 47000 tons of fresh cocoons. By 2023, the output value of silkworm cocoons will exceed 1 billion yuan. Just as culture continues to flourish, the ancient city's various industries that thrive on the water are also enduring through inheritance and innovation. Drawing inspiration from the lake water in front of the door, brewing Shaoxing wine with a thousand mile fragrance "- Huangjiu, originated from Chinese brewing, and Shaoxing Huangjiu is the most classic. In 1915, Shaoxing Huangjiu won the gold medal at the Panama Pacific International Exposition and became famous throughout the world. Walking into Shaoxing Huangjiu Town, the aroma of wine wafts through your face. At the music bar, post-2000s tourist Zhu Haiyang and his friends enjoyed a Huangjiu cocktail while listening to live performances by folk singers, experiencing the pleasure of drinking and getting slightly tipsy. Making the Huangjiu industry last longer is not only a respect for history, but also an investment in the future The person in charge of Zhejiang Traditional Shaoxing Huangjiu Science Research Institute stated that Shaoxing focuses on industry university research cooperation and actively explores the innovative development path of the Huangjiu industry. Huangjiu, tea, silk, porcelain... On both sides of the Zhejiang East Canal, these "old objects" have witnessed countless prosperity and changes. Today, the industry that has been passed down for thousands of years still radiates vitality, demonstrating strong vitality and innovation, and has become an important force leading Shaoxing's commercial and cultural prosperity. In July 2024, four important achievements were announced at the important progress work conference of the "Archaeological China" major project, among which the Jizhong Site in Shaoxing was listed. This archaeological discovery has provided new evidence for the historical records of King Goujian of Yue. The story of King Goujian of Yue, who eventually became a hegemon, inspired future generations and gave birth to the "spirit of courage and sword" in Shaoxing, which embodies the spirit of perseverance, perseverance, courage, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Shaoxing is known for its music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, which are as warm as water; Hard work and perseverance, daring to explore and fight, are what Shaoxing is all about. Since the reform and opening up, Shaoxing people have been brave in innovation and daring to be the first, from the "Fengqiao experience" of grassroots governance to the "four thousand spirit" of Vietnamese business entrepreneurship, from the leading professional market to the well-known "block economy", from the first enterprise restructuring to the number of listed companies exceeding 100, and the drive to strive for excellence has turned this "resource small market" into an "economic big market". Today's Shaoxing draws spiritual inspiration from its profound historical and cultural heritage, and strives to compose a new era's "Brave Sword Chapter". As a major hub of the real economy in Zhejiang, Shaoxing's printing and dyeing, chemical and other industries used to stand out, but the traditional development path has hit the "ceiling", with prominent bottlenecks in ecological protection, energy efficiency and other aspects. Faced with challenges, in 2017, Shaoxing made up its mind to launch reforms, promote comprehensive industrial governance, integrate and reshape the city's industrial spatial pattern, support the emergence of local integrated circuit industry platforms, and rapidly gather and grow a number of leading enterprises in Shaoxing, with outstanding development potential. In the first half of 2024, the gross domestic product of Shaoxing city increased by 7.0% year-on-year, ranking first in Zhejiang Province in terms of growth rate. Accelerate the construction of a high-quality and efficient reform leading city, further innovate and deepen the ten major tough actions such as the "People's Diary" in the new era, 18 special actions for building a business environment, promote 42 national level pilot projects and 121 provincial-level pilot projects in Zhejiang... Shaoxing is competing for achievements in inheriting the "spirit of courage and sword" and striving for excellence in reform and innovation. Affected by the global economic downturn, the pearl industry in Zhuji experienced a period of sluggish development; In recent years, the local area has seized the opportunity of live streaming e-commerce and explored new markets. By 2023, the pearl trading volume in Zhuji will exceed 50 billion yuan. Based on our core business, maintaining determination, and continuous innovation, the Zhuji pearl industry has accelerated its growth and development in adversity, "said Ruan Tiejun, the leading pearl enterprise in Zhuji and chairman of Zhejiang Ruanshi Pearl Co., Ltd. Ji Shan Jian Shui, with melodious literary charm. The famous counties of Yuedu, the millennium Song Dynasty charm, and the charm of Jiangnan have jointly created the unique style of Shaoxing city. Nowadays, Shaoxing continues to draw new nutrients from the brilliance of the times, with a continuous and thriving cultural heritage. (New Society)
Edit：He Chuanning Responsible editor：Su Suiyue
Source：Xinhua
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