In fact, there is no transcendent relationship between Western civilization and Eastern civilization, in ancient times, the two belonged to a two-line parallel relationship, similar to parallel lines, common development, no intersection.
China is known for five thousand years, but according to Western rules, Chinese civilization is only more than 3,000 years old, and the rest of the historical records are not supported by relevant archaeological relics, nor have they formed a systematic script.
Fusion of Eastern and Western civilizations
If we really want to follow the western standards, the origin of eastern civilization is still lagging behind Western civilization, so it is impossible to talk about who surpasses whom. Compared with saying that "modern Western civilization has surpassed Eastern civilization", I am more accepting of "the stage of integration of modern Western civilization and Eastern civilization".
Perhaps you think that there are countless "foreign cultures" in modern China, under the impact of such "Western civilization", China has begun to "Westernize", and some traditional things are slowly lost, which is a phenomenon in which Eastern civilization retreats and Western civilization transcends.
In fact, this is not the case, in ancient China, the geographical location is very special, there is desert and next door as a natural barrier in the west, and there is a vast ocean in the east to block everything, such a geographical environment gives a hotbed for the development of eastern civilization and blocks the entry of foreign civilizations.
With the change of the times, the development of science and technology, such a "natural barrier" has lost the effect of blocking, people gradually began to cross such a local environment, so the West ushered in a period of rapid development, the era of great navigation coupled with colonization, so that the Western powers developed rapidly.
In fact, during the Ming Dynasty in China, China's development situation was still not backward in the world, but the feudal society's long-term closed country, forbidden sea and other strategies, so that they reduced communication with the outside world, which led to a gradual decline. This point is most obvious in the Qing Dynasty, because during the Qing Dynasty in China, the development of the West was the most rapid, which surprised the Rulers of the Qing Dynasty when the Western powers knocked on the door of the country, and they were surprised in their hearts, and we who were originally the Heavenly Dynasty were already vulnerable at this moment.
After the entry of Western civilization, there was a fierce collision with Eastern civilization, in this collision, in order to pursue advanced technology, Chinese began to learn a lot of Western technology, and at the same time, began to accept Western culture.
In fact, in this process of the integration of Eastern and Western civilizations, it is not only we who absorb Western culture, but also the West that continues to absorb Eastern culture.
Today, there are Chinatowns all over the world, they are the representatives and propagators of Eastern civilization, and their large-scale existence is the manifestation of the West's acceptance of Eastern civilization.
Civilization rotation
From another point of view, in fact, the place where civilization is strong has the way of reincarnation.
From the Spring and Autumn Period onwards, Guan Zhongxiangqi and Zun Wang Yi made Qi Huan reign supreme for a while, and then to the rotational hegemony of Jin, Chu, Wu, and Yue, and the entire Spring and Autumn Period was not always a monopoly, but a rotational hegemony.
By the Warring States period, the State of Wei and the State of Zhao were dominant, and for a time the scenery was unlimited, and then the State of Qin rose, surpassing the princes by virtue of the county system, and with the last blow of qin Shi Huang's reign, unified the world and completed the great integration.
It is a migration process from east to west, with the azimuth of the center of rights constantly changing, as if it were a moving cursor, rotating over time.
Xiang Yu and the Han King's struggle for hegemony is actually the hegemony between the southeast and the northwest, and finally the northwest wins. Such a situation is not uncommon, and it is also extremely common in Chinese history.
Let's broaden our horizons and take the apex of strength from a global perspective. Eastern and Western civilizations did not communicate at first, and such a struggle for the apex of power was transferred within the confines of their respective civilizations.
With the advent of the era of western navigation, the West ushered in a great development, the East refused to communicate with the outside world, at this time, the balance of strength gradually began to flow to the West, in modern times, the West ushered in a period of strong point, after the integration and collision of Eastern and Western civilizations, such a strong peak began to flow in the scope of the world.
In the period of World War II, the peak of western strength has begun to turn, from the founding of New China, a new round of circulation officially began, the peak of strength began to leave the West, and gradually returned to the East, and now the representative of Eastern civilization China is even more leaps and bounds, from high-speed rail leading the world, to 5G leading technology, these are the manifestations of the eastward shift of the peak of strength.
The statement that Western civilization surpasses Eastern civilization is inaccurate, because the peak of strength is that it will change with time, ancient Eastern and Western civilizations developed in parallel, and modern times belong to the West to occupy a stronger position, now and in the future, I am afraid that the East will be higher.