Bao Zhenyu
Chinese culture has a long history and is diverse and integrated, and while always maintaining its unity, it also has diverse regional characteristics. The three major cultural circles of the Three Jins, Qilu and Chuyue have been basically formed in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, and have been continuously integrated and developed for thousands of years while maintaining distinct regional characteristics, fully embodying the affinity, centripetal force and cohesion of Chinese culture.
Thousands of miles apart, blood is linked. The core area of the Sanjin Cultural Circle is located north of the Yellow River. The core area of the Qilu Cultural Circle is the Shandong Peninsula. The core area of the Chuyue cultural circle is the Two Lakes and Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions south of the Yangtze River. The three cultural circles are located in the north and south of the world, thousands of miles apart, and even today, their regional cultures are very different. However, blood is thicker than water, and the core of the three cultural circles are all the princely states of the Zhou royal family that are divided into Ji surnames and meritorious heroes, and the blood connection and patriarchal status make the three major cultural circles have a mutual integration affinity from the beginning of their existence.
Map of the Spring and Autumn Warring States Period
The Jin state in the Three Jin Cultural Circles came from Shu Yu, the younger brother of King Cheng of Zhou, whose son was named Xie, and changed the name of the country to Jin, which was the Marquis of Jin. Yi Jiang is rumored to be the daughter of Jiang Ziya, the Duke of Qi, the wife of King Wu of Zhou, and the mother of Shu Yu. The State of Lu in the Qilu cultural circle is also a princely state with the surname Ji, from King Wu of Zhou's younger brother Zhou Gongdan. The State of Qi was from the Taigong Lü Shang Jiang Ziya, who was the maternal grandfather of Shu Yu. Although the State of Wu in the Chuyue cultural circle was far south of the Yangtze River, it was also a prince with the surname Ji. According to the "History of the Wu Taibo Family", Wu Taibo and his younger brother Zhongyong were both sons of King Tai of Zhou. In order to avoid the throne, the two gave up the throne to their younger brother, Ji Li, the father of King Wen of Zhou, far away from the land of Jing, called themselves Jurchen Wu, and with the support of the local tribes, established the state of Wu. King Houwu enfeoffed Taibo and Zhongyong's descendant Zhou Zhang in the State of Wu. He also enfeoffed Zhou Zhang's younger brother Yu Zhong (虞仲) in the northern Zhou kingdom of Yu. Xiong Xuan, the first monarch of the Chu state, was a minister of King Cheng of Zhou, with the surname of Qi, who was enfeoffed in Chu Man. His ancestors were from the grandson of the Yellow Emperor, Emperor Gaoyang, who also derived from the surname Ji. The ancestors of the Yue Kingdom were the descendants of Dayu and the sons of Emperor Shaokang of the Later Xia Dynasty, who were also of Chinese Miao descent.
Ma Qian of the Taishi Company once lamented: Yu read the spring and autumn ancient texts, but he knew the Chinese Yu and the Jingman sentence Wu brothers also. Although the similarity of blood did not prevent the various princely states from attacking each other for their own interests in the Spring and Autumn Warring States period, and there were even many examples of brothers and fathers and sons killing each other, the Yu kingdom, which was also a prince with the surname Ji, was destroyed by the Jin state. But the common bloodline does narrow the psychological distance between the various cultural circles that are geographically separated by mountains and rivers, making it possible to communicate and integrate between cultures. Since ancient times, Chinese culture has paid attention to the distinction between Yixia and Xia, taking Chinese culture as advanced and despising barbarians on all sides. According to the distance from the cultural and political center of the Yellow River Basin, the Shangshu Yugong divides the world into "five services": five hundred miles of "Dianfu", that is, Wang Qi; five hundred miles of "Houfu", that is, the territory of the princes; five hundred miles of "Suifu", which refers to the areas that have been appeased, that is, the border areas reached by Chinese culture; five hundred miles of "yaofu", that is, the foreign areas that have allied alliances; and five hundred miles of "deserted clothes", that is, uncivilized areas. Geographically, the Three Jins are in the core area of the "Five Costumes", while Qilu is located in the "Dongyi", and Chuyue is even more in the "Southern Man", with broken hair tattoos, which is already on the edge of the "Five Costumes". However, the kinship and patriarchal ties of the princely states such as Qilu Wuchu have made the Qilu culture, Chuyue culture and Sanjin culture all have the identity of Chinese culture, thus having the equal status of mutual exchange and integration. If at the Qilu Valley Meeting, Kong Qiu's performance of yiren Laiguo's music was not in accordance with the etiquette and the decency reflected the attitude of "disdain" culturally, the record of Jizha Guanle in the "Zuo Zhuan" shows that "Jingmanju Wu" already had the qualifications to communicate with the princes of the close service on an equal cultural footing.
He is a prince and has the world in mind. The formation, development and integration of the three major cultural circles in the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period were also inextricably linked to the political and military activities of the various princely states in the circle. Although the States of Qilu, Jin, Chu, Yue, and Wu were all vassal states divided by the Zhou Dynasty, they were not satisfied with feudal divisions and partial security, but had the ambition to dominate the world, actively carried out political, military, and diplomatic activities, and successively became hegemons. If the completion of the alliance of princes is used as a symbol of hegemony, the princes from the three major cultural circles, such as the Duke of Qi Huan, the Duke of Jin Wen, the Duke of Jin Xiang, the King of Chuzhuang, the Duke of Jinjing, the Duke of Jin Mourning, the Duke of Jin Ding, the Prince of Wu, and the Prince of Yue, have all become temporary overlords. Their hegemony laid the position and sphere of influence of the three major cultural circles in the Chinese cultural map, and the war for hegemony objectively promoted the cultural integration between different cultural circles.
The Jin state in the cultural circle of the Three Jin Dynasties dominated for the longest time in the Spring and Autumn Period, maintaining a hegemony for a hundred years. In 633 BC, King Cheng of Chu conquered the Song Dynasty. In the spring of the following year, Duke Wen of Jin allied with the States of Qi and Qin, defeated the Chu army at the Battle of Chengpu, and was crowned Hou Bo by King Xiang of Zhou in the Jiantuhui Alliance. After Wen Gong's hegemony, the Jin state successively experienced the Xianggong Continued Hegemony and the JingGong Fu Hegemony, and its hegemony reached its peak during the reign of Duke Mo (reigned 573-558 BC), dominating the Central Plains and becoming the absolute hegemon of the world. The cultural influence of jin hegemony was very far-reaching. Although the Jin Dynasty was eventually divided into three parts, the name of the Three Jins has been used throughout the ages, which shows its position in cultural history.
The State of Qi in the Qilu cultural circle was a feudal state of the Zhou royal family's chancellor, Lü Shang, who was given the right to conquest when he became king. Duke Huan of Qi (reigned 685 BC – 643 BC) appointed Guan Zhong as his chancellor, and initiated the honor of Wang Zhiyi, the prince of Jiuhe, and became the first overlord of the Spring and Autumn Period. The State of Lu was a feudal state of the Duke of Zhou, "the closest relative of Zhou is Mo Rulu, and the one who wears the wings of Lu is Mo Ru Zhou". He has a very high status among the princes, and is said to be the "leader of lu's squad". Although the State of Lu never claimed hegemony, it also actively participated in the hegemonic activities between the princely states.
The State of Chu in the Chu-Yue cultural circle successively competed with the State of Qi and the State of Jin for hegemony. In 598 BC, King Zhuang of Chu defeated the Jin army at Zhao (present-day Zhengzhou, Henan) and became the overlord and once conquered the Central Plains. Wu Guo, although living in a secluded place in Jingbaran, prides himself on being the head of the Zhou Room, and often has the ambition to dominate China with the whole Zhou Room. After defeating the State of Qi at the Battle of Ai Ling, Wu Wang Fuchai met with the princes at Huangchi in 482 BC and completed his hegemony. The Yue kingdom in the Chuyue cultural circle, its customs cut off tattoos, but also actively participated in the struggle for hegemony among the princes. After being defeated by the State of Wu, the King of Yue, after defeating Wu, took advantage of the situation to march north and allyed with the princes of Qi and Jin at Xuzhou, becoming the last overlord in the late Spring and Autumn Period.
In Mencius's view, there was no righteous war in the Spring and Autumn Period. However, most of the hegemonic activities of the princes were in the name of honoring the royal family and denouncing foreign countries. The national consciousness of the Yixia concept and the political tradition of pursuing unity have strengthened the centripetal force of Chinese culture. The frequent diplomacy, wars and alliance activities of the princes in the process of competing for hegemony have also enabled regional cultures to achieve cross-circle exchanges and integration in the fierce collision.
The benefits of the colonization of goods, the existence or absence of trade. The development of the commodity economy during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period promoted cross-regional trade between different cultural circles, provided an important economic foundation for the exchange and integration of regional cultures, and enhanced the cohesion of Chinese culture. Under the conditions of a completely self-sufficient agricultural economy, "the sounds of chickens and dogs are heard, the people are willing to eat, they are beautiful, they are at peace with their customs, they enjoy their work, and they do not interact with each other until they are old and dead", and it is more difficult to promote cultural exchanges between regions. Sima Qian criticized Lao Tzu's idea of a small country and a widow in his "Chronicle of The Chronicle of Cargo Breeding", pointing out that "if we must use this as a task, we will save the eyes and ears of the people in the recent world, and there will be almost nothing to do."
In order to enrich the country and strengthen the army, the various princely states of the Spring and Autumn Warring States have one after another pursued a policy of heavy commerce, encouraged trade, and used everything they could to meet the needs of the people in their own regions for production and life. In 651 BC, the Duke of Qi Huan and the princes met at Kuiqiu, and two of the five covenants were related to transnational trade: "respect for the elderly and the young, no forgetting the guest brigade", "no bend defense, no curbs, no seals and no notices", proposing to protect merchants and not restrict grain trade. Later, trade promotion policies were proposed to reduce commercial taxes, tariffs, build and maintain roads, and unify weights and measures.
Spring and Autumn Warring States Period Market Map
Trade between the three major cultural circles is very frequent. The "Zuo Zhuan" says: "Although Chu has materials, Jin is practical", indicating that there is a long tradition of trade between the two major cultural circles of the Three Jins and Chu yue. The inscriptions of the two bronze vessels of the Jin Dynasty And the Rongsheng Chimes record a large-scale trade activity between the Jin and Chu states in the sixth year of the Jin Dynasty, that is, in 740 BC. According to relevant commentaries, the Jin Jiang Ding inscription "Jia Shu I Tin Halogen Accumulation Thousand Vehicles" refers to the 1,000 large trucks of salt given by the Jin Dynasty, and the Rongsheng chime inscription "Jia Shu Halogen" also refers to the use of salt for trade. The place of trade was in "Fantang", that is, Fanyang, north of Xincai in Henan. The purpose of this trade was to "take the gold", that is, to exchange salt for copper. Both the Jin Jiang Ding and the Rong Sheng Chimes were cast from the copper obtained from this trade. The Guan Zi (管子· Light and Heavy E) records a trade between Qi and Chu: Qi Huangong listened to Guan Zhong's advice to "buy raw deer for the city of a hundred miles, so that chu can buy raw deer." Chu Sheng Deer dang one and eighty thousand... The Chu people immediately released their cultivators and fielded deer." Although the Qi people buying deer is a trade war ploy, it also fully demonstrates the close trade relationship between the Chuyue cultural circle and the Qilu cultural circle. After king Gou of Yue destroyed the state of Wu, the great hero Fan Ligong retired, changed his name to Zhu Gong, and engaged in business in Tao (present-day Dingtao District, Heze, Shandong Province). "History of Cargo Colonization": "Zhu Gong thought that in the tao world, the princes were in four directions, and the goods were also traded. Naiji's accumulation of property... Therefore, the rich are called Tao Zhugong. ”
The trade exchanges that originated from the production and material needs of the Chinese people have a spontaneous driving force, "if the water is falling, day and night, it will come without being called." It not only provided the necessary economic foundation for the cultural development of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, but also greatly promoted the development of cities and transportation, and greatly strengthened the exchanges between different cultural circles.
The greatest of the rivers runs from north to south. China has a vast territory and dangerous mountains and rivers. The mountains and rivers between different cultural circles have formed a distinctive regional culture, but it has also become an obstacle to cultural exchanges in different regions. The three major cultural circles of the Three Jins, Qilu and Chuyue run through the four major basins of the Yellow River, Huai River, Yangtze River and Qiantang River on the mainland, and these rivers are all east-west. This makes the north-south traffic not only unable to enjoy the benefits of the boat, but also subject to the natural barriers of rivers and rivers, which cannot be accessed by land alone. The artificially excavated canal has become an important traffic hole.
Schematic diagram of Wu Han ditch in spring and autumn
"Zuo Chuan, Nine Years of The Duke of Lai": "Autumn, Wu Chenghan, communicate with Jiang and Huai." In 486 BC, in order to go north to compete with the State of Qi for hegemony, Wu Wang Fuchai built Hancheng (near present-day Shugang, Yangzhou, Jiangsu), dug a ditch under Hancheng, and used natural lakes such as Sheyang Lake to communicate with the Yangtze river and the Huai River. This is the earliest canal on the mainland to be clearly documented. In the thirteenth year of the Duke of Lu'ai, in 482 BC, Wu Wang Fuchai dug a canal between Shanglu and Lu in order to take a boat to Huangchi to ally with the Jin Dynasty. According to the "Chinese Wu Language": "Wu Wang Fuchai killed Shen Xu, not at the age of old, but began to march north." Que is a deep ditch, which is connected between Shang and Lu. During the Warring States period, the State of Wei rebuilt deep ditches. The two sections of the canal run through the huaiji river and the four dudus, and became the main line of north-south traffic during the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period. The excavation of the canal facilitated transportation and promoted the economic and cultural development of the areas along the route. Fan Li's pottery, which was traded, was located at the confluence of Deep Ditch and Jishui, and became a major economic center during the Warring States period.
There are many canals dug during the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period. The Book of Rivers and Canals records the chasm, chu canal, Wu canal, Qi canal, and Shu canal. The waterway network formed by these canals facilitates cultural exchanges between regions. There is no shortage of controversy in the academic community as to whether Hangou is the earliest canal in China. Within the three major cultural circles, there is no shortage of urban canals and local canals excavated earlier. However, the Grand Canal with Hangou as the starting point, so called the Great, is precisely because it promotes the mutual traffic between the three major cultural circles of the Three Jins, Qilu and Chuyue, and promotes the development and integration of Chinese culture.
Source: Learning Times (03/03/01/2022)