Babel Tower, located in Shaoguan City, south of the city of Hunwu two-water confluence on Zhouxin Island. Feng Shui Tower. The original pagoda was destroyed during the Xianfeng period of the Qing Dynasty, and the current pagoda was completed in 2012.
Illustration of The Chronicle of Shaozhou Prefecture
The "Chronicle of Shaozhou Prefecture" says: The Tower of Babel is located "at the confluence of the Chengnan and Wu'er rivers", that is, on the island of present-day Zhouxin. The pagoda was built in the 25th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1546 AD) and rebuilt in the 31st year of the Ming Yong Calendar (1677 AD).
Chen Dalun, the governor of Shaozhou during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, was diligent in his administration and loved the people and also had some research on feng shui, and found that since the Song Dynasty, Shaozhou had never produced a Beijing official, hoping that Shaozhou would produce talents like Zhang Jiuling and Yu Jing for generations. One day, when he climbed the south gate tower of Shaocheng to watch the celestial phenomenon, he found that the rapids of the Xun River and the Wu River were moving south, taking away the Wenyun aura of Shaozhou, so he proposed to build a stone pagoda at the confluence of the two hydrates in Shaozhou to make a barrier and leave the Wenyun of Shaozhou in Shaoguan. His proposal was endorsed by the squires and the people at the time, calling the move "exquisite for Shao Qianshi Liyou". In 1546 AD, the stone pagoda was built and named "Babel Tower". Because the construction quality of the tower body and the base of the surrounding embankment is very strong, "the water comes and goes, it is urgent and slow, called the middle of the pillar". In the Ming and Qing dynasties, many literati and ink writers sang and left many good sentences, including the old "Chronicle of Qujiang County" and the "Chronicle of Shaozhou Prefecture". Therefore, it later became the old twenty-four scenes of the Qujiang River, called "The Shadow of the Tower of the Middle Stream".
The Tower of Babel was "destroyed by the Hong Bandits" in the fourth year of Xianfeng (1854) of the Qing Dynasty, and the so-called "Hong Bandits" refers to the Taiping Army led by Hong Xiuquan in the peasant uprising.
The former island was not rebuilt
At the end of 2010, the Shaoguan Municipal CPPCC officially put forward the "Proposal on Rebuilding the Baotian Pagoda of Zhouxin Island", which was endorsed by the Shaoguan Municipal Party Committee and the Municipal Government. In 2011, the Shaoguan Municipal Urban Management Bureau held a seminar on the reconstruction of the "Babel Tower", which was unanimously approved. Completed in September 2012.
Babel Tower
Ascend to the Tower of Babel
Jade shoots floating river shadow backwards, pushing Pengpeng willow system Cangzhou;
Cui Wei divided the blue sky and half, and looked at the gold and low green tree head.
Silk moss imitates ancient jie, frequently frightened ants and forgotten gulls;
According to the long shu roar of the clouds, the skyline rivers and mountains bring evening sorrow.
--Ming Xiaoyuan
appendix:
Rebuild the Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel was built in the 25th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1546 AD), when Chen Dalun, the governor of Shaozhou, responded to the wishes of the gentry and people of the township, blocked the water and embankment, changed sand and stone, and built the tower in Yusi. The two waters of the Xun River and the Wu River are arched and embraced, showing the trend of the source of the left and right; the lotus and furong mountains stand on the two mountains, forming the shape of an east-west guard. Watch the beijiang fishing fire at night, and listen to the bells. Most of the rioters will be here, hanging on the fence and waving at the scenery. Since then, the literary style has become increasingly popular, kejia has been revitalized, inheriting the legacy of the Tang and Song dynasties, and passing on the good stories of a hundred years. After two subsequent repairs, Pan Gongshu plaque is in front and Liao Yan's inscription poem is in the back. "Zhongliu Pagoda Shadow" is listed in the "Twenty-four Views of Qujiang River" and has been famous for more than 300 years.
However, the vicissitudes of the world, who expected the ups and downs? In the fourth year of Qing Xianfeng (1854 AD), the ancient city was robbed by soldiers, and the pagoda was destroyed in the war. Since then, the isolated island has been deserted, the broken walls have withered, the cold smoke has faded and the grass has faded, and the water and sky have remained. Later generations have repeatedly moved the idea of re-cultivation, but they have not seen the practice of strength, and the scenery of the past has finally become an old memory.
In the past thirty years of reform and opening up, the world has been renovated and the world has changed its appearance. The momentum of economic development is advancing sharply, and the call for cultural revitalization is getting higher and higher. The administrators listened to the opinions of the people, complied with the will of the people, made decisions to build a famous cultural city, and carried out the grand task of restoring the historical landscape. The Tower was rebuilt in July 2011 and completed in September 2012.
The construction of the new tower, following the style of song and Ming, skillfully blends modern elements, cornices and angles, green tiles and beams, simple and simple shapes, and new ancient rhymes. The nine-story tower points directly at the clouds and soars the arrogance of the nine clouds; the eight-sided cloister looks around the landscape and opens the mind of the eight directions. The plaque in the tower is hanging high, the poems are displayed, and the saints of the sages are looked up, and the traces of the predecessors are found. The peaks outside the tower are green, the waves are blue, the cold and summer of one year old, and the wind and moon of the four hours. Ascend to a high level and feel relaxed. Distant mountains are like Dai, exhibiting thousands of miles of pictures, praising the magnificence of the rivers and mountains; the long river is like a practice, carrying thousands of years of flowing water, and deeply feeling the length of history. The spring tide chases the waves, the hundreds of boats compete for the current, bursting with infinite vitality; the autumn trees contain smoke, and all things compete to show off, highlighting the infinite vitality. The scenery of the Shunji Xiang Ancestral Hall is long, and the aura of Zen Sound Buddha Rhyme is eternal. Visitors can enjoy the new appearance of Lingnan Ancient Yi and experience the purity of Shaozhou culture.
With the completion of the Babel Tower, the monuments are reproduced, the lack of scenery is re-rounded, the context of history is continued, and the connotation of the city is enriched. Humanities are rising, and tourism is winning. Thousands of merits, good deeds. (The Inscription on the Reconstruction of the Tower of Babel by Deng Xihuang)
Some of the pictures and texts are excerpted from the Internet, and the copyright belongs to the original author